Council Notes: Permanent solutions sought for crosswalk problem

June 2, 2017 · 0 Comments

By Peter Richardson

Shelburne Council’s Monday night meeting, was blessedly uneventful.

First up was a presentation by Tom Reid, standing in for Jennifer McCallum, from the Alzheimer Society of Dufferin County regarding a series of initiatives to assist seniors in dealing with common problems encountered by our aging population.

Entitled Aging Well in Dufferin, the initiatives are the work of some twenty different organizations in Dufferin County. The events will be held each Thursday in June and revolve around social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.

The first of these will be this Thursday, June 1 and is aimed at falls prevention, the cause of most injuries to seniors.

They are asking people to take photographs of older adults engaged in physical exercise and strength building, or using mobility aids, and to post them using the hashtags #ItTakesACommunityToPreventFalls and #AgingWellInDufferin.

The June 8 meeting centre on social isolation, another common occurrence amongst the elderly. For this they ask for photos of older adults engaging in social activities, volunteering, or interacting with family and friends. Post these, with the hashtags: #Staying Connected and #AgingWellInDufferrin.

June 15 addresses Elder Abuse and draws attention to World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. The photo here is of people with an older adult in their community and they should tag: @ElderAbuseOnt and use the hashtags: #WEAAD2017AWID , #It’sNotRight , #EAO , #AgingWellInDufferin.

In support of this and to help raise awareness, June 17 is Seniors Appreciation Day and Aging Well in Dufferin are planning to have a booth at the Orangeville Farmers Market where they will have handouts and staff to inform the public of the programmes.

Mayor Bennington, who has a personal interest in this initiative, as his own mother recently fell and broke both her hip and her shoulder, felt that Shelburne should and would want to do more than simply endorse the idea and suggested that a table and literature would be welcomed at the Shelburne Street Festival, also held on June 17.

CROSSWALKS

Two frequently recurring issues at Council reared their heads again Monday.

The first was the issue of the Town’s crosswalk. CAO John Telfer stated that a previous solution to the matter of aggressive drivers trying to pass on the right when a car is stopped for the crosswalk, was not immediately acceptable to the MOT, and so he is recommending to Council that permanent delineation markers be installed instead of the proposed curbs and gutters.

These markers are permanently fastened into the roadway and effectively reduce the crosswalk are to two single lanes, one going West, and one East. Trying to drive around or over these flexible markers, would cause significant damage to the vehicle concerned and should curtail the dangers of cars passing within the crosswalk area.

The markers are flexible enough to allow for snow removal and are highly visible at night, thanks to multiple reflective surfaces on each one.

POLICE OPPOSE COURT MOVE

The second issue, was the moving of the court for Provincial Offences from Orangeville to Caledon East. For the second time, Shelburne Police presented a letter asking Council to oppose this move with Dufferin County Council.

This will be the second time that Council has endorsed taking the Police Force’s concerns to County Council.

At issue is the added cost and inconvenience to both the accused and the police of having to travel all the way to Caledon East in order to address a Provincial Offence matter in court. For the police forces involved, the costs are dramatic, with overtime pay for the officers, travel costs, wear and tear on their vehicles and lost time “on the job.”

The problem has been created by the Criminal Courts Division of the Ministry of Justice wishing to use the Orangeville court room for criminal cases and being willing to pay Dufferin County substantially for the use of their courtroom.

It was suggested and encouraged by Mayor Bennington that as all the local police authorities were adversely affected, and thus opposed to the move, that this would be an excellent issue for discussion at the All Councils meeting being held in Mono’s Council Chambers on Wednesday evening.

NEW WINDOWS, CANADA 150 and MORE

In other matters, Council approved the installation of the new windows in Town Hall at a cost of $63,697.66 plus HST, which was well under budget, as well as a request by the Heritage Music Festival, to have the Public Works Department set up the park, prior to the festival beginning.

They approved the granting of the grounds maintenance contract for the soccer pitches and ball diamonds to GDB Enterprises Inc., who do business as The Lawnscapes Team. Their bid was $14,398.64, including the HST, for the season.

The Rotary Club has been granted permission to apply for a Canada 150 Grant to offset the costs of the proposed Splash Pad and also to erect a new sign at the entrance to Town, replacing the existing ones. The Lions Club was also granted permission to have their 100 Anniversary Commemorative Flag flown on the Town flagpole from June 16 until June 24 in honour of the 100th Anniversary of Lions Clubs International.