Parking Update

John Draper

A report on Cobourg News Blog on May 12 described the major changes coming to Cobourg with parking.  Waterfront parking, downtown parking and winter parking were all changed.  But since there were so many changes, there was a degree of uncertainty, especially about overnight parking.  When the by-Law was finally approved at the Regular Council Meeting on May 16, some text changes were made to clarify the revisions.  The changes were mostly to do with Winter parking – a map was added to show which streets had a ban on overnight parking and a new appendix (PP) listed which streets banned any winter parking. Winter is defined as “November 1 to March 31” and overnight is “between 2:00 am and 7:00… Read complete articleParking Update

Candidates on Environment and Sustainability

John Draper

This issue gets the attention of all levels of Government – no doubt because voters are concerned.  I asked all candidates in the upcoming Provincial election: What are your policies on the Environment and Sustainability? and they all responded. They all agreed that action is needed and most have specific ideas although general policies get some attention too. This is the third question in the series of four – the next question is: How will you ensure Seniors get good Long Term Care? This is scheduled for publication on May 23. Meanwhile advanced voting has started – you can get details from the voting information card you should already have received from Elections Ontario or from the Cobourg Internet Information… Read complete articleCandidates on Environment and Sustainability

Cobourg makes On-Demand Transit Permanent

John Draper

In December 2020, Council approved a pilot of an On-Demand Transit system to replace the existing fixed route system and at the Regular Council meeting on May 16, Council approved ongoing use of the On-Demand system.  This combines the existing On-Demand Wheels system for disabled users and will soon use three smaller (8 m – 26 ft) buses which will provide service for both Wheels and regular Transit users.  This requires purchase of two new buses like the existing Wheels Bus but Government grants reduce Cobourg’s cost (more below). Council debated changes to service hours but in the end, voted to stop service at 9:00 pm instead of 10:00 pm.  A second suggestion to reduce phone-in time from 10:00 pm… Read complete articleCobourg makes On-Demand Transit Permanent

Affordable Housing Question

John Draper

All six candidates were asked: “How will you make Housing more affordable?”  The term “affordable housing” is open to interpretation – does it mean that 100% of the population should be able to afford to buy a house or that no-one should have to pay more than (say) 30% of the income for housing or does it mean something else?  Whatever the interpretation, there’s no doubt that the resale price of housing in Cobourg is beyond the reach of many and rental rates are steadily increasing.  Is the problem “supply” or something else?  And what, if anything, should governments do about it?  It’s certainly a contentious issue and all candidates and their parties have solutions. Note that the sequence for… Read complete articleAffordable Housing Question

Campaign to reduce animal bites

John Draper

The Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit is concerned about the number of animal bite/scratch incidents in their region. In each of the last three years, the HKPR DHU has investigated more than 600 animal bite/scratch incidents and this is “worrying given the rabies-exposure risk, the trauma suffered by the victim, and the fact that most of these bites involve pets or domestic animals.”  The idea of the campaign is to ask dog owners (and other pet owners) to use “a yellow ribbon (or bandana, bow or similar marker) tied on a dog’s leash or collar to remind people to give the animal space.”  So if you see a pet with a yellow ribbon – give it space!  It… Read complete articleCampaign to reduce animal bites

Election Candidate Responses on Health

John Draper

The deadline at Elections Ontario has now passed to apply to be a Candidate in the upcoming Provincial Election and there are six candidates. I asked all six four questions with the first question being “What are your Policies to improve the Province’s Health System?” All six responded. There is a limit of 250 words per response – some used all 250 while others were more succinct. It’s clearly a question of interest since each candidate (or party) has something to say. Note that for official information on eligibility to vote and voting locations (when known), see the official site of Elections Ontario – advanced voting starts May 19. (See Resources below). The sequence of responses below will vary with… Read complete articleElection Candidate Responses on Health

Major Changes in Parking By-Law

John Draper

Cobourg Council are on the way to approving major changes in parking across the Town.  There are major fee increases at the area near the waterfront and smaller ones downtown. But there are also changes that affect residential streets which will empower by-law enforcement and Police to act on complaints by residents on what I would call nuisance parking. These changes have been discussed for some time – mostly in connection with problems with parking by visitors to the Beach. The public were consulted, the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee were consulted and Staff did considerable work coming up with the changes. At the Committee of the Whole meeting on Monday May 9, a draft by-law was approved and is expected to get… Read complete articleMajor Changes in Parking By-Law

Questions for Provincial Election Candidates

John Draper

To help subscribers to Cobourg News Blog decide on who to vote for, I have asked all candidates four key questions.  Starting on May 14 and continuing for about 10 days, I will publish their answers and you will be able to assess their policies.  To keep it fair, the length of each answer will be limited to 250 words and each post will cover just one topic.  In the event a candidate does not respond by the deadline, I will instead publish my best effort on determining their party’s policy on the subject.  In addition to looking for these posts in the next two weeks, there are at least two all Candidate meetings where you can put your own questions… Read complete articleQuestions for Provincial Election Candidates