John MacVicar
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Doug Ford triggers provincial election
17We had a doctor shortage before Doug Ford was elected. Mr. ford has done little to alleviate that shortage; in fact by privatizing he has made it worse. The US spends more on healthcare than any other country and are not even in the top 10 countries in the the world for providing their citizens with healthcare; the US is often a model of how not to do things for the social good.
1- John MacVicar
City of Orillia has 87 employees on 2024 Sunshine List
OrilliaMatters 12The measurement should be since inception how have public service wages increased compared to the cities or districts average wage. This would be a good indication if public service wage increases have been fair or not compared to the public they serve; it would be especially true of city and district governing members.
- John MacVicar
Seasonal parking permit program recommended for west Orillia
OrilliaMatters 7I see a conflict in ethics here. The city lets developers provide fewer parking spaces for new builds and now the city charges people because they do not have enough parking where they live; I am referring to row housing and apartment buildings. Row houses, I had one, can only fit one vehicle in the driveway and maybe a compact in the garage if your lucky. Most households today have two vehicles.
5- John MacVicar
'Visibility issues': No-parking zone could come to Atlantis Drive
OrilliaMatters 9Is this a symptom of not providing enough parking spaces? A house and townhouses should have at least two parking spaces in their driveway. It seems the issue is urban planning.
1- John MacVicar
Doug Ford triggers provincial election
9Parliament can change election laws for those who mentioned changing or saying we can not change election laws.
- John MacVicar
Doug Ford triggers provincial election
7Ford has a mandate to do as he wishes because he has a majority. This early election is self serving
- John MacVicar
Fallis, Durnford join growing chorus calling on Ford to not use notwithstanding clause
OrilliaMatters 7I was homeless and there were 5 government agencies essentially doing the same job. Get rid of the redundancies in government and use the huge savings to help and give hope to people. I would have died on the streets if someone had not taken me in; I had a blocked heart and could not walk down a driveway without having to rest. .
- John MacVicar
Barrie mayor among those calling on Ford to use notwithstanding clause to deal with encampments
OrilliaMatters 7We use to have Ontario Hospitals that specialized in caring for people with mental illness, these were closed and demolished, for example in North Bay and St Thomas. Now the people with mental illness live in encampments; where are they going to go if the encampments are disbanded? It is a societal problem therefore it is, at every level a government problem to be solved.
- John MacVicar
Developer calls on city to make zoning changes to unlock funding for affordable housing projects
OrilliaMatters 6Build up not out
- John MacVicar
'Bit of a weird thing': New city traffic circle gets mixed reviews
OrilliaMatters 4They have these all over Spain and traffic flows better than having lights at intersections. On main roads they still have lights.
2- John MacVicar
'Significant changes': Lauer sounds alarm about future of church properties, pre-zoning issues
OrilliaMatters 3Why is there a meeting about this? Where should eight storey buildings go or a shelter or fourplex...? Orillia needs intensification so what is Lauer's answer? Building a new subdivision of $800,000 homes does not work for most people.
2- John MacVicar
Wedding venue built without permits seeks retroactive approvals
OrilliaMatters 5I know when I performed a brief contract for the City of Hamilton an illegally built house was torn down by the city because it was built on city land and not legally constructed. The laws are rules that need to be followed by everyone to keep society fair and functioning or there should be some negative consequence.
- John MacVicar
'Residents should prepare to be without power for the remainder of the week,' warns Orillia mayor
OrilliaMatters 2On Sunday I drove up to Huntsville where they still had power from Orillia. On the way north I passed at least twenty to thirty Hydro One vehicles coming from the North. Considering the amount of damage I am amazed at how much tree debris has been cleaned up and how fast power is coming back on. For those still without power I know it is tough but try to be patient as people are doing their best.
2- John MacVicar
City gives OK for first phase of Sunshine Harbour development
OrilliaMatters 438.8% of the households in Orillia rent. There is a large shortage of rental units in the city and many of the rental units in the cities downtown area are places where many people would not live if they had a choice, but I do not see that the city is doing much to initiate or promote the building of new apartments. It would be interesting to see how many apartment units have been built in the city over the last three years compared to single unit private dwellings. Are the housing needs of close to 40% of the population being ignored? Apartment buildings have a much greater population density than town houses if it is a goal of city council to make the downtown more populous and vibrant.
- John MacVicar
Orillia residents reeling from ‘unprecedented’ ice storm (7 photos)
OrilliaMatters 3I think Orillia has to review there allowance of BBQs on balconies. At least if I was allowed one I could cook and make a coffee. I have lived in Hamilton and London and both of those municipalities do allow barbeques on balconies.
1- John MacVicar
'It's indisputable': Nearby town council declares housing crisis
OrilliaMatters 4A landlord who was making profit before covid, who has a new tenant since covid and jacks the rent up 30% is not experiencing a loss. As a landlord I would be doing the same thing. Capitalism does not work when there is a lack of competition; there is demand but where is the increase in supply. Governments are suppose to take action when there is a crisis and I am not seeing it. A building in Orillia can not be built over six stories tall in Orillia because it does not look pleasing to some people. People living on the streets or in unfit conditions is much more pleasing I suppose.
- John MacVicar
Hunt geese, give meat to less fortunate to stem bacteria issues: councillor
OrilliaMatters 2Geese taste great and were often the choice of poultry for Christmas dinner?
1- John MacVicar
'It's indisputable': Nearby town council declares housing crisis
OrilliaMatters 2Given the third of gross income criteria the Simcoe Muskoka district has the same housing crisis and very little is being done about it by local governments. The other issue in the area is that the rental stock, for the most part, is so run down no one would live in it if they had choices.
1- John MacVicar
Developer calls on city to make zoning changes to unlock funding for affordable housing projects
OrilliaMatters 2Paris has a much higher population density that supports local shops. They allow buildings no higher than 37 m or twelve stories. Why does Orillia only allow six story buildings?
1- John MacVicar
Doug Ford triggers provincial election
3Are you sure about that?
- John MacVicar
