Thanks Annette for the Memorial Centre pic.
And thanks Hilbert for the wonderful early morning Inner Harbour picture. Wonderful as always.
Just back from a week in Progreso, Mexico on the north shore of the Yucatan – recommended by my wonderful Mexican hairdresser, Gustavo. Ocean fun. Colonial City of Merida, Mayan sites. Totally safe. Mostly Mexican tourists. $4000 for the two of us for everything. Stayed at an AirB&B.
I have not included anything here about the tariffs but I do recommend Charlie Angus’s “Resistance” site on Substack. He really is amazing.
LOCAL ISSUES AND PUBLIC MEETINGS
- City Wants Your Input: Surveys on Several Issues + Heritage Speaker Application
- Memorial Centre Issue, Williamsville Community Public Meeting, March 2
- North King’s Town Plan Zoning Changes for Infill and Mixed-use Intensification – Meeting March 6
- North King’s Town Secondary Plan Meeting re Wetlands, Woodlands & Watercourses, Feb 19
- Registering to Vote Details + Advance Voting Locations and Times
- Kingston Drivers Could Face Higher Parking Rates and Fines this Spring
- Council to Vote on Extension of Kingston’s “Fines for Food” Program to Tackle Food Insecurity
FROM FARTHER AFIELD
- Ten Days with the US Coast Guard on the New Arctic Front Lines
FOR FUN AND GENERAL INTEREST
- Sea Turtles Dance to Orientate with Earth’s Magnetic Field
- New Work on Forever Chemicals
- Maple Madness is Back at the Cataraqui Region Conservation Authority
- What’s Happening in Kingston
- Ten Creative Snow Activities for Kids
- In Case You Are Looking for Arts Events?
- Events from the Skeleton Park Newsletter
- “Dockyards Through the Decades” – Talk, Feb 20, Great Lakes Museum
LOCAL ISSUES AND EVENT
1. City Wants Your Input: Surveys on Several Issues + Heritage Speaker Application
Received from the City of Kingston, Feb 13, 2025
Get Involved: Get Involved Kingston by Communications & Public Engagement
Climate Change Adaptation Plan – Survey Results
Accessibility Plan – Survey Deadline March 9
Official Plan and Integrated Mobility Plan – Survey Deadline March 7
Asset Management Plan – Survey Deadline Feb 24
Multi-Sport Stadium at Memorial Centre – Survey Deadline Feb 28
Purdy’s Mill Park – Survey Deadline Feb 26
Heritage Hour Speaker Recruitment Application
2. Memorial Centre Issue
Will Public Space at the Memorial Centre Just be a Memory?
Received from Annette Burfoot, Feb 16, 2025
What’s happening?
On January 14, City Council directed staff to work with Victory Grounds Ventures, a private for-profit corporation, on the development of a long-term lease for a portion of the existing green space at the Memorial Centre to establish a soccer stadium (4,000 seats, more seats than the arena) in the midst of a stable residential area.
This lease will remove more than 40% of the north end open space from public use.
The current uses including the dog park, midway for the fall fair, walking paths and track, and even the cricket pitch and ball fields will be changed or removed to other locations.
All the open space will be impacted.
What are the concerns?
Council is rushing through this enormous change of use for the Memorial Centre property without reasonable information.
Although public consultation has started, it is still difficult to know exactly what is proposed and the impact that it will have.
However, we know that if the land is leased to a private corporation, the way it is currently used will change dramatically, and any future public use will not be possible.
If a stadium is built, there will be issues around excessive noise, bright lights, increased traffic, parking problems, etc. – not unlike the historic Fall Fair we welcome for a few days in September, but the stadium impacts will occur on a year-round basis.
With public access removed, a private company will have control of the land to accommodate a professional soccer team and two semi-pro teams to make a profit.
The barns at the corner of York and Nelson will be removed to increase parking despite their current use for the Fall Fair, winter Farmers’ Market and Yellow Bike, all not-for-profit community organizations.
