The Our Town - Clarenville Blog by Paul Tilley

After a three week hiatus, Council meet on Tuesday, July 8 and a lot of positive things got done - some of which have been visited before.    Here's a quick overview of key highlights and how the decisions could affect you: (the PACKET recorded the meeting for everyone to listen to and I encourage you to listen.)  VANDALISM There is a great look-out on the Shoal Harbour trail and seven years ago I was involved in helping get interpretive signage put on this lookout.  I was dismayed last week when I saw one of the signboards vandalized.  Since then vandals have done their utmost to destroy the works.  All four poster  boards and their mounts have now been damaged.   They will have to be redone at considerable expense to taxpayers. This was raised in Council and they agreed to issue a $500 reward for information leading to a conviction of the culprits.  Further Council will look at installing cameras on these problem areas. NEW PAVEMENT for NEW ROAD Owing to it

I firmly believe more people should go for a walk in Clarenville.   Walking gives you a much better perspective on our surroundings and it gives you time to think about – on one hand - just how lucky we are to live here – and on the other hand – some of the challenges we face. Take, for example the Harbour walk around the inner Shoal Harbour.  Each evening, this trail is full of walkers enjoying the views – the ocean, the occasional eagle, ducks etc.  This trail was not an accident.   Some visionary people saw the potential for this trail walk and about 10 years ago through a well-organized effort, they turned their vision into the reality that we enjoy today.  Those are the things and the people that make our town a very livable community – and we are lucky for that. But as you walk, you will also notice a very worrisome trend that is not being addressed.   Traffic volumes have jumped exponentially in the past decade and most worrisomely, the average speed of traffic h

I first met Fred Best on my front lawn in during the 1997 Municipal Election campaign.  He was running for Mayor – again - against an up-and-comer municipal politician by the name of Frazer Russell.  Fred had the energy of a wild horse back then as he ambled from house to house meeting the residents with a passion and vigor that a mayor needs.  He’s a consummate politician and someone I admire for his dedication to Clarenville – not just since 1997 but since he entered Council in 1970’s.  He has been in those chambers ever since, 36 years serving as Mayor of Clarenville.  It’s thanks to Fred that I ran for Council in 1995.  His call of encouragement was the push I needed to stand for election.      I know from my one term that it is is a great experience and privilege to serve but it is a never ending and sometimes thankless job where, as a general rule, you don’t make a lot of friends, you pee some people off, and all topics of conversation that you get involved in eventually

The average person here is such that we ought never to have had self-government; we are not fit for it."(St. John's businessman Eric Bowring in testimony to the Amulree Royal Commission 1933) It's a good thing that the number of Communications people in government has grown extraordinarily in the past few years. Experience has shown time and time again, that Ministers of the government sometimes say the most inept things.  These Ministers really need someone holding their hand (mouth) to prevent "Open-Mouth Insert (swallow)-Foot" and to make them look good. Obviously, such was not the case when the current Minister of Municipal Affairs, the Hon Kevin O'Brien suggested to Randy Simms in this month's edition of MNL's Municipal News - on the eve of the next round of municipal elections in September - that allowing too many uninformed voters to vote using a computer would be wrong. “People who don’t know what’s going on,  voting for people

From: The Packet (www.thepacket.ca)  June 6, 2013 Perspective is everything.  Seeing I am not originally from Clarenville, I feel that I have a slightly different perspective on Clarenville than people who are born and bred here – a better appreciation for what it is to be an objective outsider looking in.   After 22 years residency and being pretty involved in the community, I do sometimes feel as if I am loosing that perspective.  This was brought home to me this week when I read Jayme Gough’s column in the Packet “A mini United Nations in Clarenville”.  In her piece she talks about the verity of people that she has met since she moved here – not so much locals but more so people who now live here from Greece, Italy, the United States and elsewhere in Canada – literally from all over the world!    Jamie’s perspective was quite an eye-opener for me.  I suppose I knew that people had been moving in for projects like the GBS build in Bull Arm,  and I have met a couple – but I

A community's Fire Department is called “The Fire Department” for a reason.   They fight fires and save our lives. Our fire department is made up of 30 or so volunteers who came forward from our community to give up their time and energy to willingly put themselves in harm’s way to save us and our families in the event of a fire or emergency. The did sign up for the fire rescue business; they did not sign up to be in the hazardous waste business. In this past week’s Council meeting, a small but important tidbit was raised by Councillor Pickett regarding the Clarenville Fire Department’s / Town of Clarenville’s refusal to take part in this year’s reformatted  Hazardous Waste Disposal Program.   (see this week’s PACKET " No Hazardous waste collection in Clarenville this year: Fire department chooses not to volunteer " May 29, p1 ) This year over 30 volunteer fire departments across the province will be hosting their own communities Hazardous Waste Day(s

