The Deputy Mayor's Exchange - Happy Valentine's Day! 💕

February 13 2022

The Deputy Mayor's Exchange

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Happy Valentine's Day! 💕

In a world that seems to be on the precipice of war (Russia-Ukraine), countries with protestors and truck blockades, and people everywhere having suffered through two years of COVID issues, I am still wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's day tomorrow and a day filled with happiness and L-O-V-E.

I was disappointed to learn that the Federal government won't step in and complete a further environmental assessment study regarding the Bradford bypass. This road will connect Highway's 400 and 404. Check the - article

Did you see the article in this week's local paper about a lobbyist registry for the City of Markham? Although not noted in the article, I'm in support of the registry. Your Mayor is quoted as saying "I'll meet with whomever I want". A Lobbyist Registry doesn't prevent meetings, it just means there must be a record of the meeting. What's your Mayor afraid of?

This week there will be a York University student housing impact seminar hosted by Councillor Reid McAlpine. See details below.

There are two information meetings about new developments coming to Thornhill and Boxgrove. Stay informed about what's affecting your community. See below.

Have a safe week.

Email - dhamilton@markham.ca

In this issue

- Give Your Heart Some Love ❤️

- Vaccines Save Lives

- Remember, You're Not Alone

- Update from Metrolinx

- 16th Avenue Nightly Closure

- Attention Thornhill Residents

- Safety First

- LEAF Update

- Celebrating Non-Profits

- Other Items

- Upcoming Meetings

- York Region Update

- Community Happenings

Please forward this update to anyone that may find it of interest.

Looking for more information?

Any of the blue text, blue buttons and most of the graphics

have links to further detail.

Find Your Ward Councillor

Click here to read the previous edition of The Deputy Mayor's Exchange.

Give Your Heart Some Love ❤️

February is Heart Month and it's the time to take action to reduce your risk for heart disease.

According to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, 90% of Canadians have at least one risk factor for heart disease. You never know what tomorrow brings and we can all take steps to be heart smart today. You can reduce the risk of heart disease and help keep you and your family heart healthy by making simple everyday lifestyle choices:

Exercise - get a minimum of 150 minutes of physical activity each week
Diet - eat a heart-healthy diet including vegetables and fruit
Smoking - live tobacco free
Alcohol - limit alcohol use
Stress - use coping strategies to help manage stress

Cardiac arrest can happen to anyone, at any age and at any time. Learn to recognize the signs of cardiac arrest and how to perform hands-only CPR. It's easy and you could help to save a life.

Do you know what to do in a cardiac emergency? To learn more visit york.ca/CPR.

Vaccines Save Lives

History has proven vaccines work. Vaccines have saved more lives and prevented more illnesses than any other medical discovery, protecting people of all ages from serious diseases such as measles, diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, mumps, rubella and meningitis. This is true for COVID-19 too, with COVID-19 vaccines drastically reducing the risk of severe outcomes.

This includes getting your child vaccinated against COVID-19 as it will reduce the risk of severe outcomes to your child and their schoolmates. Vaccination also helps lower the risk of spreading COVID-19 to others, protecting people who can get sick more easily, including grandparents. The less that COVID-19 spreads, there is less opportunity for the virus to mutate into potentially more aggressive variants.

It’s easy and convenient to get vaccinated. York Region clinics accept walk-ins for first, second and booster doses, though appointments can also be booked if preferred. You can find clinic hours, eligibility details and book an appointment at york.ca/covid19vaccine.

I received an email earlier today from a resident who was able to get a booster dose for her son who is in high school, "yesterday, I found out via a local FB parent group that YR clinics can now give boosters to all teens with last dose more than 84 days ago, so took my son to the very quiet Aaniin and he got his booster, last one was July 1, so he was way overdue! We were in and out in about 20 minutes." This information is not yet being shown on the York Region website but apparently if you have a student waiting for a booster dose, it might be worth a trip to a York Region clinic.

Remember, You're Not Alone

Friday February 11 was National 211 Day across Canada but unfortunately I received the notice too late to include the details in last week's DME.

