A pop-up fundraiser will be selling donated art — by the square foot – all summer long in Haliburton.
For the annual Art Squared event, Haliburton County artists have donated 12-inch by 12-inch paintings. Each one costs $100 with all the money going to local arts organizations.
The fundraiser will run as a pop-up booth outside the Rails End Gallery at most Haliburton farmers markets. This year, each sale will funnel money to the Rails End Gallery.
Dagmar Boettcher, an Art Squared board member, said local artists have been eager to support the fundraiser.
“People have been really great about donating,” Boettcher said. “Big shout out to all the artists in our town that have given us a 12-inch by 12-inch painting that they could have sold for $350.”
On large wooden racks, the Art Squared paintings tackle diverse themes: vibrant chickens, inquisitive turtles, rustic homesteads and tranquil river scenes.
Art Squared board member and artist Deborah Reed said she enjoys donating art to the event because of how the arts community in Haliburton has impacted her life. Each summer, she took art classes at the Haliburton School of Art and Design. Now, along with her partner Boettcher, she lives in the area full-time.
“I’m fairly new to Haliburton, and I’m grateful to it. It’s such a strong and welcoming community,” she said.
Art Squared sprouted to life after board members met while taking art classes from Carole Finn, an artist and printmaker formerly based in Minden.
One of the people taking lessons came up with the bite-sized painting fundraiser, and after a meeting, Art Squared took off.
The first year it ran, the group raised $3,500 for an HSAD student bursary in painting and drawing; the second year also raised $3,500 for the Rails End Gallery.
Since then, they’ve developed relationships with local long-term care homes, and paintings which don’t sell are donated to add colour and vibrancy to their walls.
For Boettcher, Art Squared is a celebration of arts, community, and the importance of creativity.
“I think without art and music and all the cultural things a lot of people don’t think we should be spending money on, our lives are so less rich,” she said.
An annual dockside art show will see artists and artisans set up shop on docks around Kennisis Lake again this year.
On July 17, the Art on the Dock event features 30 artists who will exhibit paintings, pottery, jewelry and more at their lakeside properties.
Event organizer, Janis Parker, said it’s a unique opportunity to celebrate Haliburton County’s vibrant arts sector.
“I think people are just in awe of how many wonderful artisans we have within our community and Haliburton County as a whole,” Parker said.
Besides purchasing art directly from the artists, the event raises money for the Artists in the Schools & Community program. Since it began seven years ago, donations at each art venue and sales of limited edition prints by artist Wilf McOstrich have raised over $20,000.
Since many of the artists have learned or taught at Fleming’s Haliburton School of Art and Design, Parker said art education is a worthy cause to donate to.
“As you get to talking with more and more people, a lot of them had a basic gift but did an awful lot of their training at the Fleming school for the arts,” Parker said.
Artists such as Barbara Larcina and Lynda Henry wrote in the tour’s brochure that they’ve been inspired by the school’s classes and arts community. It’s Parker’s hope that the event can help continue investments in arts education.
“We wanted to make sure the arts continued to flourish in Haliburton,” she said.
Savannah Tomev is an artist who creates colourful, intricate paintings of animals and landscapes on canoe paddles. This will be her third year showcasing art at her family’s cottage.
For Tomev, the focus of Art on the Dock isn’t about making money: it’s a way to connect with the wider arts community of Kennisis Lake and Haliburton.
“It’s a great way for people to make connections with other artists but also make new friends at the lake,” Tomev said.
Art on the Dock is July 17, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and July 18, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
For more information on the artists and exhibit locations, go to haliburtonarts.ca
When Russell Red Records and Mixtape Vintage opened in 2019, neither owner thought their shops would be a permanent fixture on Haliburton’s main street.
Two years later, with a new location and renovated retail space, the businesses appear to be here to stay.
Heidi Hudspith of Mixtape Vintage and Dan Manley of Russell Red Records joined forces in 2019 while hosting a pop-up shop. After lots of interest, they moved into a retail space across from Highland Street’s Rexall. But that store didn’t feel like a permanent home.
