Monday, September 15, 2025

Editorial

Sidewalk Removals Just Make Sense

Stephen Vance, Editor As much as I focus a lot of my time (and ink) on infrastructure issues, like many, in spite of the fact that my feet tromp on them each and every day, I often overlook sidewalk infrastructure. Like much of our infrastructure, many of our sidewalks were installed decades ago, and some of those old sidewalks are now...

Council Should Reconsider Third Party For Administration of Community Grant Fund

Stephen Vance, Editor “It's a short agenda, should be a quick meeting,” my friend from the Express said to me as we were setting up at the media table prior to Monday's council meeting. “Well, the first intake of the community grants is on the agenda so...” I responded. Face palm. “Oh right, I forgot.”Monday's council meeting lasted three hours and 15...

Happy 50th Birthday to the Bruce Trail

Stephen Vance, Editor With the winter snow and chilly temperatures gone, the month of May is traditionally the month when we Ontarians escape our winter cocoons and get outside to reconnect with the natural world around us, and hiking some trails is a fantastic way to do just that. This year is the 50th birthday of Ontario's mother of all trails,...

Join us For Another Memorial Park Clean-up on April 30 (Postponed until Sunday, May 7 due to Rain)

Stephen Vance, Editor It's that time of year again. The snow is gone, the birds are chirping, and the first dashes of colourful spring blooms have shown themselves – and that means it's time for the annual Memorial Park Earth Week clean-up. For all of our advancements as a species, we humans are unfortunately still prone to discarding unwanted items in...

Bridge Blues Just a Scratch in the Surface of the Coming Infrastructure Nightmare

Stephen Vance, Editor Five years ago I wrote an article entitled 'Bridge Blues on the Way'. Meaford's council of the day had received a staff report advising that nearly $20 million would need to be spent on bridges and culverts in the municipality over the next ten years. It was a report that was a wake up call for council...

Remembering Vimy: Not About War, it’s About Peace

Stephen Vance, Editor I've always been a bit of a history buff, but not much of a war buff, and though a pacifist I might be, I think it important to recognize some of the battles of the past if only so we can avoid the horrors of war in the future. History buff or not, if you're Canadian, you're sure...

GBHS Funding Crisis Another Example of Neglect of Rural Communities

Stephen Vance, Editor In recent years rural municipalities in Ontario have been, well, let's just be blunt, they've been getting screwed by upper levels of government, particularly the province. It's no secret, we've all seen it happening before our eyes. Rural schools are being closed, long-term care beds are in jeopardy, and as we are all very well aware in this...

Distracted Driving is the Drunk Driving of Our Generation

Stephen Vance, Editor Distracted driving is a topic that you will no doubt hear in the media with greater frequency in the coming weeks, months, and I suspect, years, and for good reason. Distracted driving kills. Distracted driving is this generation's impaired driving, and we have to stop. Readers of this page are no strangers to my once (sometimes twice) every...

Mayor Right to Insist on Public Meeting on Hospital Issue

Stephen Vance, Editor Less than two months ago Grey Bruce Health Services pledged to host public engagement sessions this spring in order to allow residents to share their views and concerns about options being considered by the GBHS board, in their effort to find substantial cost savings in hopes of avoiding, or at least minimizing, projected deficits. In the weeks...

Sunshine List Season is on the Horizon – We Need to Adjust the Threshold, or Scrap it

Stephen Vance, Editor Sometime later this month articles about Ontario's 'Sunshine List' will once again be splashed across news outlets as the data for last year is published. I'm often asked my thoughts on the Sunshine List: my primary thought is that I wish people didn't get so worked up about it, and my secondary thought is that the Sunshine...