Tag Archives: Public transit

08.08.26
by

‘Public safety is the foundation of every healthy community’ – St. Thomas Police Chief Marc Roskamp

A comprehensive report from St. Thomas Police Chief Marc Roskamp on public safety is included on the agenda for Monday’s (Aug. 10) city council meeting.
We sat down with the chief last week for a lengthy discussion on the report and related matters, including Bill C-14,  the Bail and Sentencing Reform Act.
More on that later in this post.
Roskamp’s report to council was initially presented to the Police Services Board last month and addressed the 2025 Crime Severity Index values as reported by Statistics Canada.
The Crime Severity Index (CSI) is a measure of police-reported crime that considers both the volume and relative seriousness of criminal offences. Unlike a traditional crime rate, which counts all offences equally, the CSI assigns greater weight to more serious offences based on sentencing patterns established through Canada’s criminal justice system.

Continue reading →

07.20.24
by

The creative process often starts with a clean sheet of paper, for Andrew and Maddie it begins with an open green space.

Plans are in the works to create a new identity for one vacant downtown lot and rejuvenate a rather forlorn Talbot Street parkette.
The former is the site of the Sutherland Press Building at 606 Talbot Street while the latter is Hepburn Parkette at 446 Talbot Street.
Masterminding the transformation is the team of Andrew Gunn and Maddie King of young & free press in conjunction with city staff and through the assistance of Arthur Lierman Landscape Architecture.
A similar process was undertaken in 2020 which resulted in the formation of Westlake Evans Civic Park adjacent to St. Thomas Public Library.
Gunn points out, “Both sites have incredible potential to be active spots complete with things to see and do, room for special events, and beautiful landscaping, too.

Continue reading →

01.21.23
by

Estimated meter readings are water torture for some St. Thomas customers

city_scope_logo-cmykHow’s that water bill of yours? Are you going to have to dip into your savings or line of credit to pay the latest bill?
Some city residents have received much higher bills than normal and we contacted Jim Hogan, president and CEO of Entegrus. The city of St. Thomas contracts out meter reading to the utility who, we find out, subcontracts it to a third party.
According to Hogan, the bills have been estimated readings only for several months and those estimates do not necessarily jive with actual usage.
“It’s kind of a catch-up and a balancing between some of the estimates may be a little high and some were a little low and we’re working hard to get out there to do the actual reads, to verify the actual reads.”
The money collected is then paid to the city on a contractual basis.
According to the formal agreement between the city and Ascent/St. Thomas Energy signed in April 2014, St. Thomas Energy “will pay to the municipality the water and wastewater charges billed to the customers by the end of the month following the date of invoicing.”

Continue reading →

08.13.22
by

‘Accountability, integrity and trust, where are those these days?’ – St. Thomas council candidate Shawn DeNeire

city_scope_logo-cmykHe’s the owner of DeNeire’s Gallery of Fine Art in downtown St. Thomas and now Shawn DeNeire is plunging into the fine art of municipal politics.
As of yesterday (Aug. 12), NeNeire was one of 10 individuals seeking to fill eight councillor seats at city hall.
DeNeire was born and raised in St. Thomas and was a Central Elgin Collegiate grad although he also spent time at Arthur Voaden Secondary School and Parkside Collegiate Institute.
Ask why he is eager to sit around the horseshoe in the council chamber and DeNeire will relay the following observation.
“I’ve talked to several businesses on Talbot Street and they haven’t had one council person come down in the last four years and say, ‘Hey, how’s it going? I’m so and so and have you got any concerns?’
“Not one. And that bothers me. Who are we being paid by? The taxpayers.
“Who should be in our best interest? The taxpayers.”
I am sure there are members of council who will challenge the above and they have been seen patronizing downtown establishments.