211 is a free and confidential information and referral service that connects people in the GTA including York Region to the community and social services they need, including:

Multi-lingual and ethnocultural Mental Health Supports such as helplines, counseling and support groups
Essential needs like food, health, housing and other support services
Support for Youth, Seniors, Persons with Disabilities, LGBTQ+, Indigenous, Black and Newcomer communities

211 is available 24/7 (even on holidays) in 150+ languages and can be accessed through multiple channels:

Phone – Call 2-1-1
Online – Search 211Central.ca
Text – Send an SMS to 2-1-1
Live Chat – Visit 211Ontario.ca/chat
E-mail – Send an Email to gethelp@211Ontario.ca

Update from Metrolinx

This week they released the Environmental Project Report (EPR) addendum for the Yonge North Subway Extension which will be an 8 kilometre 4 stop extension of the Yonge Subway from Finch into Richmond Hill under peoples homes, schools and condominium buildings.

The report builds off previous environmental studies for the extension, bringing them up to date with the latest project plans including the updated route, stations and train storage facility. It looks at the entire footprint of the project and considers how it might affect its surroundings, and how to protect and preserve the quality of life in neighbouring communities during and after construction.

The EPR addendum also reveals new details about the footprints of all four confirmed stations – Steeles, Clark, Bridge and High Tech – plus the two potential stations that may be added to the project, Cummer and Royal Orchard.

The full YNSE report is available online for public comment until March 14. You can read it and comment here.

New maps of the station platform areas, available on Metrolinx Engage, offer a glimpse of where the stations will be situated along the extension. Read the full article on Metrolinx News.

Metrolinx is hosting another virtual open house on Thursday February 17 at 6:30pm - click here to register now and ask a question.

16th Avenue Nightly Road Closures

There will be a long term weeknight partial road closure on 16th Avenue between Markham Road and Fincham Drive - details here.

York Region Environmental Services is rehabilitating a sanitary sewer along 16th Avenue and a part of the rehabilitation work, a bypass pipe will be installed under the Metrolinx railway crossing on 16th Avenue. To accommodate the construction and comply with Metrolinx requirements both westbound through lanes on 16th Avenue must be closed.

To lessen impact to travellers, lane closures will take place at night from Sunday to Thursday. The westbound lanes on 16th Avenue between Markham Road and Fincham Drive will be closed from 9pm to 5:30am beginning on Monday February 14. The work is expected to take three months and be completed in early May - details.

Attention Thornhill Residents

Please plan on joining the virtual Community Information Meeting on Thursday February 17 at 6:30pm. This interactive session will introduce land use plans for the land along Yonge Street through Markham including the Yonge North Subway Extension stations at Steeles, Clark and Royal Orchard.

More information about the meeting including the draft report and meeting details can be found at markham.ca/YongeCorridor.

Safety First

Quiet Neighbourhoods

New safety features have been recently been installed at GO train crossings on the Stouffville line at Elgin Mills Road and 19th Avenue.

This is a part of Markham's train anti-whistling program. Please follow all the signs and safety features at these locations. Learn more at markham.ca/trainantiwhistling.

An Update from LEAF

Local Enhancement and Appreciation of Forests (LEAF) is a non-profit organization that teaches people about trees and gets them excited about the urban forest. They plant native species in backyards and public spaces and educate people on how to care for trees in their communities. The focus of their work is on community engagement and tree stewardship - learn more.

Want to help trees thrive in our community? Join LEAF's virtual volunteer orientation on March 7 at 6:30pm and be a part of their 2022 opportunities including tree planting, garden stewardship and more - details
Winter consultation for spring trees! Get a head start on the gardening season with their do-it-yourself program. From the comfort of your couch you can have a virtual consultation and order trees at a discounted price to plant in the spring - details
Top 5 questions - from tree selection to spacing requirements, find the answers about their Backyard Tree Planting Program and how you can plant native trees for less - details
A lot to like about lichen - Have you seen a colourful new growth on the bark of your tree? It might be lichen. Learn all about what it is and what it means for your trees - learn more

Celebrating Non-Profit Appreciation Week

Ontario’s nonprofit sector is diverse ranging from arts and culture, housing, sports and recreation, faith, child development, community health care, the environment and more. Nonprofits are at the forefront of advocating and making change for a greener, more equitable economy and an inclusive society.

As a sector, Ontario nonprofits receive their funding through program fees, membership programs, corporate fund and other revenue source with less than half of their revenues coming from various levels of government. Nonprofits strive to fulfil their missions by leveraging their funding along with the sale of goods and services and volunteer efforts to create additional value for the communities they serve.

58,000 nonprofits and charities operate in communities across Ontario
844,000 people are employed in the sector in Ontario, 77% are women
nonprofit workers have continued essential services through the pandemic, such as child care, long-term care, shelters, community health centres, seniors support and more

The non-profit sector in Ontario is a large driver of economic and social development. Through their job creation and local spending activities, nonprofits generate considerable economic impact above and beyond the extensive value of the social, cultural and environmental programs and services they provide to Ontarians - learn more.