What can you do?
a) Contact the Mayor & Council and tell them you oppose the removal of public land for private profit. Find out more about the proposal;
b) send your concerns to the City’s Get Involved,
c) complete the survey and participate in the consultation sessions
Do it now before it’s too late – Council will be making a decision on Tuesday 18th March. •
d) Send a copy of your comments to Mayor & Council and the City Clerk: – cityclerk@cityofkingston.ca; Mayor&Council@cityofkingston.ca • It needs to reach the clerk to be considered “official correspondence” on the issue
e) Send your concerns to the City’s Get Involved. COMPLETE SURVEY – https://getinvolved.cityofkingston.ca/multi-sport-stadium •
f) Sign the petition on-line at https://www.change.org/p/halt-proposal-for-private-soccer-stadium-at-the-memorial-centre
g) Pack the Council Chamber for the meeting on Tuesday 18th March, 7pm
Editor’s Note: As stated in the previous newsletter we have four major concerns:
a) Victory Grounds Ventures doesn’t even have a webpage. What kind of organization is this?
b) There was virtually no public consultation with current users of the space prior to it being presented to Council – especially the Agricultural Society that has agreements in place with both the federal and provincial governments for their yearly fair. A suitable alternative site for the fall fair would have to be found – presumably at the city’s expense?
c) Other existing sites in the west and east ends would be better for parking. There is already a proposal for such a space in the east end as noted in the Kingstonist, Feb 13 by Bill Hutchins.
https://www.kingstonist.com/news/plans-unveiled-for-proposed-year-round-sports-facility-in-kingstons-east-end/
Council will decide at their upcoming. Feb 18 meeting
d) They are assuming users will come from Belleville, Brockville, and even Toronto. Park& Rides will be needed. Is this realistic?
Public Meeting re Memorial Centre Issue
Received from the Williamsville Community Association, Feb 7
Town Hall Meeting Sunday March 2nd 2:00-4:00pm, St Luke’s Church (236 Nelson St, a block from the M-Centre).
There will be brief presentations on the impact of the proposed stadium in terms of:
local residents
the market and agriculture
sports and recreation
the City
environmental sustainability
followed by public input and information on how to stay involved.
3. North King’s Town Plan Zoning Changes for Infill and Mixed-use Intensification – Meeting March 6
Received from the City of Kingston, Feb 13, 2025 – Niall Oddie, City Planner
Notice of a Complete Application and Statutory Public Meeting
The City of Kingston has initiated applications to amend the Official Plan and Zoning By-Laws to implement the North King’s Town Project.
Purpose and Effect of the Applications: The City of Kingston is proposing various amendments to the Official Plan, Kingston Zoning By-Law 2022-62 and former City of Kingston Zoning By-Law 8499 to implement the recommendations of the North King’s Town (NKT) project.
The proposed amendments include, but are not limited to, the redesignation of various lands to a new Mixed Use designation to create opportunities for residential, commercial and limited light-industrial development the addition of a new specific policy area in the Official Plan to guide future development within areas identified for infill and mixed-use intensification in the North King’s Town area and associated zoning regulations, redesignation and rezoning of properties located on Montreal Street generally between James Street and Raglan Road to Main Street Commercial, and amendments to implement planning-related transportation and cultural heritage recommendations including a proposed expansion to the boundary of the St. Lawrence Ward Heritage Character Area. The proposed amendments would have the effect of removing barriers to the construction of new residential and commercial opportunities within the identified intensification areas.
Address of Property: Various Properties within the North King’s Town Area (location in DASH is shown as City Hall, 216 Ontario St.)
Name of Applicant: The Corporation of the City of Kingston
City File Number: D35-001-2025
Statutory Public Meeting
Date: Thursday, March 6, 2025
Time: 6:00 p.m. *
Location: This will be a hybrid meeting. Attendees can participate in-person at Council Chambers, City Hall, 216 Ontario Street, or virtually. To register to attend virtually contact Christine O’Connor, Committee Clerk, at cloconnor@cityofkingston.ca.
*The Public Meeting portion of the Planning Committee agenda will commence at the conclusion of the Community Meeting portion which is scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m.
Additional information about the applications can be viewed by accessing the Development and Services Hub (DASH) at https://www.cityofkingston.ca/DASH. Enquiries may be made by contacting Niall Oddie, Senior Planner, by email noddie@cityofkingston.ca, or by phone 613-546-4291, ext. 3259.
