Hamilton City Council says YES to Ivor Wynne stadium

Just like I mentioned in my previous post, today was just a formality in Council unanimously saying yes to the Ivor Wynee stadium project. The decision became a little easier when the provincial government committed $22.5million and closed off the funding gap that existed. The stadium project is a go ahead as long as HOSTCO accepts the plan. The stadium saga is over and now we can start talking about other problems in the city. Congratulations Hamilton in taking advantage for this valuable project to the city of Hamilton.

Provincial Government commits $22.5million to Ivor Wynne stadium

Ivor Wynne

The provincial government has committed $22.5million to the renovation of Ivor Wynne stadium and in turn closing the funding gap that existed. The announcement was made this afternoon at Queen’s Park by MPP Sophia Aggelonitis and Ted McMeekin with Mayor Bob Bratina in attendance, the catalyst for the project. With many Councillors fearing the gap in funding at Thursday’s Council meeting, this should remove any doubt for those who opposed the project. The province has stepped up to the plate and tomorrow seems all but a formality in passing the stadium project. Mayor Bob Bratina has had his critics thus far, but I think it’s fair to say that in the 2 months in office, Mayor Bob was able to bring Confederation Park to the table and finally got Council on board with the Ivor Wynne renovations.

Dog shot with rock salt??

I received a disturbing email about the possibility of someone shooting animals with rock salt in the Red Hill Bowl park. The email is below:

Hi Bernard,

Just to brief you on Hoss's story, we discovered about two weeks ago that his ear was bleeding.  He had been playing in the yard and down in the ravine, so we thought he might have got brushed by some thorns or something, but a couple of days later, two other sores showed up, and we noticed his other ear had a mark on it.  We tried cleaning them up, but his one ear started to swell too much, so we took him to our vet.  He spent all day there.  They had to sedate him, shave the spots, and discovered that he had several holes that were abscesses, and they concluded that he had been possibly shot with rock salt.  They explained that the salt eats away at the flesh, festers and starts to abscess.  That is why the sores were popping up randomly.  We asked for a second opinion, and another Technician told us the same thing.  The wounds were consistent to him being shot at with rock salt. 

Hoss is never left unsupervised unless he is in the yard, (which backs onto Red Hill Bowl Park).  Around the time this all happened, Hoss was in the yard alone one night, and began barking uncontrollably...which is unusual.  He's so mild tempered, and always quiet, I was worried that something was wrong.  I tried calling him in, and when he finally came to me, he was barking at me.  I just felt that something was wrong, but being home alone, I just brought him in, and locked the doors.  Not sure if that's when it happened.  My husband later that night said possibly it was a skunk or a raccoon that just got too close to the fence.  I have never heard any shots, or saw any suspicious people around, but his injuries could not be explained any other way.  We did report it to the Police, and they said there had been no other reports of this, but that they would be aware of the situation. 

With lots of meds, and cleaning solutions, drops etc....Hoss is starting to heal.  It has been a long couple of weeks, and has left us all a little shaken.  Our poor boy didn't deserve this, as you know Bernard, you would never find a more loyal, mild mannered, gentle soul as our Hoss.

I am hoping that this never happens again, and maybe just by putting the story out there, we can make other people aware of the situation, and possibly find out if this has happened recently to another pet somewhere.

Again Bernard, thank you for doing this....it can't hurt to get the story out there!  Let me know if you receive this OK, and post your blog when you get it done.  Hugs to you!!

Ciao my friend....keep up the good work!!

Judy


Below are pictures from the injuries. Keep an eye out on your animals and any suspicious activity in regards to your pets. If anyone else has a story like this, don't hesitate to contact the Hamilton Community Blog and the Hamilton Police Department. There is a sick human being out there who is hurting defenseless animals, they can be capable of anything. Spread the word and keep an eye out.

The People-vs- US STEEL City Hall Protest

Protest Banner in front of City Hall

Workers across Canada jam packed Hamilton City Hall this afternoon to show their displeasure with US STEEL and the foreign investment policies of the Harper Government.  The protest known as THE PEOPLE –VS- US STEEL battled snowy conditions, held up signs and chanted slogans of solidarity. Speakers at the rally included United Steelworkers International President Leo Gerard, Canadian Labour Congress President Ken Georgetti, and Hamilton Mayor Bob Bratina. The estimated 10000 protesters then marched down the streets going down Main St to John then down King St and back to City Hall. After the protest, speakers continued at the Hamilton Convention Centre.  The workers at the former Stelco Hilton Works were locked out by US STEEL after they refused to the demands for major changes in their pension plan 11 weeks ago. Rally organizers are hoping to make income security, Canadian jobs and retirement a “major election issue” in the next federal race, which could come as early as this year

The video of the protest is below: 

Mayor Bob Bratina talks to CH News

Hamilton Police

CBC News

Protest

44% is the magic number for Hamilton City Council and its tax payers.

