And They're Off.....

For a look at who the contenders will be for the upcoming municipal election, please click here. 

Mayor Eisenberger Media Release: Regarding City Manager Chris Murray

STATEMENT Regarding City Manager Chris Murray


June 27, 2018 - It is with truly mixed emotions that I received the news that Chris Murry has accepted a new role as City Manager in Toronto.

Chris has proven time and again to be a true leader and a consummate professional for us as City Manager. Again and again he has been an outward-looking, forward-facing progressive force for positive change and continuous improvement. He has modernized the city administration and raised the standards of our city staff such that it is equal to or better than any in the world.

Chris has had the full confidence and trust of myself and council and has steadily guided us on so many issues including the Stelco restructuring, the Amazon HQ2 bid, the Pan Am Games, LRT and transit, our digital strategy, and the modernization of our processes and procedures.

On a purely personal note, I have valued his wise counsel and friendship. He will be sorely missed.

On the plus side, Chris leaves behind a senior management team which has considerable bench strength and we will continue to be well-served by them in a seamless fashion led on an interim basis by the very able Mike Zegarac.

Hamilton is increasingly recognized as a place that is well run and things are happening in a very progress way. Toronto’s recruitment of Chris Murray is further evidence of this.

We are very proud of Chris and we wish him every success in his challenging new role. 

Mayor's Statements: End of Stadium Litigation and Steel Tariffs

STATEMENT BY MAYOR EISENBERGER CONCERNING THE END OF THE STADIUM LITIGATION

May 31, 2018, Hamilton, ON - Today the City of Hamilton reached a settlement agreement with the parties involved in the Tim Hortons Field litigation launched in 2016.

Council and I are pleased with the settlement, and with the work of our settlement team, the contractor, the Province of Ontario and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. They worked hard and in good faith to achieve this resolution with no additional costs for the stadium passed on to Hamilton taxpayers.

There are no outside legal costs associated with the litigation. The settlement was conducted using only internal City staff and no external counsel was retained.

As a result of the resolution, the City is on budget and has sufficient monies remaining to complete final works at the stadium.

The stadium was funded by the City, the province and a federal government as part of the 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games, and was meant to be delivered as a fully functioning stadium that residents and visitors could enjoy for years to come. 

The stadium was scheduled to be complete on June 30, 2014, but was delivered to the City on May 7, 2015. Since taking over the stadium, the City has worked with the contractor on a number of completion and remediation works, including and not limited to an examination and remediation of all overhead speakers and other overhead fixtures, leak remediation, work on transformers, lighting controls, audio and visual systems, scoreboard upgrades, floor drains on the concourse levels, adjustments and repairs to various mechanical systems throughout the stadium. The parties involved in the stadium litigation have been in confidential settlement negotiations since early 2016.

This resolution concludes on a positive note a chapter in the city’s history and allows us now to move forward to refocus on enjoyment of the stadium and all of the wonderful sporting, cultural and community events still to come. For example, this clears the way for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, in partnership with the City, to work together to secure a Grey Cup for the people of Hamilton and again showcase our great city to the entire country. It also clears the way for major league soccer to possibly come to our city for the benefit of all.

I wish to thank Ted McMeekin MPP, the Province and all the parties involved for bringing about this resolution.

STATEMENT BY MAYOR EISENBERGER CONCERNING THE IMPACTS OF STEEL TARIFFS

May 31, 2018, Hamilton, ON – I am disappointed and dismayed by the decision today from President Donald Trump to impose tariffs of 25 percent on imported steel, and 10 percent on imported aluminum. This is a detrimental turning point in the Canada and USA relationship, with the potential for significant negative implications not only here, but in the USA, Mexico and the EU.

Locally, while it is difficult to determine how this will affect our some 9,000 steel manufacturing and production employees; a 25% tariff will see an immediate increase in pricing for steel related products such as cars, appliances etc. both in Canada and the USA.

Canada’s closest ally is the United States and I am still hopeful that saner heads will prevail, but I applaud our Federal Government for its swift and forceful reaction to help protect steel related jobs and our economy.

We will continue to work with our Federal and Provincial partners and meet with our steel committee; and encourage our national steel caucus lead by local MP Bob Bratina, with membership from local MP and former steel worker Scott Duvall to continue to advocate on behalf of the City of Hamilton steel industry and our national economic steel interests.   

Motions in Motion- Motion by Clr. Farr

Note: Please keep comments on topic. Comments that are off topic will not be shown. Thank-you for your understanding.


Dear colleagues and media, I wish to move the following at council on Wednesday, May 9th. Councillor Merulla has assisted and will second...

