 Ward 9 Councillor's Report January 2015 - Vol 16
Dear Neighbour:
Welcome to the first edition of the Ward 9 e-newsletter for 2015. I hope that this year will bring you good health and happiness.
Council at both the city and region has started reviewing the budget for 2015. We have many challenges facing us but we also have opportunities to review programs and to make changes that will benefit our residents.
In this months' e-newsletter, I have included information on how you can provide your input into some of our budget decisions. Your ideas and comments are invaluable and are of great help to me as I consider reports and requests. Please take the time to use our online budget tool to learn more about the process and to indicate what your top priorities are.
In the next few months, Council will also deliberate on several development applications in our ward. I thank the thousands of residents who have participated in one or more of these applications. My key priority is to support our community and to make sure to the best of my ability that any new development does not have a negative impact on the existing residents. All meeting dates will be posted in my newsletter and on the Ward 9 website. As well, those within a specified distance to the site and all who have commented on the application will receive formal notices from the City.
As always, my staff and I are here to help you with any City or Regional issues. Just send me an email to [email protected] or call 905-896-5900 and check the Ward 9 website at www.ward9.ca for ongoing updates. Sincerely, 
Click on links to go directly to the article Ward 9 Meetings: Formal Planning Meeting for 6719 Glen Erin Drive Ward 9 News: Discounted Transit for Seniors? City Budget - Online Tools Mississauga Parent-Child Centre Closing in Meadowvale Changes Coming to Waste Collection in 2016 On-street Parking during Winter Maintenance Mississauga Roads App Beware Door-to-Door Water Heater/Water Filtration Salespeople
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Formal Planning Meeting for 6719 Glen Erin Drive
The formal Planning and Development meeting to consider an application to build additional townhouses at 6719 Glen Erin Drive is taking place at the Civic Centre, 300 City Centre Drive in the Council Chambers on Monday February 2, 2015 at 7:00 pm.
I have had a number of ward meetings regarding this application and this will be the required meeting under the Planning Act.
The present application is to build 93 townhouse units on the property and retain the existing 13 storey apartment building and parking structure.
Please click here to view the plans.
I encourage residents to attend the meeting on February 2nd and make your comments at that time. Residents wishing to make formal written comments to be received by Council should email them to me at [email protected]. Please state in your email that you grant me permission to forward your comments.
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Discounted Transit for Seniors?
Council will be considering a recommendation on providing discounted transit fares to seniors during off peak hours. I presented two options to the Ward 9 seniors last September to get their input and have also received input from other residents. I asked staff at that time to bring financial information on the impact of offering either a $1 fare during off peak hours Monday to Friday or one day a week free transit for seniors.
The intent is to provide easier and affordable access to seniors to enable them to get out of their homes especially during winter months. As many of our seniors are living on fixed pensions and have mobility issues, they rely on transit to even go one or two stops for shopping, medical appointments etc. Even with the current discounts, this can be expensive for them. My main concern is for those seniors who are within the low income bracket and only receiving basic Canada pension.
While this program is only looking at seniors fares, we are nearing the end of a pilot at the Region that assists low income residents with transit costs on a 1/3 cost sharing program between the region, city and user and I will be looking at that program to help other residents who need extended subsidy.
Staff reported that the cost for a $1 every day fare for seniors could be from $500,000 - $900,000 annually but these are not firm figures as we do not have demographic information on who is using the buses on a regular basis. I and other Councillors believe the cost impact will be much less as more people will actually use the service at a time when we must operate buses even with very few passengers on them.
Your comments on this proposal would be most helpful as we move towards making a decision in the coming weeks. Please email your comments to me at [email protected] with the subject "Transit for Seniors".
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City Budget - Online Tools
Each year, City Council is faced with new challenges and difficult decisions on programs and services need to be made.
Our goal for the 2015 budget is to maintain service levels and we have challenged staff to find even more efficiencies.
We have implemented an online tool that will provide residents with more detail on the budget and services and allow you to show us where you would allocate the tax dollars we collect. The information gathered from the online tool will assist us in making decisions about the budget.
Click here to view the video "City Budget Basics" to learn more about the City's business planning and budget process.
