Buy Local! Buy Fresh! campaign goes mobile with Blackberry app

Businesses are increasingly turning to mobile technology to spread their message, extending the usefulness of the devices and providing convenience to the people who use them. To that end Foodlink will be launching its recently developed Local Food App on May 23 as an extension of its popular Buy Local! Buy Fresh! map.

“The app just seemed like a logical extension to what we already offer with our paper map and online local food finder and we have made some real good connections here in the community,” said Anna Contini, manager of Foodlink Waterloo Region. “The app enables the user to search for any local food products in Waterloo Region and access the database information all on their mobile device.”

The app allows users to interface with Foodlink’s existing database, providing live up-to-date information, as well as directions to farms, markets and retail outlets using GPS mapping technology and Google maps API integration.
Currently the app is a free download for Blackberry devices, offering instant access to local food sources.

“Initially the app is just for Blackberry, with the plan to make it available on other devices,” said Contini. “This is the test period and making it available for Blackberry users made sense for the Waterloo Region.”
Foodlink will also be launching the 11th edition of the Buy Local! Buy Fresh! map, a year-round guide directing people to more than 70 local farms, farmers’ markets and other businesses that produce and sell local foods. This year the launch will take place at the Elmira Farmers’ Market on May 26.

The Elmira Farmers’ Market is celebrating its 10-year anniversary this month and it seemed like a good fit, said Contini.

“We chose the market because of the authenticity of the Elmira market. Their slogan of ‘We Make It, Bake It, Grow It’ relays the message that without exception everything is local at this market,” said Contini.

The Elmira outdoor market features a wide range of fresh fruits and vegetables, meats, preserves, maple syrup and home baked goods. The market is located behind the Elmira Home Hardware on Church Street; it runs every Saturday morning from May to October.

Foodlink’s map and mobile app are part of a larger campaign that champion local food and local farms that includes the annual Taste Local! Taste Fresh! as well as a comprehensive website that includes a local food blog, farm profiles, on-line newsletter and local food recipes, she explained.

Copies of the new 2012 Buy Local! Buy Fresh! Map are free and available at all public libraries across the region, as well as selected food retailers, restaurants, markets and other local businesses. A full listing of map pick-up locations as well as downloading details for the free app can be found at www.foodlink.ca.

Breslau homeowner hopes to turn one lot into three

A Breslau homeowner hopes to turn her one-acre Breslau property into three lots. As a first step, she’s seeking the zoning change needed to move in that direction. That bid was discussed Tuesday night at a public planning meeting in Woolwich council chambers.

Linda Pletsch’s application seeks to rezone the property at 116 Woolwich St. S. to R-4A from R-1 to permit greater density. After that, the property would be converted into three lots, with the existing home remaining on the largest portion, fronting on Woolwich Street. Two new, smaller lots would front on Joseph Street, explained Natalie Hardacre, a planner with the IBI Group representing the owner.

The smaller lots, with 50-foot frontage, would tap into water and sewer lines from the neighbouring Riverland subdivision, putting them on full municipal services.

She said the infill development would be in keeping with township, regional and provincial policies.

Director of engineering and planning Dan Kennaley said the township’s engineering department has identified some concerns with the plan, including grading issues that would have to be addressed before a severance could proceed.
Grading issues are what prompted neighbour Eleanor Snyder-McKee to object to the rezoning application.

She argued raising the grade on Pletsch’s property, required to bring it up to the elevation of Joseph Street, would see homes on the two new lots tower over her Berlin Street property.
“The development would put the back part of my property in a hole,” she said.

The loss of privacy and resulting drainage issues would lead to a drop in her property’s value, she argued, adding the new homes in the Riverland subdivision have already had a negative impact on her home.

As the May 1 meeting was for information only, council made no decision on the zoning. A planning department report will come back to council at a later date, after staff has reviewed the application and any comments from the public, Kennaley said, telling Snyder-McKee that her concerns would be taken into consideration at that stage.

Township backs CPAC call for more action on cleanup

Worried groundwater decontamination efforts are moving too slowly, the township wants an Elmira chemical company to do more. It’s also calling on the provincial government to step up to help protect the Woolwich’s interests.
To that end, council this week passed a resolution requesting the Ministry of the Environment press Chemtura to remove contaminated source material in order to meet the 2028 timeline for remediation of the aquifers under Elmira. The township also wants the province to review the funding formula outlined in a 1991 agreement between the MOE and Chemtura.