Motion: Request for hospital space to address the current opioid (and other drug) overdose crisis in Hamilton

Whereas; The Federal Government has granted permission for supervised consumption sites in order to address the current crisis respecting opioid (and other) drug addictions

Whereas; The Province of Ontario is accepting applications for overdose prevention sites from across the Province and the City of Hamilton

Whereas; Council, on the 8th of December, 2017 approved the recommendations respecting Supervised Injection Sites in report BOH17004(b)

Whereas; Since Council's approval, the Province has approved the process of granting SIS (and now OPS) sites in this and other Ontario cities

Whereas; Not withstanding the 75 deaths due to opioid overdoses in Hamilton from January to October 2017 and that this tragic statistic exceeds the Provincial average by 78 percent, local landlords appear to be reluctant in granting permission to outside organizations to house supervised consumption sites

Whereas; Provincially managed hospitals may be seen as the safest sites to operate supervised consumption sites

Therefore be it Resolved; That the appropriate staff from Public Health be requested as a priority to engage with both Hamilton Health Sciences and St. Joseph's Hospital on the feasibility of housing a supervised consumption site in their hospital(s), as a means of addressing the opioid (and other drug) overdose crisis in Hamilton.

Food for Thought with Alex Bielak - Sips and Bites: Ten Top-of-Mind Things from #Terroir2018

Sips and Bites: Ten Top-of-Mind Things from #Terroir2018 

These days locally-sourced product, or food and drink from a given terroir, are paramount for many people. I was privileged to participate in the 2018 version of the Terroir Symposium where some 800 foodies, students, hospitality professionals, chefs, members of the media and others networked around a theme of how terroir can support environmental sustainability at the same time as economic profitability.

Here are a few top-of-mind impressions, trends and lessons that bubbled up as I drove home after a whirlwind few days of food and fellowship.

1. Chefs are among the most giving of people but often find it difficult to ask for help themselves. U.S.-based author, Kat Kinsman spoke eloquently about her own journey and founding her Facebook page Chefs With Issues dedicated to the care and feeing of the people who feed us.

2. The burbs really are a portal to some delicious immigrant cuisine. Kudos to Food writer Suresh Doss for being our guide and curating a great “World Food Court.” (In late 2017 on CBC he featured Burlington’s D Hot Shoppe a long time favourite of mine that has been featured in Food for Thought previously.)

3. Carolina Avaria Chef Concierge of the 4 Seasons in Toronto and President of Les Clefs D’Or Canada underscored the importance of service, telling us that seven of 10 people won’t return to a restaurant or hotel in the face of a culture of indifference. 94% of individuals whose problem is solved WILL come back.

4. Dr. Sylvain Charlebois, a Prof in Food Distribution and Policy at Dalhousie University noted as a nation we are #farmilliterate. Most Canadians have never been on a farm. That is something we should seek to rectify, especially given how close most of us in the region are to a real farm.

5. In a fast-paced talk, New York-based Jason Clampet, co-founder of Skift Table, gave us a series of takes on the state of the restaurant business, and in particular, the future of dining, in and out. For instance, he told us “delivery companies have done well to incorporate as much efficiency-supporting technology as possible, but the real barrier to total optimization will continue to be the complicated logistics of real life. Logistics complicate delivery algorithms.” Simply put, if the guy delivering your food is stuck in traffic, or the doorman won’t let him in, your food is going to be late or cold.

6. Chocolate now comes in a fourth flavour! We are all familiar with white, milk and dark chocolate. Add Ruby to the mix. Made from ruby cacao beans by Callebaut chocolate, it is smooth and fruity and coming to Canada in 2019.

7. The genuinely nice and funny Elena Arzak, a 4th-generation chef at the Michelin 3-star Arzak Restaurant in San Sebastian, Spain spoke of the matrilineal Basque culture noting 70% of the staff in the kitchen at her world-top-50 restaurant are women. A lesson for us all…

8. Norfolk County was a sponsor of a relaxed cookout for select symposium participants after the symposium proper. It is home to some wonderful producers of both wine and beer. Burning Kiln Winery hosted the event and I was smitten by the “Cab Frank” named after the previous owner of the property. 45% kiln dried and with soft tannins, it was a terrific match to some of the fire-roasted foods on offer.

9. Likewise, a nod to two great Norfolk County brewers: I loved the Hometown Brewing Company’s offerings, some of which are made with seasonal fruit like apricots and blueberries. Likewise, the New Limburg Brewing Company makes a fantastic complex high-alcohol Belgian-style Quad ale. Seek them out.

10. Finally, at I was shocked, shocked to have been given the (shrimp) finger by two very distinguished leaders, Food Laureate Anita Stewart and the seemingly innocent CBC and Globe and Mail contributor Julie Van Rosendaal, both abetted by the, I’m-coming-to-realise, mischievous Chef Jason Bangerter of Langdon Hall fame. See the photo to see what I mean!

