On Sunday, Dec. 10, the Pepper Mill Steak and Pasta House U15 LL team faced off against the Kemptville Royals at the A.J. LaRue Arena for the semi-final game of the U15 LL Silver Stick tournament.

In the first period, both teams were back-and-forth in each end but no goals were scored. Next, Eric Mueller finally scored his first goal of the game with only two minutes remaining in the period. It was 1-0 Storm going into the third period.

The third period started with Mueller scoring his second goal of the game. With five minutes left in the third, Brayden Hamilton scored to make it 3-0 Storm, propelling the team into the finals.

The championship game was against the Brock Wild.

The first and second period saw both teams battling to get a goal but neither could get one between the pipes.

In the third period, however, the Storm got a powerplay opportunity where Isaac Borgdorff scored a goal 33 seconds in. Unfortunately for the Wild, another penalty was called and the powerplay continued. The Storm capitalized as Mueller scored to make the final score 2-0, leading to the home town team heading to Niagara Falls in January for the Silver Stick International Finals.

The hometown Huskies’ Izayah Luddington scored his third goal of the season Dec. 9 to secure a blue and white 3-2 win over the Pickering Panthers.

The assists on the game-winning goal went to a red-hot Patrick Saini, his 27th helper of the season, and Lucas Stevenson, with his 14th dish.

Saini was named Warrior East Conference player of the month for November, after he led the entire 24-team league with 22 points in 10 games.

“Those are cool awards to win. You never really see them coming but when you get them, it’s cool,” Saini said Dec. 11.

It was the captain who opened the scoring in this game at the S.G. Nesbitt Memorial Arena, potting one home at 9:05 from Stevenson.

In the second frame, Ty Petrou notched his eighth on the year, from Saini and Luddington.

While the Huskies looked to have this game in hand, the Panthers had other ideas. Joey Zhang scored at 9:32 of the second. Then, Joey Crngarov scored at 7:36 of the third to notch it at twos, before Luddington broke the tie and sent the Huskies to a record of 17 wins, 13 losses and two ties for 36 points, and seventh in the East Conference. It marked the Huskies fifth straight win.

Brett Fullerton was between the pipes, stopping 27 of 29 shots.

It was another three-point night for Saini, who now has 22 goals, and 27 assists, for 49 points on the season.

He felt the whole team “was going” and played with “excitement” Saturday afternoon. “It was a big game. We’re trying to climb the standings. We’re been playing really good. I think everybody was really working and motivated to get that win. Now we’re starting to look forward to this weekend as well, going into Christmas.”

Saini said coming back after giving up the two-goal lead – including the Panthers second on a bounce – was huge. “It shows how much we’ve grown as a group because those goals can be back-breakers and send you into a bit of a spiral. I think it brought us closer together and we made sure we were able to score not too long after and hold onto the lead.”

Saini said they are “not out of the race by any means. It’s such a close race that if you keep going on this tear, you might be able to jump up quite a few spots. I think we’re really starting to come together as a team. All the boys are close. We had a lot of younger guys at the start of the year. It was a whole new level for them. I think they’re really starting to figure out how they need to play in their role, the speed, and it’s starting to show on the ice for us.”

The Huskies are at home Dec. 16 to the North York Rangers. Puck drop is 4 p.m. The squad then travels to Markham Dec. 17 for a 1:30 p.m. tilt before heading into their Christmas break. After Christmas, they are home Dec. 29 to the Toronto Patriots at 7 p.m., and then Dec. 31 to the Wellington Dukes at 2 p.m.

When Wind in the Willows owner Sylvia Hollard noticed the former Evergreen Gallery was closing, she began to imagine a new space for women that would heal their mind, body and spirit.

The long-time Haliburton spa owner went to have a look at the soon-to-be vacant digs at 158 Highland St.

She recalls thinking, “you know what? We could have three rooms here. We could do this. We could do that.”

The ‘we’ included long-time Wind in the Willows client, and new employee, Shannon Feir, a nurse with more than 30 years’ experience.

They contacted the owner, the same owner of the Wind in the Willows building, to say they were interested in taking over the lease up the street, “and the rest is history,” Holland said.

History – or in this case herstory – was made the night of Dec. 7 as Willow Organics held its grand opening.

The Feir family did a lot of the renovating, with help from a drywaller, and finishing work by ACM Designs.

