HI all Friends of Kingston Inner Harbour,
1) A GREAT TURTLE MONTH! Thanks so much to all involved!
GPS LOCATING OF TURTLE NESTS;
Queen’s students Aaron Sneep and Dayna Zunder came to the park on June 27 and GPS located 51 protected turtle nests. There were also 8 nests that were predated that hadn’t been covered and 2 nests that had been predated that had been covered. So a total of 59 so far! it would appear that our covers are making a difference. Aaron and Dayna are coming out again Tuesday July 18 for a second iteration now that the first batch of nests have all been uncovered and the second batch is ready to record. See the end of this e-mail for their map of the sites up to June 27. By the time the laying season is over the total number of nests is likely to exceed 100 – like last year. Somewhat surprising given the upheaval associated with construction of the K&P Trail and the very late start of the nesting season.
WONDERFUL SHORT VIDEO OF THE GPS LOCATING BY DAVE MCCALLUM:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
EGGS RESCUED AND INCUBATED:
Huge thanks to local hero Ric Barr for alerting us to a nest located near his business at the National Grocer’s Building where heavy trucks might have crushed the eggs. Ric contacted Susan Irving at Sandy Pines Wildlife Centre in Napanee and she came out to harvest the eggs and take them for incubation. Scroll down for interesting pics.
2) WALK AND ROLL: ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION INPUT REQUESTED
Over the last eight months or so the city has been working with the community to develop its first active transportation master plan. They have held a number of significant workshops and a Community Forum to discuss ideas and receive input. The city has now posted the displays and materials that were reviewed with the public at the June 7th Public Open House and Workshop. The city’s consultant WSP Group is working to finalize these elements and is developing the ATMP over the summer. The draft Plan will be available for review by the Technical Advisory Committee Meeting in September and will be taken to Council this fall.
The Friends of Kingston Inner Harbour believe strongly that an overpass for pedestrians and cyclists should be created over John Counter Blvd and the railway for two reasons: 1) for social equity to connect students from RIdeau Heights with the schools in Kingscourt, and 2) to improve the difficult K&P route at the Division St. bridge over the railway at John Counter.
Do consider writing and expressing any concerns you have concerning walking, cycling and other modes of active transportation. This is a one-time opportunity to make a difference.
Contact: Mark Dickson, Traffic Supervisor, Engineering Department at
wallroll@cityofkingston.ca, or mdickson@cityofkingston.ca
3) WHEELCHAIR RALLY JULY 18 – 5-7 PM– REMINDER!
A celebration of the new K&P Trail for wheelchair users of all ages. In partnership with Easter Seals Ontario and the Kingston Community Health Centres, and thanks to a grant from the Community Foundation for Kingston & Area and generous donations from Quattrocchi’s, the Friends of Kingston Inner Harbour are delighted to be involved in this fun and novel event.
Participants and friends will wheel from Doug Fluhrer Park up to Quattrochi’s and back or as far along the trail as comfortable.
Participants are invited to decorate their wheelchairs in red and white to celebrate Canada’s 150th. Free refreshments.
Where: Meeting in Douglas R. Fluhrer Park south end
When: Tues, July 18, 5-7 pm
COME ONE, COME ALL! ALL WELCOME! FREE REFRESHMENTS!
WE ARE TRYING TO GET SOME WHEELCHAIRS ON LOAN SO THAT THOSE WITH ABLE BODIES CAN SEE WHAT IT’S LIKE TO TRY AND MANAGE A WHEELCHAIR. SHOULD BE FUN.
4) ON THE WALL STREET ART FESTIVAL – HEADS UP FOR AUG 21-26!
This year the event will be from August 21 – 26 with a Celebration of the Arts on Saturday, Aug 26.
If you know of people who might be interested in participating do spread the word.
Like 2014, it will be an amazing event. ONTHEWALLkingston@gmail.com for info.
5) “COMMUNITY BENEFIT GUIDELINES” MEETINGS: TUES, JULY 25 + TUES, AUG 29.
These are deals that the city makes with developers. When developers want to add extra floors to buildings, the city can agree provided community benefits like art galleries etc are added at the builder’s expense.
The following was sent by Greg Newman of the city’s Planning Department for me to share FYI:
“The City has prepared a draft set of “Community Benefit Guidelines” which will be used to guide future processes for securing community benefits in a fair, clear, transparent and predictable manner. The draft set of Community Benefit Guidelines and supporting Official Plan amendments are available on the City’s websitehttps://www.
As you may know, under the Section 37 of the Planning Act, the City may allow increased height or density on a site in exchange for facilities, services or matters that will benefit the community. It is important to note that community benefits are not intended to make a bad project good but are intended to make a good project better, as considered on the basis of sound land use planning principles. To take advantage of Section 37 of the Act, municipalities must have enabling policies in their Official Plan. The City’s Official Plan contains these policies in Section 9 Administration & Implementation (see sections 9.5.25 to 9.5.30). Amendments to these policies are proposed to support the City’s use of the draft Guidelines. At this time, planning staff are preparing application details in support of an Official Plan Amendment which will be presented during a statutory public meeting held before the City’s Planning Committee on Tuesday, August 29, 2017.
In advance of this statutory meeting, City staff have scheduled a Public Open House to discuss the draft Community Benefit Guidelines and to receive feedback from the public in a more informal setting. The public Open House will be held on Tuesday, July 25 from 5 – 7pm at Memorial Hall, City Hall. A brief presentation by City staff will be provided at 6pm. Attached is a poster that you are invited to circulate or post to help spread the word regarding this City initiative.
If you would like to provide written comments on either of the documents, please emailcommunitybenefitguideline
Contact: Greg Newman, Manager, Policy Planning, Planning, Building and Licensing Services
gnewman@cityofkingston.ca
Apologies to all for sending out too many e-mails this July.
Promise things will be back to normal in August.
Happy summertime,
Mary
GPS Location of turtle nests as of June 27 – indicated by red circles.
Second map to be done July 18.
Eggs rescued by Ric Barr and Susan Irving now in incubation at Sandy PInes in Napanee.