After years of study, delays and council infighting, the City of Brampton is still at least a year away from making a final decision on where a future LRT will run through downtown.
Councillors expressed frustration last week, but it is residents who must cover the cost of this indecision and suffer the consequences of another year without progress on alternative modes of transit in the city.
Revitalizing the crumbling city centre has been a long standing agenda item for Brampton councillors. Businesses have suffered while council members debate over what is and isn’t desperately needed.
While the Region pushes ahead with replacing critical infrastructure, the City is working on limited plans to boost the streetscape, leaving businesses and some councillors skeptical about the cost of waiting for substantial change.
Through droughts, floods, moth infestations and major summer storms, Peel’s two Conservation Authorities are doing their best to keep the public and the local ecosystem safe.
The PC government has not made it easy for the Credit Valley Conservation Authority or the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority to continue crucial programs. Through the omnibus Bill 229, rammed through by the PC government, some of the most important work to fight climate change in Peel might no longer be allowed. The deadline for public consultations on the PCs’ proposed changes is today.
Owen Keenan faced sweeping condemnation after his sermon last weekend, claiming Catholic residential schools were “very positive” for Indigenous communities across Canada. His harmful remarks came while First Nations and other Indigenous peoples across the country were devastated following the discovery in Kamloops of the remains of 215 children near a former residential school. As grief swept through Indigenous communities, Keenan rubbed salt in their wounds. He will no longer be able to spread his harmful views to congregants.
In Peel, home to one of the largest collection of Muslim communities in Canada, the need to fight Islamophobic statements and hatred has never been more clear.
Policies, changes to the criminal justice system, laws around online content and educational approaches need to be pursued so hate that is currently harming so many families can be eradicated.
On Thursday morning, the Government of Ontario planned to present a “general update” on the proposed GTA West Highway to councillors in Peel Region.
Elected officials had other ideas, striking the item from the agenda and telling the Province their minds on the controversial project had already been made up.
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In Peel, almost one in three households speak a non-official language at home. With its majority immigrant population and diverse range of diaspora communities, communication in the region comes with an extra cost: translation.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the regional government has put almost $100,000 toward translation costs that aim to communicate with residents in their language of choice.
A Mississauga pastor has apologized for a homily he gave over the weekend referencing “the good that was done” in residential schools.
The stunning comments made to congregants who are supposed to look to their priest for moral guidance have drawn criticism from leaders, including Chief of the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation, Stacey LaForme, who says Monsignor Owen Keenan should consider if he is suited to a position of spiritual leadership.
Built around a shopping centre in the 1970s, Mississauga’s downtown is a homage to private builders and the car.
In recent years, staff at City Hall have been slowly trying to guide the area to a dynamic and walkable future, but progress has been slow.
Brown is a loyal Conservative supporter of MacKay. They served together under Stephen Harper for years as members of parliament when MacKay was a minister and high-profile member of the party.
When Brown secretly directed City staff to help campaign for his friend’s federal leadership bid last year, it appears provincial and municipal rules outlining the conduct of members of council were broken.
A review demanded by the Ontario government to be completed next summer is a top priority for The Region of Peel. Housing and employment lands are the concerns around accommodation of a massive population set to arrive over the next three decades.
Environmentalists are calling on the Region to hold a hard urban line so no more sprawl can affect Caledon’s precious farmland. Other regions like Waterloo have done it, accommodating smart, dense growth while protecting rural landscapes and a connection with nature.
The City of Mississauga will ask Ottawa to help fund climate conscious modifications to several of its community centres and public buildings.
The funding parcel, made available for the retrofits in high needs communities, could foreshadow how the federal government hands out money in the future — directing funds to cities or projects that can demonstrate their carbon footprint will shrink.
Top City of Brampton staff are following their playbook in Niagara, after they tried to whitewash a corruption investigation there that eventually blew up in their face.
After they were fired, Mayor Patrick Brown had them hired in Brampton and they are now doing the same around an investigation into sweeping allegations of corruption inside City Hall, painting a rosy picture and telling residents there is nothing to see.
