What are we doing about short-term rentals?

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October 14, 2022

Internet and phone voting has begun across the County’s four municipalities.

The voting period began this past Saturday, Oct. 8 and goes right up to 8 p.m. on election day, which is Oct. 24 this year.

All of the townships, with the exception of Minden Hills, are only doing internet and phone voting. Minden Hills has in-person, paper voting. Some cast their ballots Oct. 8 while others can go to the S.G. Nesbitt Community Centre at 55 Parkside St., Minden, Oct. 24 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

By now, people should have received a letter from their township with a unique pin. Using the pin, and your date of birth, you can log on to the specified website in your letter and vote, or call the toll-free number.

It’s a change for some townships. Last election, for example, Algonquin Highlands, Dysart et al, and Highlands East allowed mail-in ballots. Minden Hills had internet, phone and in-person voting..

We believe it would have been preferable to have a consistent voting method across the Highlands, but a majority of Minden Hills councillors didn’t. They voted against their clerk’s recommendation for internet and phone voting, only. This despite the clerk saying it was very labour intensive, expensive and confusing for the public.

We get that some councillors were worried about people not having good internet connections or cell phones, making the process potentially difficult for them. We also understand that not everyone is great with technology. However, it will be interesting to see how many people actually vote in-person to gauge if it was worth the time and money. It will also be notable if Minden Hills’ results are later than the other townships come election night.

Voting by internet or phone allows people to cast their ballots from anywhere with a connection. In the past, if you were going out of town, for example, you had to find a pre-polling station. Now, you can be on a beach in Florida and still vote.

It is more accessible for people with disabilities, seniors and seasonal residents. There is also a longer voting window. In theory, it should attract more young voters. We’re told the e-voting townships should have results quickly.

All of this would point towards more people voting in 2022 than 2018.

However, for that to happen, people have to be engaged in the process. They need to take an interest. Just because mayors and deputy mayors have been acclaimed in Dysart et al and Minden Hills, for example, does not mean you do not vote. Find out what ward you live in, if it is being contested, do your homework, and vote for a candidate. There are races in all four townships.

The people you vote for will help determine the kind of County that Haliburton becomes and The Highlander has already done a lot of your homework for you.

You can listen to our podcast to find out about some of the Highlands’ biggest issues. Check out our opinion pages in the paper, where we elaborate on these issues. Listen to the full interviews we’ve done with all candidates on our podcast. Read the paper for our candidate profiles. Above all, vote.

A Boomwhacker bonanza at Razzamataz show

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October 13, 2022

An upcoming Razzamataz Kids Shows will mix batons, theatre, dance and song at the Northern Lights Performing Arts Pavillion Oct. 16.

Performed by dance company Tara Luz Danse, “Les Batons” is all about colourful “Boomwhacker” acoustic batons which the performers will use to create songs on stage, as well as using them to dance and propel a theatrical story.

“It’s quite astounding,” said new Razzamataz board member Nicole Stewart.

She said the show is a step forward after the COVID-19 pandemic for the group whose mandate is bringing low-cost family entertainment to The Highlands.

“We are basically just slowly coming out of our COVID pause. these shows are designed to re-energize the community and let them know we’re back.”

While the group has been around for 30 years, Stewart said there’s a new group of kids born during the pandemic who may not have experienced how fun a Razzamataz show can be.

“We really want to engage a whole new group of people, as well as the other people who have been following for a while,” she said.

Les Batons costs $7 for kids and $10 for adults. For advance tickets visit razzamataz.ca.

A full schedule of fall programming is also available on Razzamataz’s website.

A rock education with Camexicanus

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October 13, 2022

Camexicanus’ summer was filled with camps and a focus on spreading artistic fun to rural communities. Now, the cross-cultural arts organization has its sights on a capstone theatrical project debuting in the Highlands this November.

With the help of a cast of young Highlanders, they’re producing a full musical, School of Rock, for the first time.

Young leaders who’ve helped director Greg Sadlier run arts-themed summer camps will take lead roles, and the crew has been auditioning younger community members to hop on board as well to learn acting and musical skills.

