Tag: Municipal

Will Daintry Crescent Park happen?

John Draper

According to Michael Clark, there is a long history of a promise of a Park on Daintry Crescent.  Michael is a resident of Daintry Cres and he spoke at last night’s Committee of the Whole (CoW) Council meeting.  Michael said that when houses were first built on Daintry crescent in 1992, they were on the north side of the road with a strip on the south side that bordered on the railway line.  The developer intended to then build Townhouses on that strip but permission was denied because they would be too close to the Railway – so the land has been vacant since that time and the Town eventually took ownership.  There were promises that it would be made… Read complete articleWill Daintry Crescent Park happen?

Staff Propose Licensing Developer Sales Trailers

John Draper

When moderate sized developers want to sell their homes, they will often park trailers on their land then use them as model units, construction offices and/or sales offices.  Two Downtown examples are the failed development on the “Quigley Lot” at 202 Second Street and the failed development of expansion of the John Lee Jail property.  I’ve labelled them “failed” since there have been no units constructed at those sites.  But the trailers for those projects have overstayed their original purpose and citizens have complained about them – calling them an eyesore and “being a place for individuals to trespass and shelter”.  Staff have now proposed that these structures be licensed so that they can be managed and they will present… Read complete articleStaff Propose Licensing Developer Sales Trailers

Parking Rate Increases Planned

John Draper

In response to citizen concerns about waterfront/ beach parking, staff have spent considerable time coming up with plans to respond. They propose significant changes in recommended rates and areas metered with four related plans: 1) expansion of places where parking fees are charged with a new daily pass proposed; 2) seasonal passes for residents, both located near the waterfront and elsewhere; 3) increases of rates downtown and changes in passes; 4) improved provision for those needing accessible parking.  A fifth plan to separate downtown lots into tiers was deferred until there is experience of the other changes.  Considerable input has already been received from advisory committees and citizens but staff are recommending a public information meeting on 7 February and… Read complete articleParking Rate Increases Planned

Short Council Meeting

John Draper

The longest debate at Monday’s Council meeting was on the deployment of Porta-Potties! There were no surprises: the ban on demolition at 93 Albert was confirmed with a 4-3 vote, some correspondence was received without comment and Adam Bureau withdrew his notice of motion to use Brookside for homeless people since MPP David Piccini intends to address Council on 31 January.   There are two issues with Porta-Potties: 1) providing washrooms to replace those closed because of Covid-19 and 2) replacing  those at the Transit shelter because of security problems there plus the need to use the Transit shelter to accommodate Town Staff.  Initially, staff recommended operating hours of  8:00 am to 4:00 pm but after debate, Council decided to extend… Read complete articleShort Council Meeting

Sidbrook, Brookside and 93 Albert

John Draper

There are now at least three Heritage buildings in Cobourg which their owners may be trying to demolish by neglect although hopefully the owners of Brookside (the Province) will move quickly to dispel this possibility.  In a letter to Council, Keith Oliver raises the issue – details below.  Separately, at Monday’s Council meeting, Councillor Adam Bureau gives notice of a motion to ask the Province to use Brookside as a winter homeless shelter.  If that happened, then at least minimum maintenance would be done on Brookside.  If the Province is slow to act and heat is not provided, then it could quickly get to a similar state as Sidbrook – see video below. But it seems to me that the… Read complete articleSidbrook, Brookside and 93 Albert

Council Divided on Demolition of 93 Albert

John Draper

At the Committee of the Whole (CoW) Council meeting on December 6, Council were asked to support a Cobourg Heritage Advisory Committee (CHAC) recommendation to deny permission to approve demolition of the building at 93 Albert Street (see report in Links below).  But before a vote was taken, Councillor Darling moved to refer the decision to the CoW meeting on January 3 so that there would be more time to study the issue.  At that meeting (Monday night), the Chair of the CHAC (Graham Andrews) and Vice Chair (Ken Bagshaw) spoke out strongly as to why they wanted to deny permission contrary to a Staff recommendation and then Council debated if they should accept the recommendation of Heritage /Planning Staff… Read complete articleCouncil Divided on Demolition of 93 Albert

Major Council Plans for 2022

John Draper

It used to be that at the New Year’s Levee on January first each year, the Mayor would review not only achievements by Council in the year past but also talk about what was expected in the coming year. The current Mayor, John Henderson, stopped that tradition and never talked about what’s coming – but we’ll never know what John would have said at this year’s Levee since it was cancelled and no virtual version was offered. To fill that gap, I will list what the Town is planning for 2022 based on what’s already been said and committed to. The Capital Budget has been approved, tenders have been issued, a new organization is coming and the hiring process has… Read complete articleMajor Council Plans for 2022

Cultural Master Plan Buried

John Draper

Whatever happened to the idea that Cobourg should encourage Culture – you know, visual and performing arts? In 2019 a consultant delivered a Cultural Master Plan to Council (see resources below) but it’s now buried – no direct link anywhere on the Town’s web site. When Dean Hustwick was hired in 2016, his title was Director of Parks and Recreation with the idea that his mandate would include Culture and Tourism. That Department is now called Community Services but Culture is not mentioned. The Strategic planning update in early 2021 downgraded the goal labelled “Consider Arts, Culture and Tourism Division” and the only time culture is mentioned is when citizens make a presentation to Council. If there are any Town… Read complete articleCultural Master Plan Buried