In that agreement, the province outlines some financial contributions to the cleanup effort, including paying one-third of the cost of the collection and treatment system, to a maximum of $3.9 million and covering half the annual operating costs of the treatment system, to a maximum of $1.2 million. The township wants the township to review the funding formula and to make money available to the Chemtura Public Advisory Committee (CPAC) to pay for studies, consultants, legal advice and other experts.

It also wants the province to establish a trust fund that would continue to pay for groundwater cleanup if Chemtura fails to meet the 2028 deadline.

“Currently there is no penalty for missing the deadline. We want to assure those still working toward this cleanup in 16 years from now that they will have resources for the process, and to give a little more incentive to Chemtura to actually clean up the contaminants by removing them,” Dr. Dan Holt, the new chair of CPAC, told councillors Tuesday night.

Based on the work of Dr. Gail Krantzberg, a professor of civil engineering at McMaster University in Hamilton and groundwater expert, CPAC wants Chemtura to remove contaminants from the soil rather than simply continuing to pump and treat the groundwater.

A lack of oversight of the project and no penalties for missing the cleanup date are good reasons for a review, said Holt.

“We feel strongly that this had produced a situation where there is no real oversight regarding the cleanup of contamination of Elmira’s drinking water. Neither one of the two parties involved in this agreement holds the other responsible and therefore there is no real authority to enforce the control orders governing this cleanup process.”

Coun. Mark Bauman, council’s new representative on CPAC, said the issue extends well beyond Elmira’s aquifers, which are no longer in use, with drinking water piped in from Waterloo. Digging up the contaminants removes the threat of toxins making their way into the nearby Canagagigue Creek, then the Grand River and, ultimately, Lake Erie and the Great Lakes basin.

Twp. seeks “presenter” status at biogas hearings

Having opted out of joining the formal appeal against a biogas plant proposed for Elmira, the township will seek “presenter” status in the upcoming Environmental Review Tribunal hearings. That will allow Woolwich to air its concerns about the project, over which it had no say following the province’s introduction of the Green Energy Act.

Dan Kennaley, Woolwich’s director of engineering and planning, staked out that position at Tuesday night’s council meeting, winning the endorsement of council.

By shying away from full participant status, the township avoids any legal costs, but gets to outline its concerns about the facility to be built by Woolwich Bio-En Inc., he said.

The project will use an anaerobic digester to convert organic material into methane that, in turn, fuels a generator to create electricity. On top of traffic concerns, the township has determined the plant is not compatible with the zoning of the Martin’s Lane property just north of downtown Elmira.

As well, the township wants guarantees there will be proper enforcement of rules should there be any problems, such as odour complaints, stemming from the operation of the facility, Kennaley said.

The concerns identified by the township will be rolled out by the Elmira Bio Fuel Citizens’ Committee, which appealed the province’s March approval of the project to the Environmental Review Tribunal. The group is looking for public support at an ERT hearing starting at 10 a.m. May 8 in the banquet hall at RIM Park, just across the Woolwich-Waterloo border on University Avenue East.

The altnerative-energy project won provincial approval in late-March, despite reservations on the part of the township and some residents, who aired concerns about the potential for odours and the impact of increased truck traffic. The operation will be fed by waste material, including livestock manure, food waste, used cooking oils and other fats and the like. A diesel generator converted to work with methane will generate electricity to be sold back into the grid, while steam heat produced could be sold to neighbouring industries.

The $12-million facility would generate 2.8 megawatts of renewable electricity – enough to power 2,200 homes – and 3.4 mW of heat.

Woolwich plans “no stopping” zone

Cars will no longer be allowed to stop on a portion of Snyder Avenue in Elmira, Woolwich’s latest manoeuvre in the ongoing traffic woes around John Mahood Public School. The township has been trying to discourage traffic congestion caused as parents drop off their kids each morning. Parking prohibitions, stepped up bylaw enforcement and even greater police presence have failed to eradicate the problem.

With the addition of “no stopping” signs along the west side of Snyder Avenue, from First Street to Second Street, the goal is to eliminate unsafe conditions near the intersection of Snyder and First, township clerk Christine Broughton told councillors meeting May 1.

Stopped cars that force other drivers to swerve around them while kids are getting in and out of vehicles make for unsafe conditions, she explained.

While sympathetic with the goal, Mayor Todd Cowan argued the problem belongs to the school and the Waterloo Region District School Board, not the township. With each new measure, Woolwich is essentially letting the board off the hook, he said.

“This is really not our issue,” said Cowan, noting he and Ward 1 councillors Julie-Anne Herteis and Allan Poffenroth would be hearing from parents unhappy with the new restrictions.
“Parents, they will be ticked. We’re going to get the fury and the wrath.”