“I think it’ll be an experience that none of them really have had before, including myself,” said Darian Maddock, assistant director of the program and recent HHSS graduate.

“Being able to direct these kids will be fun for me in terms of what they’re going to pick up,” he added. “They’re going to learn how to work together, how to prepare for a show and what it takes to memorize all your lines….It’s kind of the behind-the-scenes things that you never really, especially kids, think about.”

While Camexicanus has already started auditions, they invite any interested kids to drop into their weekly practices.

The community can also help out. Camexicanus is looking for sponsors for the show.

They’re also looking for theatre lovers. “It could be anything…helping for a few days with costumes or coming in and helping and volunteering with the show,” Sadlier said. “So, most of all, the main two things are encouraging kids to be a part of it and then showing up at the end and supporting the kids by being there.”

An exact date for the performances is yet to be announced.

Many of the children who have expressed interest so far have been learning skills in Camexicanus’ music classes. This year the group is re-starting pay-what-you-can music classes for kids in Haliburton, Minden and Wilberforce.

Sadlier said it’s rewarding to see young leaders such as Maddock invest in the youngest members of Haliburton’s arts community.

“This is everything that our organization stands for,” he said. “This is the dream to have young adults who are choosing… to pour into the community.”

For more information on the musical or music lessons, contact Camexicanus at info@ camexicanus.ca.

Extendicare honours long-serving employees

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October 13, 2022

Margeret Hutchinson, Susan Swinson and Kim Roberts have been helping the elderly at Extendicare Haliburton for nearly as long as the facility has existed.

The long-term care home celebrated the womens’ accomplishments at a Sept. 22 awards ceremony. “I love my job,” said Hutchinson, who has worked at the home for more than 45 years, first in the kitchens and now in the laundry department. She said the residents and other staff have made it a great place to work. Swinson, recognized for 45 years of service as a PSW, and Roberts, a PSW for 40 years, both said residents were their favourite part of the job as well. “It’s the staff too,” Swinson added. “We’re like a family.”

Retired housing lead gets County thank you

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October 13, 2022

The Kawartha Lakes Haliburton Housing Corporation board and some current and past staff gathered in Minden recently to mark the retirement of long-time CEO Hope Lee.

Lee ended her 34-year stint with the City of Kawartha Lakes in May 2021 but COVID-19 muted celebrations.

Earlier this month, she was honoured at 57 Parkside Dr. It’s home to a 21-unit building, and an adjacent 12-unit structure, located south of the arena. They are just two of the four buildings Lee developed over the last decade, working in close cooperation with local councils, said housing advocate Fay Martin, who was in attendance.

Lee frequently addressed municipal governments and public gatherings in her role as housing manager for CKL and Haliburton County, a position she held simultaneously for 18 years. It was split into its own full-time position when Lee retired, and is now filled by Michelle Corley, who came up through the ranks.

After a brief retirement, Lee took a contractual position as interim CEO at Peterborough Community Housing, which fills a parallel role to KLH Housing Corp. in Peterborough.

Martin said, “in addition to an impressive development initiative that increased the number of KLH units by 125 per cent to its current 124 units in Haliburton County, Hope leaves the corporation with a strong organizational culture of respect and competence.”

Martin added Kirstin Maxwell, the new CEO of KLH Housing Corp, “brings extensive development and housing policy experience to support the organization in continuing its important work to serve our local communities.”

Operating with heart and a calculator

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October 13, 2022

Disbursing more than $3.1 million in loans, the Haliburton County Development Corporation (HCDC) continues to be the most active lender of 61 community futures development corporations (CFDC) in the province, board chair Pat Kennedy told the 37th annual AGM Oct. 4.

Held at the Red Umbrella Inn, Kennedy acknowledged FedDev’s ongoing support and said HCDC remains committed to strategically implementing the priorities of the federal government.

Kennedy said they received the most funding of any CFDC in southern Ontario and claimed the largest investment fund, valued at $21.3 million, of the 267 CFDCs in Canada.

“We continue to support community economic development initiatives, the growth of new and existing businesses and the creation of sustainable jobs in Haliburton County,” Kennedy said. He added they also assist not-for-profit organizations with community strategic planning and provide funding through their “unique” and “very successful” Local Initiatives Program (LIP).

