Dear Friends of Kingston Inner Harbour Thanks so much Debbie O’Grady for the great October pic. Brief newsletter for a couple of reasons: First I was away throughout September on an “Out of the Northwest Passage adventure where online access was extremely minimal. Second, since my return I have contracted COVID which has made me quite tired for the last few days. Things are on the mend at this point. Thanks for your understanding.
LOCAL STUFF ONLY 1. All Candidates Meeting + Advance Voting Thanks so much to the McBurney Park Neighbourhood Association for sponsoring this meeting. The following is taken from their newsletter.
McBurney Park Neighbourhood Association Sponsors All Candidates Meeting
The All Candidates meeting is coming up next week with the 3 new Candidates running for council in our district. Childcare is provided and it will be televised. If you can’t make it out to the debate in person, watch full coverage on YourTV after the event. YourTV can be found exclusively on Cogeco Cable channels 700 and 13. You can also watch the program on the YourTV Kingston YouTube channel. WHEN: WED OCTOBER 12 – 7 – 8:30pm WHERE: CENTRAL PUBLIC SCHOOL 237 Sydenham Street WHY: Because you care about issues in our neighbourhood AGENDA Welcome – Kate Thomas Coordinator of the McBurney Park Neighbourhood Assoc. MC Explains Meeting Format – Lea Westlake Candidates Opening Comments Candidates Answer Prepared Questions Audience Q and A Candidates Closing Comments Wrap Up
Prepared Questions The following questions were given to the candidates in advance. Question 1 We would like to hear you talk about housingin our neighbourhood, specifically homelessness, airBNB, students, affordability. Question 2 Providence Manor will likely close before the next city election in 2026. Last month, City Council voted to support, in principle and financially, further study of the feasibility of repurposing the building. How as Councillor would you engage in this vitally important initiative? Question 3 During the Capital Condo negotiations, the developer agreed to pay $60,000 to study ways to improve Queen Street. What are your thoughts on how this vital downtown artery can be improved?
The Candidates: Keith Bilow – 165 Ontario Street Unit 609 – keith4kingston@outlook.com Keith Bilow was born in Kingston and has lived here all his life. He is semi-retired after a varied career in real estate, fundraising and independent businesses. He has also been involved in volunteering for a wide variety of community organizations. If elected, he plans to focus fulltime on his role as a member of Kingston Council.
Randy Casford – WITHDRAWN
Alexandria Liu – 63 Cowdy St. Unit 6 – Alexandria_Liu@hotmail.com – 343-989-0666 Alexandria Liu is a mother, partner, and student with a passion for uplifting folks within our community. She has been an advocate for the working class and unhoused populations since moving to Kingston, and volunteers within the community. Alexandria will focus on RGI housing, while expanding social programs and jobs to lift folks and families out of poverty.
Gregory Ridge – 95 Russell St. – ridge.gregory@gmail.com – 613-929-2285 Gregory Ridge has lived in King’s Town for over 25 years. He has a BA, a BBA in Accounting, and is completing his Master’s in Public Administration. He was a Constituency and Legislative Assistant for MPP Ian Arthur and ran a free Tax Clinic bringing $2 million to the community. Please plan to join us, if you have any questions email skeletonpark@gmail.com Take good care Kate
The Municipal Elections will be held on Monday, October 24, 2022 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., but residents may cast their vote before Voting Day too. Online voting is available until 8 p.m. on Voting Day, provided you are registered for online voting by 5 p.m. on Voting Day. Electors may also choose to cast their ballot at one of six voting locations in Kingston on Advance Voting Days (Oct. 18 to 22)regardless of district: Advance Voting Locations: Central Library – 130 Johnson Street INVISTA Centre – 1350 Gardiners Road Isabel Turner Library – 935 Gardiners Road Kingston East Community Centre – 779 Highway 15 Portsmouth Olympic Harbour – 53 Yonge Street Rideau Heights Community Centre – 85 MacCauley Street Advance Voting Days & Times: Tuesday, Oct. 18 – 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 19 – 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 20 – 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21 – 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22 – 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
2. Trees on Belle Island Received from Little Forests Kingston, Sep 5. Belle Island Enji Goode project: We’ve received a grant for $1750 from Trees for Life to buy tree seedlings to support Belle Island Caretakers in their stewardship of Belle Island. European Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) dominates the understory of the Red Oak forest on Belle Island and threatens this forest’s healthy succession and biodiversity. If you’d like to help with either Buckthorn removal over the next few weeks or tree planting in October, email littleforestskingston@gmail.com.
