Transit Hours to be reduced

John Draper

Because of the Covid-19 Crisis, ridership on Cobourg’s Transit system has been substantially reduced and Town staff proposed that hours of operation be reduced “to further protect drivers and riders from being unnecessarily exposed and to discourage riders from using transit for purposes other than essential work, medical appointments, or pharmacy/grocery supplies. The proposed hours will meet the demand of those using transit to commute to work and when essential businesses are open.” At Council’s Committee of the Whole meeting on Monday, new hours of operation were approved.  Transit will continue to be free, rear door entry only, passengers limited to 8 and 2 meter spacing required.  Similarly, the demand for Wheels has dropped so its service hours will also… Read complete articleTransit Hours to be reduced

Ed’s House Construction Update

John Draper

Many construction projects are considered essential and one of these is Ed’s House – the new Hospice centre just north of Cobourg.   The Community Care newsletter shared news of progress and included some photos.  They quoted the fact that Ed’s House is considered an essential project and said that “Precautions, including physical distancing and frequent hand washing, are being taken on-site to ensure the health and safety of all workers.”  For those who are not aware of what Ed’s House is, it’s a Hospice – that is, a place where the terminally ill can have dignified and competent care with pleasant surroundings.  Cobourg News blog reported on the highly successful fundraising – see links below.  The project team is still… Read complete articleEd’s House Construction Update

Council Discuss Impact of Covid-19

John Draper

Most of the topics at Monday night’s Committee of the Whole Council meeting were about changes in Cobourg brought about by the virus pandemic.  To start with, the agenda was expanded by three last minute additions. One was about cancelling yet another event and the other two were about the obviously large impact the pandemic has on the budget. Since the Waterfront Festival has been cancelled and the Highland Games were postponed to August, it was clear that the Canada Day Parade would also get cancelled – and that’s what happened.  Council action on the financial impact consisted of quick verbal reports from Department Directors on the status of their Capital projects plus an agreement to hold a Special Budget… Read complete articleCouncil Discuss Impact of Covid-19

Town of Cobourg’s Potential Lost Revenue

John Draper

You’ve heard the prediction from Ford on what the Covid-19 virus will do to health provincially, but what about the hit to the Town’s finances?  Only 63% of revenue comes from municipal taxes, the rest from other sources.  So what is the risk that at least some of these other sources will not happen during the virus crisis?  Given what we know and listing the budget revenue items at risk (see below), either 1) the Town will have to go into debt to cover the operating budget or 2) there will be a large tax increase or 3) some things will not get done or 4) a combination of these.  We know that transit fares will not be collected, parking… Read complete articleTown of Cobourg’s Potential Lost Revenue

Cobourg Covid-19 Virus update – April 2

John Draper

Although I keep a page on the status of the Covid-19 Virus which is updated several times a day, I know that many don’t go there but instead rely on updates from blog posts.  If you do go to that page and look for the “New” and “Update” tags, you won’t need to read most of the rest of this article. For everyone else, you should know that there are many changes happening daily with more restrictions as well as more services.  There are also more local cases of Covid-19 and more deaths in the Pinecrest Care home but no deaths yet in Northumberland.  The number of cases for the Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge (HKPR) health Unit is now 64… Read complete articleCobourg Covid-19 Virus update – April 2

All Cobourg Parks are now closed

John Draper

Residents are encouraged although not mandated to stay home.  For a start, policing the exceptions like buying groceries or picking up take-out meals would be difficult. In addition, many people go for a walk to get fresh air or walk their dogs.  But now, to increase the pressure to stay home, the Government of Ontario is ordering the closure of all outdoor recreational amenities and this means that the Town of Cobourg is doing the same.  On March 23, the Town closed all play equipment and play structures but now, effective immediately, the Town of Cobourg is closing all outdoor recreational amenities including the dog park, beach, skateboard park and tennis courts.  Closing our “Blue Flag” beach (see photo and… Read complete articleAll Cobourg Parks are now closed

Town of Cobourg On-line Press Conference – 30 March

John Draper

This time the technology worked well.  Members of the media provided questions to Ashley Purdy using a phone only conference call and she relayed them to key members of the Emergency Control Group (ECG) who were using videoconferencing.  This group is mandated by Provincial Legislation which also mandates an Emergency Plan (see link below).  The Plan specifies – by role – who should be in the ECG – see list below.  It’s clear that most are employees of the Town and because of legislated requirements, their names are not provided.  Similarly, according to Chair Fire Chief Mike Vilneff, legislation does not require the meetings to be open to the public.  So that was the answer to my first question: “Why… Read complete articleTown of Cobourg On-line Press Conference – 30 March

Cobourg in Partial Lockdown

John Draper

With most stores closed, all entertainment closed, most restaurants doing takeout only, many businesses sending their workers to work from home and others encouraged to stay at home, Cobourg is in virtual lockdown.  I ventured out today (it was a glorious day!) and looked at what’s happening Downtown, at the Mall and at No-Frills.  The first thing you notice is that there’s no problem getting parking anywhere – although it’s free on municipal meters and parking lots.  The next thing is that since stores and banks are limiting the number who can be inside at one time, there are orderly queues outside. One example was a bit strange: Staples looked closed but on closer inspection they had a sign that… Read complete articleCobourg in Partial Lockdown