Hospital funding in rapidly growing Waterloo Region and Wellington County is among the lowest in Ontario, a gap local hospitals are trying to narrow.
Hospitals in Waterloo and Wellington received $727 per resident in 2008-09, according to figures released this week by the Growing Communities Healthcare Alliance. This is $273 less than the average of nearly $1,000 for 11 local health integration networks. (Northern Ontario and Toronto are excluded).
0908KWCG Area ranked fourth best place in Canada to do business
WATERLOO REGION
Waterloo Region and Guelph have been named the fourth best place to do business in Canada in a top-40 list compiled by Canadian Business magazine.
The two areas, lumped together in the survey because of their proximity, achieved the ranking because of this area`s diverse economy and a wealth of post-secondary institutions.
Finishing ahead of this area were three Quebec cities -- Sherbrooke, Levis and Quebec City.
0908YNEW Newmarket`s pesticide free bylaw in effect
It`s official. Newmarket`s bugs are off the drugs.
Newmarket`s pesticide-free bylaw is now in effect. The Town of Newmarket and Newmarket`s Environmental Advisory committee have paired up with Home Depot to promote drug-free lawns and lawn care.
Home Depot is the only home improvement retailer in Canada to voluntarily pull pesticides off its shelves.
"Everyone knows the benefits of being pesticide free," said Councillor and committee member Joe Sponga. "It`s a clear responsibility for government to promote a healthy environment."
0908ONTR Alberta, Ontario lead investment in technology
Alberta and Ontario lead the other provinces in investment in information and communications technology per worker, which is increasingly seen as a key to boosting Canada`s lagging productivity performance.
In contrast, New Brunswick and British Columbia have invested the least in productivity-enhancing computers and telecommunications equipment and software
Thousands of homeowners in Canada will renovate their homes in some way over the next year. If you are planning to hire a contractor to renovate or repair your home, it is essential that you have a detailed written contract.
Lack of a contract is one of the major reasons for disputes over renovation work. The best way to avoid any problems is to draw up an agreement describing the work to be done and what it will cost. A contract details the agreement and becomes a legal document binding both parties once they have settled on its terms and signed it. Although there are contractors who will offer a discount for payment in cash with no written contract, don`t be tempted. These under-the-table transactions are risky, and the pitfalls can easily offset any promised savings. You should never feel awkward about asking for a written contract because any professional contractor knows that it is an indispensable part of good business practices – it protects them as well as their customers.
0908ONTR Lease-to-own housing plan leaves renters cold
Michelle Smith and Andrew Bryan had already signed away their life savings in a Tim Hortons parking lot when they learned they were being evicted from the very home they thought they had been buying for the past two years.
"We had put money down," said Smith, a 34-year-old self-employed cleaner who had entered into a lease-to-own agreement with Solution Homes, a company that says it`s "dedicated to helping people find the home of their dreams."
Like a long-suffering sugar daddy tired of being played for a sucker as the family fortune dwindles, the province of Ontario has had enough.
Premier Dalton McGuinty signalled this week that beleaguered Ontarians are fed up paying the freight for much of the rest of Canada and plan to flex their political muscles in the Oct. 14 election.
McGuinty`s complaint is not new – he has railed for years against the now $20 billion gap between what Ontario taxpayers send Ottawa and what is returned here in transfers and services. But his aggressive, post-partisan posturing is.
To put it nicely, the Dupont St. and Lansdowne Ave. is an area in transition. This neighbourhood, which was formerly blue-collar and industrial, will end up being mostly residential and mostly middle-class, but getting there will be half the battle. Indeed, many plagues have been visited upon the district, but architecture has rarely been among them.
0908CATH The future of housing in St. Catharines: more people, less space
As people may have noticed, St. Catharines` population signs haven`t changed much over the past, oh, three decades or so.
Thus, it`s always a surprise to hear talk of the city growing to 145,000 people, even if the forecast is for 2031.
This is particularly so in light of the fact St. Catharines is an aging kind of place and has essentially run out of traditional greenfield residential space.
The latest body offering up population guesses for the future is Niagara Region, which is preparing a growth management strategy.
The message wasn`t so much `not in my backyard` as `is this the best backyard` for the wind farm proposed for a 115-hectare property between the 5th and 6th lines of Innisfil.
More than 100 people turned out for the public meeting Wednesday to hear the company`s application for official plan and zoning bylaw amendments that would permit a five-turbine wind farm on the land.
Tom Schneider, vice-president of Schneider Power, described the project, which will generate up to 10 megawatts of power once installed, as part of the fight against climate change.
Quoting Al Gore, he urged council and residents to "shake off complacency, throw off idle habits," and end "our dangerous over-reliance on carbon-based fuels."
London politicians are fuming after the University of Western Ontario invited economic development firms from Alberta to a job fair here but excluded the city`s own agency. The London Economic Development Corp. (LEDC) didn`t know a day dedicated to Alberta would be part of Western`s week-long career fair until Alberta officials asked for a meeting, LEDC chief executive Peter White said yesterday.
A burst of apartment building boosted housing starts in the London-St. Thomas area in August. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC) said there were 324 housing starts in August, compared to 211 in the same month last year.
CMHC analyst David Lan said the boost was entirely due to apartment building, with 148 starts compared to none in August 2007.
0908OTWA Gatineau asks residents to weigh in on core changes
The City of Gatineau is consulting residents about an ambitious plan to design a lively new downtown core in the Hull sector that will attract visitors and residents from throughout the city.
The plan is to increase the population density and the quality of the buildings in the area bounded by the Université du Québec en Outaouais near Boulevard St-Joseph, the Ottawa River and Boulevard de la Carrière north of Lac Leamy.
Have your say on region`s plan to handle population growth
With 500,000 people moving to York Region between now and 2031, having a plan for dealing with growth is a priority.
Over the next week, the region hosts a series of meetings giving you a chance to have your say on the third phase of its Planning for Tomorrow program.
The first two phases of consultation helped identify the broad directions for governing the process. But this is your chance to review the scenario chosen by the region`s planners.
The contentious trial to determine the fate of the Oak Ridges Moraine in Newmarket has come to an end.
The Ontario Municipal Board is now charged with the task of weighing the protection of the ecologically sensitive moraine versus the right of property owners Mademont Investment Ltd. to build on the land.
"The real question is, are we allowed to build here or not," said Chris Barnett, counsellor for Mademont.
0908DCLR Worst fears have come true since skatepark opened: neighbors
COURTICE -- Neighbours of the newly opened Courtice skatepark say their worst fears have been realized. And an attempt to solve the problems may have implications for park users across the municipality. Clarington councillors have granted preliminary approval to a bylaw which would close parks at dusk instead of 11 p.m., the current curfew.
London Hydro may be on its way to becoming a regional superpower.
And while most of city council and board of control seem on board with the idea, the public utility`s owners -- the people of London -- have yet to weigh in. "Doing nothing is not an option," London Hydro chief executive Bernie Watts said last week.
The Township of Oro-Medonte is beginning to look into the future and gauge the type of recreation and cultural facilities that will be needed over the next 20 years.
"It`s certainly an important project for us," said director of recreation and community services Shawn Binns.
The Recreation and Culture Facility Needs plan will complement the township`s Recreation Master Plan that was completed in 1997 and the Parkland Secondary Plan completed in 2001.