All of Peel’s municipalities have committed to cutting greenhouse gas emissions by a considerable degree over the next decade. While retrofits, sustainable forms of energy, transit solutions and tree planting will all play a role, a new study has found there is a much easier, more impactful way to mitigate the impacts of climate change.
Managing, preserving, and restoring our green spaces.
The City of Brampton will soon be conducting its second equity audit in the last two years, thanks to a push by City Councillor Charmaine Williams.
She’s heard from generations of racialized communities frustrated about not being able to land a job inside City Hall.
Constrained by technology, some residents in the Region of Peel are asking their councillors to delay a critical planning decision on the very future of the area until the pandemic has been resolved. Many have written to their leaders asking for growth submissions to Queen’s Park be put on hold to allow for better consultation.
Their pleas may fall on deaf ears. The Doug Ford government has already told municipalities there is absolutely no wiggle room ahead of its 2022 deadline.
Younger constituents have historically represented a reduced share of turnout in elections. So what can politicians do about it?
For one, sharing their views on platforms younger voters favour would help engage with those citizens who will shape the future. Dismissing the notion that young people don’t care about politics would also be helpful.
A lack of maintenance and a changing climate have allowed populations of a specific moth to explode across Mississauga and much of Ontario.
The invasive species, if left unchecked, can cause large damage to the urban tree canopy, which cities rely on for shade, flood control and climate change mitigation.
After turning our lives upside down for more than a year, COVID is preparing to mess with the future. Work from home could upend plans to create downtown office space, while online retail giants are asking questions about brick and mortar shopping.
A decade ago, Mississauga promised to transform its city centre into a dynamic mixed-use space. Delays in realizing this vision might offer a chance to rethink what the cities of tomorrow should look like.
Many of the steps to reduce our impact on the planet seem insignificant. Every time we leave the car at home, turn a light off or separate packaging into garbage or recycling, the individual impact goes unnoticed.
When bureaucratic problems arise, they add to the barriers around effective sustainability. Within Peel’s two-tiered system of government, each is not always on the same page and problems with the way recycling is managed are a perfect illustration.
More residents in Peel are now eligible to receive their second vaccination, if they can find an appointment.
The region’s vaccine plan is moving into a higher gear and doses are being dished out to defeat the COVID-19 delta variant. Hiccups in the system and structural barriers to access for some of the most vulnerable represent cause for concern in an otherwise positive picture.
The Brampton councillor has consistently denied any wrongdoing and has fought to have the integrity commissioner’s report thrown out.
A year after the interim report examining allegations stemming from a trade mission to Turkey was completed, Dhillon is raising questions about possible interference by Mayor Patrick Brown.
The City is preparing to craft its 2022 budget to be shared with residents later this year.
A recent staff report indicates, for the first time during this council term after years of claiming all is well, that all may not be well with the City’s finances. But instead of acknowledging past mistakes caused by Mayor Patrick Brown’s reckless policy of tax freezes and reviewing possible solutions, staff are clearly working for him, not the residents who desperately need investments in their city.
The Premier and his ruling party are legislating toward the use of Ontario’s notwithstanding clause, in hopes of wiping away 16 months of failed pandemic leadership ahead of next year’s election. Ford has seen what happened to Donald Trump. Beyond the political gamesmanship, as desperate men try to hang onto power, will COVID-19 push our healthcare system to re-evaluate the reactive response to the pandemic, and force governments to embrace long-term solutions?
Keyna Sarkar is on a mission to fight ‘period poverty’ in Brampton, and in April, she pushed the City to provide free menstrual products in all municipal facilities. Through Girl Up Brampton, a non-profit organization started by the United Nations, she and her team are taking their message across the city, collecting sanitary products for those in need.
Peel Region has a housing crisis on its hands. According to a 2020 staff report, ownership and rental options are unaffordable for 80 percent of residents.
The Region will soon be armed with inclusionary zoning. The policies will allow council to mandate affordable units from home builders, but in the profit-driven world of development, striking the right balance will be key.
