Dear Resident:

Its hard to believe we are almost into December and approaching the end of 2019. Having that snow storm earlier this month has put staff behind on leaf vacuuming and required us to bring our contractors on earlier than expected. I hope you got your snow tires on as we head into winter soon.

Much of my time this month has been spent on reviewing the budgets at the city and region. You can read more in the article below but I have worked hard to keep our service levels constant while respecting your money. As property taxes are the main source of revenue for the city, it is hard to balance the needs and costs over the years.

At this time of year I ask you to think of those less fortunate. Adopt a family for Christmas, support our local food bank, help a neighbour with snow clearing. A little support goes a long way.

As always you can contact me for assistance on any city or region issue at pat.saito@mississauga,ca, by phone to 905-896-5900 at any time and my staff and I will be pleased to help you.

Pat

New Speed limits will save lives

Last month I announced our plan to reduce speed limits in all residential neighbourhoods to 40K/h. This is being done by neighbourhoods for consistency, with the entire city being changed over time.

As this is part of our Vision Zero strategy, I asked staff what the cost would be to speed up the implementation. We got this information at budget and I moved we approve the cost to hire a manager to do the project. Staff advised this will take 2 1/2 years instead of the initial 10 year plan. This is still too slow for me and I again asked for it to be done sooner.

In addition to the 40K change, we are also implementing a 30k/h speed limit in neighbourhood school zones. These will be implemented as part of the neighburhood changes and will make our roads safer for all pedestrians.

Now the challenge is to get the people who drive in the neighburhoods to slow down!!!

I am so excited that the OPP decided to use the old information service centre on the 401 between Winston Churchill and Erin MIlls Parkway for their new Detachment Centre. This new facility is under construction now and is slated to open in early 2020. The officers will have access from both the 401 and Argentia Road and I am looking forward to the opening!

Council has completed review of the 2020 budget and will be voting on recommendations on December 4. We have looked at all departments requests and made a few changes.

The total proposed 2020 operating budget is $926.1 million. This amount is offset by revenue from various sources (e.g., transit fares, recreation fees and building permit fees) totalling $387.4 million. The property tax funds the budget amount not covered by these revenues.

The proposed overall impact is a 1.7% increase on the City's portion of the 2020 residential property tax bill. We start reviewing the region of Peel budget this week and staff there are proposing a 1.7% tax increase. As we have not yet deliberated on this, it is too soon to determine what the final total will be.

For more information on the City budget, visit the City of Mississauga's Budget website . For information on the Region budget visit the Region's website

It's that time of year, when we all need to take a bit of precaution around the flu. The flu is a contagious virus that anyone can get, but there are several things you can do to avoid catching it or spreading it to others.

For more information on the flu, and where to get your flu shot, please visit the Government of Ontario's website by clicking here.

On November 20th, after City Council, I received my flu shot. It's important to stay safe and to protect yourself against influenza!

As a long time member of the City's Economic Development Advisory Board, I have been working with staff and stakeholders as we develop a new Economic Development Strategy for the next ten years. This is built upon the previous 10-year strategy that focused on global business attraction, employment and investment. The new strategy will be presented to City Council in December, with implementation aimed at 2020.

For more information on the strategy, click here.

Some Ward 9 parks have received these colourful giant Muskoka chairs,funded using special ward infrastructure money that is meant for recreational enhancements. I thought this would be a fun way to bring some more excitement to our parks!

Photo Challenge: Do you know where one of the chairs is? If you do, take a photo of yourself or family on the chair, and tag me on Facebook! I want to see you on all 3 chairs around the ward.

Winter is well on it's way, and we all know what that means! Snow, snow snow. See above for the link to the City's website. Also, don't forget to follow @MississaugaSnow on Twitter for updates during a snow event.

Tonight our local Youth Drop In, the Dam, is hosting its annual Open House. Come and see for yourself what The Dam is all about. Learn from our youth, play some games and eat some delicious food. You can even bring a gift (or plan to make a donation towards a gift) for our youth! We promise you will be glad you came.

Date

Tuesday November 26th

Time

6:30pm - 8:30pm

Location

PORTICO Community Church, 1814 Barbertown Rd

The Santa Shuffle is an annual 5km Fun-Run and 1km Elf Walk to raise funds for local Salvation Army  initiatives which provide hope and support to those in need across Canada.

Saturday December 7th, 2019

10am

Cornerstone Community Church, 3020 Vanderbilt Rd

Click here to register.

Now is a good time to show appreciation for your loved ones, friends and neighbours, and offer some warm wishes for the holidays—no matter which ones they celebrate.

You can't miss when you get tickets to a show at our lovely Meadowvale Theatre...right here in our community!! This is community theatre at its best!!

Music Theatre Mississauga Encore Series has a great lineup for 2010 and have a 3 show special subscription. Click the image above for ticket sales.

I always look forward to the annual Eden Food for Change fundraiser, A Taste of Eden. This year celebrated the event's 10th anniversary on October 19th. It was an evening of fun and fund raising helping the food bank serve those in need in our community.

On October 23rd, as a member of the City Economic Development Advisory Board, I joined members of Mississauga's Economic Development Office and representatives from Scott Thornley + Company Inc in receiving the Silver Award for Key Sector Brochures by the IEDC .

Peel Goes Purple

I was pleased to host local residents and members of the Meadowvale Community Church at Heritage Mississauga’s annual gala, The Credits, on Thursday November 8. This event honours members of the Mississauga community for their contributions and achievements with a celebration of our community heritage and it was wonderful to see Pastor Sam Cooper recognized this year with the Mississaugas of the Credit Cultural and Heritage Award.

I always enjoy speaking at the annual General Meeting of Peel Multicultural Council located here in Meadowvale. This year my colleague Councillor Ron Starr joined me on November 15. Pictured with Executive Director Naveed Chaudhry .

What a pleasure to attend the grand opening of Ren's Pet store in Heartland, on November 19th. Rens will be partnering with our Animal Services and the Mississauga Humane Society on upcoming projects.

It's the most wonderful time of the year! I had the privilege of participating in the Streetsville Santa Claus Parade along with my colleagues Councillors Carlson and Parrish. It was lovely to see so many people of all ages out enjoying the parade!