Holland and Feir are co-owners of the new enterprise.

“Shannon is the nurse and I’m the aesthetician,” Holland says while showing off the space.

One room features a new laser machine, and staff have been trained on how to use it for various treatments. Feir has been trained to do injectables.

“She’s great at what she does,” Holland says. “She has 30-odd years of nursing experience. That’s what I wanted.”

She added, “Shannon and I work very, very well together. Our mindset is very much the same in that we wanted to be eco-conscious. We wanted it to be organic.”

They are featuring an organic line of products from Hungary (Eminence Organic Skin Care) with a head office in Vancouver. Holland enthuses that the company plants a tree for every product sold. Another item is Chloe and Crown candles, with a pledge to feed a child for every product sold.

For Holland, who has been in business 30 years, the new venture is “exhilarating. I love what I do. I love working with people because when I give, I get.” She will continue to run Wind in the Willows and split her time between both businesses. Feir will also be at the spa doing non-organic injections.

Feir said for the two, it’s all about empowering women. “It’s more than just beauty. It’s just connectedness.”

For example, she said some women come in for Botox injections, and she sometimes talks them out of it, because she senses they have come because they are angry with their husband or struggling with their children and “they just want to feel better.

“From a nurse’s perspective, everyone’s nervous system is a hot mess. They’re putting chemicals on their face that are giving them cancer. It’s not healthy. If you look at organic services and organic products, we believe it’s about education about those products, and about the nervous system. Everyone is stuck in fight or flight, which causes chronic disease.

“So, if you can come into a place where you can drop your shoulders, take a deep breath, reset your nervous system, and learn how to do that in a place that’s safe, since a lot of people don’t want to go to counselling or other modalities. But they will come for what we offer.

“Women need to be empowered to put themself on the priority list. Coming in here for treatments is putting themselves on the priority list. It’s why we created memberships,” Feir said.

Holland agreed it’s all about nurturing. “Our nervous systems are up to here… if you can find a little sanctuary, somewhere you can go and be nourished, mind, body and spirit, whether it’s a laser… and I’ve done laser and had someone crying on the bed, which had nothing to do with laser – it was a safe place to let it go. We want to create that space where they can let their hair down, let it all out, or just let us hold a space for them. It’s a place where, when they walk out, they’re going to feel better than when they came in.”

Willow Organics is at 158 Highland St. Haliburton. You can find out about their offerings at willoworganics.ca. You can email them at info@willoworganics.ca or call 705457-1416.

The Boshkung Lakeside retail operation in Carnarvon is closing permanently Dec. 31.

Once the flagship location for the Boshkung Brewing Co. brand, the space has been noticeably less busy in recent years, says co-owner Mathew Renda. A decline in sales, rejig of the company’s brewing practices, and renewed focus on food services, has rendered the site redundant, Renda added.

“It’s a difficult decision and not one we’ve taken lightly… this pivotal establishment has been the birthplace of numerous flagship beers over the years. But it was time for us to say goodbye,” Renda said. “It used to be super popular and busy, but that’s slowed down over time.”

When he and business partner, Mike Rae, bought the business earlier this year, one of their primary goals was to establish Boshkung as a leading player in the Highlands’ food and hospitality space. That was going to be a practical impossibility at Lakeside, given it operated out of the same building as Rhubarb Restaurant.

“We couldn’t do our own food there, so that limited us,” Renda said.

With Rhubarb being on the market, there was uncertainty over what a potential sale could mean for Lakeside, which Renda noted also factored into the decision.

Boshkung Brewing Co. was launched by Chris and Teri Mathews-Carl, who also own Rhubarb, in 2014. The brand expanded into downtown Minden in 2016, with the opening of Boshkung Social. After Renda and Rae bought the company, they brought Truss Foodworks into the fold, rebranding as Boshkung Smokehouse in fall 2023. The company has a restaurant located in Haliburton Forest, and a seasonal operation on Kennisis Lake during the summer.

Around 90 per cent of Boshkung’s business this year has been done at the Social and Smokehouse, Renda said.

Renda paid homage to the previous owners for helping to establish the Boshkung brand, in the Highlands and beyond.

“We are super appreciative for all they’ve done – they started the business; this was their vision and now we’re trying to push it forward. This felt like the right time for us to move out on our own and start to build our own empire,” Renda said.

