What a Remarkable Town Hall Meeting Last Night in Ward 43

by John Laforet
posted on July 9th, 2010 at 21:01:06 pm

I was humbled to have nearly one hundred and fifty Ward 43 residents come out to a community meeting I held last Thursday on Grey Abbey Trail. The meeting was intended to be held in the park overlooking the Lake, and Toronto Hydro’s anemometer to help educate the community on the impacts of the new offshore regulations.

Unfortunately someone, who the City will not confirm or deny was Councillor Ainslie or a member of his staff, felt the need to apply pressure to the Parks Department and have them call a resident who sent out an invitation to my meeting, telling them that it was against the law for more than twenty-five residents to meet in a park without a permit, permits were never issued for that park, and that no candidate was allowed to discuss an election in a park, wear a button or hand out materials. We asked for a copy of the by-law and asked if they were prepared to have citizens arrested – and they went silent.

They wanted us to shut down our meeting, and not have residents come together to discuss the biggest threat ever to face the community, and hear from the only candidate offering a viable solution.

I am so happy to have such strong support on Grey Abbey Trail that we were able to find a back yard, backing on to the park within a couple of hours to hold the meeting if necessary. Instead, we set up the sound equipment in the backyard, and I stayed about five feet back from the metre tall chain link fence, and spoke to residents from private property about the importance of the issue, thus I did not discuss politics in the park and I was sure to tell them why I had to stand where I was standing.

I promised residents last night that when I defeat Paul Ainslie on October 25th and become their Councillor, the political games will end, and I’ll continue my fight to ensure their rights are respected and their involvement in decision making restored.

Antoinette DiNovo – Paul Ainslie’s Executive Assistant showed up to record and take notes. Once again it appears taxpayers will be paying her to abuse our tax dollars and run his campaign. At least Antonette didn’t have any embarrassing outbursts like Councillor Ainslie did on June 14th and was kind enough to leave after being introduced and called out on her abuse of taxpayer funds to help inflict another four years of failed representation on our community, one neither of them live in. Ward 43 isn’t buying what they’re selling this time and last night’s meeting that had a crowd threefold of the meeting I held three weeks before is a strong sign of the change that’s coming.

Consider that on a night when the heat wave was on it’s forth day, there was a heat alert in place and we were holding a meeting outside, in July that nearly one hundred and fifty residents felt compelled to come out and speak about the issues near and dear to them and the opportunity we have together to reclaim our voice and restore local democracy. Consider that Paul Ainslie doesn’t have a single Ward 43 resident to send to take notes, and is instead either crashing my meetings himself or sending a member of his staff, we’re all paying to do it for him.

I am looking forward to continuing to earn residents trust and support over the coming weeks and months and know that together we can make our community and city a better place to live for all of us.

Globe and Mail: Scarborough Bluffs residents determined to fight wind turbine project

by John Laforet
posted on April 17th, 2010 at 18:03:24 pm

Some key points about the motion discussed in the article below:

Councillor Ainslie voted for Toronto’s renewable energy targets even though Toronto Hydro said advised Council could only be met with offshore wind. He moved a motion of support for the Green Energy Act even though Dalton McGuinty and George Smitherman cited Scarborough Bluffs residents opposition to Toronto Hydro as the reason to take away citizens rights. I am the only candidate who fought them on their attacks then, and the reason why George Smitherman has attempted to apologize three times for his abusive comments that Ainslie seems to have condoned.

This project must be stopped and I am the only candidate that is serious about doing that.

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Below is the text from the Globe’s article.

Globe and Mail: Scarborough Bluffs residents determined to fight wind turbine project

Anna Mehler Paperny
From Saturday’s Globe and Mail
Published on Friday, Apr. 16, 2010 11:40PM EDT
Last updated on Friday, Apr. 16, 2010 11:42PM EDT
It’s an ongoing battle worthy of Cervantes, if he’d been an eco-minded urban planner: A furious group of residents, tilting at a hypothetical windmill.

The proposed turbine project, which would set up windmills in Lake Ontario off the Scarborough Bluffs, would be one of the province’s first forays into offshore wind power. Studies into whether such a project is even feasible are still in the nascent stage. It will take at least two years before Toronto Hydro knows whether there’s enough wind to make it work, and provincial regulations governing such a proposition are a ways off.

But the Don Quixotes of the Scarborough Bluffs are dead set against the suggestion. And their vocal opposition is putting local politicians on notice.

A motion going before Monday’s executive committee, put forward by two local councillors, proposes to ask the province for a blanket moratorium on wind-power development in Ontario. Even if the motion does make its way through council, it will have little impact, but it’s symbolic of the sway local opposition can have on such a project.

As Toronto commits to sourcing a quarter of its energy from renewable sources and the Ontario government commits billions of dollars to green-energy projects across the province, local opposition to backyard energy generation is something with which next year’s council will have to contend.

Already in the Guildwood community’s case, the turbine spat has galvanized candidates challenging incumbent councillor Paul Ainslie, arguing he hasn’t been vocal enough in his opposition. Mayoral candidates are being told in no uncertain terms that if they hope to pursue projects like these, they’ll have to find a way to work with angry residents.

Mr. Ainslie, the Scarborough East councillor who put forward Monday’s motion along with Scarborough Southwest councillor Brian Ashton, says he was motivated to do so out of concern for a precious part of the Toronto waterfront and fear that residents’ concerns are being ignored.

“People have a lot of concerns and people want to be listened to,” he said. “We’re asking for a moratorium because there’s health concerns, there’s real estate issues with property values and there’s a lot of things that are unanswered.”

The wind turbine issue is making Mr. Ainslie political enemies in his own ward: It’s the reason John LaForet is gunning for Mr. Ainslie’s council seat in October. “I’d fight like hell to kill the project,” he says.

Ontario Energy Minister Brad Duguid said even if the city’s executive committee passes the motion, it won’t change anything. If the project is deemed feasible and meets whatever provincial rules are put in place, it will likely go forward.

“There’s an 80-fold increase in wind turbines happening across Ontario – it is going to be something that’s going to be part of our landscape,” he said. “I think it would be a little bit hypocritical for Toronto, given its efforts to try to portray itself as a green city, to support this resolution. But that’s something that council will have to deal with. We’re determined to move forward with building green energy.”

Mayor David Miller, who has championed the city’s push towards renewable power, said opposition to the Scarborough Bluffs turbine is the exception, rather than the rule.

“The vast bulk of the green projects we’re doing are not only not controversial, they’re overwhelmingly embraced by people.”

It would be “tragic” if fear of angering residents prevented the city’s politicians from pursuing much-needed renewable energy initiatives, said York University environmental studies professor Mark Winfield.

“I think the potential is enormous and the benefits are enormous,” he said. “The biggest danger in some ways … is, frankly, the derailment of some of these efforts.”

Toronto Star: Smitherman’s Words Come Home to Roost

by John Laforet
posted on March 30th, 2010 at 22:13:29 pm

I meant to post this piece from the Toronto Star earlier but I’ve been so busy with the campaign, Wind Concerns and work I just had not had time. It portrays a community sticking to its guns, and a desperate politician clearly regretting the impacts his abusive, dismissive tone will surely have. I said I believed George Smitherman would be chased out of Scarborough, and if the debate last night was any indication, this is in fact the case.

There are many months ahead, and for Guildwood residents the choice is clear. Our community needs someone who isn’t afraid to stand up to this bully and I am the only candidate that has demonstrated that not only am I able to, but I will stand up for our best interests even to George Smitherman.

Here is the link to the piece.

Toronto Star: Smitherman’s Words Come Home to Roost