Some community advocates are processing the news Peel District School Board director of education Colleen Russell-Rawlins has accepted the job to lead the country’s largest board in Toronto.
She was brought to Peel by the Province specifically to implement changes after a harrowing probe solidified the need to finally eradicate systemic anti-Black racism and other deeply imbedded forms of discrimination in the board. Her looming departure has thrown the sweeping agenda up in the air.
“A little archaic” is how Mayor Bonnie Crombie described council’s conversation after once again voting to not allow the retail sale of cannabis in Canada’s sixth largest city.
The majority of councillors said they didn’t want a large number of stores open in the same area or in spots they deemed were more sensitive to the community. This is the second time council has opted out of the sale of cannabis in their municipality, while the illegal market is alive and well.
Politicians in Mississauga have become increasingly critical of one another on social media in the past few months.
A number of spats and criticisms, including a recent debate between MPP Rudy Cuzzetto and Councillor Carolyn Parrish, have illustrated a use of social media that offers little value to taxpayers and residents.
Changes planned for the fall will see Toronto and Mississauga work together on a pilot project that could make transferring between the two transit services much easier.
The limited trial is the first concrete step toward a broad strategy of fare and service integration that could revolutionize commuting across the GTHA.
After two members of council had their social media accounts temporarily hacked, senior staff took the unprecedented steps to hire a private firm, without telling council, to monitor City Hall accounts and possibly those of private citizens. But they won’t reveal who was hired for the work.
It’s an unprecedented move surrounded by sticky issues of privacy, data gathering and potential abuse. Some councillors are questioning whether the program will even work and if staff with checkered pasts can be trusted.
John Cutruzzola says a decade-long legal fight with Brampton City Hall accomplished its goal. The company’s $28.5 million lawsuit, which will not move forward after the courts ruled against Inzola Group, revealed disturbing behaviour by former City officials, none of whom are with the municipality anymore. The court focused on whether Inzola was legitimately disqualified from the bidding process in a half-billion-dollar downtown redevelopment project, which included a City Hall expansion. Tens of thousands of pages of documents in the case exposed widespread misconduct in the way the procurement was handled.
Mississauga’s fire service has suffered from decades of neglect that has left the City scrambling to play catch-up.
Public plans and documents obtained by The Pointer show bureaucrats and councillors were warned about the service’s deficiencies more than a decade ago, but against a history of populist tax freezes, they failed to act.
Little Etobicoke Creek was the centre of a study that shows the next heavy rainstorm could cause huge damage to nearby businesses and homes. The municipality saw in 2013 what can happen in a flash storm, as once in a century weather events now happen every few years, thanks to man-made impacts on our rapidly changing climate. Mississauga is now trying to prepare for the next catastrophic event.
Peel Region isn’t out of the woods yet. As the novel coronavirus continues to mutate, public health officials are in a race with time to get populations inoculated. The delta variant is now spreading in Peel, something Dr. Lawrence Loh is monitoring closely. The mayors of Mississauga and Brampton are calling on the Province to give Peel proper second-dose allocations, so the region and surrounding areas can avoid a fourth wave.
Councillors in the City of Mississauga pushed back on Monday after they were presented with proposals to reduce parking in new developments to lower the cost of housing and encourage residents to leave their cars behind.
Drawing on past experience and resident complaints, several suggested transit usage simply isn’t high enough to start limiting people’s parking options.
Council voted to hire a third-party investigator to probe sweeping allegations of corruption inside City Hall made by an employee who formerly worked in CAO David Barrick’s office. Every discussion on the matter so far has happened behind closed doors, and residents want to know what’s going on. Gurpreet Dhillon fought against the practice, stating it wasn’t accountable or transparent and he moved a successful motion to ensure no more secrecy from the public.
During a 2014 trial that garnered international attention, Mississauga rapper Avalanche the Architect tried to convince a judge that lyrics in one of his songs were not actual threats but just artistic expression.