Minden Hills council, on Nov. 30, directed the Lochlin Community Centre advisory committee to meet to discuss the future of the beleaguered hamlet hall.

Manager of parks, recreation and facilities, Candace McGuigan, said, on Nov. 30, they’d hired Tulloch Engineering to have a look at the community centre and they have deemed it to be in poor to fair condition. They have recommended the township either repair it, at a cost of $366,000, or demolish it and construct a new centre, at a cost of $600,000.

The hall has been closed since the onset of COVID-19 for health and safety reasons, McGuigan said.

“Prior to 2019, the facility had issues with the roof leaking into one of the washroom areas. The repair to the roof had been budgeted, but due to staffing changes, and the pandemic, the necessary repairs were not accomplished,” she said in a written report.

“The result was mould growth in one of the washroom areas, which required remediation, and the removal of wall and ceiling materials in that area. This closed that washroom to the facility, and to date is in an unfinished state. The roof was subsequently replaced in late 2021,” she said.

In the spring of 2022, McGuigan said staff were preparing to open the facility for rentals once again, but during a cleaning inspection noticed there had been significant water leaks in the basement, and the kitchen area had some mould.

Staff contracted Pinchin Ltd. to investigate the mould and they said it was impacting the air quality in the whole facility. They also found other hazardous materials, including asbestos and lead paint, that will impact the remediation and necessitate precautions required by provincial regulations, in addition to those necessary for mould remediation.

Pinchin provided staff with a proposal to assist the municipality with the preparation of a scope of work, the selection of a contractor, oversite, and air monitoring of the mould remediation. The quoted price was $12,625, plus H.S.T. McGuigan said that does not include the actual remediation or removal of materials, as that pricing would be determined through the RFP process with Pinchin. She said subsequently, Tulloch was contracted and completed a building condition assessment on July 20, 2023.

In the interim, McGuigan said the heat is set at 57 degrees and unused appliances have been turned off and cleaned. Hydro has been reduced from 553 kWh to 150 kWh. Internet is still being supplied as a report from IT showed large outside usage from August to October, and minimal usage the remainder of the year. McGuigan added rodent control continues and staff are monitoring the building regularly.

McGuigan said $366,000 to $600,000 was a “substantial cost” and they need to know what the community is looking for in terms of a hall going forward.

Deputy mayor Lisa Schell suggested coun. Bob Sisson, who is the ward councillor, and sits on the committee, convene a meeting. She noted the committee was re-established in 2023. “Have a discussion. It (the hall) has a lot of history within the community. A lot of the members of the committee are not going to want a new building plopped on the property. It won’t hold the same. I think we need community input, especially from that committee, before this council makes any decision.”

Coun. Tammy McKelvey said she also sits on the committee and has been trying to get a meeting, with full reports.

Sisson added, “is there such a thing as getting a second opinion? Just taking it for granted that these people are saying $366,000, $600,000, whatever.” He suggested talking to a local engineering firm. “There’s a lot of old things that get repaired. Why are we just going to demolish it? It doesn’t make any sense.” He said a number of municipal buildings have faults. “I don’t understand why everybody is against this hall.”

He noted the community centre was declared an emergency shelter in flooding, so has a use. “I think we owe it to these people to let them know what’s going on. We’ve been dragging this on, and keeping it a secret from them for months. They need to know what’s going on.”

Mayor Bob Carter said the report was a starting point. He added he did not think anybody was against the hall, but it had been closed for over two years due to mould and asbestos.

He added, “the first step is to have this meeting, see where it goes, these people (the committee) can make recommendations but are not making decisions. Decisions will be made here.”

A new five-year contract for the hauling and disposal of construction and demolition (C&D) waste in Dysart et al could stand to save taxpayers around $2 million in projected costs.

Environmental manager, John Watson, said an agreement with York 1 Rosewarne Transfer Ltd. represents a 45 per cent decrease in hauling costs, and 61 per cent decrease in disposal costs compared to its current deal with Mid-Ontario Disposal, which expires Dec. 31.

The arrangement with York 1 will kick in Jan. 1, 2024, and run to Dec. 31, 2028.