“It always kind of felt temporary,” Hudspith said. “Now, we have room to grow.”
Their new shop is at 173a Highland St. Manley’s records are spread along each wall: classic rock, pop vinyls are placed alongside brand-new albums from artists such as Taylor Swift.
Mixtape Vintage takes up the back of the shop. Hudspith sources retro clothes and accessories which hang artfully on either side of a picture window overlooking Head Lake Park.
Manley explained how the pair had far more creative freedom when they designed the new store’s layout.
“Coming in here, we were able to start from scratch,” he said. After opening their doors in late June, business has taken off.
“Sales here have increased so much compared to last year,” Hudspith said. “I didn’t think it would start until Canada Day, but every day last week there was a huge wave of people coming through.”
She and Manley think that’s because their new spot is close to the park and a busier section of Highland Street.
“Essentially, it’s a difference in the location in town, there’s a psychological barrier in the location of the lights,” said Manley, referring to the intersection of Highland Street and Maple Avenue. “This [location] is just more conducive to people going by, coming up from the park.”
Besides busy foot traffic, the fresh start gave both business owners a chance to expand their selections.
“It’s turning a bit into a sustainable lifestyle store,” Hudspith said, gesturing to the cups, lamps and more which are recycled and given new lives with each purchase.
Hudspith said that picking out cool vintage products and connecting them with the perfect customer is a highlight of the job.
“The retail part of it is the fun part of it for me,” Hudspith said. “Seeing [customers] find something they love and take it home – that part is what makes it for me.”
That meant the last year, for both Hudspith and Manley, was especially tough.
COVID-19 forced the shops to close their doors to foot traffic multiple times. That, along with renovating and moving, made for a tiring year.
But the renovated space is now open; bustling with more customers, records and handpicked vintage goods than ever.
“When we found this location, that was kind of a big incentive to keep going,” Hudspith said.
A new app is giving Haliburton County residents and visitors digital tools to sort garbage, recycling and compost.
The Haliburton County Waste Wizard is available in all four municipalities on iOS and Android devices, as well as web browsers.
After selecting a municipality, users can search the app’s database of common household waste items to find out what goes where.
According to Melissa Murray, environmental coordinator for Algonquin Highlands and project lead, the app could play a key part in the fight to effectively manage garbage and recycling.
“It’s another important tool in our toolbox – we’re trying to bring together as many resources that we can,” Murray said.
While the app’s main function is garbage sorting, users can also find landfill hours and be alerted to household hazardous waste days, landfill closures and more.
The app was developed by Recollect, a company that specializes in customized recycling and waste management tools.
Murray said that while Recollect produced the nuts and bolts of the app, several municipal staff were involved in the project.
“Collaborating on anything is always a big task so it’s great to see a collaborative project like this come together,” she said.
Murray and environmental workers across Haliburton County can also track the common items people search for, as well as receive feedback from users through the app.
“We want to hear from people – what’s working and what’s not working for them as well,” she said.
The free app is available on the Apple App Store for iPhones and iPads, and the Google Play Store for Android devices. You can also access the service online through municipal websites.
The Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit (HKPR) is inviting anyone 12 years of age and older to visit its mass immunization clinic in Minden for a first or second dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
The health unit said no appointments are necessary and walk-ins are welcome.
“We are receiving a lot more vaccine which means we can offer more appointments and opportunities for people to get vaccinated,” said Dr. Natalie Bocking, Medical Officer of Health for the HKPR District Health Unit. “Our goal is to vaccinate as many residents as possible so we can all be protected from COVID and not have to see any further shutdowns, illness or deaths.”
While there are still thousands of appointments available at Health Unit clinics until the end of July, Dr. Bocking said residents can also now visit a clinic as a walk-in for their first or second dose. Anyone coming to a clinic is asked to bring their Ontario Health Card.
