Hi all Friends of Kingston Inner Harbour,
September already! Here’s the line-up!
Two September Meetings,
Seven Fun Fall Events,
Five City Project Updates (incl heritage concerns and plans for Canada’s 150th) +
Dates for Kingston Mills Closure + Turtle Project Update.
TWO PUBLIC MEETINGS:
Important Planning Meeting:
Thursday, Sept 1, 6:30 pm, Council Chambers. The proposed Capitol movie theatre condo project will be put before Planning Committee. Developers have reduced the height to 15 storeys but this is still more than double the height of surrounding buildings. It also flies in the face of ERA consultants statements that the project is inappropriate and unacceptable in Kingston’s historic downtown. Furthermore it sets a dangerous precedent for further condo high rise proposals that will ultimately destroy the heritage character of the downtown one high-rise at a time. Mid-rises are the recommended best practice. The same densities can be achieved with mid-rises when buildings are spread throughout the 60+ vacant lots in the downtown. This will also reduce traffic congestion. Make your voice heard by contacting the mayor and councillors, city planning staff and commissioners. If you don’t know who these people are, you can always e-mail the clerk, John Bolognone (jbolognone@cityofkingston.ca) with the request that your e-mail be recorded as official correspondence and forwarded to the mayor, council, planning staff and commissioners.
North King’s Town Public Meeting re vision for Kingston’s Inner Harbour and Old Industrial Areas:
Monday, Sept 19, 6:30 pm: Memorial Hall, City Hall.
Brief presentation at 7:00 pm.
SIX FUN FALL EVENTS:
1) Loving Spoonful’s Edible Food in the Urban Setting:
Thursday, Sept. 8, 6:30 – 8:00: Robert Meek Centre,
559 Bagot St. Kingston.
Barbara Roch on finding edible food in your urban backyard.
Cost: $5 or what you can afford.
http://www.lovingspoonful.org/
2) Loving Spoonful’s Garden Party Cycle Tour:
Saturday, Sept 10, 1-4 pm: Meet at Calvin Park Community Garden, 200 Norman Rogers Drive.
To celebrate community gardens and inspire Kingston to grow food, the Garden Party Bicycle Tour will visit some of Kingston’s community gardens to see how they work and enjoy some free fresh-grown food. Bring your own bike.
3) Kingston Dragon Boat Festival, 2016:
Saturday, Sept 17, Doug Fluhrer Park, Kingston Inner Harbour
Discover your inner dragon! Race is 400m this year!
Have fun, meet new friends and enjoy a team building healthy experience in the great outdoors.
More info: www.kingstondragonboat.
kingstondragonboat@gmail.com
4) Really Really Free Market
Sunday, Sept 18, 12-3 pm: north end of Doug Fluhrer Park
Wellingtonx is hosting yet another!
A RRFM is a place where all things are free! Bring stuff to give away (not necessary), take stuff you need. As they say –
The “free market” benefits big corporations. The “really, really free market” benefits everyone. All welcome! Please invite friends!
Note: wellingtonx encourages you to take home items not taken if possible.
Note: if you can bring a folding table with you for use during the RRFM, that would be great! A few will be available.
Rain Location: 75 Queen St.
More info? Facebook event
5) Artsperience Family Event
Sat, Sept 24, 11-4: Calvary United Church, 45 Charles St.
More info? 613-536-7097
6) “The Loyalist Experience through War, Displacement, and Settlement from the Mohawk Valley to the St. Lawrence River”:
Saturday, Sept 24, 1 pm: St. Paul’s Anglican Church Hall,
130 Queen St. (corner of Montreal St.)
Speaker – author Jennifer DeBruin.
Sponsored by the Kingston and District Branch of the United Empire Loyalists’ Association of Canada, a warm welcome is extended to all interested in Canadian history. The meeting will be preceded with sandwiches and squares starting at noon. Lunch $3:50 for those not contributing food.
Hall open form mingling at 11:30 am.
7) Streets Alive Kingston – family event:
Sunday, Sept 25: Aberdeen Park, Portsmouth Village.
Sue Hitchcock is looking for various forms of dance, live entertainment, theatre etc, potters, knitters etc.
Contact: sueh@cityofkingston.ca
CITY PROJECT UPDATES:
K&P Trail:
Dalton and Hagerman sections completed. Trees cleared in trail section south from Belle Park to River St.
Work clearing brush beginning Aug 29 behind the Montreal St. Legion ball park.
Disability path from North St. down to Doug Fluhrer Park and pathway in front of Leeuwarden condos in process.
Sept. 15: projected start date for pathway around the Woolen Mill. More anon…
Third Crossing:
As of Wednesday, Aug 31, crews began assembling equipment to begin drilling boreholes along the path of the proposed Third Crossing – including several from a floating barge on the Cataraqui River.