Written comments for or against this change may be sent to Planning Services via: Mail: 216 Ontario Street, Kingston, ON K7L 2Z3 Fax: 613-542-9965. Email: noddie@cityofkingston.ca
Public Consultation Anyone may attend the Public Meeting and make a verbal statement, and/or submit comments in writing, either in support of or in opposition to the proposed Official Plan Amendment and Zoning By-Law Amendment. The Planning Committee will receive a recommendation report with respect to the applications at the Public Meeting, which will be available to the public on the City of Kingston’s website at www.cityofkingston.ca/PlanningCommittee on February 28, 2025. The Committee will make its recommendation to City Council at this meeting.
Please note that City Council has delegated to the Planning Committee the authority to hold the Public Meeting instead of Council. All representations, both verbal and written, will be considered only by the Planning Committee, which will submit a Committee Report with its recommendations to Council for a decision on the matter.
If a person or public body would otherwise have an ability to appeal the decision of the Council of the Corporation of the City of Kingston to the Ontario Land Tribunal but the person or public body does not make oral submissions at a public meeting or make written submissions to the City of Kingston before the proposed Official Plan Amendment is adopted or the by-law is passed, the person or public body is not entitled to appeal the decision. If a person or public body does not make oral submissions at a public meeting, or make written submissions to the City of Kingston before the proposed Official Plan Amendment is adopted or the by-law is passed, the person or public body may not be added as a party to the hearing of an appeal before the Ontario Land Tribunal unless, in the opinion of the Tribunal, there are reasonable grounds to add the person or public body as a party.
If you wish to be notified of the decision of the City of Kingston on the proposed Official Plan Amendment or the proposed zoning by-law amendment, you must make a written request to:
City of Kingston, Planning Services
216 Ontario Street
Kingston, ON K7L 2Z3
noddie@cityofkingston.ca
If you have received this notice and you are the owner of land that contains seven or more residential units, please post this notice in a location that is visible to all of the residents.
If you are a person with a disability, and need City of Kingston information provided in another format, please contact customer service at 613-546-0000 or contactus@cityofkingston.ca.
NOTICE OF COLLECTION Personal information collected as a result of this public meeting is collected under the authority of the Municipal Act, the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA), the Planning Act, and all other relevant legislation, and will be used to assist in making a decision on this matter. All personal information (as defined by MFIPPA), including (but not limited to) names, addresses, opinions and comments collected will be made available for public disclosure to members of the public, at the meeting, through requests, and through the website of The Corporation of the City of Kingston. Questions regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of this personal information may be directed to the Director of Planning Services, 216 Ontario Street, Kingston, Ontario, K7L 2Z3.
DATED: at Kingston Ontario
this 13th day of February, 2025.
Janet Jaynes
City Clerk
4. North King’s Town Secondary Plan Meeting re Wetlands, Woodlands, & Watercourses, Feb 19
Received Jan 31 from Niall Oddie, City Planner noddie@cityofkingston.ca
The City of Kingston is creating a new Official Plan, which will guide how the community will grow and how land will be used over the next 25 years, until 2051.
As part of this process, the City is working with North-South Environmental to prepare a Natural Heritage Study, which will identify and map the key natural heritage features, such as wetlands, woodlands and watercourses found in Kingston, as well as corridors linking these features together. Natural heritage features and the linkages between them function together as a Natural Heritage System. The Natural Heritage Study will also provide policy recommendations to support the protection and management of the natural environment.
The mapping and policy recommendations from the Natural Heritage Study will inform the natural heritage and environmental protection components of the City’s new Official Plan.
We invite you to join us for a Community Workshop to learn more about this project (objectives, scope, methodology and timelines), share your thoughts, and contribute to shaping the future of the City of Kingston’s Natural Heritage System. We would also like to receive feedback from the community on the existing natural heritage policies and mapping and explore how we can best plan for the future of our natural areas.
This Community Workshop is intended for individuals within the Environmental, Rural and Agricultural Communities and will explore various themes, such as:
Environmental Protection and Conservation: How can we protect and conserve natural spaces, biodiversity and habitats through the new Official Plan?