There is a clinic at the S.G. Nesbitt Memorial Arena – 55 Parkside St., Minden – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Clinic dates are listed on the Health Unit’s website at hkpr.on.ca
Dr. Bocking said some people may still prefer an appointment, and there are many spots still available through the provincial booking system for Health Unit clinics throughout the region. As well, area residents can get vaccinated at local pharmacies, or through pop-up clinics being hosted by local hospitals, family health teams and community health teams. Walk-ins are also welcome at many of these clinics.
With so many opportunities to get vaccinated, Dr. Bocking is urging everyone who has a second dose appointment currently booked for August, September or October to get their second dose sooner. She said two doses offer better protection from the Delta variant, which is now prevalent throughout the province.
“We know the Delta variant is more transmissible and can cause more severe illness so it’s important people get their second dose as soon as they can to ensure they are protected,” Dr. Bocking said.
The other group Dr. Bocking hopes to see take advantage of the increased access to vaccine right now is local youth. With in-person learning expected to resume in the fall, Dr. Bocking said it’s crucial that youth aged 12 to 17 years get both doses before schools starts back in the fall.
“While most young people who got COVID did not suffer severe symptoms, we don’t know if that will be the case with the variants of concern we are seeing now,” Dr. Bocking said. “For their protection, and the protection of their family and community members, it’s important that our youth get vaccinated.”
Positivity rates
The Haliburton County Community COVID-19 Assessment Centre Positivity Rate Report shows declining COVID-19 cases in the area.
At the time of the latest report, there were no unresolved cases in the County.
For the period June 14-25, the positivity rate was 0.714 per cent. That was down from 2.49 per cent from the May 31-June 11 period. The assessment centre averaged 70 tests a week for the time period with zero cases of COVID variants.
There have been 122 confirmed cases since the pandemic began.
“Although the overall number of COVID19 positive cases are declining, it is critical that public health measures continue to be followed in order to help prevent further spread of the virus and the VOCs, particularly as the province moves ahead with its Roadmap to Reopen plan,” the partners said in a media release.
As Robinson’s General Store in Dorset turns 100, new owners Mike and Katie Hinbest are continuing a tradition of additions and expansions that have seen the once tiny 75 by 25-square foot original floor plan continue to grow over the last century.
Brad Robinson and the Robinson family sold the store to the Hinbests earlier this year and they have hit the ground running with a new Robinsons Marina and Powersports outlet just over the bridge, a Lake of Bays brewery outlet and a planned Affogato Café.
All the while, they are continuing to operate the iconic general store that the Robinson family established back in July 1921.
The Hinbests marked the occasion on July 10. They presented Brad with a painting of the store done by local artist, Mary An Blythe. They also had some limited-edition clothing made up for staff and family with some for retail, as well as some locallymade wood magnets and balloons at the store.
Mike Hinbest said when he and Katie first took over, they were “nervous” about ensuring they could continue the Robinsons’ legacy. They wanted cottagers and full-time residents to continue coming not just for groceries, but to make family memories.
However, hailing from Huntsville, they believe they share the values of the historic Dorset family.
“It’s everything for us,” Mike said while seated at a picnic table at the new marina. “How do we keep this iconic store so that it’s about making family memories for another 100 years?”
Mike said another key to their marketing platform and for the future of Dorset is to make it a year-long destination, not just a summer one. For example, he said the new marina will do small engine repairs, but not just on motorized watercraft. They hope to service snowmobiles and all manner of all terrain and off-road vehicles.
Mike said he got to know Dorset when he was a snowmobiler and there’s no reason it can’t be a hub to access water and land trails, offering fuel and food all year round.
It’s been a very busy spring and early summer but Mike said they are loving it.
He said they were taking their lifelong passion and pouring it into the Dorset business community.
Unlike some people who drag themselves to work on a Monday morning, Mike said he can’t wait to start each and every work day.
“I’m just so happy. I enjoy doing it.” Mike is a lot like Brad. They both love people and like to talk. Robinson told The Highlander back in January 2020, at the time he put the property on the market,
“You do in life what you want to do. If I’d wanted to go, I would have gone.”
Brad took over the family store at the age of 20 more than 65 years ago. He oversaw 14 additions and they now sell groceries, hardware and clothing.