“These geotechnical investigations will help develop a preliminary design of foundations and sub-structure for the possible bridge,” says Mark Van Buren, the City of Kingston’s director of engineering. “Drilling should take about two months – we’ve scheduled five weeks of in-water drilling followed by two weeks of shoreland drilling.”
The in-water boreholes are planned at seven locations across the Cataraqui River, outside the main navigation channel.
The on-land boreholes will be drilled:
– in the right-of-way along John Counter Boulevard between the river shoreline and Montreal Road to the west; and in the right-of-way for the extension of Gore Road to the east.
These investigations involve drilling into the land and bedrock to look at subsurface conditions and to get more information on the physical properties of soil and rock around the proposed project site. Soil and rock samples will be tested in a laboratory to assess their properties.
The boreholes will also help the City’s consultants develop a soil management strategy that could be used during the building of the proposed bridge.
The drilling operation is not expected to cause excessive noise and will occur during permitted times as per the City’s Noise Bylaw.
More info? <http://www.CityofKingston.ca/
Inner Harbour Parking Project:
As a follow up to the on-street parking program information session that was held at Rideaucrest in June the City has prepared an online survey to gather additional input from residents.
https://www.cityofkingston.ca/
The City’s parking website has been updated with the presentations from the information session, frequently asked questions, and a map of the potential area. https://www.
More info? Ian Semple:isemple@cityofkingston.
Very Serious Heritage Concern:
Kingston is planning to reduce heritage protection.
The city has about 1200 heritage properties designated under the heritage legislation, and about half of them are within three heritage districts – Old Sydenham, Market Square and Barriefield. Bypassing the heritage committee within the three approved districts (about 660 properties across three districts) has been justified through an unusual interpretation of the Ontario Heritage Act by the city’s lawyers. Staff say that the Committee should not be making recommendations to Council. Staff plans to bring reports “to consult” but after the general discussion, staff will then go away and prepare a report to Council selecting only what they want to advance. This can result in critical items being ignored, and it makes a mockery of having experienced professionals on the committee who are willing to give expert free advice on these matters. Several Heritage Kingston members have threatened to resign over this issue because their professional expertise and assistance will be ignored.
Shirley Bailey of the Frontenac Heritage Foundation has reviewed the process in all municipalities larger than Kingston that have approved heritage district plans, and ALL 14 TAKE SPECIFIED ALTERATION APPLICATIONS TO THEIR HERITAGE COMMITTEE so that staff recommendations may be amended by the heritage committee before going to Council.
Citizen input is important to protect our heritage districts and to give consistent treatment to all designated properties in the city.
PETITION – with YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS only!
No signature. Please e-mail Shirley Bailey – shirleyb132@gmail.com with that info. The petition will be presented to Council Sept. 6. Your help is truly appreciated!
Canada’s 150th Birthday Plans so far:
FYI: City staff and Council approved the plans in this link:
https://www.cityofkingston.ca/
One great thing is that Confederation Park and Market Square have will have no fees required for groups wanting to use the space for events. Another great improvement is that a community group can now request a waiver from paying fees for renting a park once a year for an event deemed open to the public. City of Kingston Report 16-207:
https://www.cityofkingston.ca/
Friends of Kingston Inner Harbour are in the process of working with the city to determine what activities and events we might like to have in Doug Fluhrer Park in association with the official opening of the K&P Trail next summer. We are considering another iteration of ON THE WALL as well as some cycling and/or running event on the trail. SUGGESTIONS WELCOME! Contact: inverarymary@yahoo.com
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PROJECT UPDATE:
Kingston Mills Closure Dates:
Kingston Mills Road will be closed on September 6th, 2016 until mid-May 2017. This closure is necessary for the repair and replacement of the Kingston Mills swing and fixed bridges.
Construction will begin on the fixed bridge on September 6th, 2016, with swing bridge construction to follow in October 2016. The alternate vehicle route across the Rideau Canal during this closure is Highway 401, just south of Kingston Mills Road, which can be accessed from Battersea Road or Highway 15. Sunbury Road also offers vehicle crossing of the Rideau Canal north of the Kingston Mills site.
More info? christie.ulicny@pc.gc.ca 705-750-4883
www.parkscanada.gc.ca | www.
FKIH TURTLE PROJECT UPDATE:
Right now we are busy working with our small group of turtle enthusiasts watching for hatchlings and also trying to determine how to expand our turtle program next summer.
Here is a contemporary Canadian turtle project on video sent by one of our members. Enjoy. https://www.facebook.com/
More anon……
Wishing you all a happy September,
Cheers,
Mary Farrar,
President, Friends of Kingston Inner Harbour
www.friendsofinnerharbour.com
613-544-1246