Addressing council Nov. 28, Watson said the township received four bids for the contract, with York 1 offering haulage at $800 per trip, and disposal for $60 per metric tonne. Under the current agreement with Mid-Ontario, Dysart pays $1,442 per haul, and $152.44 per metric tonne disposed.

Year-to-date, up to Oct. 31, Dysart has collected 3,584.38 tonnes of C&D waste at the Haliburton, Harcourt, and West Guilford landfill sites, and had 94 trailer loads of materials shipped away, for a total cost of $681,893.

Under the terms of this new deal, those same numbers would run the township $290,262, so an approximate savings of $391,630.

“This is good news… there is definitely a cost benefit to us [in this] new agreement,” Watson said. He noted there would be annual CPI adjustments implemented from 2025 to 2028.

Dysart upped its C&D waste collection fees earlier this year, after the township saw its costs spike almost 38 per cent from 2021 to 2022. Furniture disposal doubled, rising to $20; the cost per cubic yard of C&D waste climbed from $60 to $100; while combinations of garbage, recycling, and C&D waste went from $120 per cubic metre to $200.

There is a plan to purchase and install a weigh scale at the Haliburton landfill, which Watson said earlier this year could see all C&D waste routed to the site in future. Currently, the township also accepts C&D waste at its Harcourt and West Guilford locations.

Electronics accepted

Starting in the new year, residents will once again be able to dispose of electronic waste (EEE) at all five landfill sites in Dysart.

Dysart entered into an agreement with Com2 Recycling Solutions in 2021 to handle the collection of qualifying materials in the township.

The company stipulated it would only collect from one landfill site, per new provincial regulations, forcing Dysart to stop accepting electronic recyclables at Harcourt, Kennisis Lake, West Bay and West Guilford landfills.

The company has proposed reinstating collections, starting Jan. 1, 2024. Watson said the company would install outdoor metal cages at all landfill sites, picking them up when they’re full. Watson noted this is a money maker for the township, with Com2 set to pay $110.23 per metric tonne collected.

To recycle, or not

Watson has pitched a revamp of the municipality’s mattress and box spring disposal protocols.

Currently, the items are processed as garbage at Haliburton, Harcourt, and West Guilford dump sites, with residents paying $20 per item. Watson is proposing Dysart work with Woodbridge-based company Recyc-Mattress to recycle them instead. He noted it would improve the township’s waste diversion rate.

The estimated cost is $15,650 per year based on bin rental, haulage, and recycling of 500 units. Watson said the township could recoup this by upping its mattress and box spring disposal fees to $30 per item. He proposed the program be implemented at the Haliburton landfill site only, with collections at Harcourt and West Guilford discontinued.

Watson added a similar program had recently been implemented in Minden Hills.

Coun. Pat Casey was worried increasing the fees for the second time in 12 months could lead to an increase in illegal dumping. Fearrey felt it was more cost effective to continue landfilling the items. The proposal will be discussed again in the new year.

Dysart et al council has said it’s happy for the Haliburton County Farmers Market to move back to Head Lake Park next season, providing the market’s executive agree to new terms that mayor, Murray Fearrey, said protects the township from incurring additional costs and liability.

Angel Taylor and Ron Lofthouse, representing the market, told council Dec. 12 that the most recent season in Haliburton, which ran from May to October, was a disappointment for most vendors.

They said attendance dropped after the event was relocated to nearby Rotary Beach park.

“We count as best we can every person that comes to our markets. In 2022, there were 19,719 people that attended our market when it was in Head Lake Park. In 2023, we saw a substantial drop to 13,607. That’s about a 30 per cent decrease,” Lofthouse said.

Other market locations at the Minden fairgrounds and Abbey Gardens saw a big uptick in visitors, Lofthouse said. Attendance in Minden this year was 18,573, up from 16,004, while the weekly Abbey Gardens event attracted 6,394 in its first year since moving from Stanhope. Lofthouse noted 3,800 people attended the Stanhope market last year.

The pair said there was substantial support from the community to have the event, held every Tuesday from noon to 4 p.m., back in a more central location.

Haliburton Business Improvement Area (BIA) board chair, David Zilstra, wrote a letter in support of the move, saying several downtown merchants reported a decreased presence of shoppers on market days. He said the market is “tucked out of site” at Rotary Beach park.

According to Zilstra, Country Pickins sales were down an average of 40 to 60 per cent on market days this year, with Glecoff’s Family Store noting a 15 per cent drop, and Russell Red Records a 30 per cent decline.