It appears the Hinbests are on the same page as they continue to expand the Robinsons brand throughout the town.
While many local businesses are heading into Step 3 of the roadmap to reopen July 16, it remains exit stage left at Highlands Cinema in Kinmount.
Owner Keith Stata long ago made the decision to close for the summer of 2021 with the future of the iconic movie house in doubt.
He said the fine print revealed that patrons would have to have a reserved seat and people not in the same household remain two metres apart.
“We need to make hay while the sun shines in our short season. A rainy day can be 1,000 people. Those rules don’t work for us,” Stata told The Highlander.
He said a normal season would begin April 1 and take five weeks to get ready for a mid-May opening. Now, he said the theatre and its surrounds need a lot of work following last year’s closure. Nor does he have any trained staff.
Further challenges include movies being streamed on release; customer hesitation to be around other people; some people refusing to get vaccinated and some children not vaccinated.
“It sounds like a recipe for disaster,” he said of the reopening.
As for the future of the business, Stata said, “With some help we can get through until next year, when hopefully this mess will be over. If we open now and don’t recover our costs, we won’t be here next year. Simple math.”
Step 3 means there can be outdoor social gatherings and organized public events with up to 100 people; and indoor ones with up to 25 people. People can meet indoors, or hold events, at half-capacity.
People can go to church, hold weddings and funerals.
Indoor dining can resume, with no limit on the number of people at tables as long as physical distancing can be maintained.
More shoppers will be allowed in essential and non-essential stores as long as the two metre rule can be respected.
In addition, museums, galleries, historic sites, landmarks, fairs and rural exhibitions and festivals can go on, with capacity limited to not exceed 50 per cent indoors and 75 per cent outdoors. It also means a green light for concert venues, cinemas and theatres with some restrictions, largely 50 per cent capacity indoors and 75 per cent outdoors.
Local realtors can again have open houses with capacity limited to the number of people that can maintain a physical distance.
Premier Doug Ford credited the move to vaccination rates. Face masks in indoor public settings and physical distancing remain and the step will be in place for at least 21 days.
For Lynda Shadbolt of Blue Sky Yoga Studio in Haliburton, the announcement came as good news and she intends to reopen.
Shadbolt said she’s excited and researching the rules and regulations. The province has said indoor sports and recreational facilities can reopen subject to a maximum of 50 per cent capacity of the indoor space.
Shadbolt thinks it will be similar to last fall, when she was allowed four in the studio and everyone else online.
But after another extended lockdown, she said she is looking forward to having clients in-studio once again.
“My plan for the summer is to offer rainy day yoga, kind of spontaneously,” she told The Highlander. “I will have people in the studio with me when I offer the classes.” She welcomes the change.
“I just love the vibe of everyone breathing together.”
Summer weekends at Koshlong Lake are often punctuated by gunfire.
Residents said shots ring out near Ripple Rock Drive within shouting distance of Koshlong Lake’s walkers, canoers and swimmers.
Even when no one is using the Crown land, hundreds of shotgun shells, metal ammunition casings, clay targets, broken beer bottles and burnt debris remain.
Many who live at the Highlands East lake said it’s an issue that’s getting worse; directly affecting their day-to-day lives.
“It’s the shooting, and the garbage that’s left behind,” said Mike Palmer, director of the Koshlong Lake Association and president of the Koshlong Lake South Shore Roads Association (KLSSRA).
Another lake resident, Dave Westaway, who’s director of the KLSSRA, added evidence of alcohol consumption paired with target practice leads to worrying conclusions.
“That’s the part that scares us,” said Westaway. “We recognize it’s Crown land, and we can’t do anything about that part. But it’s about being respectful of the land and the danger that it creates.”
Margot McDonald, whose cottage is located less than 200-metres from the pit, said the gunfire triggers her husband’s post-traumatic stress disorder.
Once while a friend was canoeing on the lake, a sudden gunshot spooked her dog, causing it to tip the canoe. “We are all traumatized by it,” McDonald said.
YMCA Camp Wanakita, on the lake’s north shore, has had to cancel overnight camping trips due to excessive gunfire, said general manager Andy Gruppe.