Please tell us what your priorities are by using our online budget tool. You can increase or decrease the budget in 8 spending areas by clicking here.
Click here for up-to-date information about all upcoming budget committee meetings.
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Mississauga Parent-Child Centre closing in Meadowvale
After serving the Meadowvale commmunity for 25 years, the Parent-Child Centre that operates in Meadowvale Town Centre is closing their doors. I was advised this was a funding decision.
Although this is a provincially funded program under the Ministry of Education, I have met with the director and provided some suggestions for alternate locations. The City will be providing space 2 mornings a week in the Meadowvale Library and I am hoping we can provide some regional space in the Health Centre at the mall.
I have also discussed the situation with our MPP, Bob Delaney, and he is looking into the funding issue with the Ministry.
The Parent-Child Centre has provided thousands of parents and their young children with support and education. I have personally observed some of their programs and I can attest to the value of having such service in our community. I am hoping that MPP Delaney and I can help keep this much needed program.
Parents will be receiving complete information by the end of this month from the staff.
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Changes Coming to Waste Collection in 2016
NOTE: Open House March 5, 4:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Erin Meadows Community Centre
Starting on January 4, 2016, your waste collection services will be changing to a full cart system. Garbage will be collected on alternate weeks from recycling and organics will be collected every week.
This program was decided by Regional Council in 2013 and the contracts for the service were awarded in 2014 for implementation in 2016.
At this time Peel is the only region that still provides weekly garbage collection. All other municipalities have been on the bi-weekly collection for many years and we have the benefit of seeing how the program has worked. We also undertook several pilots in Peel to get resident input on various methods of collection before making the decision.
We are committed to increasing our diversion from waste to 50 per cent by 2021 and this is one of the means to get to that target. As almost all waste can be either recycled or composted, the amount of garbage left at the curb can be reduced dramatically if residents follow these programs. The main concern most residents on the pilot had at the start of their participation was any "smell" factor of garbage left for two weeks but as anything that can produce odours can be put in the organics bin and collected weekly this was not a concern.
This program will also save Peel residents about $9 million dollars annually on contract collection costs.
In order to ensure that families have the right size bin for your needs, we are providing a means for you to select which size of the garbage and recycling bins you will require. Garbage and recycling bins come in small, medium and large sizes and the organics bin is one size only.
All of the information on the program is on the website and you can also call the Peel service number at 211 if you have questions. I also urge you to attend an Open House being held in Ward 9 on Thursday March 5, 2015 from 4:30 - 8:30 p.m. at Erin Meadows Community Centre, 2800 Erin Centre Blvd to ask questions and view the carts before you make your decision.
Once you know what size bins you need, click here to select the sizes of bins you want to receive. You have until March 31, 2015 to choose your bins. Your new bins will be delivered between September to December 2015. Information on the removal of old blue/grey boxes and green bins will be available in early 2016.
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On-street Parking During Winter Maintenance
This is a reminder of the City's On-Street Parking regulations during Winter Maintenance season.
To help our plows safely and efficiently clear roads, a winter on-street parking restriction is in effect in Mississauga between November 1, 2014 - March 3, 2015 from 2:00 am - 6:00 am.
For more information click here.
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Mississauga Roads App 
This is a reminder to download the City's Mississauga Roads app to your handheld device.
The app will be very useful this winter as you will be able to see when streets have been plowed and see our plows and salters in action.
You will also be able to receive updates on the status of our operations, access to the latest Environment Canada weather forecast for Mississauga, live alerts about road conditions and emergency road closures.
Click here to learn more and to download the app.
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Beware Door-to-Door Water Heater/Water Filtration Salespeople
The Region of Peel advises residents to be cautious when approached by anyone offering to inspect or sell a hot water heater or water filtration system. Neither the Region nor its contractors knock on residents' doors to offer this service.
Recently, residents in Brampton and Mississauga have reported that individuals from a filtration company have attempted to gain entry to their homes to inspect their hot water heaters or sell a water filtration system or perform water tests. The Region would like to emphasize that these individuals do not work for the Region of Peel or its contractor Neptune Technology Group Canada.