In a time when the media is full of stories about the challenges being faced by our education system, it is heartening to find a shining example where the true heart of our education system – the people in it – is proven to be beating and very much alive and capable of creating priceless opportunities for “learning moments". Such was the case at a Riverside School concert this past Wednesday evening.  Grade 3-6 students demonstrated their talent in an evening of Newfoundland and Labrador song and dance.   There were many outstanding acts, but two acts in particular became "learning moments". One act had a talented young man doing his rendition of Terra Nova National Park’s folk hero Clayton, (AKA Dave Saunders) doing the “moves” to “I’m Clayton and I know it” (You can see Clayton’s original and hilarious video below).  Unbeknownst to the young performer, “Clayton” was in the audience and he joined the young man on stage!  A unexpected and awesome surprise!   

This article appeared in this week's edition of the Packet (www.thepacket.ca) and again in the Weekend Telegram (www.thetelegram.com) Maybe it's the appeal of the opportunity to be featured on TV or maybe it's the name of the series, but Council seems to have been seriously struck by the "opportunity" to have Clarenville, and maybe themselves,  featured in an american based TV segment called "Communities of Distinction" for the low-low price of $25,000. ($24,800 to be exact). As is usually the case, this proposal came to Clarenville Council with only limited detail, and rightfully it was sent back for more consideration.  Communities of Distinction is relatively new but is seen largely in US markets. There is a website for Communities of Distinction   as well as a Facebook Page  (58 followers) and a Twitter account (39 followers). In a press release issued in April, they describe the show as: Communities of Distinction TV (www.watchcod.com) is

In this week’s Council Meeting the issue of waste management came up yet again when it was revealed that the conversion of Clarenville’s dump to a “Transfer Station” is coming quickly – possibly within two months.  By way of background, about 6 years ago the Province decided that it would reduce the number of dumps in NL.  All garbage from Clarenville east would be shipped to Robin Hood Bay in St. John’s.  A “Transfer Station” was to be established in Clarenville to act as a central collection point. Essentially, our Town’s dump would be converted from a “final resting place” to a temporary holding place. Shipping heavy garbage is expensive and you, the taxpayer, are the one who will pay for it. The transfer station means that your taxes will go up to cover this costs of shipping – by about 10% or $180 a year – depending on the amount of garbage shipped. To minimize costs to taxpayers, Government has encouraged municipalities to separate garbage into recyclables, compo

This past weekend Clarenville was well represented at the annual MATE underwater robotics challenege held at Memorial University's Marine Institute.  Clarenville's Riverside Elementary displayed a Micro-ROV, Clarenville Middle School competed in an ROV challenge, and Clarenville High School vied for a third year as provincial champions. A lot of kids were involved in these projects and their collective success and the application of engineering and design principles was a testament to the skill and dedication of their teachers. We have a solid base of future talent in this field! Riverside School CMS Poster Board CHS Robotics caputured third place this year - The winning team: Heritage Collegiate who will represent our province at the international competition in Seattle.

Clarenville's latest Municipal Plan   was proclaimed just over a year ago after a fairly comprehensive consultation and development process.  Essentially the Municipal Plan process maps out how the town will grow for the next decade by establishing a vision and regulations for that growth.  According to the legislation:  the council responsible for that area shall proceed with the development of a municipal plan and development regulations.`... The plan shall: (a) include a statement of the objectives of the plan; (b) indicate the policies to be implemented under the plan; (c) divide land into land use classes and the use that may be made in each class and shall include prohibited uses of land; (d) include proposals for land use zoning regulations; (e) include proposals for the implementation of the plan; (f) provide provisions with respect to non-conforming uses; and (g) provide for the development of the planning area for a 10 year period. Since the latest edition