“The kids basically get scared — and they don’t want to be here. They want to go home. One individual can have an impact, and take away experiences from dozens and dozens of others.”
Westaway and Palmer agreed excessive gunfire makes the lake a scary place for children.
“For us, it’s more about the emotional piece that it’s having on our kids,” Westaway said.
Palmer estimates people shoot at the sand pit every other weekend during the summer and, according to him, many nearby residents won’t leave their homes when the shooting occurs. He and others have confronted visitors to the sand pit; asking them to clean up afterwards and reminding them of the residences and lake nearby.
Searching for responses
Dave Westaway and Mike Palmer sift through ammunition, alcohol containers and burnt debris. Photo by Sam Gillett
All the residents The Highlander spoke with said they feel as though little has been done about their complaints.
Jolanta Kowalski, a media relations officer for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF), said the ministry has responded to “a few complaints over the last several years related to various types of Crown land use.”
While the MNRF has jurisdiction over improper use of the land, such as littering or illegal building, unsafe firearm use is a police matter — no matter where it occurs.
According to Palmer, the OPP have been called multiple times but that has not stopped excessive target practice or littering. If the people shooting have registered their firearm, and are not caught littering, they are not breaking rules, he said.
An OPP spokesperson said “For future instances, I recommend that residents contact police right away (rather than after the fact) so that a thorough investigation can be conducted at that time. This gives officers the best opportunity to identify offenders. If this is an ongoing issue, I also suggest that residents install video surveillance in areas of concern on their property.”
Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock MPP Laurie Scott declined to be interviewed, but in an email wrote that she is aware of Crown land complaints in Haliburton. She wrote that she encourages people to submit complaints to the MNRF, with reports of firearm-related disturbances or criminal activity to the OPP.
Moffatt, Devolin to approach MNRF
Crown land stretches across Haliburton County, and in recent months, complaints over misuse have taken centre stage.
In a letter to County council, Algonquin Highlands Mayor Carol Moffatt said the issue is urgent.
“These are serious and sharply-increasing concerns about public safety due to the amplified growth of incompatible uses of specific Crown land parcels in proximity to private property,” she said.
She included anonymous anecdotes of people using SKS rifles, crafting ATV trails and destroying trees in Minden Hills, Algonquin Highlands and Highlands East. She said while anonymous, she knows the people.
It was decided that Moffatt and Minden Hills Mayor Brent Devolin will head up an effort to collaborate with the Bancroft and Parry Sound MNRF.
“Maybe effort from a bunch of municipalities across the province might find us the kind of action we need,” Moffatt said. Moffatt said she’s received word that another sand pit, near Livingstone Lake in Algonquin Highlands, has seen tree planting and signage aimed at discouraging use of the pit.
At the Ripple Rock Drive sand pit, Westaway said restricting firearm use during the summer months
could allow people to enjoy the lake without fear.
Gruppe said the spot could be closed from May to late September, which would work for Wanakita’s summer and early fall camping trips.
For now, there’s no clear way forward, said Palmer. He said he’s been trying to contact others across Haliburton County who may also be struggling with the same issues.
Meanwhile, Palmer said the Koshlong Lake pit is just getting busier.
“At what point, if it’s really being used a lot, does it become a shooting range?”
Correction: a previous version of this story incorrectly stated it was Margot McDonald’s sister, not friend, who was in a canoe while gunshots were heard.
Whether you’re building or renovating, you want to be sure you can keep what you’ve paid for. A survey will ensure you’ve drawn accurate boundary lines in the plan before you begin.
“A licensed Ontario Land Surveyor [OLS] is the only professional in the province of Ontario who is able to determine the legal limits of a property,” said Rodney Geyer, OLS.
“Without knowing your limits you cannot ensure that your new building is located within the bylaw setbacks, or even guarantee that it is on your property.”
Such guidance is so important that providing it most effectively has led Rodney, his son Adam Geyer and Haliburton’s Chris Bishop to become partners to better support clients through their combined expertise, experience and historical records.