Currently, the Region of Peel is conducting a mandatory Water Meter Replacement Program to replace outdated meters that have been in service for 20 years or more. The Program will begin in Mississauga on January 19, 2015, and be completed in early December 2015. The Region has contracted Neptune Technology Group Canada to complete this work.
Mississauga residents who must participate in the mandatory Water Meter Replacement Program will be contacted by mail with a letter that instructs them to book an appointment with Neptune to have this work completed. All work will be done on an appointment basis. Neptune representatives will only contact residents at their door in the event that an appointment has not been booked.
All Neptune Water Meter Installers are uniformed, carry proper and visible identification and have Region of Peel decals on or in their vehicles. Residents are strongly advised to view this identification before permitting the service person to enter their home.
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Anniversary/Birthday Congratulations
If you know someone who is celebrating a milestone birthday or wedding anniversary please contact me at 905-896-5900 or email me at
[email protected] and I would be pleased to send a letter of recognition and a small gift to commemorate the special occasion.
As well, if you would like a certificate from the Mayor to commemorate the special occasion, please click here for information on how to arrange for one.
Recent Celebrations:
December 26 Cliff Paquette - 65th Birthday
February 5 Helene Waggett - 95th Birthday
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On Friday December 12th I had the pleasure of attending the Mississauga North Baseball Association Grow the Game Gala.
It was a special evening spent with former Blue Jays Roberto Alomar, Duane Ward and Lloyd Moseby and baseball great Sandy Alomar as well as Major League players Shawn Hill and Chris Leroux who came up through the MNBA. Shawn and Chris are also the first inductees into the MNBA Hall of Fame.
All profits from this fundraiser go towards investing in player and coach development, equipment and outreach programming.
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Chanukah Menorah Kindling Ceremony
I was delighted to join Rabbi Slavin of the
Chabad Jewish Discovery Centre and hundreds of residents at City Hall on December 16th for the lighting of the Menorah. It was a wonderful ceremony I was especially pleased to see a menorah "scarf tree" to support those in need.
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Mississauga Festival Choir - Festival of Friends
The Mississauga Festival Choir performs their Festival of Friends concert on Saturday, February 7, 2015 at 8.00 pm at Eden United Church.
To purchase tickets and review complete event details, click here.
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Credit Valley Horticultural Society
The Credit Valley Horticultural Society meets monthly. Upcoming meetings are taking place on February 11, March 11 and April 11 and will have guest speakers covering such topics as "the Gardens of Ireland, "the Versatility of Herb" and many others of interest for both novice and experienced gardeners.
For more information, click here.
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The Coldest Night of the Year
The Coldest Night of the Year is a fantastically fun, family-friendly walking fundraiser that raises money for the hungry, homeless and hurting in 80+ communities across Canada on Saturday, February 21, 2015. In our community, The Dam Youth Drop In Centre is hosting the walk. Please consider participating and raising money for this worthy cause.
For more information, click here.
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2015 Mississauga Sport Summit
Mississauga sports groups, coaches, board members and volunteers - Help shape the future success of sport in Mississauga!
The Mississauga Sports Council in partnership with the City of Mississauga is hosting the 2015 Mississauga Sport Summit. Join us on Saturday, February 28, 2015 for a day of informative presentations, inspirational speakers and opportunities to network and learn more about coaching, fundraising, board governance and how to take your sport club or association to the next level.
For more information, click here.
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Heart Hospice Gala - A Night In Hollywood
Guests will be transported to Hollywood and enjoy a glamorous evening of dining and dancing, all in support of the individuals and families who use Heart House Hospice services. The gala is being held on Saturday March 21, 2015 at the Mississauga Convention Centre, 75 Derry Road West starting at 6:00 pm.
For more information, click here.
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E-Waste Scrap Metal Drive by the 3rd Meadowvale Scouts
The 3rd Meadowvale Scout Group is hosting an E-Waste scrap metal Drive on Saturday April 25, 2015 from 8 am - 2 pm at the Meadowvale West Church Centre (6945 Meadowvale Town Centre Cir).
For more information, click here.
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