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July 3 2022

Edition 9

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Happy Canada Day!

I hope you were able to celebrate Canada Day at one of the many events that happened around the City. Except for a brief bit of rain, it turned out to be a wonderful day to be outside.

Attention Thornhill Residents!

There's a Statutory Public Meeting on July 5 at 7pm regarding the redevelopment of 8051 Yonge Street and 10 Royal Orchard Boulevard in Thornhill. More tall towers are coming.

The meeting will be livestreamed here. You can speak for up to 5 minutes in-person or via Zoom with an email in advance to clerkspublic@markham.ca. More information about the meeting can be found here.

Can You Tell These Lightning Myths from Facts?

from York Region

Lightning kills and injures Canadians every year. Remember, when thunder roars, go indoors!

Here are some tips to help protect you and your family from lightning:

• if you can hear thunder, then you are within striking distance of lightning; take shelter immediately, preferably in a house or all-metal vehicle 🌩️
• if you are caught outside and far from a safe shelter, stay away from tall objects, such as trees, poles, wires and fences 🌳
• once indoors, stay away from electrical appliances and equipment, doors, windows, fireplaces and anything else that will conduct electricity; avoid touching devices that are plugged in for charging 🔌
• if you are in your car during lightning, do not park under tall objects that could topple and do not leave your car if there are downed power lines nearby 🚗

Remember, there is no safe place outdoors during a thunderstorm. Always wait 30 minutes after the last rumble of thunder is heard before starting outdoor activities.



Learn more about lightning safety at york.ca/beprepared.

Small Bite, Big Consequences

Summer is here and if you are heading outdoors to enjoy the warm weather, make sure to protect yourself from black-legged ticks and Lyme disease.

Wear light coloured long-sleeved shirts, closed-toed shoes and long pants tucked into your socks . Also don't forget to use insect repellent with DEET or icaridin. Once you return inside, check yourself, your children and pets and remove any ticks promptly.

Learn more about ticks and Lyme disease at york.ca/lymedisease.

Our Park: Community Art Project Grant

The Markham Public Art Program and York Region Arts Council would like to hear from you.

A new pilot project is being launched for a new program entitled Our Park: Community Art Project Grant.  

Our Park is designed to support the creation of a performance-based temporary art project by a local Markham artist, artist group or arts organization. The art project will then be presented in Ada Mackenzie Park at 185 South Park Road which has been identified as an excellent site for this pilot project. Following an open call to artists, the winning project will be selected by a panel of professional art critics. The winning project will then be shown in Ada Mackenzie Park in spring of 2023 and open to the public for free.

Before officially launching the project, you are invited to participate in a survey. Your input will help inform the guidelines that will become part of the Open Call to Artists.

This survey is for Markham residents only and your responses will be anonymous and confidential. Learn more about the project and find the survey here.

Free Mulch!

Did you know that free wood chips are available for pick-up at various locations across the City. The pick-up is self-serve, so please bring your own shovel and container. This complimentary wood chip mulch is for residential use only. Businesses seeking a large supply of mulch should contact a local landscape supply store.

Mulch is available in the parking lots at these locations: 

• Armadale Community Centre
• Bayview Reservoir Park
• Bishops Cross Park
• Markham Centennial Community Centre
• Milliken Mills Park
• Mount Joy Community Centre
• Rouge River Community Centre
• Toogood Pond
• Victoria Square Park

If the wood chip mulch pile is empty or low, please send an with the parking lot location to contact@markham.ca and the City's team will have a fresh load delivered. After this Spring's wind storm the City has lots of mulch to give away!

Wood chip mulch helps suppress weeds, conserve moisture to help plants grow during the dry and hot Summer months and provide nutrients as they decompose over time. Keep your garden beds tidy by installing 2 to 3 inches of wood chip mulch. Wood chips can also be added around the base of your tree to provide the same benefits. Make sure the wood chips are at least 5 inches away from the trunk of the tree.

Are You Still Protected from COVID-19?

The kids are now out of school and as we head into summer to enjoy the warm weather our thoughts may have turned to plans for staycations or vacations. COVID-19 may not be top of mind for many but infections are still happening - read more.

You can walk into any York Region vaccination clinic to get a first, second or booster dose or book an appointment if you prefer. More information on eligibility and where you can get vaccinated is available at york.ca/COVID19Vaccine.

Other Items

York Region has gathered information that may help residents and service providers support people affected by the conflict in Ukraine including:

• Federal and Provincial government services and supports
• York Region settlement services and supports
• additional settlement services and supports
• how residents, organizations and businesses can help.

As new information and details become available, the resources will be updated at york.ca/supportUkraine.

Looking to try something new next weekend? How about attending a one act play at the Varley Art Gallery on Main Street Unionville.

Be a part of Shadowpath’s Theatre Out of the Shadows Festival and attend the Canadian premiere of Japanese dramatist Fumiko Enchi’s 1928 one-act play, Restless Night in Late Spring. The play features two friends who are also visual artists, debating their art practice in relation to the politics of the day in Tokyo. Talkback sessions with the performers will follow each performance.

The Varley Art Gallery will be open before the event so why not go early and walk through the exhibits before taking in the play. Food and drink will also be available at the event. Details of the event can be found here.

The Markham Jazz Festival will return in person from August 19 - 21 on Unionville Main Street. There will be three stages filled with various performers over the three day live event. All of the performances will be free. The only ticketed event will be the special Opening Night Concert being held at the Markham Museum on August 17 - details here.

This is the 25th anniversary of the Festival. Why not plan on attending and enjoy some of the performances? More information is available here.