But Coun. Mark Bauman, agreeing the problem lies with the board, said the township has to put the children’s safety ahead of any other consideration.
“That safety concern trumps the inconvenience it will cause councillors,” he noted.

Herteis, who voted for the changes, predicted the “no stopping” provisions would likely just move the congestion elsewhere, as parents scramble to find a place to drop off their children near the schools.
“We’re going to get complaints on Second Street.”

Bauman pointed to a similar issue last year in St. Jacobs, where the parents were asked to drop their kids a block away from the school.

“It won’t hurt the kids to walk two extra blocks,” he said, noting parents would have to leave a couple of minutes earlier to give the kids time to walk the last bit.

A longer term solution, however, will involve action on the school board’s part. Cowan cited similar issues that used to occur at St. Teresa of Avila school, also located on First Street. When prohibition and control measures failed, the board built a kiss-and-drop location for parents and their children.

In the absence of action from the board, the township has installed “no parking” zones around the school. Last June, Woolwich council voted to close off access to a municipal parking lot adjacent to the nearby tennis courts in order to direct drivers further west on First Street to a lot at Gibson Park, where a second entrance was built to help with traffic flow. Finding that arrangement inconvenient, however, many parents continued to use prohibited areas closer to the school. Traffic and parked cars also spilled over onto nearby residential streets, raising the ire of residents, who’ve not been shy about complaining to the township.

It remains to be seen what effect the latest move will have.

Woolwich youth centre to celebrate 10 years

The Woolwich Youth Centre will mark its tenth anniversary on May 2 with a birthday party hosted by staff and members in the Woolwich Memorial Centre from 5-7 p.m. It’s a landmark achievement for an organization that got its start on the floor of the old Elmira Arena a decade ago, and the woman who was one of the primary forces behind its formation hopes it will be around for decades more to come.

“I think it’s amazing that the township has a dedicated youth centre and a space for youth,” said Kelly Christie, the director of community support for Woolwich Community Services.

“We’re really pleased and proud that we’ve been able to establish that program and that it’s so well established. It will be there forever.”

The youth centre provides year-round recreational activities geared to youth from Grade 6 to 19 years of age. It provides a safe, supervised atmosphere for youth to participate in onsite and offsite activities ranging from Internet access and movies to a pool table, gaming systems and a range of books.

Yet the centre has humble roots, explained Christie. It began 10 years ago as a summer pilot-project funded through a grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation. After the success of that initial summer program, Christie sought to maintain the youth centre and received an additional four years of Trillium funding.

The youth centre moved from the arena floor to the community centre above the old arena, but had to share the space with the seniors centre and the Sugar Kings’ Blueline Club, which was less-than-ideal, she said.
“Every day we would set up the couches and ping pong tables and foosball table, and every night we’d take it down and push it aside because we were sharing that space.”

When designs were submitted for the new arena, the youth centre rallied for a space of their own by making presentations to the council of the day, eventually winning a spot on the main floor of the Woolwich Memorial Centre near the pool. About 130 different youth made use of the youth centre in 2011-2012, though that number has reached as high as 200 some years, Christie said.

“It’s been very well-respected by the youth that use the centre and we’re thrilled to be in there,” she said. “I can’t believe we’ve almost been there for three years. Time flies.”

While it does provide an invaluable service to the community, the youth centre does come at a significant cost – around $55,000 per year to operate. Yet WCS is dedicated to the space and to the youth that are served by it, meaning they will support it in perpetuity, even if it means running a deficit some years.

“The benefits for the youth that come are that it’s a fabulous, safe environment for them to experience growth within themselves,” said Christie. “The conversations start up and we can have some very open and interesting conversations and they can have their ‘ah-ha’ moments.”

The youth centre is open Tuesday to Friday from 3-5:30 p.m. and re-opens from 6 to 10 p.m., with some adjustments made to accommodate summer schedules or March Break. There is also one full-time youth centre coordinator who works about 28 hours a week as well as one part-time staffer who puts in between 12 to 15 hours a week.

The 10th birthday celebration is open to anyone who would like to stop by for a free meal and to check out some of the activities that the centre has to offer. Past and current members are also welcome to join. Please RSVP by calling WCS (519) 669-5139.

Elmira’s Scouts plan for centennial year

Much  has changed in Elmira over the past 100 years, yet one of the constants throughout the past century has been the 1st Elmira Scout Troop.

