Ward 15 Newsletter - November 2002

With Christmas around the corner, I wanted to get another newsletter out to let Ward 15 residents know what’s been going on at Hamilton City Hall after one of the driest, and thus, most contentious summers we’ve ever experienced in this area. So here’s a quick summary of what we’ve been facing since I last updated you with a newsletter in June.

Snow Removal: As you all well remember, the snow removal in Flamborough last winter left a lot to be desired (and I realize I’m understating the case there.) However, after continued meetings and negotiations with both staff and union, these are the changes that will be implemented this year.

First and foremost, we have made significant additions to snow removal staffing. The city has re-instated the “on-call” independent contractors, who used to be available for us in Flamborough during heavy snow falls. This year’s successful union negotiations has resulted in our ability to once again supplement the full-time staff with the extra man-power needed for better coverage. This was not available to us last year. The next step was to increase the operator training so that they have more familiarity with routes and operations. We realize that one of the major problems last year was that smaller side-streets and cul-de-sacs were being missed completely and that’s where this route training should fix the problem. After that, we have added new vehicles to snow removal, replacing the 10 oldest vehicles. One of the problems that we faced last winter was unforeseen equipment failures, which seriously hampered the snow removal efforts. The next step taken by staff was the relocation of snow removal vehicles to different facilities around the city. Rather than coming from a central location, the trucks are now scattered throughout the city and can begin clearing that much more quickly. And finally, the city will be using a pre-storm anti-icing treatment, which will now be applied to steep escarpment inclines. While in this area, that would seem to apply only to a handful of routes coming into Flamborough, the benefit to the rest of the area is that it makes those routes, which are considered a priority, much easier to clear – the anti-icing treatment, applied before the snow begins to fall, starts to melt it before the snow-clearers have even arrived. The faster the drivers get off those priority routes, the faster the rest of the community is done.

Staff and council’s evaluation of storm events and ways of improving service delivery will be an on-going issue but with the implementation of these new changes, we should see the much-needed improvements over last season.

Carlisle and Freelton Water: Those of you that experienced this summer’s drought – and the resulting water woes in Freelton and Carlisle - will be happy to know that many changes have occurred on this front, as well. 

The City is in the process of upgrading all four well systems in Carlisle.  Water staff will be installing ultra-violet technology as the primary source of disinfection, as well as adding instrumentation and controls, which will offer increased operational flexibility.  The addition of the ultra-violet disinfection is important in that it treats the water much more quickly than the old chlorination method. The UV system allows the water to be available that much faster. The problem in the past, according to staff, is that the water had to sit in the chlorination hold for about 15 minutes before being drawn into the tower. While that doesn’t seem like a long wait, the problem is the chlorination hold could only draw from one well at a time – in essence creating a bottleneck of water, waiting to be chlorinated. With the ultra-violet system, the water is treated in seconds and ready to be drawn into the tower almost instantly. So while the water is also being treated more quickly, the more important aspect is that the bottleneck going into the chlorine hold has been eliminated completely. As well, all of the pumphouse piping will be replaced with new stainless steel pipes. This, in itself, isn’t relevant to the water problems this past summer – the new pipes are simply being installed because the old ones were due to be replaced. All of this work is already underway and is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2003 at a total cost of $215,000.

In Freelton, the city is presently performing a hydrogeological study of the groundwater supply for both the main well at Hwy 6 and Huntsman Gate and the other well at Fireside Drive. The Freelton tower draws from these two wells. Because the city is working under the dictates laid out for the consolidated certificates of approval for the Freelton system from the MoE, water staff had to install ground-monitoring wells near both the Huntsman Gate well and the Fireside well. The purpose of these ground-monitoring wells, already installed by the city, is to analyze whether the ground water is under direct influence of surface water. Those tests are complete and the results will now be sent to the MoE, which will, in turn, decide what upgrades are required based on that data. The cost of these initiatives was in the neighbourhood of $34,000. As well, as a result of increased turbidity issues over the summer at the Huntsman Gate well, staff has requested a voluntary order from the MoE in order to assist in the investigation efforts.  The order will allow staff to upgrade the Fireside well by installing a new ultra-violet system, chlorine addition and associated instrumentation and controls.  Once the well is brought back on-line, the Huntsman Gate well will be removed from service for inspection purposes.  Any problems that may be encountered will be addressed at that time.  Once the Huntsman Gate well is brought back on-line, the Fireside well will be operated as a back-up system until the results of the hydrogeological study are available.  The total cost of these upgrades to the two wells is roughly $61,000. 