3. North King’s Town Secondary Plan We are eagerly awaiting the call for the working group to pick up action on this file. FYI, here is a recent media release on this subject from No Clearcuts in Kingston. Media Release October 6, 2022
Group Urges Prompt Resumption of Public Consultation Re: NKT Secondary Plan
Kingston, ON – No Clearcuts Kingston is urging the City to quickly resume the public consultation process leading to the development of the North King’s Town (NKT) Secondary Plan.
The process, which had engaged dedicated and concerned citizens as part of the Study Team, was officially “put on hold” in November, 2019, to allow the City to focus on the Williamsville Main Street Study – and then because of COVID.
City Staff have reported that they have been working on the NKT Secondary Plan and “hope to have a workplan from the project consultant in the next three weeks.”. This should then identify project milestones which will “help schedule the additional opportunities for public engagement.”
“Due to the recent Council vote clearly opposing Jay Patry’s controversial proposal for the former Tannery site, we hope that public engagement begins again without delay,” said Kathleen O’Hara, No Clearcuts Kingston. “It’s certainly time to bring back and expand community involvement in this important and highly relevant Plan.”
The urban forest, Provincially Significant wetland, shoreline, and wildlife of the Tannery site can and should play a key role in any vision for NKT’s future, especially given their proximity to a populated neighbourhood, Belle Park, and Belle Island.
No Clearcuts Kingston is concerned about the City’s attitude toward Secondary Plans.
“We’ve been told that the NKT Secondary Plan was put on hold for almost three years due to staffing pressures,” said O’Hara. “Meanwhile, staff had time to put together a 700-page report on Patry’s Tannery proposal. We certainly question their priorities!”
No Clearcuts Kingston also recommends that the excellent original public members of the Study Team be given an opportunity to resume their crucial work on the NKT Secondary Plan. However, so far these members have received nothing more than “wait and see” notices from City Staff.
“The City seems to think that public consultation is an add-on to the Plan’s development process,” said O’Hara. “This attitude has led to unpopular planning decisions in the past which we hope will not be repeated in North King’s Town.”
No Clearcuts Kingston greatly mourns the loss of Grandmother Laurel Claus-Johnson, who was a true defender of the Tannery and other trees and a member of the NKT Secondary Plan Study Team.
Based on City Staff’s lack of Indigenous consultation while preparing their Tannery report, we hope great effort will be made to fill the significant gap Laurel’s death has left – and increase Indigenous representation.
For more information, please contact:
Kathleen O’Hara – Available by email or Zoom only.
4. Tannery Comments Comments received from recent Kingston Field Naturalist mailing. Thanks so much Chris Hargreaves
“DAVIS TANNERY SITE On September 6th Kingston City Council supported the Planning Committee’s decision, and rejected an application by Patry Developments for a re-zoning and Official Plan amendment that would have enabled their proposed redevelopment of the Davis Tannery site to proceed. The following day Patry announced that he would appeal the decision to the Ontario Land Tribunal. Council has issued long “Notice of Refusal” reports explaining its decision. These included a reference to the “16 equal and fundamental principles” in the Provincial Policy Statement which “must be balanced as reasonably close to equally in any land use application”. It was stated that in the Staff recommendation to Council, “Council finds the proposed balance of planning principles to be unreasonably weighted in favor of some principles and that not enough weight was given to other good planning principles”. After their decision, it was contended that members of Council failed to understand the development application process. Having watched all the Planning Committee and Council debates on Tannery proposal, I think that councillors have a very good understanding of the planning process. However, after following Planning Committee meetings for sixteen years, I still do not understand why holding public meetings about parking spaces, while leaving plans for stormwater management to later, is described as “good planning”! The “Notice of Refusal” reports can be read at file:///C:/Users/User/Downloads/Notice%20of%20Refusal%20-%20Zoning%20By-Law%20Amendments.pdf file:///C:/Users/User/Downloads/Notice%20of%20Refusal%20-%20Proposed%20Official%20Plan%20Amendment.pdf “
5. Kingston Inner Harbour 70 Million dollar clean-up webpage. Comments invited. Once again thanks to Chris Hargreaves, Kingston Field Naturalists, Conservation Committee.
“KINGSTON INNER HARBOUR REMEDIATION PLAN – PERIOD FOR PUBLIC COMMENTS EXTENDED TO OCTOBER 30th. There is a lot of information on the KIH project website at http://www.kihproject-projetpik.ca/Home/IndexEN A guide to the contents can be viewed at http://www.kihproject-projetpik.ca/Home/QuestionsAnswersEN They include: An introductory Virtual Information Session video which lasts 22 minutes five supplementary videos totaling 34 minutes a recording of a Weight Of Evidence Approach For Risk Assessment Of Contaminants workshop that lasts 1 hour 25 minutes. “Questions and Answers” on many different issues.