What began way back in 1912 with just 14 local youths who met in a clubhouse located above Philip Chrisman’s blacksmith shop has grown into two Beaver colonies (added in 1975), one Cub pack (1935), one Venture company (1968), and one Rover crew (1964), encompassing hundreds of local youth and at one time laying claim to the title of largest Scout troop in Waterloo Region.

“I think it’s pretty neat. It’s pretty cool,” said Bill Thuroo, chair of the centenary planning committee and who started as a Cub in Elmira, along with his brother Roger, in 1971 at the age of 10. It was their father, Oscar, who got them involved, and he piqued their interest when he explained how much fun they would have exploring the outdoors.

“We lived outside of town and we had a cottage and things like that, so it appealed to us. We actually had tried other activities in town – hockey, kung-fu – but we always went back to Scouting.”

Scouting Canada is nearly as old as the movement itself. In the spring of 1908, just months after the book “Scouting for Boys” was published in England, Scouting came to Canada, and the Canadian General Council of the Boy Scout Association was officially incorporated by an Act of Parliament on June 12, 1914.

The 1st Elmira Scouts have been working on planning a schedule of events and activities since January to properly commemorate their 100 years in Elmira. On May 9 they will hold their annual “Going Up” ceremony which promotes members to the next level of scouting and it will be held at John Mahood school.

Following that they will be planting trees at their new storage facility and den on May 12, located at the end of Oriole Parkway East. They also have their upcoming group link camp in June held at Everton Cub Camp, and the official birthday bash will be held Aug. 25 in Gore Park which is open to the public from noon to 3 p.m.

“Just like anything else, it’s a big undertaking,” said Thuroo, who also helped plan the 95th anniversary five years ago, adding that they are trying to keep the celebrations as low-key as possible.
After being involved for nearly 40 years, Thuroo said he has seen many changes in the Scouting world ever since he first enrolled as a Cub. He said that the focus of the organization has changed to be more multicultural, and that the types of badges that kids can earn these days vary from his days as a Scout.

“Now they have computer badges,” he laughed.

He also said that the rules and regulations surrounding the organization have increased dramatically, which has made it more difficult for kids to just hop in the car with their leaders and go camping for the weekend.
“You can’t do that anymore, now everything has to be checked out,” he said. “Now you have to be a registered leader and police checks are a big thing.”

Despite the changes, however, he said that the organization and the traditions inherent in Scouting continue to be passed down from fathers to sons and grandsons, and it makes him happy to see that tradition being carried on.
“The kids that I was in Scouts with, a lot of them still live in town and a lot of them now have kids in Scouts, and even grandchildren.

“I don’t want to sound too clichéd, but it passes on and passes down.”

Students encouraged to get to school under their own steam

Spring conditions were just the thing last week as the Region of Waterloo hosted a spring walk to school day to promote the importance of children walking to and from school.

An active transportation charter was passed last May by both the public and Catholic school boards in the region, with an emphasis on walking to school throughout the year. Many schools have participated in international walk to school week, winter walk and the spring walk.

“Spring is a great time for children to get out in their spring clothes. If they have skateboards or bicycles they might want to bring out those pieces of equipment that have been in hibernation since the winter and make sure everything is in proper working condition and enjoy the outdoors,” said Ruth Dyck, public health nurse for the region.

Walking is healthy and contributes to the daily physical activity requirements. According to the Canadian Society of Exercise Physiology, children aged five to 11 years old need a minimum of 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity daily.

“It is a healthy activity and we know that active students are more alert and ready to learn,” she said. “The more daily physical activity students can get the greater health benefits they will have.”

Walking to school has some environmental benefits as well, added Dyck, as no emissions are produced, unlike riding in a car. The students will also learn about their local environment while walking to school at the same time building a sense of independence.

The walk to school day is an activity of Active and Safe Routes to School (ASRTS), a comprehensive program that promotes safe, walkable communities. The focus behind the program is to engage both the schools and communities to work together to make safe walking routes a reality for children. The student led walking school bus is also promoted by ASRTS.

“We encourage kids to get out there, it is spring time. We want students to walk with friends and use the walking school bus rather than have parents driving. Kids walking together builds relationships and creates friendships through talking, laughter and the sense of exploring,” said Dyck.

Woolwich in for a wild challenge for WCS fundraising event

It will be “The Amazing Race” with an Elmira twist on May 5 as teams of two  come together at the Elmira Legion to participate in the 6th annual Wild Woolwich Challenge, organized by Woolwich Community Services.

Participants will navigate Elmira on foot to 10 different community landmarks with the help of cryptic clues. At each location they will have to complete a task or participate in a challenge to receive their next clue, and racers will meet back at the Legion where those with the best time will receive a range of prizes, including gift certificates and gift baskets.

