The Our Town - Clarenville Blog by Paul Tilley

This is the script to my address to the Regional Meeting of the Odd Fellows where I was invited to represent the Town and to be the guest speaker...  Many thanks to the local Odd Fellows organizing committee. I appreciate the invitation and the opportunity to speak. Making a Difference Thank you… Newfoundland and Labrador delegates of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows., On behalf of Mayor Frazer Russell, Council and the entire town, I would like to wish you a warm welcome to Clarenville.   I trust your meetings over the course of this weekend will be productive and you fellowship inspiring. It always gives me great pleasure to see people from all over the province come to Clarenville because I know that the people in this town, especially the people who make up this lodge locally are some of the same people who have contributed to making Clarenville such a great home for me.   I also know these people embody the ideals of the IOOF within our community (Friendship, Lov

This past weekend, Clarenville's tourism community celebrated two significant milestones.  First, White Hills Resort launched its new season with an open house in the beautiful main building at the Resort.  2014 marks the 25th year of the resort and with newly appointed manager Jason Crawford, coupled with some major events planned for the resort over the winter, it is shaping up to be a great year for the Resort's Silver anniversary.  Take this opportunity to see a short video of the event here: Second, the Resort, the Town and their Partners launched a "one-stop" web space that will be promoted to tourists and residents alike. GottaLoveOurWinter.ca reflects the fact that there is a lot to love about winter here in Clarenville and we want to share its joys with others. Below is a video of the launch.  Be sure to check out the website at  http://gottaloveourwinter.ca/ . Historical White Hills Resort The Resort operated as a private business for m

Ever wonder what Clarenville looks like from the air? Here's a bird's-eye-view that gives you an idea of just how great we look and how much we're growing. Thanks to Newfoundland Helicopters!

Over 100 residents came out to the Clarenville Chamber of Commerce sponsored Candidate Forum on Tuesday, September 17.   10 of the 11 candidates for council spoke for 7 minutes each on what her/she could contribute to the leadership of Clarenville over the next four years. Frazer Russell has been acclaimed the Town’s new mayor, and he was also in attendance. Forum Chair: Susan Hollett Timer: Adrian Power Photo/Video: Harrison Tille Representing the Chamber:   Richard Power The Candidates: Candidates were assigned their turn in the order by draw  Jill Russell-Monk      David Harris Rod Nicholl Heber Smith Ashling O’Mahony Avery  Bill Bailey Paul Tilley Brian Smith Graham Bursey Add caption  John Pickett Candidate Jeff Bursey was unable to attend the forum Election Day is Tuesday, September 24 – P

Join me in this light hearted placement of election signs around Clarenville...I call it Electionsigneering

I was glad to see Town workers painting the crosswalk on Huntley/Harbour intersection this past week – just in time for school.   There are several key crosswalks on high traffic roads in Clarenville and in this past week’s Council meeting I see that there was a decision to add another on the heavily travelled Memorial Drive route as it runs past the Seniors gathering centre. (listen to the Aug 22 meeting on THE PACKET's website at  http://www.thepacket.ca/media/flying/1208/cville_council_130820.mp3  ) Noble for sure, but even Council admits that these crosswalks give a rather false sense of security seeing that most drivers in Clarenville seem to be oblivious to them -and the pedestrian's ready to use them - as they zoom past.   We really need crosswalks that work better. If there is an admission of a problem – as indicated in the Council discussion – then measures must be taken to solve that problem before someone is hurt and before the town is held liable for ne

Over the past few years, Clarenville has budgeted quite a few dollars for what has been dubbed as Economic Development activities.  The focused goal has been to spur business development in the town and generate money.  This has been met with varying degrees of success (depending on who you talk to)  (see my previous post on this  http://ourtownclarenville.blogspot.ca/2013/04/economic-development-or-community.html  ) I would like to propose a radical rethink of this approach. First and foremost, the term Economic Development is much too narrow and too focused on money rather than the people it is supposed to benefit.  What we really need to talk about is Community Development .  The goal of community development is to take efforts to improve the “livability” of our town by making it a better place to live for its citizens and by creating a positive experience for its visitors.   This is known as “Placemaking” and has been the subject of much research as of late.  Placemakin

On Tuesday September 24, townspeople in the Province's municipalities will vote for new municipal councils. Nomination Day is Tuesday, August 27.  In Clarenville there will be two votes; one for the position of Mayor and another for the 6 other councillors who will constitute our Town's government for the next 4 years.   If you are interested in running, Municipalities NL and The Department of Municipal Affairs have created a great resource called  MAKING YOUR MARK  - it has lots of useful information for would-be-councillors. Here in Clarenville, I expect there will be a lot of interest from people considering running.  I’ve been there and I have some insights on what a new Councilor can expect in his or her role. MEETINGS General Meetings: Structure and Schedule If you like meeting lots of people with great ideas, Council is the place for you.  Clarenville’s Council meets every second week on Tuesdays.   The work of Council however is done in Committee and th

Arts Under The Stars (AUS) is a free evening in-the-park concert series on held on Thursday evening's in Clarenville throughout the summer.  This summer's series marks the 8th year for Ats Under the Stars and each year hundreds of people from Clarenville and surrounding communities come out to take in the shows. We've had notables such as Ron Hynes, Hey Rosetta and Rising Tide theatre. This year, the series starts this coming Thursday evening and have/will feature(d) such acts as Craig Young & Leeland Wareham, Shawn Wiseman, Gavin Simms, Katie Baggs, Sweet Voices of Youth, Morgan Davis, and the Quidi Vidi Dirt Band (See attached Brochure) -- Thursday's @ 7:00pm at Elizabeth Swan Park Juno Award winning Morgan Davis - Aug 15 Sweet Voices Of Youth - Aug. 8 KATIE BAGGS  www.katiebaggs.com  - Aug. 1 PAST SHOWS Past Year's Shows

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

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!   

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

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...

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

I see Councillors are getting an earful on the “old” mall parking lot. (see The Packet "Pot Holes Persist Feb 28/2013  )  The Town and the Mall owners have been at loggerheads for what seems like forever pointing fingers of blame at one another as absolutely nothing gets done to clean up what has become a decrepit part of Clarenville.    From the mall owner's/tenant's point of view, the Town owns the lot and IT is clearly the one responsible for the ongoing maintenance of the lot.  (This is thanks to an omission in the original 1960’s era development agreement that neglected to pass the ownership of the lot to the mall owners within a specified length of time)   From the Town’s point of view, it wants to be rid of the lot and the associated liability.  And their stand has a lot of merit from a taxpayer's point of view.  As long as the Town is forced to take care of the lot the owners & tenants are receiving an effective subsidy on the backs of taxpay