Lou Di Gironimo, the city’s director of water and wastewater, is confident that with the work currently underway, along with the improvements to be completed before next summer and the ongoing studies, that our water quality and quantity issues are being addressed to the best of staff’s abilities.

Halton prefers Hamilton to Toronto: In my last newsletter, I talked about the benefits Hamilton would gain if we were included in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) social service pooling. Much like Toronto, Hamilton‘s social service costs are among the highest in the province.  However, while Hamilton has to take care of its own costs, Toronto benefits from collecting money for social service costs from GTA cities going from Oshawa in the east right through to Burlington in the west. So you know, the GTA social service pooling was set up by the Province under the notion that these communities outside Toronto should pay a portion of the costs, primarily because Toronto, as an urban centre, attracted the residents needing the most social assistance and social housing away from those suburban communities. To that end, since Hamilton is also an urban area with huge social costs, we wanted to join in the GTA and share its social service pooling, as well. Our inclusion in the GTA would have greatly eased our present tax burdens to the tune of tens of millions in dollars.

However, there is a new development in this scenario and it is as welcome as it was surprising. At its October 30 meeting, Halton Council decided that due to the fact that they were paying twice as much ($39.5 million) to other municipalities’ social services than they were for their own social service ($21 million), they would prefer to be removed from the GTA and set up a pooling system with Hamilton and Niagara region.  Halton council has now directed its staff to investigate its withdrawal from the GTA pooling and the creation of a new Halton-Hamilton-Niagara social pooling. In the end, Halton will have to present its case to the Province, which still has the final say but I suspect that very soon we will be directing our staff to work in conjunction with Halton’s to collect all the data needed. We will keep you posted as this initiative progresses.

Policing: With the final negotiating steps almost complete, we can soon be expecting our Waterdown Police Sub-station to take up occupancy at the former Flamborough Town Hall at 163 Dundas St. E. in Waterdown.  The benefits of this move are many, but of primary interest to the public will be the increase in expanded police services now being accommodated within the Municipal Service Centre like the police database, as well as interviewing and holding rooms.  The public will now have the police at the same location where they pick up building permits, marriage licenses, burial permits, pay taxes, parking tickets, look up bylaw regulations, pick up extra blue boxes, dog licenses, bus tickets for seniors, darts and HSR.  Also available to residents on their own well system is the water testing bottles for pick-up and drop-off.

Those of you who want to take a more hands-on approach and assist your neighborhoods by working hand-in-hand with policing resources are encouraged to get involved in our Neighborhood Watch by contacting our Police Constable Dave Hawthorne at 905-628-4179. Information booklets are also available from my office on Fridays from 1-4 p.m. at this same location. 

I will also be co-hosting another police meeting same location, along with the Hamilton Police, the “Community Safety Forum” on Tuesday December 3^rd from 7 to 9 p.m.  This meeting will be aimed at gathering input from citizens, agencies, business owners, and school board representatives, regarding service delivery.  If you’re interested in local policing, this is the meeting to attend.