Ecological Connectivity and Green Corridors: How can we enhance corridors to improve the movement of wildlife and plant species?
Human Connections and Use of Natural Spaces: How do we interact with and use natural spaces in how we work and live?
Managing Growth: How can be find a balance between growth and the protection of natural heritage?
Integrating Agriculture and Natural Heritage: How can we align agricultural practices with natural heritage conservation?
When: February 19, 2025 6pm – 8pm
Where: 1485 Unity Road (Kingston Fire & Rescue Station #8)
Format: 30 minute presentation followed by 90 minute discussion
Capacity: 30 participants
Registration: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/environmental-rural-and-agricultural-communities-workshop-tickets-1230499379769?aff=oddtdtcreator
5. Registering to Vote + Advance Voting Locations and Times
Confirm update or add your information to the Register at
https://www.elections.on.ca by Feb 17.
If you’re registered to vote, you’ll receive your voter information card in the mail with information about when and where to vote.
You can still vote if you have not yet registered. Add your information in person when you go to vote.
Local Advance Voting Locations and Times
Artillery Park and Rideaqu Heights Community Centre Feb 20 – Feb 22,10 am – 8 pm
Other sites available at https://elections.on.ca
6. Kingston Drivers Could Face Higher Parking Rates and Fines this Spring
Received from the Kingstonist, Feb 14, Bill Hutchins.
Update: EITP Committee approves recommendations – Kingston drivers could face higher parking rates and fines this spring
If approved by Council, rates could jump by an average of $050 an hour and the flat fee for event parking could rise by $1 as of April 1, 2025
Editor’s Note: I haven’t checked but I’m assuming this passed.
7. Council to Vote on Extension of Kingston’s “Fines for Food” Program to Tackle Food Insecurity
Received from the Kingstonist, Feb 3 – Bill Hutchins
This program was launched as a pilot project originally and it directed one month of parking ticket revenue for food sources such as local food banks, pantries, and emergency food providers.
https://www.kingstonist.com/news/council-to-vote-on-extension-of-kingstons-fines-for-food-program-to-tackle-food-insecurity/
Editor’s Note: Again I haven’t checked but I’m assuming this passed.
FROM FARTHER AFIELD
8. 10 days with the US Coast Guard on the new Arctic front lines, Financial Times, February 8, 2025. Of the Coast Guard’s fleet of 241 active “cutters”, which are ships 65ft in length or greater, only two are icebreakers. The desperate need for ships is a rare point of bipartisan agreement. The Biden administration signed a deal with Finland and Canada to jointly produce more icebreakers. But the idea was actually first floated by Trump during his first term. Now, his National Security Council will push forward the “ICE Pact deal”, bringing Finnish engineering expertise to the US with the aim of building considerably more icebreakers for the US and its allies over the next 10 years. The bipartisan Ships for America Act, which offers support for America’s shipbuilders, was introduced last December and co-written by former Congressmen Mike Waltz, who is now Trump’s national security adviser.
FOR FUN AND GENERAL INTEREST
9. Sea Turtles Dance to Orientate with Earth’s Magnetic Field
Received from Barb Schlafer, Feb 14
https://www.sciencealert.com/sea-turtles-dance-to-orientate-with-earths-magnetic-field-study-reveals
10. New Work on Forever Chemicals
Received from Canada’s National Observer, Feb 12, – Leah Boris-Kuperman
Sometimes, going rogue is the only way to get things done | Canada’s National Observer: Climate News
For years, Sébastien Sauvé, a professor of environmental chemistry at the University of Montreal, would go to public places, like Tim Horton’s, with an empty water bottle in his jacket. Sauvé would make his way back to the bathroom sink and fill his bottle — not to drink, but to take to his lab and test for harmful chemicals in Quebec’s drinking water.
Other members of Sauvé’s team did the same; a cloak-and-dagger approach to environmental science he said was necessary to publicize the results. He believes that he would still be waiting for permission from the province to test for “forever chemicals” in the drinking water, if he had formally requested municipal permission, he told Canada’s National Observer.
