Volume 1 Issue 1 | March 2019
Welcome to the first edition of our monthly digital newsletter!
I am so proud to bring you City Connect. It’s a simple way I hope we can reach everyone from our City with short and interesting articles about what’s going on in Greater Sudbury.
 
We are a diverse and busy community covering more than 3,500 kilometres and we’d like to use this as an opportunity so everyone can see how hard we are working to serve residents from every corner of Greater Sudbury.
Within this newsletter you’ll find updates on projects, new and improved services as well as information and dates on just some of the many activities we have going on month to month.
 
Please take a moment to enjoy this edition of City Connect and I encourage your feedback. It’s up to all of us to ensure our City is doing everything we can to make Greater Sudbury the go-to destination for those looking to come to, invest in and grow our City.
 
Mayor Brian Bigger
City Connect is your community portal, connecting you to programs, meeting dates and general information related to municipal services available in Greater Sudbury. We’ll even take you behind the scenes to meet some of the people helping make our community a better place to live, play and work.

Are you looking to learn more about March Break activities? Want to find out where to put all this snow that’s fallen? Are you looking for a new four-legged best friend? Have you met Jerry? This month you’ll learn about these topics and more.
Do you have an idea on what or who we should feature in an upcoming edition? This is your community and I want to hear from you.

Until next time, stay connected Greater Sudbury!

Ed Archer
Chief Administrative Officer
Winter 2019: We Got This!
It’s been quite the winter in Greater Sudbury, especially in the last month. In February 2018, we received a total of 33 cms of snow. In February 2019, we received triple that with a total of over 100 cms of snow!
When crews aren’t plowing and salting/sanding, they’re out clearing snow banks at major intersections where the view is obstructed. From there, they head to intersections in residential areas – again, where the view is obstructed. Please remember we don’t remove snowbanks at the end of private driveways or businesses.
Leaving your car at home and taking the bus instead? Greater Sudbury Transit rarely – and we mean almost never – cancels buses due to winter weather. There are situations when we may experience delays and/or have to temporarily reroute a bus due to weather conditions. If this happens, we’ll let you know via our media partners and on the City’s social media sites.
Mother Nature has been testing our patience with lots of snow AND extreme cold! If you come across a parking machine (metre or pay and display) that appears to have been touched by Elsa, please call 311 and let us know which municipal lot you’re in so we can send someone out to take a look.
Make sure you and your family are prepared for what our northern winters may bring. Your family should be prepared for at least 72 hours. Some things you can do to prepare include keeping an emergency or winter safety kit in your car and making sure you have a family emergency kit in your home.

A Winter Wonderland!
For those loving the weather, we have tons of great things to do. Bundle up the kids and keep reading (but maybe not in that order)!
The City doesn’t staff or maintain sliding hills, but that doesn’t mean you can’t grab your toboggan and head to a local hill! We have a list of unofficial sliding hills on City property that you can use, at your own risk. We strongly suggest an adult is watching the kids at all times.
Whatevfur
The Greater Sudbury Animal Shelter aims to foster or adopt all homeless dogs and cats brought into our care. Since 2017, more than 1,000 dogs and cats have been adopted to loving homes.
CGS in the Community
Groundbreaking for the 200 Larch Street Place and future permanent home of the Off the Street Shelter and Harm Reduction Home.
Meeting up with longtime friends and meeting new ones at the budget input session at the Winterfest Brunch in Coniston.
Brendan Adair, Manager of Security and By-law, gives the City Services Fair on February 6 at New Sudbury Centre a thumbs up!
Raising awareness and ending the stigma of mental illness in our community. #BellLetsTalk
Project Updates
Here's an overview of some of the current projects we have on the go throughout our community.
2019 Budget
Following deliberations by the Finance and Committee on February 19, 20 and 21,
City Council has approved the 2019 Budget with increased investments in year-round road maintenance, transit, economic development, customer service, the arts and more.
Kingsway Entertainment District
The cost sharing agreement summary is now available. The summary provides an overview of the agreement, which was negotiated over a period of several months between the partners involved in the development of the site.
The Junction
The Junction Collaboration Working Group has been established. The first meeting is scheduled for March 7.
Place des Arts
With construction suspended for the winter months, planning and design work continues in order to get ready for construction to begin again in the spring.