After a long day debating in the Council Chambers, Council passed the motion to contribute 44% instead of the $45 million that they originally wanted to cap for the Pan Am stadium. In order to get the other 56% from the provincial and federal governments meaning the city can’t cap their $45 million dollar offer because it us unknown what that 44% will cost. The Tiger-Cats have allocated $3 million to the project which is something on the table that wasn’t’ there before, the only question is, how much is that 44% going to be? Many Councillors are feeling uneasy of the pressure of voting for a stadium project without knowing the exact numbers. More information is supposed to be available to them over the weekend in regards to funding and money.  The city has proposed adding $6.5 million to the stadium from the regular budget, which isn’t the future fund, but it’s still tax dollars.  The GM of finance Rob Rossini, said that the actual cost of the stadium won’t be known until February 2012, and that after Monday’s deadline, if council accepts the deal, they can risk getting sued if they wanted to back out. Councillor Chad Collins brought up the idea of an exit clause if the price tag balloons to something the city can’t afford to Chris Murray, who assured him he will find the answers to that question after the meeting.

 Council then when into an “in camera” meeting for about 3.5 hours to discuss the terms of the deal with the Tiger-Cats. When they came out the motion of the 44% contribution was passed with Clark, Pearson, Johnson and Powers opposing it.  Several councillors have openly suggested that the support from upper levels of government isn’t quite there yet, but will wait to see if the province will step up over the weekend. The deadline for Council’s decision is on Monday February 1^st, the deadline to submit a plan to HOSTCO.

Tiger Cats President Scott Mitchell: Tiger-Cats Ottawa bound if stadium deal falls through.

In a question-and-answer session following a speech to a Hamilton Rotarian luncheon at the Art Gallery of Hamilton today, Mitchell said the Ticats are Ottawa-bound in 2013 if the stadium deal dies. This is getting ridiculous, the timing of these reports are so obvious that its almost laughable. Scott, I'm sorry, I am a big Tiger-Cats fan, but not even I buy that. This is what, the 6th location the Tiger Cats will be going if a stadium deal falls through???

The first 3 times when you mentioned places like Moncton, Quebec, Halifax and Aldershot, we took it seriously. But now  the Tiger-Cats have cried wolf one to many times, I think Council is starting to realize this. As I write this Council is meeting "in camera", which is absurd to me when so much money is at stake on the backs of the tax payer. Time will tell what will happen today, my guess is that the stadium motion will pass because, logically you don't go "in camera" if you aren't getting some sort of deal done.

Live stream of today's Hamilton City Council Meeting. LIVE

 To watch a live stream for Hamilton City Council meetings click on the link below.

http://www.hamilton.ca/CityDepartments/CorporateServices/Clerks/AgendaMinutes/Council/2011/index.htm

City of Hamilton to live stream Council and Committee meetings.

The office of Mayor Bob Bratina has issued a press release stating that starting tonight the city will offer a live-stream to Council and committee meetings.
Each meeting will have a live stream web address linked from the agenda page for that meeting, as well as an archive section of meetings for those who want to view them later.

For future agendas for meetings and live streams you can go on the City of Hamilton Agendas page. 

This is an excellent way for those who can't attend Council meetings and want to see what is going on in regards to an issue that is of interest to them.
Good for Mayor Bob for implementing this and giving us easy access to the Council Chambers from our very own computers.

SISO forced into bankruptcy.

With more than million dollars owed to creditors, SISO has been deemed bankrupt and its financial affairs handed to a trustee. With an ongoing investigation by the RCMP and Hamilton Police, SISO has been on the hot seat for months now. Having their $12-million funding cut after an audit found “financial irregularities”, SISO has laid off its entire staff of 150 and closed its programs, including the New Dawn Reception Centre on the central Mountain. SISO board chair Hussein Hamdani said SISO fully intends to pay the respective creditors.

Government of Ontario to help with Ivor Wynne funding gap.