Launched in June, new company Bishop Geyer Surveying Inc. in Haliburton incorporates the Bancroft arm of Geyer Surveys (Rodney Geyer Ontario Land Surveyor Inc., created in 2006) and Greg Bishop Surveying and Consulting Ltd. Greg Bishop, Chris’s father, operated from the 1970s until his retirement in 2020, except for a term with the Ontario Municipal Board until 2004. Rodney has served as the firm’s OLS since Greg’s retirement.
Geyer historical records include those of earlier firms M.J. McAlpine Surveying and R.H. Geyer Surveying starting in 1988. Bishop’s historical records include those of Chris’s grandfather, Curry, who began surveying in the late 1950s, and of several companies as far back as The Canadian Land & Emigration Co. (1862).
Surveys are required whenever the legal limit or boundary of a property must be determined. This can include commercial building projects, severances, infrastructure development, subdivisions, condominiums and road allowance closings.
“The scope of a project is the ultimate driver of time and complexity,” noted Rodney.
“The survey process begins always with an estimate and determination of what is necessary. A survey is not one size fits all, and the scope of each project will be focused on a specific goal. That is not to say that it won’t change based on what we find, but it has to start somewhere.”
The surveyors then research the property’s history, including current and past deeds for the client’s property and for neighbouring properties. From there, field work locates existing monuments (survey markers) and checks their mathematical relationship to existing monuments on the neighbouring properties. Depending on the age of the previous survey, this step can take some time to complete. A report is then prepared, or a plan is produced if required.
Survey duration can range from a few hours for a water boundary setback to months or years for final plans to be approved and registered with the province, especially if property monuments have been destroyed over the years.
Ultimately, surveyors ensure that every party to a plan gets the real deal.
“As surveyors we are an independent and impartial third party when it comes to boundaries,” said Rodney.
“As much as we advocate for our client, we advocate equally for the neighbouring parties … Surveyors cannot move or bend limits in the field to suit a situation.”
Delays caused by pandemic restrictions have combined with increased demand for customized rural dwellings to create a hot local construction market with large projects booked well into next year.
“These are trying times for everyone, please be patient,” advised Aggie Tose, executive officer for the Haliburton County Home Builders Association.
“Coming into the County in June and July and expecting the contractors to come see your project right now is just unrealistic. It most certainly isn’t because we don’t want the work. We do.”
However, contractors are trying to balance pandemic management requirements, material shortages, and delays on the projects they’ve already committed to, explained Tose.
Also, “[the] safety of our staff is a priority before we consider allowing them to work in your home or cottage … [and the] contractors also have families they haven’t seen since the pandemic began.
“The other problem for contractors in our area is that we only have so many staff and we can’t take on more than we can handle. There is so much work, most contractors are booked for big jobs into the summer of 2022.”
Costs for materials have risen by more than 150 per cent in some cases, said Tose, and while the size of most projects remains the same, the number of project requests has more than doubled.
“In the beginning we were very concerned about the lumber mills closing due to COVID, but they seem to be up and running well now. The [initial] lag in production slowed lumber arriving. There seems to be a big problem right now getting other materials in a timely manner. Doors and windows are nine to 12 weeks on order and ICF [insulated concrete forms] blocks for foundations seem to be very difficult to get.
“I think the biggest change is that the contractors are having to plan material purchases much earlier than they might have in the past.”
Despite the delays, contractors may have room to tackle some smaller projects, but that will also depend on the supply of materials, said Tose.
“The Canadian Home Builders’ Association has been active with lumber industry counterparts, the federal government and the U.S. National Association of Home Builders to pursue all avenues to bring more supply online and bring prices down.
“With strong housing demand expected to continue, and lumber supply having a hard time catching up, it is expected lumber prices will stay high for some time, certainly through the first half of 2021. Lumber futures show a descent of lumber prices as the year continues, but this will be slow through 2021 and 2022. Even at the end of 2022, lumber prices are not expected to be all the way back to near pre-pandemic levels.”
So it appears a little patience will have to go a long way