There is much more to process after as intense an event as this, and I’m sure my future writing will be informed by the experience. Thanks to the speakers all of whom volunteered their time, and the Ontario Culinary Tourism Alliance who were kind enough to invite me, with no expectation that I would do anything but learn from the event. The date of the next one is set for May 6th, 2019 at the Carlu in Toronto, so reserve the date!

To see all past columns please see (and “like”) the Food for Thought Archives
Alex (Alex can be reached on twitter @AlexBielak)

Hamilton’s Healthcare and Aging Baby- BOOM Crisis!

On the evening of April 24th, I attended a session held by CARDUS, a self described “think Tank” on the topic of End of Life Care - Natural Death.

On the CARDUS website, they are more specifically characterized as follows: "a think tank dedicated to the renewal of North American social architecture. Drawing on more than 2000 years of Christian social thought, we work to enrich and challenge public debate through research, events, and publications, for the common good.”

The session began with a general overview of CARDUS and its research within the City of Hamilton. This was followed by two panel discussions. The first panel was chaired by Doug Sikkema, Lead Researcher, CARDUS. Panelists included Dr. Joshua Shadd, McMaster University Director (Division of Palliative Care), Clare Freeman, Director (The Bob Kemp Hospice), and Rev. Bill DeJong, Pastor (Blessings Church) in Hamilton.

The second panel was chaired by Ray Pennings, Executive Vice President CARDUS, and included three MPPs: Sam Oosterhoff (PC) - MPP Niagara West-West Glanbrook, John Fraser (LIB)- MPP Ottawa South, and France Gelinas (NDP) - MPP Nickle Belt.

Doug Sikkema referenced Ontario’s Palliative Care Bill 184, a private members bill, which was spearheaded by MPP Sam Oosterhoff. Both MPP John Fraser, the Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Health, and MPP France Gelinas, the NDP Health Critic, are strong supporters of Bill 184 and palliative care.

The evening’s focus was on an April 2018 Case Study by Doug Sikkema of CARDUS Health entitled “HAMILTON A Look at the End-of-Life-Care Landscape”. The Case Study revealed that for the first time in history, Hamilton has more seniors than it does children, and thus the City of Hamilton is facing an end-of-life healthcare crisis.

Wait lists in hospitals and for placements into Long-Term-Care Nursing Homes, and Pallative Care Homes, have been an issue for some time in the Hamilton area. Left unchecked, the situation will worsen with the expected tripling of the population requiring these services over the next twenty years, with the aging of baby boomers.

Cadus reports that In Canada, between 2005 and 2036, those 65 and over will increase from 4.2 million to 9.8 million which will mean a doubling of the annual expected deaths. CARDUS’s is looking at ways to address and support a Natural Death, and dying in dignity.

The panel discussions centered on end of life care and how a natural death can be better accommodated through providing a continuum of care that incorporates options that are more appropriate than dying in hospital, for those whose conditions can no longer be treated.

CARDUS studied two major cities in Ontario, Hamilton and Ottawa. The results of the study determined that 75% of Canadians want to die at home, however 70% end up dying in hospitals. The research looked at three areas 1) Social Dynamic, 2) Social Architecture, and 3) Continuum of Care.

Discussions also centered around the need for more hospice care, and better responding to the needs of the person who is dying, as well as the needs of their loved ones. Beyond cost considerations and the fact that remaining in hospital when treatment options have been exhausted, is much more expensive than hospice care, the quality of care that can be offered in a hospice setting was seen to be much more appropriate and dignified. The role that communities must continue to play, was recognized as a key component, in addition to government support and funding.

The current provincial funding model only works for wealthier communities, as hospices rely on hefty community donations and ongoing fundraising to be build and operate. The panels and audience struggled with the challenges behind providing such care to all parts of the province, particularly where communities are not large and are not wealthy communities. Such disparities were particularly difficult to accept.

Throughout the evening several reports were referenced, including the 2016 Palliative and End-of-Life Care Provincial Roundtable Report that MPP John Fraser released under his portfolio as Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care. Other reports and hand-outs were made available by CARDUS, and included: Death is Natural (Reframing the End-of-Life Conversation in Canada) 2015, and the CARDUS magazine Comment - Public Theology for the Common Good, which looked at “Health Beyond the Hospital”.

Cardus Healthalso issued a Press Release on April 25, 2018, “Hamilton Unready For Rising End-Of-Life Care Needs, Case Study Finds

Overall it was a very well-run session with thoughtful discussion and respectful discourse. It is a topic that ought to be of concern to all of us who, as we continue as an aging society, will face end of life decisions. It should be of particular interest to Hamilton who positions itself as the best place to raise a child and to age.

For more information, visit the CARDUS website at www.cardus.ca:

Teresa DiFalco, 

Publisher, The Hamiltonian