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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, M ar ch 17 ,2 02 2 | 6 ABOUT US This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the newspaper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca insidehalton@metroland.com facebook.com/OakvilleBeav @OakvilleBeaver WHO WE ARE VP, Regional Publisher Kelly Montague Regional General Manager Jason Pehora Director of Content Lee Ann Waterman Regional Managing Editor Catherine O'Hara Managing Editor Karen Miceli Director of Distribution Charlene Hall Circulation Manager Kim Mossman Directors of Advertising Cindi Campbell and Graeme MacIntosh CONTACT US Oakville Beaver 901 Guelph Line Burlington, ON L7R 3N8 Phone: 905-845-3824 Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 Advertising: 289-293-0620 Delivery For all delivery inquiries, please e-mail kmossman@metroland.com or call 905-631-6095. Letters to the editor Send letters to insidehalton@metroland.com. All letters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Published letters will appear in print and/or online at insidehalton.com OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT INSIDEHALTON.COM The Ontario govern- ment, I believe, needs a mirror to see who's respon- sible for the lack of afford- able housing opportuni- ties. For 15 years, the prov- ince -- in my opinion -- has been unable to do its part to unlock thousands of more affordable housing opportunities around the Oakville GO station (Mid- town) for our young people and new residents from all over the world. I have continually raised the need to unlock the housing potential of Midtown Oakville to pro- vincial cabinet ministers in three successive Onta- rio governments. Midtown Oakville is planned to accommodate significant population and employment growth, 20,600 people and jobs, and can provide 23 per cent of Oak- ville's planned intensifica- tion and almost eight per cent of Halton's future in- tensification between now and 2051. Midtown is home to the busiest station in the GO Transit network, outside of Union Station. In 2019, the last full year before the pandemic, people used the Oakville GO Station for 1.5 million trips. To compare, the trips at the Clarkson GO Station and Pearson airport were the second and third highest after the Oakville GO Station. Unlocking Midtown re- quires funding and con- struction of a full inter- change at Royal Windsor Drive. But the province's prior- ities continue to ignore Oakville. There is still no money for the work Onta- rio needs to do on the QEW to make Midtown achieve the goals Ontario has set for the area. In order to accommo- date provincially-ordered growth in our community, we also require changes to the roads and infrastruc- ture where Kerr Street crosses the train tracks. The recent announce- ment by Ontario to not go ahead with the Kerr Street underpass project also fails to support the require- ments of the provincial growth plan to accommo- date a growing population close to GO transit connec- tions. The Kerr Street under- pass project is too urgent to go without, for safety and congestion reasons. The town will explore all possi- ble alternatives to contin- ue with this project. You can help, too. When candidates for provincial office ask for your support, ask what they will do to make Onta- rio do its part to make its growth plan bring more af- fordable housing to Mid- town without making con- gestion worse. Rob Burton is the May- or of Oakville. He can be reached at mayor@oak- ville.ca. PROVINCE BLOCKING AFFORDABLE HOUSING POTENTIAL OF GO STATION AREA MUST BE UNLOCKED NOW, WRITES ROB BURTON A blue jay visits a wooded area in Glen Abbey. Do you have a great local photo you'd like to share? Send it to sleblanc@metroland.com, along with a brief description. Robert Gignac photo SNAPSHOT Work has changed as a result of the pandemic. Change has occurred in sectors that seem logical, but changes are also hap- pening in areas that were not directly affected. Restaurant employ- ment has seen a mass exo- dus of workers. Attrition from these jobs seemed log- ical. Surprisingly, law firms are having difficulty retain- ing staff as well as attract- ing new talent, according to the 2022 Report on the State of the Legal Market. Lawyers are well- trained, work in offices and have work environments fairly similar to other pro- fessions and many other occupations. The pandem- ic caused us to take a strong second look at how we live our lives, with the conclusion that a change is needed. According to the report, a strategy used by law firm employers was to increase salaries and offer retention bonuses. That should work. Money can be a great motivator. Surprisingly, that did not solve the prob- lem. When the pandemic started, office staff shifted to working at home. That offered greater flexibility. Start work early, then walk the dog. Work through lunch and stop working earlier than normal. Technology has evolved. You can now be plugged into your office without actually being there physically. That has completely reshaped how work can get done. The significance of the report is that the changing attitude toward employ- ment has not just occurred in the areas we anticipated. This is a good time to be alert to the changing em- ployment environment. Times are changing. Peter Watson, of Watson Investments, MBA, CFP®, R.F.P., CIM®, FCSI, offers a weekly financial plan- ning column, Dollars & Sense. He can be contacted through www.watsonin- vestments.com. PANDEMIC WILL CONTINUE TO CHANGE HOW WE WORK COVID HAS IMPACTED JOB SECTORS IN WAYS WE WOULDN'T HAVE EXPECTED, WRITES PETER WATSON PETER WATSONColumn ROB BURTON Column SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT INSIDEHALTON.COM