¢ OPTNION WI Milton Canadian Charrgeor - EDITORIAL Protecting the When the Greenbelt plan fra first establishe din 2005 there were cries it would stifle development and prevent future growth around the Greater Toronto Area, Hamilton and the Golden Horseshoe. While over the years developers and some rural residents have complained about the plan's restric- tions, for the most part the Greenbelt has saved mil: lions of acres of land that would have been paved over for roads, housés and shopping plazas. So it was with stunning consternation when Pro- gressive Conservative leader Doug Ford revealed in a February 2018 video that he would "open up" the Greenbelt to make way for residential homes. But in record time, Ford reversed course on his idea to destroy the Greenbelt once his intentions be- came known to the public. The Progressive Conservatives have a history of trying to build on environmentally sensitive land. When Mike Harris led the party, he proposed to allow developers to build on the Oak Ridges Moraine. Soon after the backlash began and the PCs in 2001 backed away from the idea. The Greenbelt plan has proved exceptionally bene- ficial to Ontario residents, protecting about 800,000 hectares of land from Niagara to Port Hope, along the Niagara Escarpment. The.idea then and still is to limit urban sprawl and preserve environmentally sensitive land. It ensures that at least 60 per cent of all new resi- dential developments in municipalities are in exist- ing built up areas, an increase from the previous 40 per cent. In Halton, the Greenbelt plan is protecting 42,330 square hectares of land -- beautiful and in some parts ecologically-sensitive green space that may otherwise have been developed. The Greenbelt document has forced developers to * build on land they have been sitting on for years, such § insidehalton ® (Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 3 Digital/Flyer/Retail: 289-293-0624 as along the Lake Ontario shoreline. Development has also been going at a breakneck pace in others areas of Burlington, Milton and Oakville. It is projected that the Greater Golden Horseshoe, which includes Hal- ton, will grow by about four million people over the next 25 years. But as the Greenbelt and other provincial planning policies have shown, and what Ford and his ilk should be aware of, building within the confines of an urban area is preferably and more cost effective than dig- ging up farmland to build the next shiny new big box store. : 2 ~~ CONTACT US Milton Canadian Champion Letters to the editor 901 Guelph Line All letters must be fewer than 200 Burlington, ON L7R 3N8 words and include your name and Phone: 289-293-0615 telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. CHAMPION TRACKS w wa -l Faery may : Metis ard Me TH Iw wre ol » he Met id 1S gy oF Nw ~ wnprsed of a» SRC EON Br 3 «%e . ndmed Fa Commend ve your somenny" The Milton Canadian Champion is a member of the National sMedia Council. Com plainants are ( to bring their concems to rE ar. the attention of the newspaper and, if not y PIES | -- satisfied, write The National NewsMedia De ay ™ Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St, Toronto, Maddie Crevier, Darryl MacDonald and Sloane MacDonald enjoy a magical experience at Disney World, where they met Princess Anna and Queen Elsa. Going away? Pack a copy of the Champion in your suitcase, snap a creative photo and email your Champion Tracks submission to cohara@metroland.com, Please include everyone's name and destination information. ON MAW 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca ane Jocna Maddie edi er hain @ eHaiton.com nd editor@miltoncanadianchampion.com MiltonCanadianChampion 2] @Milton Champion Street light approved for Martin and Woodward Council also approves light at bridge on the avenue, writes Dills Time capsules are gems of information extracted from past issues of the Champion and other publi- cations in order to provide a window into Milton's past. November 1922 Town council approved a recommendation that an electric street light be placed at the corner of Mar- tin Street and Woodward Avenue and another at the bridge on the avenue. Delivery ~ For all delivery inquiries, please e-mail kmossman@metroland.com or call 905-631-6095. FDR Accredited JIM DILLS Column The wet weather of last Thursday evening must have affected the atten- dance at the Thanksgiving supper given in the school room of the Methodist Church, but it was very sat- isfactory. The tables had to ' be cleared and reset sever- al times before all had been served. The ladies of the congregation provided a splendid meal of substan- VP, Regional Publisher Kelly Montague kmontague@metroland.com | 289-293-0614 Director Advertising Daniel Baird dbaird@metroland.com | 289-293-0624 i Reglonal Managing Editor Catherine O'Hara cohara@metroland.com | 289-293-0615 tials and delicacies, the ta- bles were decorated with beautiful flowers and there was an ample force of wait- ers. The supper was fol- lowed by an exceptionally good musical program in the church, given by local talent. There was a large atten- dance at Grace Church last Thursday evening at the in- duction of Rev. Canon .Naf- tel as rector by. Ven. Arch- deacon Renison of the Church of the Ascension, Hamilton, who read the im- pressive induction service and presented Canon Naf- tel with the keys of the church. At present the Method- ist trustee board is absorb- ed in the details of the new WHO WE ARE steam heating plant for the church and' school room. They hope to have it com- pleted by the first of the year and never to hear any more complaints of the church being cold. The plant will be the very best and most efficient of its kind. There was a good atten- dance at the free radio con- cert given by the Durant Co. in the Palermo hall on Friday evening, but the ra- dio failed to operate suc- cessfully, which was a great disappointment. -- This material is as- sembled on behalf of the Milton Historical Society by Jim Dills, who can be reached through the society at 905-875-4156. » Regional Manager Digital Content Karen Miceli Director of Distribution Charlene Hall Circulation Manager Kim Mossman - kmossman@metroland.com | 905-631-6095 Director of Production Mark Dills } Regional Production Manager Manny Garcia ;