Do you want insight into policing in the City? Are you curious about what York Regional Police officers are doing in your neighbourhood? Do you want to help York Regional Police to prevent crime before it happens?

Learn more about the new York Regional Police Community Safety Data Portal that was introduced last Fall. YRP is offering you the chance to learn how to navigate this information effectively at an upcoming training session that will be held on Zoom.

The presentation will take place on Tuesday July 26 at 12pm. Learn more about the event and register here. After the event Participants will be better equipped to keep their families and communities safe.

You can find Ward 3 Councillor Reid McAlpine's July eNewsletter here. He highlights a number of topics including:

• changes coming at the school crossing at Kennedy Road and the Bridle Trail
• Markham Cycles is returning
• arrival of York University in Ward 3
• invasive plant species
• and more

Even if you aren't a Unionville resident, you may want to have a look.

The City of Markham, in partnership with Ted Rogers School of Management Diversity Institute, invites you to the launch of the Diversity Action Plan and Markham’s Eliminating Anti-Black Racism Action Plan.

On Wednesday July 13, join the City as they present the detailed plans the community helped to create to help remove barriers of racism, discrimination and access.

You're invited to celebrate this moment as the City continues to build an inclusive community in the City of Markham.

• Aaniin Community Centre (5665 14th Avenue, Markham)
• July 13 from 4:30pm to 6pm with free entertainment and refreshments

Does this look gross to you? It's a build-up of recently flushed wipes cleared from this sanitary pipe and it was not a pretty sight.

Wipes don't break down like toilet paper does, clogging pipes and causing potential backups and spills. Do not flush wipes of any kind, even those labelled "flushable". Only flush pee, poo and toilet paper. Learn more at york.ca/idontflush.

Spongy moth caterpillars will soon be entering the pupa or ‘cocoon’ stage which lasts about 2 weeks before they transform into adult moths.

Like caterpillars, pupa can be removed from trees, placed in a bucket of soapy water, stirred then disposed of after a day or two. Remember to wear gloves when handling caterpillars and/or pupa to avoid an allergic reaction.

Learn more about protecting your trees at york.ca/spongymoth.

There's lots going on at the Varley Gallery this summer as things have opened up this year after 2 years of COVID restrictions.

• summer camps start this week and will run for the next 9 weeks until school starts again - details here
• if you know a recent graduate that might be interested in joining the Varley team, there is an opening for an Education and Research Administrator - details here
• the Varley is commissioning a new artwork to celebrate the Gallery's 25th anniversary celebration - details here
• in-person classes and workshops have restarted - details
• already noted above is a unique theatre experience happening next weekend
• their volunteer program is open - you can have fun while you gain experience and lean new skills in their creative environment - learn more

Are you ready for the traffic chaos coming with another road closure?

The intersection of Markham Road and 16th Avenue will be closed from Friday July 15 at 7pm to Monday July 18 at 7am. The closure is require to facilitate regional sanitary sewer work that is taking place along 16th Avenue.

Should you have any questions or concerns about the closure, you can send an email to OCS@markham.ca or call 905.475.4714.

As a reminder, parking on City streets between the hours of 2:30am and 6am is not permitted within Markham.

Exceptions can be made however by the City for driveway repairs and out of town overnight guests.

Learn how to apply for an overnight exemption here.

Join in on July 16 as the Blue Jays celebrate Markham’s own Jordan Romano. The City has negotiated discounted tickets in various sections of Rogers Centre as the Jays take on the Kansas City Royals. It's your chance to show Jordan that his hometown is behind him.

• Saturday July 16 with a 3 pm start

Also, on that day the first 15,000 attendees to the ballpark will also receive a commemorative Jordan Romano hat. Seats in various sections have been reserved for you to cheer Jordan on. Don’t delay as there is a limited number of discounted tickets are available here.

Upcoming Meetings

• Development Services Committee Meeting - July 5 at 9:30am - details
• Development Services Public Meeting - July 5 at 7pm - details
• Special DSC Meeting - July 8 at 10:30am - details
• Development Services Meeting - July 11 at 9:30am - details
• Special Development Services Meeting - July 11 at 3:30pm - details 
• Council Meeting - July 14 at 1pm - details 

• Markham Committee Meetings - details

York Region Update

York Region Council meetings and live streaming details can be found here.

Details of upcoming York Region meetings and past sessions are available here.

• Vacant Home Tax - Tell Us Your Thoughts
• YR celebrates Canada Day
• York Region Transit service changes take effect July 3

Community Meetings and Events

• What's on at the Library? - click here

• TNATB - Epic Eagles - July 14 at 7:30pm - details
• Let's go out to the ball game - July 16 - details
• YRP Community Safety Data Portal Training - July 26 at 12 pm - details
• TNATB - ABBA Revisted - July 28 at 7:30pm - details
• Night It Up - August 6-7 - details
• MBT Good Morning Markham - August 11 at 10am - details
• TNATB - Elton Rohn - August 11 at 7:30pm - details
• Markham Jazz Festival - August 19 - 21 - details
• Markham Garden Club - Never Seen Plants - August 22 at 7:30pm - details 
• MBT After 5 Networking - August 25 at 5pm - details
• TNATB - Magic of Motown - August 25 at 7:30pm - details
• YRP Community Safety Data Portal Training - September 13 at 12 pm - details
• Terry Fox Run - Sunday September 18
• Markham Garden Club - The Magic Six - September 26 at 7:30pm - details

I'd be pleased to highlight other community meetings in future newsletters.

Please forward the details to don.hamilton@rogers.com.

Working together to make Markham better!

Don Hamilton

don.hamilton@rogers.com

www.donhamilton.ca

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