“I’d still be buried in paperwork with the cities, with the forms and the agreements on the confidentiality and what I could or could not do with the data,” he said.
Instead, he went rogue. Late in the summer of 2018, he began to collect samples from water fountains at parks or libraries, taps in public washrooms, and indeed, coffee and doughnut chains, to find out how much PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, citizens were ingesting from common water sources. Risks of exposure to these substances include reproductive problems, developmental effects in children, increased risk of several cancers, and weakening of the immune system, including reduced vaccine response.
Back at his lab, Sauvé independently found five Quebec municipalities exceeded Health Canada’s new proposed objective for safe levels of PFAS in drinking water, including alarmingly high levels along the St. Lawrence Valley, the most populated, developed area in Canada.
Had he followed the normal rules, Sauvé believes he “could never have published the data naming the cities.” Operating independently ensured he would have no binding agreements with any of the cities and could publicly release his findings, no matter how politically controversial. “I’ve got total academic freedom.”
Growing understanding
Health Canada brought in stricter recommendations of 30 nanograms per litre (ng/L) for 25 specific PFAS in drinking water. But despite Sauvé’s worrisome discoveries, no provinces have adopted them. Drinking water is generally a provincial jurisdiction in Canada, so provinces are not mandated to follow the Health Canada recommendations.
For years, Sébastien Sauvé, a professor of environmental chemistry at the University of Montreal, would go to public places to gather drinking water samples, then test them at his lab for harmful chemicals. PFAS
By contrast, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has taken a stricter approach, with much lower enforceable levels of six types of PFAS in drinking water than Canada, down to 10 or even 4 ng/L. U.S. public water systems must monitor for these PFAS, whereas in Canada, PFAS are not regularly monitored in provincial drinking water.
Sauvé’s work has pushed the boundaries and gradually raised public awareness about the need for governments to regulate PFAS. While Sauvé has published studies on PFAS since 2009, when he started, water quality regulations were more lax, and human health concerns from the group of chemicals were not yet mainstream, he said.
Early concerns about PFAS pertained to the health of wildlife, Sauvé explained.
“At the time, there was very little, if any, concern relative to human health.” Science had already accepted that PFAS bioaccumulate, or pile up in the organs of living creatures, in the food chain.
Since then, understanding about human harms of PFAS has been rapidly evolving. Canada first regulated the manufacture, use, sale, and import of certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances at the federal level in 2012. Six years later, in 2018, the first drinking water guidelines were issued for a few of the 4,700 types of chemicals in the PFAS family.
These days, citizens and officials alike are more likely to be aware of the risks associated with PFAS, as nearly 99 per cent of Canadians already have the substances in their blood, even in remote regions like the Arctic. Many of these entered Canada’s waterways by leaching out of landfills, airports, and military bases.
PFAS contamination from a military base in Bagotville, Que. uncovered by Sauvé, led to a $15.5-million environmental remediation project. This contamination came from PFAS-containing firefighting foams used for training and operations from the 1970s until the 2010s. While mostly phased out, the foam is still used for “emergencies,” even as contamination remains in the area’s surface water, soil, and groundwater on the base and surrounding area.
This is a nation-wide problem for cities near military bases in Canada, many of which show evidence of this exact kind of contamination. A few hours away from Sauvé’s work in Quebec, fishing advisories have been issued in the city of North Bay, Ont. where PFAS contamination is high, and citizens are worried about possible long-term health effects from their drinking water. PFAS pollution has also been found in Trenton, Ont., Winnipeg, Man., Moose Jaw, Sask., Edmonton, Alta., Gagetown, N.B., and many more places. The Canadian Environmental Law Association has identified several dozen of these PFAS-contaminated sites, which they call an “underrepresentation” based on how government agencies collect data.
According to the federal government, military bases conduct regular drinking-water tests in accordance with Health Canada’s guidelines. This routine testing does sometimes catch PFAS in water. Yet. increasingly, groups like Brats In The Battlefield in Gagetown, concerned about the lack of transparency and research, are demanding an independent public inquiry into harmful chemicals used on base.
“Why is it a chemistry professor’s work that identifies a drinking water system contaminated by a military base?” Sauvé asked the Standing Committee on National Defence at the House of Commons in Ottawa, Ont., in December 2024.