However, the website: talks a lot about risks, but not about actual problems. it says that dredged sediments will be dewatered and trucked to a landfill, but “details will be developed further during the detailed design phase”. – No information is given about the risks involved in dewatering, trucking and dumping the contaminated sediments. I think these “details” should have been considered before the project got to its current stage. doesn’t say how much the project might cost. I am also concerned that the website gives no indication as to how long it would take for the harbour to recover to its current level of ecological vitality after the proposed remediation work, before then entering what is considered to be a better state.
Everyone is encouraged to review the material on the website, reach your own opinions, and submit comments by October 30th. Stay well, Chris”
6. Repair Café Kingston When: Saturday, Oct 08, 2:00pm – 4:00pm Where: K,F,L&A Public LIbrary, Central Branch Friends of the Library Gather & Create Space Do you have an item that is in need of repair? Join our team of fixers to get feedback on how you can fix it. Interested in learning new skills and chatting with fixers? You are welcome to join this event, even if you don’t have anything to be fixed for this session. This is a drop-in program. Please note that we cannot accept any products that use petroleum. We cannot store any items on site; all items must be taken home with the owner at the end of the program session. AGE GROUP: New AdultsAdultsSeniors EVENT TYPE: Technology & Making
7. Marine Museum Nautical Nights What: An evening with Bruce Macdonald and his new book, Never Say P*G: the Book of Sailors Superstitions. Covering maritime superstitions from coast to coast, Bruce explains A: why killing an albatross is bad luck, but seeing one is good luck—to C: clapping aboard a ship will bring thunder. Signed copies of his new book will be available for purchase. When: Wed, Oct 12, 7 pm
8. Kingston Historical Society talk “Changing Attitudes to Memorializing our War Dead” What: Zoom talk on how people and governments have commemorated those fallen to war over a span from the Battle of Waterloo to today. Who: Peter Gower, KHS webmaster and editor of its journal, Historic Kingston When: Wed, Oct 19, 7 pm. NOTE: This may well have bearing on the ongoing controversy surrounding the statue of Sir John A., when and why it was erected. To register for Zoom link: kingstonhs@gmail.com https://www.kingstonhistoricalsociety.ca/events-news/
9. New School Program to Increase Indigenous Awareness among Students What: “Our Relations (Grades 1-8) In person program Students in grades 1–8 explore their other-than-human relations—land, animals, plant life—examining the role they play in protecting the land, followed by a workshop where they have the chance to reflect on and create a work of art portraying a place they most want to protect. The tour looks at relationships between us as a people and the environment while engaging with art by Robert Houle, Roy Kakegamic, Jane Ash Poitras, Joe David and more in the exhibition Land Protectors. When: Tuesdays – Fridays, Oct 2 – Dec 2, 10 am and 1 pm Booking details: Fill out the booking request form and the Program Team will confirm your field trip time Fee: $60/class (*Limestone District School Board is supporting their classes by covering this fee.) The Student Docent training program is generously supported by the Lloyd Carr-Harris Foundation.
10. Free Open Trails Day at Little Cat Oct 15 What: Enjoy some fresh air, colourful fall foliage, and family-friendly activities at the Open Trails day at Little Cataraqui Creek Conservation Area When: Oct. 15 from 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Staff will be offering guided hikes at 11 a.m and 1 p.m. – please meet up on the front lawn of the Outdoor Centre where the sojourn will begin. Washrooms and the snack bar will both be open throughout the day, where you can also get trail maps. NOTES: The Outdoor Centre will be open and feature a ‘Craft Corner’ where visitors can make nature-themed buttons as well as partake in creating ‘tree cookie’ art or name tags. You can also learn about various birds and turtles that inhabit the property through our interpretative displays, join a eyes only scavenger hunt, or buy some seed to feed the chickadees once you hit the trails. The Cataraqui Conservation Foundation, which is the fundraising arm of Cataraqui Conservation, will be holding a ‘Yard Sale’ with all proceeds from the sale of items going to support our conservation education programs. All items are new and have been donated by local individuals, organizations, and businesses.
Finally, remembering Laurel Claus Johnson and the enormous contribution she made to the city’s public discourse on Indigenous issues. Rest in peace Laurel. Your voice will be missed.
Happy Thanksgiving, Mary Farrar, President, Friends of Kingston Inner Harbour
