HIGH SCHOOL WARRIORS, RAIDERS TACKLE HOST ROLES PAGE B8
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OUR VIEW
LOCAL WAR HEROES SHARE THEIR STORIES B SECTION
LIBERALS MUST BE MAD FOR POWER PAGE A9
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ENERGY
Hydro fee hike may shock area seniors Those on fixed incomes, young families that require extra power will feel the heat come January
M
BY CHRIS SIMON
csimon@yrmg.com
any senior citizens and young families will feel the pinch soon, after yet another increase in hydro rates. The new prices, which are set by the Ontario Energy Board and came into effect Nov. 1, will further compromise budgets for seniors and other residents living on fixed incomes, Tim Jones, director of development at Community and Home Assistance to Seniors (CHATS), said this week. “It’s not a commodity that you choose how much you want,” he said. “Most seniors are in a position of having to watch their pennies. You’ve got to budget for it and when you look at your budget going up, it takes a
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hunk of what you’re trying to live on. If your cost-of-living or pension went up proportionate to your hydro, great. But it doesn’t. It’s definitely a concern; it’s scary when you’re somebody going into that sort of fixed income sooner than later and you wonder how you’re going to do it.” While seniors can try to conserve energy, where possible, or ask family members to help pay bills, there is little stable relief in sight, Jones said. Overall, the price will increase by about $4.42 per month on the electricity line of
the hydro bill — about 3.4 per cent — for an average Ontario household that consumes about 800 kilowatt hours per month. The new rates will apply to most homes and small businesses in the province. According to an energy board media release, the rates will climb to 8.3 cents per kWh for off-peak usage (up .3 cents), 12.8
COUNCIL
cents for mid-peak (up .6 cents) and 17.5 cents for on-peak (up 1.4 cents). The times for mid-peak and on-peak prices are also changing to winter time-ofuse hours. The off-peak period remains 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. weekdays and all day weekends and holidays. Mid-peak occurs weekdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on-peak runs weekdays from 7 to 11 a.m. and 5 to 7 p.m. So, in other words, hydro use for families getting ready for school and work in the morning and during the busy dinner hour will rise. But we’ll just have to adjust, the energy board contends.
See page A12.
HANGING ON
Residents speak out against neighbourhood garden proposal ‘Our neighbourhood raccoon survives quite well already’
Y
BY CHRIS SIMON
csimon@yrmg.com
ou like to-may-toes and I like tomah-toes, but some Aurora residents didn’t want to see either grown in a community garden at McMahon Park and successfully convinced council to call the whole thing off
Tuesday. Residents fighting the establishment of a neighbourhood garden at McMahon Park won the battle at this week’s general committee meeting. About 30 residents attended the meeting with some supporting and some against the creation of a garden in the popular and well-established park located east of Spruce and Maple Streets. Resident Bob McRoberts expressed his concern about locating these types of initiatives in local parks. “You may say NIMBY but I say NIAP: not in any park,” he said as he stood at the podium in the council chambers. “Maybe even PIIYOBY: put it in your own backyard.” He pointed out that the residents surveyed already live in homes with land a garden could be planted on and he was surprised the town would consider giving people more land to garden. He believes
GET CONNECTED TELL US what you think about this issue. Email tkibble@yrmg.com.
people are more likely to tend to a garden if it is on their own property. While McRoberts said he agrees with the concept of a community garden for those who don’t have land where they can grow edible plants, he doesn’t like the location. He then explained his shock upon visiting Aurora’s existing community garden only to find standing water, dripping taps, broken fences and 23 of the 50 plots untended. He was especially concerned about a knife that had been left behind by a gardener because if the garden had been in a park, any child could have had access to it. These gardens aren’t pretty and they attract rodents, McRoberts noted. “I think that my neighbours agree that our neighbourhood raccoon survives quite well already without us adding to their food source,” he added. On Aug. 11, council gave town staff the See page A11.
REGIONAL CHAIR
STAFF PHOTO/MIKE BARRETT
St. Maximilian Kolbe Mustangs wide receiver Jacob Fenchak holds onto the ball and stays in bounds for a touchdown in their game against the King City Lions, Monday. The Mustangs went on to win 19-18. For more sports, check out the B section of today’s newspaper.
FEDERAL POLITICS
Brown reflects on time as MP REGIONAL COUNCILLOR JOE LI
NEWMARKET-AURORA MPP CHRIS BALLARD
WHITCHURCH-STOUFFVILLE MAYOR JUSTIN ALTMANN
‘I don’t like backroom deals’, councillor says BY LISA QUEEN
I
lqueen@yrmg.com
n a region of 1.1 million residents, it only takes 11 people to select York’s most powerful political leader. Markham Regional Councillor Joe Li and Whitchurch-Stouffville Mayor Justin Altmann want to change that.
On Nov. 19, Li will bring in a motion, seconded by Altmann, asking councillors to make the regional chair an elected position. At the moment, the chairperson is chosen by 20 mayors and regional councillors. Since the successful candidate only needs a majority of 11 votes, that means the winner only requires 0.001 per of the population to secure arguably the most imporSee page A10.
F
BY CHRIS SIMON
csimon@yrmg.com
or Lois Brown, defeat is still raw. It was a little more than two weeks ago that Brown, now Newmarket-Aurora’s former Conservative MP, lost her seat to Liberal Kyle Peterson in the Oct. 19 federal election. Since then, she has cleaned out three offices and an apartment, packed belongings and shredded paperwork. There has hardly been a moment to reflect on the seven years she spent in office. She fully expected victory and a third consecutive term, but acknowledges the Liberal “tsunami” that swept the country and helped Prime Minister Justin Trudeau form a majority government was difficult to escape — even for a seasoned and well-liked politician.
‘I have loved every minute and my deepest regret is that I don’t get to do more of it.’ “It’s been an incredible privilege,” she said. “Everybody is stunned and I continue to get calls from people saying they’re shocked. I have no explanation for (the result). I have loved every minute and my deepest regret is that I don’t get to do more of it. I’ve been able to touch lives in extraordinary ways. Lots of times, the problems people have in their lives are consequences of the decisions they’ve made. I have no magic wand to make those go away, but
STAFF PHOTO/MIKE BARRETT
Former Newmarket-Aurora MP Lois Brown talks to The Era on her time in office. often I’ve been able to redirect and (get them on) a new path. When you have the opportunity to do that, it is nothing short of extraordinary. I hope people remember that I cared.” Brown’s office was once a hub of activity that hosted regular newcomer teas and helped thousands of residents with their federal issues. But on Tuesday,
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See page A8.