Continue reading →

04.30.22
by

‘There’s a lot of opportunity in the region right now,’ but do we have the labour pool to support it?

city_scope_logo-cmykWith two area employers seeking more than 3,500 workers, at first glance, it would appear to be a rosy picture for job seekers in St. Thomas, Elgin county and neighbouring municipalities.
More so in light of two years of economic fallout related to the pandemic.
But there are other factors at play when you consider employers here and across the province are coping with a labour shortage.
We talked this week with Sean Dyke, CEO of St. Thomas Economic Development Corporation to ascertain the impact this will have on smaller firms already hunting for employees.
How easy will it be to find 2,000 or so employees for the Amazon fulfillment centre north of Talbotville plus 1,500 workers for the Maple Leaf Foods plant in south London, both opening next year?
“I do think they will be able to draw from a wide range of areas in the surrounding region,” suggested Dyke.

Continue reading →

02.01.20
by

On the lunch menu with St. Thomas Mayor Joe Preston: housing, transit and smart growth


city_scope_logo-cmykIt was a particularly effervescent Joe Preston who took to the podium this past Wednesday for the area mayor’s luncheon at St. Anne’s Centre.
Sharing the spotlight with Southwold Mayor Grant Jones and Central Elgin Mayor Sally Martyn, Preston was not only bubbling over with enthusiasm, but he also came in three minutes under the allotted 10-minute time slot.
And, made a promise of better city transit by the end of this year, guaranteed.
Preston opened with, “St. Thomas, what a great place to be the mayor.”
He continued, “I have been mayor for little over a year and it’s been an extra-special time.”
After thanking the city councillors, he observed, “Boy, do we employ some pretty good people . . . I’m here to tell you’re in pretty good shape.
“We’re in good shape at being able to run this community in an efficient way with smart people doing it.”

Continue reading →

03.25.17
by

Who suffers when you can’t get there from here?

city_scope_logo-cmykLow-income families, young people, seniors and those with disabilities are the most disadvantaged when a rural area does not have access to good public transportation.
That was the message Thursday (March 23) at a rural public workshop hosted by Elgin St. Thomas Public Health and  attended by close to 30 participants.
The aim of the three-hour forum was to get the ball rolling on development of a community transportation system for St. Thomas and Elgin county.
Opening speaker Dr. Joyce Locke, the area’s medical officer of health, noted 35 per cent of Elgin’s population lives in rural areas, with personal vehicles being the most popular form of transportation.
In fact, advised Locke, 86 per cent of those living in St. Thomas/Elgin drive to work, with the average annual cost of operating a vehicle running in the neighbourhood of $7,300.

Continue reading →

02.27.17
by

Roundtable on rural poverty: Is the province out of touch?

yurek-legislaturejpgIs the goal of this provincial government to encourage migration from rural areas to urban centres, as suggested by one Elgin county mayor? That was one of the issues raised at a roundtable on rural poverty held Feb. 24 at the CASO station in St. Thomas and hosted by Elgin-Middlesex-London Conservative MPP Jeff Yurek.
Attended by two dozen municipal and social/community agency representatives, the forum was designed to get a sense of what rural poverty is and its impact on St. Thomas and Elgin county municipalities, explained Yurek afterward.
“What’s available and what barriers are out there for people. Too often policies are developed in Toronto with an urban lens and we need to look at it with a rural point of view. It’s different living in rural Ontario and we need to have a balance in policies to ensure we can help get people out of poverty in rural Ontario.”

Continue reading →

04.04.15
by

Spending big doesn’t get you the chain of office

city_scope_logo-cmykThe final numbers have been submitted and it’s a bitter lesson for mayoral candidate Mark Cosens, who found you can’t spend your way to the top.
March 27 was the deadline for candidates to file campaign expenses for the 2014 municipal vote and all 22 individuals met that target.
Cosens claimed $15,244.94 in expenses, which was well beyond double the amount logged by Mayor Heather Jackson at $5,883.59.
Cliff Barwick, who filed months ago, spent just over $4,000. Continue reading →