Budget 2003: The 2003 City of Hamilton Budget deliberations have already begun with our first session on October 29. However, they will be continuing until mid-February and during this period, there will be a number of opportunities for the public to have their say.  However, so that Flamborough residents will have some access to the process, I will be hosting a 2003 City Budget Meeting at North Wentworth Community Centre’s Meeting Room (27 Hwy. 5 West) on December 5 from 7 to 9 p.m. A member of the city’s Finance Department will be on hand to give an early view of the 2003 Budget, as well as answer any questions that you may have. Given the early figures on tax hikes that have been published in our local newspapers, I’m sure there will be many questions that residents will have regarding both taxes and services within Flamborough.

I’m at Flamborough Town Hall Every Friday: I am available at Flamborough Town Hall every Friday afternoon from 1 to 4 p.m. Please feel free to drop by with your concerns and issues. If you can’t get to Flamborough Town Hall on those Friday afternoons, I’m at Hamilton City Hall all week long and you can call me at 905-546-2713 or e-mail me at: mmccarth@city.hamilton.on.ca My assistant, Don Redmond, is also available to help you. You can reach him at 905-546-3944 or e-mail him at: dredmond@city.hamilton.on.ca As well, the staff at the Flamborough Municipal Centre is there all week if you want to stop by or they can be contacted directly at 905-689-2144.

Hoping your holiday season is an enjoyable one…

Margaret McCarthy

Note: The following was an Insert in the November 2002 newsletter.

What’s available at Flamborough Town Hall

Anyone who's been into Flamborough Town Hall lately will have noticed that there are some new tenants in there. Flamborough Information and Community Services (FICS) and the Flamborough Archives have both been relocated from Chestnut Grove and can now be found at the Flamborough Municipal Services Centre at 153 Dundas Street East. Here's a list of the services available:

Legal Aid Clinic: Offered the first and third Wednesday of each month from 7 to 9 p.m. by appointment only. Call 905-689-7880 or visit FICS to book an appointment.

Income Tax Clinic: Offered each year at income tax time. Call 905-689-7880 to book a time at one of the clinics.

Individual Counselling: Offered by Family Services and Catholic Family Services Mondays by appointment only. Call 905-689-7880 or visit FICS to book an appointment.

Credit Counselling: Offered by Family Services and Catholic Family Services on the first and third Wednesday of each month and on Fridays by appointment only. Call 905-689-7880 or visit FICS to book an appointment.

Caregiver Support Group: Offered the fourth Thursday of each month from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Flamborough Municipal Service Centre, 163 Dundas Street East. Call 905-575-8916 to make an appointment.

CNIB Support Group: Offered the first Tuesday of each month from 1 to 2 p.m. at the Royal Canadian Legion, 79 Hamilton Street in Waterdown. No appointment is necessary. Call 905-689-7880 for more information.

MS Support Group: Offered the second Thursday of each month from 10 a.m. to noon at the Knox Presbyterian Church, 80 Mill Street North in Waterdown. No appointment is necessary.

VON Footcare Clinic: Offered the first Wednesday of each month from 1 to 4 p.m. and the third Monday of each month from 1 to 4 p.m. at 163 Dundas Street East in Waterdown. Call 905-529-0700, ext. 271 to make an appointment.

Alternatives for Youth: For youth ages 13-to-22 years old who are having difficulties with substance abuse, this program is offered every Tuesday and Thursday. Call 905-527-4469 for an appointment.

Child and Adolescent Services: Offered every Tuesday by appointment only. Call 905-570-8888.

Waterdown Information & Sexual Health Centre: Open every Wednesday from 3 to 6 p.m. Simply drop in - no appointment is necessary and confidentiality is assured. Call 905-628-3000 for more information.

Youth Employment Services: Offered from May to August each year at FICS. Call 905-689-7880 for information.

Flamborough Archives: We'd like to offer special thanks to Sylvia Wray for maintaining Flamborough's heritage through her continued dedication to the Flamborough Archives. Her tireless efforts have not gone unnoticed. For history buffs, the Flamborough Archives now have expanded hours of operation, open on Tuesday and Wednesday from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on Fridays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Access to the archives on Mondays and Thursdays is by appointment only. Thank you again, Sylvia, for your dedication!