Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock MP Barry Devolin has put a lot of his energies into the future of the Trent-Severn Waterway and how it will impact residents of Haliburton County. As a result, he was considerably taken aback to read the comments made by Little Glamor Lake resident Roger Young in last week’s County Voice.
While Devolin may agree with some of the points being made by Young, and sympathize with the frustrations being voiced by many, he found Young’s attitude that it is inherently and inevitably an ‘us vs. them’ situation not only silly, but counter-productive.
Two interesting and innovative exhibitions are currently on display at Rails End Gallery in Haliburton. Sandra Hawkins ‘Ecology of Narrative Space’ features thirty photomontages which contrast two different lifestyles; the hustle and bustle of New York City which is juxtaposed with the quiet and primitive Arctic setting. Some images are easier to divide apart from each other, yet others are harder, blurring the lines between which is image belongs to which setting.
If you are an outdoor enthusiast, the Village of Haliburton is the place to be next summer. Last week the Dysart et al Council agreed to launch a new event and will be hosting their first annual Sportsmen’s Show. While the event is in the early planning stages, it already promises to be a show that everyone can enjoy.
The old Brown Owl Restaurant and Gas Bar, that served residents and visitors in Minden Hills for years, is finally about to depart this world. None too early, many would say.
“My Favourite Things”, an evening with Kate Campbell, was the perfect way to begin the Thanksgiving weekend last Saturday night. With the audience cosy under blankets and sipping hot drinks, Kate’s old time voice filled the Wintergreen barn with warmth as she relived many of the classic blues and jazz songs of the 40s and 50s.
Late in September Parks Canada issued a press release addressing the future of the Trent-Severn Waterway (TSW). The much anticipated release was issued in response to a panel report called “It’s All About the Water” submitted to the Minister of Environment in April of last year. However, the press release did not meet the expectations of many groups in Haliburton County, particularly the Coalition for Equitable Water Flow (the Coalition).
A serious fire in Haliburton’s Village Barn early Thursday morning has caused well over $300,000 damage to the structure and the various businesses that occupied the century-old building. There were no personal injuries. Dysart et al Fire Chief Miles Maughan is expecting the Ontario Fire Marshall to attend the scene sometime this afternoon.
Vincent Connaughan, long time owner of Stedmans Department Store in Haliburton, died last Sunday at the age of 66 following complications from a stroke. Vince was a prominent businessman and community leader for almost 40 years in Haliburton, and will be sorely missed by his many friends, ex-employees, and tenants.
(Haliburton, ON.) – Officers from the Haliburton Highlands Detachment were called yesterday shortly before 1:00pm to investigate a motor vehicle collision on County Rd# 21 near the Blairhampton Rd in the Township of Minden Hills.
Also responding to the scene were members of the Minden Hills Fire Department and Haliburton County EMS.
The investigation revealed that a Ford Ranger pickup truck was travelling westbound on County Rd#21 near the Blairhampton Rd when the driver lost control. The truck eventually ended up on its roof in the ditch.
Frustration ran high at the last County Council meeting during discussions about a funding application to conduct cultural planning and mapping. Concerns that proper process had not been followed by staff stemmed from the application being based on a partnership they had not been made aware of, despite the fact that discussions between staff and the partnering groups had been ongoing for some time.
Two years ago Dysart et al Council commissioned Brian Basterfield Associates, a Peterborough Landscape Architects’ firm, to create a new streetscape plan for Haliburton’s York and Highland Streets. “I wanted to flesh out the opportunities that existed, rather than to make whole scale changes,” said Basterfield at a public unveiling last week of his vision for the village’s future. “In other words, we don’t want change, necessarily, but rather improvements.”
Despite some opposition to certain portions of the Highlands East Fire Master Plan, there is a move afoot to act on several of the recommendations included in the document. At their last meeting Highlands East Council agreed that Fire Chief Bill Wingrove should proceed to get quotations on metal buildings for two new firehalls.
Following the direction taken by Haliburton County and the three other municipalities, all terrain vehicles will soon be able to legally hit the roads in Dysart. After much controversy, pressure from ATV associations, arguments over ownership of land, legal opinions and assurances from the OPP about the rules of the road, the Dysart et al Council agreed, in a five to two vote last Monday, to bring a by-law forward next month approving ATV use on municipal roads.
Even though a number of unknowns continue to hover around the controversial Stanhope Airport expansion project, last week the Algonquin Highlands Council awarded the contract for both rehabilitation and expansion of the airport to Todd Brothers Contracting in the amount of $2.26 million dollars. The decision to award the contract came rapidly on the heels of a letter from Transport, Infrastructure and Communities Minister John Baird authorizing the municipality to begin construction of the planned rehabilitation work associated with the first phase of the project.
In the wake of an instant and negative reaction to their new Firearms By-law which precluded hunters from traversing road allowances with a loaded firearm, the Algonquin Highlands Council has, once again, altered the by-law. The by-law now prohibits discharging guns or other firearms, for the purpose of target practice, in ‘any area zoned residential, commercial, industrial, recreational or community facility’ as defined by their comprehensive zoning by-law.
This week Fire and Security Consultant Peter Corfield had some harsh words for Highlands East Deputy Reeve Jim Mackie and Councillor Gary Stoughton for disparaging remarks that they made in July about Corfield and the draft Fire Master Plan that his firm prepared for the municipality.
It’s that time of year again, school reconvenes for students on September 8th. Traditionally we think of the first day of school as the day that classes begin in September, but the truth is that the upcoming fall term was actually being planned last June when class lists were developed and teacher’s assignments decided. Throughout the summer months custodial staff are busy scrubbing and reconditioning floors, making repairs, painting and cleaning lockers, walls, windows and furniture.
Last week Haliburton County CAO Jim Wilson reported that the County could be facing a loss of over $2.8 million dollars in funding from the Ontario Government. According to Wilson, for County purposes, this could represent a property tax hike in 2010 of as much as 28 percent should the provincial government decide to reduce or eliminate their Combined Benefit Stable Funding Guarantee (CBSFG).
Recent changes to the Algonquin Highlands by-law regulating and prohibiting the discharge of guns and other firearms within its boundaries, and more particularly on municipally owned property, has created a bit of a hue and cry in the area. Close scrutiny of the by-law suggests that its wording is far from being clear and may actually, albeit inadvertently, preclude hunting in certain areas.
The old adage that ‘no news is good news’ may have gone a bit off kilter over the past few months. While activity associated with Haliburton’s Watercolours development has remained been pretty much under the radar since the OMB decision was made in the condominium’s favour, a few rumblings that the project may be in trouble have surfaced. In fact, according to the developers, things couldn’t be better and the project is proceeding exactly as anticipated.
.jpg)