Sauvé presented his work and findings at one of four defence committee meetings tasked with investigating federal contaminated sites. Despite plans for further meetings and studies into contamination, committee work stopped in its tracks after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau prorogued Parliament early this year.
Sauvé says the commitment to eliminating PFAS from drinking water and protecting citizens must come from the provincial level.
“Provincial rules for drinking water for PFAS have not been updated to reflect the new science,” Sauvé said, since currently, there are no PFAS standards for drinking water in Québec, and PFAS analysis of drinking water systems is not mandatory. “The provinces could very easily just adopt [Health] Canada’s recommendation, and they could include some of the more restrictive approaches of the U.S. EPA.”
11. Maple Madness is Back at Cataraqui Region Conservation Authority
Received Feb 12
Take a tractor drawn wagon back to our sugar bush and learn how maple syrup is made. Stroll through the interpretive trail displays and be sure to stop by the Sugar Shack for freshly made pancakes with warm maple syrup. Face painting by donation, activity and colouring sheets, photo op stations, photo contest, maple recipe sharing, and much more.
March means maple syrup at Little Cataraqui Creek Conservation Area. Take a tractor drawn wagon ride to our sugar bush and learn how maple syrup is made in the olden days and how we make it today. Take a stroll through our interpretive trail and be sure to stop by the sugar shack for freshly made pancakes with warm maple syrup.
Dates: All weekends in March and the March Break.
Location: Little Cataraqui Creek Conservation Area.
Cost: $5.25 for adults, $3.75 for children.
Hours: 9:00 am to 4:00 pm
12. What’s Happening in Kingston
See + Do – Visit Kingston https://visitkingston.ca
13. 10 Creative Snow Activities for Kids – Happy Hooligans
14. In Case You Are Looking for Some Arts Events?
Just in case you don’t already know about it, each month, Bruce produces an amazing list of everything happening in the Arts in Kingston
bruce.kauffman@hotmail.com
15. Events from the Skeleton Park Newsletter
SPAF! – One of the amazing things about plants and music is how they grow. Roots and tendrils spread around the community. (and I don’t mean goutweed) First there was a Summer Solstice Celebration which morphed into an amazing 3 day free Festival in the Park, from there we have seen pop up music Neighbours at Noon during Covid, and now we have the Elm Cafe hosting music along with some of The Gertrudes.
Check out Sunday Best Series, 2-4pm at the Elm
Feb 16 – Evalyn Perry
March 23 Kelsey McNulty
March 30 Kieran L’Abbe
April 6 Savannah Shea
And of course, read the awesome new edition of the Skeleton Press. Available at local outlets and little libraries around the hood, if you didn’t get one in your mailbox.
Look for the line up soon for the annual Skeleton Park Arts Festival coming June 20-22.
skeletonparkartsfest.ca
Skeleton Park Arts Fest
@skeletonparkartsfest
Live Wire Music Series –
Saturday March 22 – 7:30pm, The Barrel Boys with opener Ellen Hamilton & Night Sun
Friday April 25 – 7:30pm, Colin Linden
Check out the new location at le Theatre Sesame, 1290 Wheathill
https://livewiremusicseries.ca for tickets or at Brian’s Record Option
livewiremusicseries@gmail.com
16. “Dockyards Through the Decades”
Received from the Great Lakes Museum, Feb 17
Thursday, February 20th, 7:00-9:00pm
Location: Great Lakes Museum
Dockyards through the Decades: Over 200 years of ship repair in the Kingston Area
Tickets: $12
Notes: The place that is now known as the Great Lakes Museum was designated a National Heritage Site in large part because of the dry dock and the pump house that anchors the shipyard buildings beside it. Walter will explore the history of the site, and a surprising number of others in the Kingston area that have serviced vessels over the last two centuries. Instead of focusing on new vessels, Walter will explore the efforts of the people who kept them working.
So that’s it for Feb.
WISHING YOU FUN IN THE SNOW!
Cheers,
Mary Farrar, President,
Friends of Kingston Inner Harbour
www.friendsofinnerharbour.com