Kennedy, who is returning as board chair, added, “we remain devoted and committed to meeting the needs of our Haliburton Highlands community as we transition through the impacts of the pandemic. The basis of this focus is to make businesses, organizations and communities more nimble, effective, profitable and sustainable, creating new wealth, new jobs and contributing to community economic development.”

He noted there had been many changes for businesses and charitable organizations in the past year. He said they had to adapt and pivot quickly to meet challenges, such as COVID restrictions and labour shortages. He said HCDC had seen significant increases in service volumes and administered new funding programs.

The outgoing Dysart deputy mayor added at HCDC, they view each application, “with a heart as well as a calculator.”

During the meeting, Tim Degeer of Dawson Gray presented a clean audit.

Executive director Patti Tallman said that in addition to loans, HCDC had provided business services to 69 companies, helped create or maintain 253 jobs, provided in-depth counselling to 118 businesses or non-profits, and made 128 referrals.

Loans officer, Sara Joanu, said they presented 47 loan applications to the investment committee, of which 33 were approved, five declined and nine withdrawn by the client after approval.

She acknowledged it was a much slower year from 2021: 33 loans, versus 52 in 2021; value of dollars approved about $5.1 million, compared to $6.4 million in 2021; and value of dollars dispersed just over $3 million, compared to more than $5.1 million in 2021.

She attributed that to businesses being able to access COVID relief funding while others actually flourished during the pandemic. Joanu said to date, the bulk of loans, nearly 40 per cent, have gone into restaurants, landscaping, hair salons, accounting and auto repair.

As for community economic development, program and operations coordinator, Heather Reid, said they’d helped with six strategic plans, worked with 22 community partners in planning, and disbursed $165,000. She highlighted the mural wall of sports heroes, and the Haliburton Highlands Art Centre Foundation feasibility study. The LIP helped 25 projects and 53 partners with $86,500 disbursed. Reid said the pandemic also gave them the opportunity to “reimagine” the incubator space in downtown Haliburton. She added they are not done yet.

The AGM also saw the election of two new directors; Mark Bell and Tammy Rea. Leaving are: Dale Bull and Peter Smith.

ERs defy expectations while shortages continue

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October 13, 2022

Haliburton Highlands Health Services (HHHS) CEO Carolyn Plummer said it was “astounding” that Haliburton County’s emergency rooms stayed open all summer despite significant staffing shortages.

“It certainly wasn’t without an awful lot of effort from our team,” she told HHHS’ board of directors at an Aug. 29 meeting. “From our staff who picked up a lot of overtime shifts, our team investing in the utilization of agency nurses, the work that we are doing with health force Ontario positions… just the efforts overall from our point of care staff, our management team, and our physician team, as well helped us get through the summer months, when we see our highest volume. So, I’m certainly grateful for all of those efforts,” she said.

As reported by The Toronto Star, emergency rooms across Ontario closed 86 times this year due to staffing shortages.

While HHHS locations haven’t closed, staffing is still at risky levels.

“We’ve had some luck with recruitment. But we’ve also had some additional departures. We’re really no further ahead,” Plummer added. “And in some cases, we’re actually seeing even more vacancies.”

She said agency staff have been filling roles in long-term care facilities for the first time since she assumed her role.

She said the Highlands is a uniquely difficult place to attract staff.

“There is a tendency for people coming from out of the country to focus on urban centres. It’s a little bit more difficult to attract people (to rural areas) who are used to coming through or used to working in an urban environment, and the amenities that come along with that.”

HHHS recruitment staff attended a job fair in Toronto this summer for the first time since before the COVID-19 pandemic began. Plummer also detailed the health services’ public awareness campaign that ran throughout the summer alerting Highlanders about the risk of closures and how to discern whether they needed ER care. Hospital staff are set to complete a “mock closure” exercise to practice ER shutdown protocol.

Executive assistant retires

Board members applauded Marlene Vieira’s long career as HHHS executive assistant to president & CEO and board as she prepares to retire after nearly 17 years in the role.

