By Chad Ingram Published Nov. 10 2016 The province is conducting a review of the Ontario Municipal Board and is collecting input from municipalities. There is one simple and wonderful change the provincial government could…
Pointless policy
What’s the point of creating a policy if you’re not going to use it? This is a question Minden Hills councillors might ask themselves. Last week council denied support resolutions for a half dozen solar…
Rough ride for rural Ontario
By Chad Ingram Published Oct. 20 2016 It’s a tough time to be a rural Ontarian. In a province where a continually greater percentage of the population lives in urban areas a continually greater percentage…
Goldfish and trees
There is a quotation often attributed to Albert Einstein which goes something like this: “Everybody is a genius but if you judge a goldfish by its ability to climb a tree it will live its…
Really?
By Chad Ingram Published Oct. 6 2016 This is an open letter to the individual or individuals vandalizing a Haliburton business with anti-gay graffiti. If you can read of course that is. All we know…
On cliff jumping
The end of summer was tinged with tragedy in Algonquin Highlands when a 29-year-old man lost his life in a cliff-jumping incident on Raven Lake during the Labour Day weekend. The man died in what…
That sinking feeling
I’ve written this before I’m writing it now and chances are I’ll write it again in the future. Minden Hills township cannot afford an indoor swimming pool. I know I know . . . release…
Shorter is sweet
By Chad Ingram Published Sept. 15 2016 When the next round of Ontario municipal elections happen in 2018 the campaign period will be substantially shorter than it was in 2014. And that will be a…
Long line of cars
A long line of cars made its way down Highway 35 on Monday to 48 and the 400 to the GTA and areas beyond. Some vehicles were topped with roof racks others had boats in tow.…
Launches and liabilities
The situation that’s unfolded at Bob Lake just south of Minden during the summer is a mess. Earlier this season residents discovered that after numerous boats had been put in the lake for the year…
Grace too
By Chad Ingram Published Aug. 23, 2016 Last Saturday night, a number of Minden residents made their way into the village’s downtown to an outdoor screen set up at the River Cone to watch a…
Voting on voting
By Chad Ingram Published Aug. 18 2016 We exist in a political culture that has become quite cynical so when a federal government talks about changing the electoral process it’s difficult to tell if that…
Deck the hall
It’s a narrative that’s unfolded over several years spanning the terms of multiple Minden Hills councils. This month the township will begin the process of seeking bids for the design and construction of a new…
Priority points
Municipal councils should have authority over the approval of renewable energy projects within their jurisdictions. Earlier this summer Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) released a list of nearly 1000 projects that were approved during…
In a snap
Last week I was returning home from work pulling in the driveway as I noticed the sun gleaming off something nestled in the grass near a ditch at the periphery of the property. A second…
On the list
Well what do you know? OPP detachment staff lists are public information. Cough. As regular readers of this publication will be aware earlier this year the local OPP detachment refused to release a current staff…
Inclusiveness
By Chad Ingram Published July 7 2016 T his week the rainbow flag – the international symbol of the lesbian gay bisexual and transgender community – flew atop the flagpole at the Minden Hills township…
Three letter word
As many readers are likely already aware a Haliburton Village business was vandalized in a despicable display of homophobia last week. On the evening of June 21 the business owner returned to his shop after…
Provincial potties
Imagine it’s an autumn morning crisp and clear. Sun is gleaming off an amber canvas of leaves amid a robin-egg-blue background. You go to the kitchen to pour yourself another cup of coffee and there…
Getting service
Bigger bills and fewer services. That’s the situation for Haliburton County and numerous other Ontario communities when it comes to their relationship with the provincial government. It’s been an ongoing trend for several years the…
Taking a page
When it comes to rural Ontario communities promoting themselves as tourism destinations few do it better than Prince Edward County. Buzz surrounding the agricultural community that has rebranded itself as a wine and cheese mini-Mecca…