Joelle Kovach
@joellekovach.bsky.social
300 followers 72 following 3.5K posts
City hall reporter for The Peterborough Examiner (in Peterborough, Ontario).
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Kawartha Youth Orchestra is joining the band for a couple of selections. I play cello with the orchestra - looking so forward to this! Market Hall - yay!
Yep, I’m going too on Oct. 28. Love that they texted to advise I could make an appointment.
It's over now, at 10:12 p.m. Thank you for joining me.
Painful. Just a painful meeting, gosh.
Leal weighs in now, saying his father who had worked for GE died of lung cancer. "So anyone who doesn't think I care about any of these issues? You're. Dead. Wrong," he says. "No one has monopoly on issues, that they care more than another."
AND council has just voted 6-5 to declare it has no interest in placing any heritage designation on any of the buildings planned for demolition. The vote is 6-5 in favour, with Crowley, Bierk, Lachica Baldwin and Riel voting against it
BUT the motion of chair Leal is upheld.
Ah - @joylachica.bsky.social now challenging the chair (Leal) on whether it's possible for council to de-list the property from the heritage registry.
"It's their jurisdiction - not ours," says Findlay.
It's up to the MOE and Ministry of Labour, Findlay says, to keep tabs on that. And he adds that these have "very robust practices," to oversee demolition of toxic buildings. Over his 20 years as CBO, says Findlay, they sent field experts often to demolitions big and small, when toxins are involved.
Findlay now responding to question from Riel; Findlay says the CBO has "zero" power to insist on environmental cleanup, or to involve themselves with environmental aspects of a demolition. The building division doesn't deal with that - "We have zero involvement with that. Period."
Findlay says the permit to tear it down was applied for, but not issued and the application was withdrawn.
Findlay now being asked about the claims that the smokestack is too contaminated for demolition. Baldwin asks whether this stack was in poor condition and in danger of falling.
Based on Section 4 of the Heritage Act, @joylachica.bsky.social is calling the de-listing by council of the GE site on the heritage registry out of order.
@alexbierk.bsky.social amendment carries 6-5; in favour, along with @alexbierk.bsky.social, are @joylachica.bsky.social, @mattcrowley.bsky.social, Coun. Don Vassiliadis, Coun. Andrew Beamer, Coun. Keith Riel.
@lesleyparnell.bsky.social says the motion ought to ask GE for their health and safety plan: "I think that's who you have to ask. It's their site, their responsibility and their cost."
But she says these questions that the city staff would be asked to answer, in the amendment, are for GE Vernova to answer.
@lesleyparnell.bsky.social says "we all care v.v. deeply about the community and the neighbours."
@alexbierk.bsky.social says he's not asking staff to come up with a health and safety plan; he is asking for an outline that would show exactly who would need to be involved and how a health and safety plan could be developed.
Duguay says his only concern is that this amendment ought to apply to all brownfields - not just GE.
@joylachica.bsky.social calls a point of order, saying that's a disparaging remark to say there's no concern for other brownfields. "I care as much and more about the Outboard Marine property, because it's owned by us."
There are gas stations and waterfront lands that are still contaminated, Duguay says. "I am concerned about the particular attention given to this site," that are not being given to others.
Duguay says the safety of the neighbourhood ought to be paramount - yet that discussion didn't happen "on another site" where there had been contamination (he doesn't name it - he means OMC site, I would guess).
Coun. Kevin Duguay says the motion would have been better applied to all brownfields - "not just GE."
Baldwin though says there's no timeline on this amendment. And he doesn't know when any health and safety plan might emerge, and whether it will have any impact.