Other Items

This week we were fortunate to have some warmer weather and some of the snow started melting. In fact, this week there have been reports of flooded roads as sewer grates were covered with debris.

If you have a sewer grate on the road near your home, please take a couple of minutes to clear it so water has a place to drain and flooding can be avoided.

Would you like to learn more about food sustainability and collective gardening in Markham?

Join the Seed to Soul Interactive Workshop hosted by the York Region Food Network on February 18 at 11am.

Learn how you can help create a new community garden, skills for food preservation and more. You can find additional information and register details here.

March Break is just around the corner. The Markham Public Library's virtual STEAM camps will help keep your kids entertained. Registration is required. More information is available here.

Even though things have started to open up, MPL still offers a full slate of online activities for Markham residents of all ages - have a look.

York Region is exploring an opportunity to develop community housing in the Box Grove area at the corner of 14th Avenue and Donald Cousens Parkway. The current proposal includes a mixed-income development with two buildings between four and six storeys in height with both affordable and market rental units. York Region is beginning the planning process and community engagement early on to ensure the site is development ready in the future. Construction will not begin until funding is secured.

York Region will be hosting a virtual Public Information Centre on Monday February 28 from 6:30pm to 8 pm during which time there will be an overview of the proposal and the planning application process. Community members will also have a chance to ask questions and provide feedback on the proposal.

More information about the project and details of the meeting can be found here.

Another Thornhill Application - There is an application for new residential buildings in the Steeles and Yonge area. The Statutory Public Meeting will take place on Tuesday February 15 at 7pm for this new development on Steeles Avenue in the Dudley and Willowdale block. The proposal is for a 27-storey building with 407 units and a 6-storey building with 126 units (533 units total) - more information can be found here.

The meeting can be viewed online here and the same link also includes instructions on how you can speak at the meeting or submit a written deputation.

This week Ward 3 Councillor Reid McAlpine will be hosting a Student Housing Forum on February 22 at 7 pm via Zoom as York University's Markham Campus is scheduled to open in the Fall of 2023.

Along with all the positive impacts that this new campus is expected to bring to the area there will also be some challenges. One of those will be affordable student housing. Over the next months Councillor McAlpine will be hosting a number of additional public forums to help everyone understand the issues. At this meeting will include a presentation on the City's policies on basement apartments and rooming houses, a discussion with two City of Oshawa Councillors who will share their experiences relative to Ontario Tech University (formerly UOIT) and a Q&A session. To register for this event please email Reid's EA Marina Antonoglou at mantonoglou@markham.ca.

Are you on the voters list for the municipal election this fall? The election will give you a chance to vote for your representatives on Markham City Council.

You are eligible to vote in the 2022 Municipal election if you are a resident, owner or tenant of property in Markham, a Canadian citizen and at least 18 years of age.

Even if you voted in a recent election, you might not be on the Municipal Voters’ List. It doesn't take long to check, update or add your information to the Municipal Voters’ List - get started here.

Are you, your friends, family or neighbours new to York Region? Do you need help finding programs and services to help you settle here?

York Region's Local Immigration Partnership is pleased to present Opening Doors: Helping Newcomers Successfully Settle in York Region, a free, virtual webinar to help new residents understand:

The different programs and services available in York Region to support newcomers
What you need to know to successfully connect to the services you need, when you need them
The Canadian Mental Health Association will also share self-care tips and information about the services available to support newcomers’ mental health and well-being

The webinar will take place on Thursday February 17 from 10am to 12pm. You will need to register by February 15 as space is limited - details.

For 30 years and counting the York Regional Police Pipe and Drum Band has been performing at parades, ceremonies and other community events.

Here's your chance to be a part of it as they are currently recruiting new members. Applicants must be 14 years of age. More information is available at yrp.ca/pipes-drums.

Now is the time for local businesses to apply for the Ontario COVID-19 Small Business Relief Grants. The application window is open until March 11. Small businesses that were required to close under the modified Step Two of the Roadmap to Recovery are eligible to receive a grant of $10,000.

Details of this program and other business supports can be found here.

If you have neighbours, friends and family in Markham who might enjoy reading the Deputy Mayor's Exchange please encourage them to subscribe. The DME is sent out on Sunday evening to keep Markham residents up-to-date on what's happening in Markham and York Region - sign up here.