2009 FYI Tidbits

FYI Tidbits

Class A’ Office Tower
• A 132,000sf tower planned to be constructed adjacent to the Pickering Town Centre shopping mall will be the1st LEED-certified office tower in the City of Pickering – a highly visible example of sustainability in Ontario. The building offers 122,000 sq ft of office and 10,000 sq ft of retail and restaurant space and will be a focal point in the transformation of the downtown core. Construction will begin this fall, with occupancy slated for early 2011.

NEWS on Accessibility
• Effective January 1, 2010 all public sector organizations must comply with the Provinces Accessibility Standards for Customer Service. The City of Pickering is committed to providing our community with accessible programs, services and resources and strive to ensure policies and processes are in place to provide service excellence.The Pickering Accessibility Advisory Committee launched its new brochure this spring and has plans to improve community outreach. Look for the Accessible Pickering link at, www.cityofpickering.com and our new display at an event near you!
In July, the Ontario government released the initial proposed Accessible Built Environment Standard for a public review period. The initial proposed standard sets out specific requirements for making the built environment in Ontario accessible, including all new construction and extensive renovations. Comment period until October 16th, 2009
See: www.mcss.gov.on.ca Email: publicreview@ontario.ca

CITY PROJECTS
Dunbarton Indoor Pool
• The Dunbarton Indoor Pool rehabilitation project was successfully completed this year. At a total project cost of approximately $1.8 million, this work included replacement of the existing roof structure, replacement of the mechanical/electrical systems, new sand filters for the pool, a new family change room and refurbishment of existing change rooms and a complete refurbishment of the natatorium area.

Petticoat Creek Community Centre
• Plans are now underway to replace the roof structure at the Petticoat Creek Community Centre. This will be commencing shortly and expected to be completed by Nov. 2009.

Greenbelt Signs for Pickering
Councillor Littley and City staff are working with the Greenbelt Foundation to acquire our signage that will recognize Pickering as a proud Greenbelt community. Look for our new signage coming soon!

REGIONAL PROJECTS
(for project details see, www.region.durham.on.ca)

Altona Road Widening
• The construction of phase one, widening from two (2) to four (4) lanes from Kingston Road to Stroud’s Lane is scheduled for 2009/10. Residents are still concerned over the effect widening will have on Petticoat Creek at the “pitch point” with the road, sidewalk and multi-use trail in phase 2 - awaiting design details.

Rosebank Sanitary Sewage Pumping Station
• The Public Information meeting took place on May 28th, 2009. 22 people attended. 10 comment sheets were submitted. Main interests and comments from residents were construction traffic, site access, schedule, architecture and location of new station. The project is currently in the detailed design stage. The current target schedule is to tender in January 2010 with a completion date of March 2011. This project is being partially funded by the Infrastructure Stimulus Funding program.

Clear Bag Pilot Project
• The pilot project in Pickering and Clarington received a very positive response. Waste Diversion increased approximately 3% with Green Bin participation a whopping 13%!. People were happy to participate especially when nothing changes for people who already recycle and use their green bin except the colour of their garbage bag - they can still use their regular garbage pail.
People were concerned about getting any hazardous waste out of regular garbage especially with the Region approving the Incinerator to handle the Region’s waste. Incinerating such waste creates dioxins and other harmful chemicals when burned. Some comments received: “It's about time something was done. We have to do something to help eliminate garbage and recycling is one of the best ways.” “It makes you think twice about what you put in the garbage bag. You're more accountable.” “People need to take responsibility for the waste that they create.” “Great idea should have been put into place years ago. Too many people don't care about the environment.”