Trudeau Drive, with a beautifully landscaped median and multiple rows of trees:

Holly Ave that came later. Not as nice is Trudeau but still a nice looking median with nice street lights with hanging pots:

Scott Blvd, that came after. Tiny, ugly median with no beautification:
 

We should be learning from old construction and making new ones better, not worse. 

Shameless promotion: This also underscores why it is important to have councillors who actually live in the neighbourhood (I live near Scott Blvd).  If Ward 8 councillors actually lived here (and spent time thinking about residents instead of writing borderline-racist document demonstrating questionable intellect – yes, this guy is our current councillor), we would have a safer road and a beautiful neighbourhood. 

Instead we are represented by a local councillor who almost lost his seat four times in last couple of years because he skipped meetings for almost three months in a row.  Even now, instead of representing residents on subcommittees (he doesn’t sit in a single one), attending public meetings (I attend all of them and have never seen him in one), council meeting on budget (he skipped) or council meeting to take feedback on the official plan that could make roads like Scott Blvd nicer and safer (he skipped it); he chooses to spend time writing on how all other cultures are destroying Canada and and causing “us to lose our moral compass”, how all other countries are “moral and/or financial cesspools”, Canadians who got stuck in a war zone and asked to be rescued were “bitching” and, well, go read for yourself and then decide if you want to elect a councillor from among your neighbours or an outsider who doesn’t live in ward 8.

The City of Portland optimized traffic signal timing at 135 intersections on 16 streets in Portland. This optimization work has resulted in saving motorists over 1,750,000 gallons of gas each year. This reduction in gasoline consumption is equivalent to 15,460 tons of CO2 each year.

I wonder how much gasoline we waste idling at horribly timed traffic lights and Milton’s aversion to right-turn-lanes (seriously, why do we not have dedicated right-turn lanes?)

As if it wasn’t bad enough to have major arterial roads where traffic doesn’t flow, neighbourhood roads like Scott Blvd have no traffic calming devices whatsoever.  When taking a neighbourhood road, like Scott Blvd, from Derry to Main is faster than traveling on major arterial roads then we know that planners messed up.  After two close calls on Scott Blvd I now drive my children to village square, which kills the purpose of having village squares that people can walk to.

I have been asking for traffic calming devices and signalled crosswalks near schools and parks.  Recently a 7 year old boy was hit by a vehicle while he rode his bike (and the vehicle promptly fled the scene, shame on the driver).  Fortunately the boy’s injury was not major but Scott Blvd is a disaster waiting to happen.

I went up to the council on May 10th asking for different things.  One of them were traffic calming devices.  We must figure out how to make traffic flow on major roads (by synchronizing traffic lights and putting dedicated right-turn-lanes) and we must figure out how to make neighbourhood roads pedestrian friendly (by adding traffic calming devices and signalled crosswalks).  It is borderline criminal to build high-density neighbourhood with busy roads and put parks and schools next to those roads without doing anything to make them safe for pedestrians.

Driving on Scott Blvd, with no traffic calming, is noticeably faster than driving on major arterial roads.  People should leave Scott Blvd to drive on Derry and Bronte, not the other way around.  I truly believe that we’ll have a pedestrian death on Scott Blvd unless something is done to control traffic. 

One of the first things I intend to do if I am elected is to make neighbourhood roads like Scott Blvd safe for pedestrians and to make arterial roads (like Derry) better for traffic flow. 

If you haven’t heard already, there is a No-Frills grocery store going at the southwest corner of Scott & Derry.  I have been involved in the site design process to make sure that it fits in with the character of the neighbourhood (no industrial building with a large yellow sign). It’s actually decently designed, with stucco, bricks and architectural stones.  It won’t be your typical no-frills.  There is also a drive-through bank.  You can see the site plan here.

I am trying to get information on the traffic impact study, I have concerns about even more traffic in that intersection. I would still like to see more trees and landscaping along the parameter to hide the parking lot from streets.  In addition, I don’t like the idea of a large “No-Frills” sign on Scott Blvd in front of people’s homes (there is already a sign in the building and on Derry).  I would also like Scott Blvd to get a median with trees until the No-Frills entrance so residents facing No-Frills can get a tree cover and to control traffic a little entering the plaza.