Have you ever tried to measure something without any form of measuring scale?   It’s hard, and if you are the person who's being measured it’s even harder.   That is the challenge that the Clarenville Town Council is facing as it contemplates hiring yet another Economic Development (ED) Officer.     (Clarenville has now had three ED officers in as many years) This  issue was contemplated at this past Tuesday evening’s Council meeting.  The question came up – What exactly have these Economic Development Officers done?      Rightfully, this provocative question prompted considerable debate around the Council table – unfortunately that question was never really answered (the fact that the was no articulate answer to this question with three years of experience for the position indicates that there is almost certainly a management issue at play here).  That said, I would argue that Council is looking for the answer to the wrong question. (You can listen to the April 23 meeting on

Every day, volunteers in our Town are busy working to make our community a better place to live. Every single one of them - are there are lots - do this without expectation of anything in return.   Volunteer service awards were handed out in recognition of contribution to the Community. The recipienets were: 1. Marjorie Alexander 2. John Baker 3. Harry Maidment 4. Caroline Bungay 5. William Day 6. Myrtle Elliot 7. Lydia Fewer 8. Yvonne Godfrey 9. Herb Goldsworthy 10. Garry Gosse 11. Ed Hiscock 12. Pat Humby 13. Cassie Ivany 14. Judy Northcott 15. Viola Peddle 16. Joliffe Quinton 17. Jessie Reid 18. Bert Roberts 19. Robin Rodway 20. Edith Ryan 21. Pearce Ryan 22. Amelia Stanley 23. Major Annette Vardy. This year's theme of Volunteer Week is "Let's Make Some Noise!" and it was evidenced at the celebration of volunteers that the Town and the Clarenville Area Recreation Association hosted. See for yourself...

The Esso on Memorial Drive in Clarenville @ 137.9 The Esso on Newfoundland Drive in St. John's @ 129.4/ltr Reports are coming out this morning that the price of gas will be going down by up to 4 cents a liter tomorrow in the weekly Thursday gas price setting shell game.  So WAIT AND  BUY YOUR GAS TOMORROW!! But my concern about gas goes beyond un-explainable yo-yoing of gas prices. My concern lies in that fact that there is almost a 10 cent a liter difference between the price of gas in Clarenville and the price of gas in east end St. John’s.  No doubt we have the Costco Corporation to thank for driving their immediate competitors’ prices down, but when the difference is sustained for such a long period of time it gets me thinking that there is something wildly wrong and sinister about gas pricing in this province and more particularly, in our town.  If gas companies can afford to keep their prices significantly lower in St. John’s for such an extended period of t

Random Thoughts...: New Curtain Theatre's Coffeehouse Series a Hit : New Curtain Theatre's Coffeehouse series is in full swing and is truly a great night out. For $15 you get entertainment plus a deliciou...

Random Thoughts...: Who's Running for Clarenville Town Council? : I ask because people are declaring their intentions all over the province. The current Mayor of Grand Falls-Windsor will be running again. T...

I have had a day to digest the potential impact of the of the Provincial Government's budget cuts on the town of Clarenville.  As I noted in last week's blogpost on this same subject , we have good reason to be concerned.     As a service centre for the region, Clarenville has a high proportion of jobs that are filled by professional people in various government departments & agencies - most notably in health and education.  In fact,  one in four jobs in this town are government type jobs.    Based on the information/calculations below, I estimate that the 2013 budget could potentially lead to the elimination of between  45-54  jobs in Clarenville this year - most of which are occuppied by well educated, younger individuals with families who are making over $50,000 annually.     No doubt, the Hebron ramp-up will cushion the effect of these potential government layoffs on the community and on local businesses, however if our experience from Hibernia is any indic

Here's a few of the great performances from Thursday's show - more will be added.  If you are looking for a particular performance and would like to see it here email me and I'll add it... pauldtilley@gmail.com Riverside Choir Shae-lynn Winsor (Violin), CHS Saxaphone Quartet & APPA (Celebration) Anthony Paddon Elementary Choir

The Clarenville Co-op held their annual general meeting this past week and I see from their financial statements that they invested just over $4 million into the development and construction of their new store/carwash/gasbar on Shoal Harbour Drive.  By any measure, that’s a substantial investment by the Co-op in its future.    I use the word “investment” purposefully.   Anyone who has had the opportunity to visit that new facility will know that it is as good, or better, than any comparable facility anywhere – It came at a high absolute cost but it stands as a testament to the Co-op’s commitment to Clarenville (and the region) and its members.  I want to see that same commitment shared more broadly in Clarenville by developers and businesses.  To illustrate my point,  drive past (or better, walk past) some of the stuff that has been built in Clarenville lately and take notice.  The vast majority of the commercial buildings that have been “erected’ over the past number of y