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Saturday, September 20, 2025

Opinion

Bottom Line: Alarming planning activities abound in Niagara-on-the-Lake

"We require more applicant identity clarity to assess whether the neighbours are truly acting at arms’ length," writes Steve McGuinness.

Dr. Brown: Ahead of this year’s Nobel Prize ceremony, let’s look back at past winners

"Increasingly, awards are evolving and while the Nobel Prizes remain at the top for now, the number of high-calibre competing awards by other institutions is increasing," writes Dr. William Brown.

Letter: In response to the deputy lord mayor’s record-straightening

"Maybe our esteemed deputy lord mayor should get his facts clarified before wading into the weeds defending his administration and planning staff," writes Bob Bader.

Letter: If developers are going to build, they should fund needed infrastructure

"This council has exacerbated a situation where the residents of NOTL are probably going to experience significant property tax increases in future years to fund infrastructure improvements," writes Gienek Ksiazkiewicz.

Editorial: NOTLers pay way too much for policing

"If taxation is to be equitable, Niagara Region needs to adopt a new model that does not penalize residents who happen to live in a low-crime community where their home has appreciated in value over the past decade or two," writes Kevin MacLean.

The Turner Report: Rockin’ in a woke world

"What’s motivating the Second Sons and the Tamaras needs to be learned. Dissing them as lowlifes and bigots doesn’t work," writes Garth Turner.

Arch-i-text: Old Town’s historic streetscape, the Shaw and other things

"Bluntly, the solutions here are many and varied — all a matter of sympathetic architectural design with delicate treatment of form, massing, scale and materiality, focused on blending in versus standing out," writes Brian Marshall.

Bottom Line: Escapes from call centre madness 

"I have concluded that the design principle underlying all of them is to frustrate customers so thoroughly that we hang up, abandoning all service attempts, forever and ever, amen," writes Steve McGuiness.  

Letter: Setting the record straight on planning in Niagara-on-the-Lake

"Niagara-on-the-Lake residents deserve the truth. The most effective way to protect our community’s interests is exactly what is happening now," writes Erwin Wiens.

The Turner Report: The boy, the hole and the life below

"Some say a lot more lurks beneath what used to be a school," writes Garth Turner about the history of the former Parliament Oak school site.

Arch-i-text: The Shaw’s Royal George 2.0 misses the mark

"Far too often a ghost facade prioritizes a superficial appearance over functional reality," writes Brian Marshall of the new proposal for the Royal George Theatre.

Growing Together: Find beauty, wildlife and flow state with garden water features

"There is always something special about sitting out in the garden in the evening watching the glittering lights on the surface of the water," writes Joanne Young.

Dr. Brown: Theoretical physicists, surprises and extinctions

"The story of human evolution is important too because without modern humans, there would be no science and no one to understand what was happening in the universe — the universe would unfold without a witness," writes Dr. William Brown.

Ross’ Ramblings: Build the new Royal George, but with a firm and fair deadline

On the rebuilding and reopening of the new Royal George Theatre, Ross Robinson writes, "Please don’t say 2029 and then take a year or two or three longer ... The pain to local businesses and residents will be unbearable. To everyone involved."

Letter: No one has a right to impose negative consequence on neighbours

"What is almost as annoying as the application itself is the fact that staff and council have even allowed this application to be registered at all," writes John McCallum.

The Turner Report: Old Town braces for Benny’s big dig

"A hole 23 feet deep is no backyard swimming pool. It will consume a good chunk of the Parliament Oak site, rising toward King Street as it transitions from parking garage to hotel foundation and car ramp," writes Garth Turner.

Letter: Residents’ voices were heard on the cell tower project

"Our town staff, mayor and council sometimes face criticism from the community, but in this instance, they showed responsiveness and support," write Catherine Cornell & Don Dinnin.

Arts review: ‘Blues for an Alabama Sky’ captures Harlem Renaissance dreams, falters in few performance

"Their shared dreams rise and fall, worn down by circumstances caused by a multitude of factors. These include the onset of the Great Depression, economic uncertainty, job losses and racism," writes Penny-Lynn Cookson.

Growing Together: As summer ends, spruce up your garden with these fall beauties

From turtleheads and asters to Joe Pye weeds and toad lilies, these fall-blooming flowers can be added to your garden to keep the beauty and interest going even as the summer season comes to an end.

Letter: Lack of scrutiny in planning department approvals

"When approval becomes the default outcome, the credibility of the entire planning system is undermined," writes Allan Bisback.

Bottom Line: From home desks to office towers: the work commute resumes this fall

"The driving presumption is that more frequent in-person interaction between team members will lead to better coordination and cohesion. But it could just as easily lead to more downtime spent socializing with distracted co-workers around the water cooler," writes Steve McGuinness.

The Turner Report: When wireless was also clueless

"We will be questioned, if not laughed at. Who would put a cell tower on the very shore where the War of 1812 was fought?"

Arch-i-text: A few wins for heritage preservation and good development in our town

"Sometimes the negative 'press of events' can lead us to believe that there are no 'wins’ to celebrate. But, au contraire, there are," writes Brian Marshall.

Arts review: ‘Murder-on-the-Lake’ kills fourth wall for a fun theatre experience

"Improv is hard work. If the goal of Murder-on-the-Lake is to take very good care of its audience, this production succeeds admirably," writes Penny-Lynn Cookson.

Ross’ Ramblings: If there’s peace on Earth anywhere, perhaps it’s here

"I was part of a wonderful tableau of Canadiana, with people of all ages, ethnicities, clothing styles and spoken languages. No rhyme or reason to it, it was just happening," writes Ross Robinson.

Letter: 70 km/h on rural roads? Why stop there?

"Why stop at 70 kilometres an hour limits? What are the statistics that made council do this? How many died in NOTL auto accidents?" writes Lorne White.

Bottom Line: How governments are harming the housing market

"Property taxes are a housing expense directly controlled by municipalities. The town portion of our residential tax bills has increased at multiples of inflation (a 24 per cent compound rate) during this council term," writes Steve McGuinness.

Growing Together: Achieve a bountiful harvest while veggie gardening

"It is so rewarding to be able to grow your own food. I grew up on a farm — every year, we planted a large garden that would feed my family of eight for the entire winter," writes Joanne Young.

Letter: Let’s not lose sight of all important issues in town

"I encourage residents to remain engaged and vocal in local decision-making. That civic energy is one of the greatest strengths of our town," writes Adriana Vizzari.

Letter: Life in NOTL shouldn’t feel like an amusement park

"Tourism will always be a vital part of our local economy, but unchecked special events risk undermining the very character of our town," writes Ed Werner.

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