If you have any concerns around the site plan then please let me know.  I don’t think this is the ideal site and the grocery store should really have gone at the Shoppers plaza on Bronte & Derry, but the council rejected that and approved this.  It’s too late to change that legally, unfortunately.  The best thing is to make it the best looking No-Frills anywhere. 

If you have feedback then please send it to Aaron Raymond at aaron.raymond@milton.ca or (905) 878-7252 x 2313. 

This is a follow-up to Permanent Link to Derry Scott Asking for Variances.  I spent some time going over the proposed site plan. I also spoke with the developer and the consultant, and went to see the site.  Finally, I drove back n’ forth on Derry and Scott to try to envision the plaza all built.

Click here to expand the rest of this article

One of the items in tomorrow’s Committee of Adjustment meeting is an application from Derry Scott development (northwest plaza) to:

• Put 14 fewer parking spots than required
• Reduce the rear yard setback by 50% (building will be closer to homes)
• Bring parking area closer to buildings
• Put loading bay door facing the street without having to screen it (right now loading docks are not allowed to face the street, unless they are screened)
• No designated loading area for one of the buildings
• Increase allowed square footage

Basically they want to have more square footage with reduced parking and fewer urban design requirements.  Where do people park if there are not enough parking spaces?  Do people want to see loading bay doors from the street?  What about the minimum setback? 

We should be raising minimum requirements from commercial developers, not reducing them. 

(Shameless plug: this is why it is so important to have councillors from your own areas, precisely why Milton divided itself into different ‘wards’.  That way councillors have a vested interest in working for their own neighbourhoods.  I really do work for all of us, even though I am not in the Council yet).

All municipalities in Ontario must go through an Official Plan Review once every 5 years.  Milton is going through its review right now.  There is a public open house on April 28th and a special council public meeting on May 10th. 

You can find the official plan here.  If you have any comments then please bring them up. You can send them to me and I will present them on the 10th. You can also send written comments prior to May 14th directly to Angela Janzen, the senior planner at the Planning & Development Department.

I will create a summary of the official plan as well. If you would like me to send it to you then please e-mail me your contact information.  I would rather not post it here publically because even a summary of a 400+ pages document will be fairly large.  A little over 200 people regularly read this blog and I doubt they are all interested in reading the summary. 

Official Plans have a huge impact in shaping towns and cities. That in turn will have an impact on your property values. So there, you actually have a financial incentive :).

Milton Education Village has an open house today at 6:00pm at the Town Hall.

It is extremely important for people in Ward 8.  See what happened in Oshawa: there aren’t enough residences for students. Despite by-laws prohibiting it, people rent their homes to 5-10 students.  That, for various reasons (parties, parking issues, garbage, poor maintenance by students) has completely crashed property values.  You can read a little about in Toronto Star’s article here.  The situation is so bad that people want to sell their homes and move out but no one wants to buy a house there.

This proposed education village is in Ward 8, where Mattamy’s HVE, Milton Trails and Heathwood Homes communities are.  You can get more information on the town’s website.  This is one reason why it is so important to elect someone who actually lives in ward 8.  My property values are tied to yours (since I live here). I will  make sure that a presence of university next door enhances our property values and quality of life instead of degrading it like what happened in Oshawa. 

I will be there. If you see me then please come introduce yourself. 

Milton will be holding its second Doors Open event on Saturday, May 29, 2010. This event showcases Milton’s unique heritage and natural resources and it offers access to a number of sites that are not normally open to the public. There is no charge for visiting any of the sites included on the tour. For details, visit the Doors Open Milton website (site seems out of date though).

http://doorsopenmilton.ca/default.aspx

I was the guest blogger this week for the Canadian Family Magazine’s Family Jewel blog.  Here are my posts from my non-politician-wanna-be humourous side. All of these stores are completely true, the last one actually took place yesterday.  Enjoy :)

• How Going Back to Childbirth Helps Keep Me Sane
• The Bad Guy Who Came to the House and Put Water Everywhere
• The Struggle to Get the Kids to Bed. Every. Single. Night.
• Kids in Bed by 6:30? Disney World IS the Most Magical Place on Earth
• Do You Play Guitar? Do You Wear Cool Clothes? Are You Spiderman? No? Then You’re Not Cool