Sidewalk Snow Removal Winter 2022, Road Safety & Complete Streets, Vaccine Clinics & more
Dear Ward 3 neighbours,
This week my heart and mind are with the people of British Columbia impacted by the floods. My mom and other loved ones live in Merritt. Thank you to everyone who has reached out to inquire, she is safe and we are doing our best to cope with yet another uncertainty.
With winter approaching, the City of Hamilton is sharing safety tips reminding drivers about stopping safely on our roads. One of the most effective ways to make our roadways safer is to change driver behaviour.
In this newsletter: updates on sidewalk snow removal, road safety audit at Wellington Ave & Barton St E, Ward 3 Complete Streets Project launch, Woodlands Park Spray Pad Community engagement event, Vaccine Clinics in Ward 3 and more community events.
Yours in community,
Nrinder Nann
Sidewalk Snow Removal - Winter 2022
On Monday, Public Works Committee approved the sidewalk network, costs and vendor to implement enhanced snow clearing on sidewalks along arterial roads, transit routes and near schools across Hamilton. The service will begin in November 2022 and throughout the winter each time there is snowfall of 5 cm along and is estimated to cost $4 to $6 per household.
Thank you to all the residents and organizations (with special shout out to the Disability Justice Network of Ontario) who/whom have advocated over the years to get this much needed service enhancement integrated into our winter maintenance programs. At its core, this is equity in action. It helps make the city much more accessible year round and enables mobility for parents and caregivers who push strollers, folks whom rely on mobility devices, seniors whom fear slips and fall, while also supporting our transit users to get onboard more safely.
Once ratified at Council next week, this map of Ward 3 sidewalks indicated by the red lines will be the new network of sidewalks that will have snow removal services.
Sidewalk Snow Clearing - Ward 3 Current Routes & New 2022 Additions
Road Safety Audit of the Intersection at Barton St E & Wellington Ave N
In response to the tragic death of Mr Manuel DeSousa who was struck by a dump truck while crossing the intersection in his motorized mobility scooter in October, Public Works Committee supported my motion for a road safety audit of the intersection of Barton and Wellington to identify how to make this intersection safer. Mr. DeSousa was the thirteenth person to die due to a traffic related incident in Hamilton this year.
All of our major arterial roads are in dire need of redesign to have them contribute to safer, better liveable communities. I am exploring with staff the feasibility of a city-wide arterial road review.
In October 2020, in response to concerns from residents of Ward 3 about traffic and roadway safety across the ward, I moved for a comprehensive approach to develop a Complete Streets Report identifying locally-tailored solutions to help deliver better, safer neighbourhoods.
I’m happy to announce that the project has officially launched. To ensure success, we need your input and participation.
WSP Canada Inc is the consultant team tasked with carrying out the comprehensive review. The review will hone in on roadway design solutions that will reduce residential traffic speeds, enhance public spaces and improve road safety for all users. The project scope will focus on residential and collector streets guided by the Complete Livable Better Streets Design Manual (https://engage.hamilton.ca/clbstreets).
Here is the breakdown of the review process:
Phase 1: Data collection - Share your concerns as they relate to traffic safety. Once the City has identified common areas of concern, they will be working extensively with community groups to co-design solutions that meet their needs. Map your comments and concerns on the map provided within the Engage Hamilton webpage until December 31st.
Phase 2: Experience-based engagement - The City will be deploying interventions across Ward 3 based on the feedback collected during phase 1. They will be tracking how those interventions impact operations, but also want to hear from residents about how they feel about the interventions.
The results of the study will be presented in the final report, which will include design drawings, estimated costs, and a suite of tools to assist in implementing broader traffic calming efforts across Ward 3.
Head over to https://engage.hamilton.ca/ward3completestreets to participate in Phase 1 and to keep up with the project timelines.
Woodlands Park Community Design Meeting - December 7, 2021
Reminder that the Woodlands Park Spray Pad design options will be presented at a virtual Public Information Centre meeting on December 7th, 2021 at 6:30 PM. The purpose of this 2-hour meeting is to introduce the design options created as a result of the survey responses, and gather additional feedback.
Please head to the Engage Hamilton website for more information and click here to register for the December 7th event.
Hamilton Water Update
Over the next few months, Hamilton Water will be installing a water distribution maintenance system that look similar to fire hydrants in Ward 3. The installation of the post hydrants will ensure that the dead-end watermains are periodically flushed and the post hydrants will also be a very important tool to complete water quality flushing in the event of a water quality complaint. The post hydrants will also be used as part of the day to day operation and maintenance of the water distribution system.
Residents can park in front of the post hydrant as they are installed only to support the operation and maintenance of the water distribution system and are not capable of or useable to fight fires. Post hydrants will be installed within the city portion of a property (similar to regular fire hydrants). Residents will be contacted if a post hydrant will be installed on/near their property.
Vaccine Clinics in Ward 3
As of November 11, 871,132 doses have been administered; 85.6% of Hamiltonians 12+ vaccinated with one dose and 82.2% with both doses. Control of COVID-19 remains dependent on both vaccination and the practice of public health measures. That said, some of our neighbourhoods in Ward 3 are still under the city average, even with remarkable uptake at the clinics offered in the ward.
In order to enable residents to plan for vaccines with more clarity on clinic availability, Public Health has released a new schedule of weekly clinics in and near Ward 3. We also have ongoing community-led vaccine clinics continuing thanks to Refuge Newcomer Health, Hamilton Centre for Civic Inclusion, Hamilton Urban Core, Compass Community Health, Disability Justice Network of Ontario, Good Shepherd and more partners in our community.
New Mass Clinic at Centre on Barton - 1211 Barton St. E.
November 18 to 21, 9:30 am to 3:30 pm + November 22 to 28, 1 to 7 pm:
1st and 2nd doses 12+ years: walk-in
3rd doses: appointment needed - check eligibility here
Norman Pinky Lewis Recreation Centre - 192 Wentworth St. N.
November 23 only
10 am to 12 pm
1 to 3 pm
Barton Library - 571 Barton St. E.
November 25
10 am to 12 pm
1 to 3 pm
Bernie Morelli Recreation Centre - 876 Cannon St. E.
November 26 only
10 am to 12 pm
1 to 3 pm
Mission Services - 196 Wentworth St. N.
November 17 & 24, 11 am to 2 pm
(use Good Food Centre/Community Services entrance)
St. Patrick’s Church (in the vestibule) - 440 King St. E.
November 19 & 26, 12 to 2 pm
Hamilton Public Library, Barton Branch - 571 Barton St E.
November 20, 12 to 3 pm (operated by Refuge Newcomer Health, HCCI + partners)
Pfizer available, no appt or health card required, interpretation, transportation + more supports available - email covidvaccine@newcomerhealth.ca or call 905-526-0000
Check the city’s website for a fulsome listing of other vaccine clinics.
Community Benefits & the LRT
The Hamilton Community Benefits Network (HCBN), in partnership with The CityLAB Hamilton, Semester in Residence (SIR) and McMaster University is hosting two virtual community dialogue events to collect feedback on the community’s hopes for the Hamilton LRT. Register here to join one of the following dates:
Monday, November 22nd, 2021 at 6:00pm
Thursday, November 25th, 2021 at 7:00pm
For more information please email koubrahaggar@hcbn.ca.