“Words can’t describe what you’ve been able to do for this organization and it won’t be the same at all without you,” Plummer said.

She and the board gifted Vieira a memento given to outgoing board members.

“You’re an honorary board member, Marlene,” Plummer said.

HHHS board chair David O’Brien added, “I can’t thank you enough for all you’ve done. It’s been amazing. It’s been a wonderful ride. And you should be very, very proud of yourself.”

Vieira told The Highlander, “It has been a privilege to have worked with so many hardworking, dedicated, caring colleagues and physicians over the years.

“I call them my work family because we have always been a closely knit supportive group of co-workers and that has helped us all navigate some very challenging times in healthcare, particularly during the past few years.

“In my role I have also had the privilege of working alongside some wonderful hardworking volunteers, mostly from the board, the auxiliaries and the Foundation and that includes more than 50 board members in my 16.5 years at HHHS.”

Libraries putting eggs in two baskets

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October 13, 2022

The Haliburton County Public Library’s (HCPL) status has risen “in the library world across Ontario” as a result of the Dorset depot library lockers, CAO Chris Stephenson told County council Sept. 28.

In a delegation along with library board chairperson, Sally Howson, Stephenson discussed what’s transpired since he joined the service a little over a year ago.

“It’s been an exciting time at the library and we’re absolutely thrilled by the support we’ve received in all areas of the community,” the chief librarian said.

He told councillors that managers and libraries, from Waterloo library, the County of Huron, ARUPLO (Administrators of Rural and Urban Public Libraries of Ontario) “have been checking in with us since the beginning of the launch of the Dorset depot library lockers. They’ve attracted a great deal of attention and people are tracking our success because it’s a model that may work well in small and medium communities everywhere. In fact, Oakville Public Library has launched some modern lockers to help people outside the library when it’s closed.”

He said they currently had 15 families and regular users in Dorset with room to grow for seniors and seasonal visitors.

The lockers were introduced in March in partnership with Robinsons General Store. Reserved books are dropped off there for patrons to pick up.

In addition to raising the services’ status, Stephenson said they hope to present what they’ve learned at the Ontario Library Association’s super conference in February.

Stephenson said other 2022 highlights included: adding a part-time marketing staff person; a new public services librarian, Kanopy video streaming and 4,000 magazines now available digitally,

“We’re starting to put our eggs into two baskets as we go and recognize the need for serving patrons with all different needs,” Stephenson said.

He added that partnerships were strong, creating a wide variety of programs and talks; from EarlyON to the green burial society, climate change initiatives and genealogy. The summer reading program attracted 160-plus children and the Haliburton and District Lions Club stories in the park 500 families and children.

The CAO and chief librarian added they’ve been mindful of technology and accessibility. There’s a new microphone system where people have to talk through glass at Dysart, Minden Hills and Wilberforce branches. There is an added kiosk in Wilberforce to access the portal. A new phone tree system is coming since call volumes are up and the service wants to address incoming calls better.

They have also hired two part-time couriers and put down a deposit on a new delivery van.

There has been rebranding, a new logo, website and access to BiblioCommons. Stephenson also addressed staff changes that began in 2020 and continue.

“Over 125 years of collective experience have moved on for various reasons, retirement, resignations, as people made new life plans. So, it has been a period of ups and downs but we’ve been able to provide consistent and great library service through this period.”

Howson added there had been “a lot of very positive changes in the library system.” She thanked the County for its support on behalf of the board.

“It is a vital hub for the community and there’s lots of great changes that have happened …”

Warden Liz Danielsen, who sits on the board, thanked Howson. She agreed there had been “some positive changes in the system during your term as chair. Particularly since Chris joined us, things have changed even more, all positive, we look forward to more positive changes as we go forward.”

By the numbers:

• 6,908 County residents had a library card in 2022.

• 108,443 items were circulated, including 44,002 digital.

• There were 4,124 visits to Kanopy; 123 user accounts created and 743 videos played.

• There are 51,691 items on shelves, with an added 4,820 this year. On average, they get a delivery of 89 new items every week.

• 5,208 people visited the website this year.

• 39,733 people access the internet through the library.

Septic report stirs up council feedback

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October 13, 2022