The government of Ontario will help Hamilton bridge a funding gap when it comes to rebuilding Ivor Wynne Stadium, but it will not break the bank to make the project work.
According to an estimate from Infrastructure Ontario the stadium will cost $158.6-million. The city has capped it's contribution at $45-million while the federal and provincial governments have pledged to combine $70-million. It is believed that $5-million can be generated via a naming-rights fee. That leaves the project short $38.6-million.
The city and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats are still hammering out the details of what is expected to be a 20-year lease agreement at the facility, which will be used as a soccer venue during the 2015 Pan-Am Games. Hamilton must submit a business plan for the stadium to Toronto 2015, the Games organizing committees, by Tuesday. If the numbers do not add up by that time, the facility will be moved to Mississauga or Brampton and build on a smaller scale. Mayor Bob Bratina believes there may be extra money from Ottawa available. "There is substantial money held by the province that is federal that could be directed to projects like this," Bratina said. 

City of Hamilton will consider smoking ban in public parks.

Public parks seem to be the next place where smoking may be forbidden. The Board of Health will be holding a public meeting on February 28^th at 9:30am in the Council Chambers to discuss a by-law that would ban smoking in all city parks, recreation areas including beaches, playgrounds, pools and playing fields. The goal of the city is to minimize health risks of second hand smoke and smoking in general that remains to be the leading killer in Hamilton.

If the by-law is passed, the city will work with the province to figure out set fines, which will most likely be aligned with current no smoking by-law fines.  Under the Smoke-Free Ontario Act, smoking in the workplace or indoor public spaces such as stores or covered patios can lead to a $305 to $365 fine.

How will this be enforced? If the cigarette police catches an “illegal” smoker, do they actually think the individual will stand there while they write them a ticket. I by no means am a smoker, but what’s going to stop someone from just tossing the cigarette and walking away, then denying the whole thing. It could be the cops issuing the tickets, but aren’t cops here to solve bigger problems? Time will tell if council passes this, and if they do, good luck enforcing it.

Premier Fitness: Most complaints from public survey. VIDEO

With the New Year coming and going, many of us have that same old New Year’s resolution. Get fit. We inquire about a gym membership with the many establishments here in Hamilton. The video below is from the show Market Place on CBC, an investigation show on businesses with shady practices. 8 years ago I was attending Premier Fitness in Hamilton, I was totally robbed of my money. Someone from that location swiped my VISA for boxing lessons that I didn’t even attend. I never did end up getting my money back and even ended up paying for it ($464) after I had no other choice. I even made out a police report and they said that they would conduct a fraud investigation.  I am happy that Market Place has finally exposed the gym frauds that are going around. If you’re in the hunt for a gym membership, try paying in cash. NEVER give out any BANKING or CREDIT CARD information, time and time again people have been getting billed months after they cancel, being double billed and signed up for lessons that they never agreed to. So if you want to get fit, do some research and keep the billing information to yourself. Below is the episode of Market Place that aired about 2 weeks ago. Enjoy.

Council votes for Ivor Wynne as preferred site. $55 million funding gap remains.

With a 10-6 vote, Hamilton City Council voted on Ivor Wynne as the preferred site for the PAN AM stadium, even though there is a $55 million funding gap. With all the potential sites that were taken off the table because of funding gaps in the past, what makes Ivor Wynne so special? East Mountain and the CP Rail site were taken off as potential sites because councillors deemed that it was unaffordable at that time. Perhaps it is the Feb 1^st deadline that has them spooked and the recognition that THIS IS IT. No more next week, no more next month, time has run out and this is what we’ve ended up with.  We went from shooting down numerous potential sites over 2 years because we couldn’t afford them, to agreeing on a site that we still can’t afford. Council will be in high gear over the next few days trying to come up with the $55 million.  The Tiger Cats aren’t the innocent ones here either, they went on record many times stating that they lose money at the Ivor Wynne location since 2003, to all of a sudden having a change of heart and making it their preferred location. One starts to wonder why these councillors would agree on a site with a $55 million gap? Well it's simple boys and girls, this is politics and the best way to take the blame off of yourselves, make HOSTCO reject the plan Feb 1st, and in turn councillors can blame HOSTCO and everyone else for this embarrassing failure.

Celebrity Monday: Eugene Levy

Eugene Levy

Hamilton native Eugene Levy studied sociology at McMaster University before hitting the big screen. Starting out on SCTV in Toronto, Eugene went on to become a great actor/writer.

Eugene Levy reached  celebrity level when he appeared in the 1999 film American Pie as Jim's Dad.

City of Hamilton: $54.5Million short in funding Ivor Wynne renovations.

