Covid-19 Outbreak at Hospital

John Draper

Today Northumberland Hills Hospital said that “The number of admitted patients at Northumberland Hills Hospital (NHH) continues to rise as case counts increase in the region.”  Susan Walsh, President and CEO of NHH said: “Sadly, COVID-19 has not gone away.”  The Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit (HKPRDHU) keeps track of outbreaks in high risk settings and one of the 11 Outbreaks in the region is NHH. Three of the Outbreaks are in Cobourg – see list below.  According to HKPR, the count of cases in Cobourg is 8 but the Hospital says that “We currently have eleven admitted patients confirmed positive for COVID-19. Some are here because of COVID-19, some came to hospital for other reasons but were found… Read complete articleCovid-19 Outbreak at Hospital

Slow News Week in Cobourg

John Draper

With fewer Council meetings in the summer and many people taking time off, news is often slow this time of year.  There’s an election coming up but so far there have not been many who have filed as candidates (details below).  Covid is still a threat but there are no lockdowns (details below) – it’s now treated much like regular flu.  The County has some surveys but Cobourg only has its long running survey on Brookside.  The good news is that the Entertainment choices are improving although you might have noticed that we did not have the usual Sandcastle competition this weekend.  Also, Rainbow Cinemas are operating on a reduced schedule – now only five days per week and two… Read complete articleSlow News Week in Cobourg

Monkey Pox in Northumberland

John Draper

Although the risk is low, it’s a bit scary after our experience with Covid-19. On Wednesday, July 27, the Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit (HKPR District Health Unit) reported the first lab-confirmed case of the Monkeypox virus in the region. It involves a resident from Northumberland County (no indication whether it’s in Cobourg). The person with the virus is “currently recovering and in isolation”. Also, “the HKPR District Health Unit has also completed follow-up with this individual and has contacted anyone else who may have had close contact with this case, including those who may require vaccination against the virus.” Dr. Natalie Bocking, Medical Officer of Health said that “we are notifying and following up with all close… Read complete articleMonkey Pox in Northumberland

Holdco and Lakefront Utilities Report

John Draper

On Tuesday at 2:00 pm, Cobourg Council had a special meeting to hear a report from Holdco and its subsidiaries (Lakefront  Utilities Inc – LUI – and Lakefront Services Inc – LUSI) on how they are doing. The new chair of Holdco, David Tsubouchi, spoke strongly about the need for better governance and is putting procedures in place to make sure that happens.  This was the only thing that needed significant fixing – all other measurements and performance factors were positive and councillors asked few questions.  LUI chair Gil Brocanier reported that reliability is good and getting better (more below) and that businesses want reliability and are attracted to Cobourg by reliable electricity.  Gil said that only 25% of a… Read complete articleHoldco and Lakefront Utilities Report

County Debates Affordable Housing

John Draper

Cobourg Council recently seemed to catch on that homelessness and affordable housing are a County responsibility.  One action that came out of the recent Special Council Meeting on homelessness was that two councillors (Nicole Beatty and Aaron Burchat) would make a presentation to the relevant County Committee and then to the full County Council.  This happened at the County Council meeting on July 20.  The County does not record their meetings and I did not watch it live, however, you can see the Agenda item (see resources below). Also, 93.3 News reported that in response to a suggestion to use existing buildings, “Deputy Warden Mandy Martin pointed out that the buildings were abandoned for good reason – often because making… Read complete articleCounty Debates Affordable Housing

Town Experiencing Staff Shortage

John Draper

It’s not just businesses that are short of staff and experiencing high turnover, it’s also the Town of Cobourg. Looking at the Town’s web site Job Opportunities page, there are four management positions and six temporary or part-time positions. In addition, at Monday’s Council meeting, Planning Coordinator Councillor Nicole Beatty, announced that 3 planning staff are leaving – including Dave Johnson (Planner 1, Heritage). Two of the Management positions stand-out: Dan Taylor was only recently recruited as the Manager of Economic Development but he has left and a replacement is being recruited. The Manager of Planning is described as two possible jobs: either “Development Review” or “Long-Range Planning” – both are needed. The current manager of Planning, Rob Franklin, has… Read complete articleTown Experiencing Staff Shortage

Cobourg Confirms Urban Status

John Draper

At the Committee of the Whole (CoW) meeting on June 20,  Aliyyah Phady made a delegation to Council asking that she be allowed to continue keeping 3 Miniature Bantam chickens in her back yard at 304 Tweed Street despite the Town’s By-Laws prohibiting this.  She said the 7 year old chickens had only a little time left to live.  Staff has already extended the time to comply by 30 days.  Council asked staff to report and provide options and this was done at the CoW meeting on July 11.  Option 1 was to give a further extension, Option 2 was to change the By-Law to allow chickens and Option 3 was the status quo.  Also at the same July 11… Read complete articleCobourg Confirms Urban Status

Fire Damage to 93 Albert Required it to be Demolished

John Draper

On Friday July 15, there were two fires in Cobourg in houses up for sale (see reports by Today’s Northumberland in Resources below).  One was at 93 Albert whose owners were recently before Council asking for permission to demolish.  Staff had recommended demolition but some councillors (led by Emily Chorley and Nicole Beatty) felt that the building should be preserved for its heritage value and that it was simply a matter that it was not economic. The building had been abandoned since 2000 so it was described as being demolished by neglect – but Emily and Nicole were determined that the owners would not get away with this (even though the current owners only recently acquired the property). Mayor John… Read complete articleFire Damage to 93 Albert Required it to be Demolished