Maley Drive
Work continues on the Maley Drive Extension, connecting Lasalle Boulevard West at Collège Boréal, to Barry Downe Road. We anticipate the road will be done by the end of this year. 
311: You Asked, We Answered
Each day, we receive more than 800 calls to 311 about a variety of topics. These are the most common questions asked by you in the last month, and the answers.
Can I get another blue box?
You sure can! In fact, you don’t even have to contact 311 to replace a blue box, you can go online and fill out a simple form and we’ll drop one off at your house within a couple of weeks. It’s that easy!
Why hasn’t the plow gone down my street yet?
A full call out of City plows and contractors are deployed after 8cm of snowfall. Residential streets may have to wait a full 24 hours after a storm finishes before a plow will come by. If it’s been more than 24 hours after the storm has finished, and you haven’t had a plow come by, please call 311 and let us know.
Can I have the number for…?
Please keep in mind that 311 is a resource about municipal services and programs. If you need the phone number for another service area including provincial ministry contacts, Greater Sudbury Utilities, Greater Sudbury Police Service, or any other service, please refer to a phone book, Google, or call 411 to contact an operator.
City Works
Jerry Cole, Supervisor
Linear Infrastructure Distribution and Collection

Jerry has been with the City for 12 years. He grew up in Sudbury and still finds time for shinny at the outdoor rink in Coniston or a skate around the oval at Queen’s Athletic. 

What do you do for the City?
JC: My role is to oversee work to pipes under the ground. I supervise three crews, a total of nine people, whose job it is to dig. This type of work can include anything from water mains, water services, valve replacements, hydrants, sewer mains and sewer laterals.

What is it about your job that makes you get up every morning, sometimes very early, and go to work every day?
JC: I love the challenge and the variety that every day brings, it’s something different every day. Things can change quickly so you have to be quick on your feet. I also love being a part of a crew of people who help provide clean drinking water to our community. I’m proud to be a part of that. 

What might surprise people about what you and your crews do?
JC: We spend most of our time working to fix underground pipes, but we also place great importance on how that work affects people. When a water main breaks, we want to get it fixed as quickly and efficiently as possible, with as little interruption to residents’ lives as possible. When we have to temporarily turn off water, we’re doing it in their best interest, often times to prevent flooding in homes or on the street.
By-law of the Month
Snow on your property should stay on your property.

The City’s by-law regulating the Fouling, Obstruction, Use and Care of Roads (2011-219) says you can’t move snow or ice from your property onto or across any roadway in Greater Sudbury.

This applies to anyone clearing snow on a property, including residents, tenants or anyone you hire to clear your driveway during the winter months. Moving snow across the road or onto a sidewalk can not only create an uneven surface and a hazard for drivers and pedestrians, but also removes sand or salt the City has applied to the road.

If you’re looking for additional reading material, please visit our website.
Community Action Networks (CAN)
Community Action Networks, CANs for short, work to bring people together to build a strong and vibrant community. 
Performance Dashboard: Working for You
Each month, we offer a collection of statistics to help assess and measure performance over time and across service areas.
This month:
Communications and Community Engagement
We'll look at how long people are browsing our website and what that means about how quickly they are able to find the information they’re looking for.

We'll also look at engagement project numbers and results to see what topics are most interesting to the community.

And, we'll dig into our social media numbers to see how many people are reaching out to us via those avenues.
Coming Up!
Affordable family fun for everyone!
Over To You Greater Sudbury
We want to connect you with information about your city and with engagement opportunities on the things that matter most to you! Share your ideas for making Greater Sudbury a better place to live, work and play.
Share Your Priorities for Greater Sudbury
Now to March 12

Get On Board: A New Direction for Greater Sudbury Transit
Now to March 12
Calendar of Events
March 4
Planning Committee at 5:30 p.m. in Room C-11
March 7
Foreigner at the Sudbury Community Arena
March 9 & 10
Blue Man Group at the Sudbury Community Arena
March 18
Operations Committee at 3 p.m. in Room C-11
Community Services Committee at 6 p.m. in Room C-11
March 19
City Council at 6 p.m. in the Council Chamber
March 19
Marianas Trench at the Sudbury Community Arena
March 25
Planning Committee at 5:30 p.m. in Room C-11
March 26
Finance and Administration Committee 4 p.m. in the Council Chamber
Sudbury Five at the Community Arena
Sudbury Wolves at the Sudbury Community Arena
Please note: all City Council and Committee meetings take place at Tom Davies Square, 200 Brady St., Sudbury