AJAX -- An open house is being held later this month on the redevelopment of the Ajax Steam Plant. Index Energy has filed a plan with the Town that would see the facility undergo an extensive renovation, turning it into a `combined heat and power` plant. It would be capable of producing 25 megawatts of electricity that would be available to the provincial grid, while also continuing to provide steam heat to surrounding businesses.
1008DSCG Scugog to check up on site-plan agreements
SCUGOG -- Scugog is hoping it can garner a glimpse at how closely developers are adhering to site-plan agreements signed with the Township through a new pilot project approved by council last Monday. Responding to a June request from council regarding how existing site-plans could be monitored and, if necessary, brought into compliance, municipal staff wrote in a report presented Sept. 29 that the idea was a "worthy one," but that existing work loads and time constraints would make such a process prohibitive.
Toronto householders are likely to see another 9 per cent increase in their water bills in 2009, as the city gets set to launch its water and garbage budgets today.
Mayor David Miller and Councillor Shelley Carroll, the city`s budget chief, have scheduled a briefing at which proposed rates for next year will likely be unveiled.
1008MSGA Fewer routes for more riders: Mississauga`s transit dilemma
As they stare down unprecedented budget challenges, Toronto-area municipalities are facing another delicate balancing act.
It is the ongoing problem of coaxing more suburbanites onto public transit while maintaining the vast, winding networks of less-travelled bus routes that serve existing riders.
Mississauga councillors, awaiting the transit revolution promised by the $50 billion, 25-year Metrolinx plan, faced exactly that conundrum this week.
1008ONTR Bill proposes energy ratings when homes sold
Provincial legislators expressed support yesterday for a private members` bill that would make energy-efficiency audits mandatory for all home sellers.
The Home Energy Rating Act, if passed by Queen`s Park, would require anyone selling a house or low-rise building to disclose the results of a home-energy audit to prospective buyers.
Sellers of new homes would also have to supply energy-efficiency ratings before making a sale.
Toronto councillors whose constituents have started getting their updated property value assessments say homeowners could soon be hit with a double whammy at the worst possible time by both the province and the city.
Just as the economy is slowing and high-flying real estate prices are sinking for the first time in a decade, a provincial agency is updating property assessments for the first time in three years, pegged to the market value of homes on Jan. 1, 2008. The city is also contemplating a 4% property tax hike next year based on those assessments -- which could result in soaring costs for homeowners in hot neighbourhoods.
The town will take another crack at its development charges bylaw.
Council voted this week to revisit the bylaw, specifically to look at changing the date of implementation of its new commercial development charge rate, and to hold a public meeting Nov. 19.
The town previously asked for payment on the issuance of building permits. The new bylaw requires payment on signing of the subdivision agreement, which is much earlier in the development process.
At Wednesday`s meeting, councillors heard from representatives of two developers` interests who supported
Damn the economy, it`s full steam ahead for more retail shopping for Barrie.
Osmington`s plans to develop the old fairgrounds at Essa Road and Highway 400 will get rolling next week, leading to 400,000 square feet of commercial space ready for shoppers in the spring of 2010.
"Speaking for myself, I`m pleased. It`s great," said Tim Clemmens of nearby Campbell Avenue, at last night`s open house to update residents on the development.
1008OTWA Lansdowne redevelopment proposal to be revealed
A detailed redevelopment plan for Lansdowne Park will be announced today, but the failure of the developers to involve city council could land the proposal in the garbage, a powerful councillor warned.
"They are talking about major public assets and major city involvement in these projects, and they announce these things at press conferences," said Councillor Peter Hume, who chairs city council`s planning committee. "I don`t get it."
Technology employment in Ottawa-Gatineau fell by 700 jobs to 60,100 in September, the lowest level in 17 months and down from the post-2000 peak of 71,500 set last October. Layoffs at Allen-Vanguard, struggling to refinance debt in an unforgiving market, as well as at Corel and continuing layoffs at Nortel, were factors.
1008OTWA Developer asks city to waive fees on arts centre project
A private developer with which the city is working on a new arts centre in Orléans wants about $223,000 in fees waived, or else the builder might not help pay for a nearby seniors` park.
The arts centre, with a $37-million price tag, is part of a $220-million project in the heart of Orléans, meant to bring jobs, residents and after-hours life to the area around Centrum Boulevard.
The City of Hamilton will keep helping homeowners get the lead out of pipes bringing water in from the street.
A one-year pilot loan program is being made permanent.
The program offers10-year loans of up to $2,000 to replace lead service lines connecting houses to city water mains under the streets. The city pays for the stub from the main to the property line and the homeowner pays for the rest. It`s still up to homeowners to deal with lead pipes inside the house. The city says it can`t afford to share that cost.
Hamilton is making its hard-luck economy a major thrust of its bid for a rapid transit system.
Wealthier Toronto-area contenders like York Region are further ahead on rapid transit funding and proposals to Metrolinx, Hamilton Mayor Fred Eisenberger accepts.
But he says he has a unique case to make, as a board member of the provincial Crown agency plotting regional transportation.
Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge are braced for the province`s worst road list this year.
The annual Worst Municipal Roads Campaign, organized by the Canadian Automobile Association and the Ontario Road Builders` Association, allows motorists to vote on the roads they believe to be the worst in the province.
Although votes will be received until Oct. 20, preliminary results put Waterloo in 12th place, Cambridge in 16th and Kitchener in 17th.
AJAX -- Route 222 will continue to run accordingly to Hoile. Durham Region Transit executive committee on Wednesday voted to keep Route 222 as it is, with a loop down Hoile Drive during the morning and afternoon rush hours.
Wayne and Sandra Cassidy had petitioned to have the route changed so buses wouldn`t be travelling down Hoile and by their house. They opposed the bus because of noise, odours and the potential safety hazard of having the vehicles travelling down the narrow street.
1008MSGA Mississauga enters new phase of city-building
If you ask anyone in the real estate industry, they`ll tell you Mississauga`s city centre is unique in Canada. If you want a parallel, they say, look at Los Angeles.
"What sets it apart is that it has its own real downtown now," says George Carras, president of RealNet Canada Inc., which tracks all forms of residential construction in the Greater Toronto Area. "It is like Los Angeles in that it is a suburb that has become almost self-contained."
By that he means not just its own live theatre, its own fine dining eateries and club life but also its own solid core of high-rise condominium communities equal to downtown Toronto. People can now live within easy reach of where they work, party and play.
1008TNTO City of Toronto freezes development charges
The city of Toronto moved yesterday to shore up its thriving building industry, after "a handful" of development projects ready to put a shovel in the ground have struggled to secure financing amid constricted global credit markets.
Saying he is "very concerned" about the health of Toronto`s real estate market, Mayor David Miller announced a freeze on development charges for next year -- pre-empting a report due out soon that was poised to recommend doubling the fees charged on new projects.
In recent months, the provincial government has taken steps to safeguard access to the land registry system, thereby protecting homeowners from real estate fraud. Real estate fraud can refer to many different types of scams, however, and understanding the basics of this type of crime can help you protect yourself from it, as well.
Steve Parish, the popular mayor of Ajax, has a major gripe about how many local politicians get to sit on the increasingly powerful regional council.
When bus routes in his city get cut because rural councillors – representing far fewer people – have the votes to push transit down on the list of priorities in Durham Region, it`s not an abstract issue. It goes the heart of what local democracy is all about.