“The connection [between the market and downtown] is now broken, but it can be fixed easily by bringing it back to its old location,” Zilstra wrote.

Taylor noted the market had been located at Head Lake Park for 11 years. She said there were many benefits to that site, primarily accessibility for older residents. Taylor said the market executive would be willing to work with council on a resolution, while offering the township a seat on its board.

Fearrey said he was concerned about damage to the park. He proposed a $1,000 fee be applied to the market for each event in July, August, and September, with a $700 fee applied for any other month. Deputy mayor Walt McKechnie supported that addition.

“I think that’s fair. It will help us build a fund to fix things at the end of the season… we can’t be subsidizing anything [extra] today. People are concerned this is costing taxpayers money,” McKechnie said.

During the meeting, Taylor noted the market has around 40 vendors during its summer peak, dropping to between 20 and 30 in spring and fall. All vendors pay $300 per season to appear at the market.

Addressing concerns coun. Pat Casey and Nancy Wood-Roberts had about increased traffic in the downtown, and a lack of parking, Fearrey felt running the market earlier in the day could help. He suggested new hours of 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., which Taylor felt was workable.

The mayor also stipulated that vendors should park vehicles in the Rotary Beach parking lot, freeing up space at Head Lake Park, and that the market assign an attendant to limit parking along Highland Street. “If they don’t like [the changes], they can get back to us,” Fearrey said.

Places for People (P4P) has wrapped up its inaugural community bonds program, successfully raising $850,000 – money that president, Jody Curry, says will help the organization bring more affordable housing to Haliburton County.

Speaking to The Highlander ahead of P4P’s annual general meeting Dec. 6, Curry said the bonds program sold out in less than three months. She noted this was a new record completion time for Tapestry Community Capital – the Torontobased firm that assisted with the investment drive.

Haliburton County Development Corporation was the first to purchase a bond on July 10, and bookended the effort by picking up a second bond – the last available – on Oct. 3. Curry said 81 bonds were sold to 71 unique investors.

There were three options available – Series A for investments of at least $1,000 locked in for three years, earning three per cent interest paid annually; Series B, which was a minimum of $5,000 locked in for five years, earning four per cent interest; or Series C, which was $10,000 locked in for seven years, earning five per cent interest.

Curry noted Series A investments totalled $93,000, Series B was $205,000, and Series C was $552,000.

“This was a great success. We’re very happy and feel this program puts us on a very good financial footing to move forward,” Curry said. “To all the people who helped get us to the point we are today: thank you.”

Curry noted the bonds are secured by P4P’s existing assets, which she says are valued at around $2.5 million.

The money will be used to clear a handful of existing mortgages and private loans. Asked how this will help P4P bring additional housing units to the Highlands, Curry indicated it will improve the organization’s position for borrowing should any opportunities arise.

“The way I like to describe it is, it makes everything look nice and neat and tidy on our books. We had little bits of money owing against all our buildings – those are now gone. So, when we go to borrow bigger dollars from bigger groups or organizations, or the government, for things we’re working on, we do have some unfettered equity,” she said.

P4P owns and operates five properties across Haliburton County, with 12 affordable housing units. Curry said the non-profit is aiming to more than double its inventory in the coming years, noting “we have a lot of plans in the works.”

Chief among those is a potential joint commercial and residential development fronting County Road 21 off Peninsula Drive. Paul Wilson, owner of Harburn Holdings, pledged one of four lots fronting Grass Lake to P4P last year. A proposal to develop the property has been supported by Dysart et al and Haliburton County councils but has been appealed to the Ontario Land Tribunal. An initial meeting was held Dec. 11, with a three-week hearing scheduled for November 2024.

Curry said P4P hopes to build 16 new units there. The commercial space will be rented out, generating income the non-profit can use to subsidize accommodations and offer them at below market rates. Should this project proceed, Curry said another bonds program is likely, with the build expected to cost millions.

The organization is also looking for opportunities to invest in existing rental units, like it did when purchasing a five-plex in Carnarvon in October 2022.

“That would make sure units that are currently in place don’t go by the wayside. We are on the lookout for things like that, because right now it’s much cheaper to buy existing buildings and renovate them than it is to build new,” Curry said.