The challenges contestants will face, as well as the landmarks they will travel to, are being kept a secret, but based on previous years the competitors should be in for an entertaining morning.

“One of the really fun events that we had last year was at the fire hall,” said Leigh-Anne Quinn, community resources coordinator for WCS. “The teams dressed up in fire gear and had to drag a hose and had to turn the hose on and spray it at a target and knock it over.”

The fundraising goal this year is $8,000, with proceeds going to support the range of resources and support programs offered by WCS throughout the year, including the job board, the Family Violence Prevention Program, the backpack program, the Woolwich food bank and the youth centre.

“The whole theme of the day is just to have fun. Some people are in it to win it and others are just there to have fun and help raise money for a good cause.”

The cost to register is $15 per person, and participants will be given a pledge form where a minimum of $100 is required to participate. Pledges over $100 will have their entry fees returned and those with more than $200 in pledges will receive a ballot to win a refurbished laptop courtesy of Reality Bytes.

Those with more than $250 in pledges will receive an extra ballot for the laptop, and there will also be prizes awarded for 1st, 2nd and 3rd overall finishers. Participants will also receive a t-shirt, refreshments, snacks and lunch after the event.
Last year saw some 14 teams compete for the prize, and Quinn hopes for more this year.

“We encourage people to bring their spouse out, bring their best friend out, bring a sibling out; it’s totally up to you who you might want to race with.”

The race starts at 9 a.m. at the Legion where participants are blindfolded and taken to various points throughout town, and the race should take about 2.5 hours to complete. To register a team stop in at the WCS office at 73 Arthur St. S. Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information contact Quinn at (519) 669-5139.

Breslau teen moves on to semi’s of Shining Star competition

One competitor from Woolwich has made it through to the second round of the Shining Star vocal talent search held by Kitchener radio station Faith FM.

Breslau’s Daniel Gascho is one of 33 singers to make it through to the semi-final round this weekend, which represents almost half of the 60 singers who participated in the preliminary round of competition in late March and early April.
“It feels great. I’m not sure what to expect, but I’m just grateful that I’ve made it through to the next round,” said the 16-year-old.

The competition, started back in 2007, is an opportunity for undiscovered Christian singing talent in the region to be recognized by the musical community, said Faith FM general manager Dave MacDonald.

“Canadian Christian talent hasn’t had much of an outlet in the past because Christian radio is still fairly new to Canada compared to the U.S.,” said MacDonald. “They have literally thousands of radio stations, while we only have few dozen.”
The remaining singers will be broken into three groups and the semi-finals will be hosted by three churches in Waterloo Region; the International Gospel Centre in Kitchener on Apr. 27, Koinonia Christian Fellowship in Bloomingdate today (Saturday) and Calvary United Church in St. Jacobs tomorrow (Sunday). Gascho performed in Kitchener.

MacDonald said that those three churches were selected because they have the space to accommodate the competition, and have also been tremendous supporters of the event in the past.

“In St. Jacobs the church has always been extraordinarily supportive, as has Koinonia in Bloomingdale,” said MacDonald. “It’s really worked well for us to be outside the main streets of Kitchener and Waterloo.”

Following the semi-finals this weekend the field of competitors will be further reduced to between nine and 12 competitors for the finals, to be held on May 12 at Calvary Pentecostal Assembly in Cambridge. The cost to attend the semi-finals is free with a good will offering, while the cost to attend the finals will be $15, with tickets available through TicketWindow or local Christian bookstores.

The winner of the competition will receive a prize valued at $20,000 which includes a professional recording session at Revelation Sound in Guelph for a full 10-song album, along with promotional materials and marketing expertise including photography, video, and help in launching their own website.

All competitors who advance to the finals will also receive a free performance coaching session and a free vocal lesson as well.

MacDonald hopes to see a large crowd this weekend, as well as at the finals, where upwards of 1,000 people have attended in the past.

“The crowds get pretty vocal about who they’re coming to support, it’s kind of neat because everyone brings their own family and friends along and it’s a fun time. Kind of like Canada’s Got Talent on a smaller scale.”

The large crowds do not intimidate Gascho either, as he has been performing since he was 11 years old in front of large crowds at church, and he leads the service each week at The Gospel Centre in Breslau where is father is the pastor.
“I don’t really have nerves; it’s more about what the judges are going to say.

“I think it’s going to be an interesting competition. There are some very good singers.”

For the performances this weekend, doors open at 6 p.m. and the competition begins at 7. For more information visit www.faithfm.com.