It’s a theme that is becoming more common in the criminal justice system as rap songs are increasingly used as evidence in criminal trials, disproportionately impacting young, Black and Hispanic men.
Sandeep Aujla is facing allegations of making racist comments against members of these communities.
She denies the accusations and a third-party investigation into the matter is underway. It makes it hard for members of Patrick Brown’s Black, African and Caribbean advisory group to understand why the mayor brought her to speak recently on hiring concerns directly impacting the communities.
An analysis by The Pointer shows Peel Regional Police’s K9 unit is getting significant traction online. Compared to the force’s main account, the differences are stark but the messages are similar: showcasing the work of police.
It’s no surprise that these amazing police dogs are wildly popular and the following they’ve garnered has a lot to do with how Twitter as a platform works. The transparent approach with the public is an example of how the communication tool could be used by police departments.
After false starts and programs that led nowhere, Peel police, supported by the Ontario Human Rights Commission, will launch a consultation on anti-Black racism and discrimination during the summer.
Police and human rights experts will complete a list of recommendations rooted in data and based on previous surveys, asking the community for their approval. Residents will shape policies, not the force.
In Mississauga and Brampton, thoughts are already turning to next year’s provincial election. One councillor in each city is hoping to move on to Queen’s Park, while other candidates have started to test the water.
Voters in the two cities hold the keys to 11 critical seats and will find themselves the centre of attention as the Liberals, NDP and PCs vie to form the next government.
After increasing for five straight years, many forms of violent crime in Brampton and Mississauga decreased in 2020.
While residents in both cities will be relieved to see the numbers going in this direction, the role of pandemic restrictions on these activities could mean the trend is only temporary instead of a sign of long-term strategies paying off.
The nightmare stories of two Brampton families tell the anguish of a city ignored by its leaders for decades. Residents have asked why they are treated like second-class citizens for years, but no level of government has answered for the crisis they have all created.
The City’s crumbling healthcare system is used as an election prop then ignored until the next campaign cycle begins. Meanwhile, Brampton residents live under constant fear that a loved one will fall sick and become dependent on an infamous local healthcare system that has made national headlines during the ongoing pandemic.
The pandemic is leaving a long trail of stressed and traumatized people in its slowly receding wake. Social service organizations will be the ones tasked with helping individuals process and come to terms with the year that was and get back on their feet.
As Family Services of Peel celebrates its 50th anniversary, the newly installed executive director talks with The Pointer about what the future holds and how organizations will need to change to continue performing their critical, life-saving role.
Brampton’s arts community is made up of dozens of groups that share their talents during events hosted by the City’s various venues.
Despite this, the City has in recent years focused much of its energy and resources on The Rose Theatre. One advocate worries Council fails to realize the effect of ignoring many of the needs in Brampton’s struggling arts scene.
Mayor Patrick Brown was repeatedly rebuffed by councillors and Region of Peel staff Thursday. His efforts to delay critically needed downtown infrastructure work failed.
His misleading comments about the history of the Downtown Reimagined project were batted away and he will now have to accept blame for a possible six-year delay to the City’s part of the crucial revitalization plan.
Creating a greener planet will mean diverting more waste away from greenhouse gas emitting landfill sites.
Proposals from companies to create a new anaerobic waste facility in Peel, to turn residential green-bin waste into natural gas, will be presented to Regional Council July 8.
The new plant will boost Peel’s organic waste processing capacity, and mark a big step toward meeting global, provincial and municipal climate targets.
Queen’s Park and Ottawa are investing enormous sums in transit projects around the GTA.
The new infrastructure represents the promise of a green future, but without schedule and fare integration, Brampton and Mississauga residents, like thousands of others across the GTA, likely won’t use the glittering new multi-billion-dollar infrastructure being built across the region.
Peel CAS and its leadership are under investigation, ordered by the Province, after allegations of anti-Black racism were laid out in a union report.
The provincial probe will also investigate the organization's financial management, with pay increases for senior leadership drastically outstripping inflation over the past two years.