Ivor Wynne Stadium

A report by City staff that will be made public tomorrow is set to reveal that the Ivor Wynne Stadium renovations will cost between $156.5 million and $174.5 million, leaving a funding gap of $36.6 million to $54.5 million, something that the city cannot afford.  Mayor Bob Bratina and Ti-Cat owner Bob Young unveiled the plan last week with Council allowing a study on the site, but with costs being more than expected, it is anyone’s guess what will happen at tomorrow’s Council meeting regarding the issue. With the February 1^st deadline fast approaching, this could be the nail in the coffin that ends any hope of a stadium in Hamilton. There is still hope if the upper levels of government would increase funding to cover the massive gap or the Tiger-Cats and their Corporate sponsors fill the gap that exists for the project to go forward.  Council will meet tomorrow to discuss the latest report by city staff and evaluate all the options.
174 million??? Other cities build NEW stadiums for that money?? We'll see how tomorrow's Council meeting unfolds. The province should be bringing in someone for a second opinion on the cost, $174 million makes no sense.  

Maria Pearson responds to Ferris Park Question.

On October 8th as part of my election campaign, I got an email from a concerned Ward 10 resident who had a very interesting question in regards to the Ferris Park Bocce courts and the lack of access residents who are locked out of the facility.The Hamiltonian did a report on the situation, in which the City gave very vague answers to many questions posed to them.  I sent an email to Councillor Maria Pearson and I got a response literally a half hour later about the Bocce Courts. 

Hi Bernard. Thank you for your e-mail. I understand staff have provided answers to all the questions asked.Maria

I’m going to assume that the questions that staff has answered, are the ones that were asked by the Hamiltonian.

I’m not happy with the very vague response from Councillor Pearson and feel we deserve a better explanation, but on the other hand I did get a response regarding the situation in a timely manner, even if it lacked any information. As of now, this situation is going typically as I would imagine. Don’t answer any questions directly and hope that the issue goes away.

City of Hamilton Fire Fighters to get 9% wage increase.

A deal to raise the firefighter wages 9% over the next 3 years is causing a stir among city councilors, the community and city unions. The deal to raise wages for 3 consecutive years starts this year and caps off the 9% in 2012. With taxes continuously increasing and other city unions wanting their piece of the pie, this could set a precedent of what is expected from other emergency service occupations. If I was a paramedic or police officer, I would expect nothing less what the fire fighters got. This is very puzzling to me, I wrote the fire fighter test this past year. There were around 8 spots available for the city and 4000 showed up for testing, each paying 100 dollars to take the test by Gledhill-Shaw . This was one of the biggest rip off scams I have ever been apart off. I understand if the firefighter job is something that not many want to do, hence we have to increase the wages to keep them happy, but 4000 people PAID money to write a test in hopes of reaching the 85% mark. If they’re not happy with their wages, step aside there’s thousands of guys/girls out there who will do it for the current wage and less.  I met people as far as Vancouver, Ottawa, South Carolina who flew in to PAY money to write a test to be considered. I’m all for getting paid, but the latest increase is just horrible for the tax payer.

Arcelor Mittal Dofasco to invest 243 million at Hamilton plant.

Arcelor Mittal will invest 253 million dollars at the Hamilton plant in the next 2 years; the main focus of the investment is the increase of production and improvement of energy efficiency. The Ontario government will kick in another 43.6 million to improve energy efficiency and to reduce emissions. The plan announced today expected to significantly increase production of galvalume, specialty coated steel with double the durability and corrosion resistance of galvanized steel.

Celebrity Monday: McLovin. No love for Hamilton.

When Christopher Mintz-Plasse was in Hamilton shooting the movie Kick Ass, the Super bad star was asked what he thoought of Hamilton.


He tells Famous magazine: "I hated it. Hated it. It was so bad.... It was a bad area, but you've gotta do what you do for a good movie."

Hamilton awarded a professional field lacrosse team

Ok, ok it’s not the NHL or even a cemented deal for the Tiger Cats/Pan Am fiasco, but the news of Hamilton being awarded a franchise for anything is good news. The only franchises that we've been seeing lately are the Boston Pizza, Turtle Jacks and other food franchises opening shop in the city. Hamilton’s newest team will be announced tomorrow at a 3pm press conference at Copps Coliseum, the great thing is that they will be playing at Ron Joyce stadium so council won’t have to argue and debate on the site for months. The former Toronto Nationals team will be coming to the city becoming the Hamilton Nationals participating in 6 outdoor games at Ron Joyce stadium between May and August. Hamilton joins the Boston Cannons, Rochester Rattlers, Denver Outlaws, Long Island Lizards and the defending champion Chesapeake Bayhawks who play in Annapolis, Maryland.