The Son Of One Of The Wealthiest Men In The World Was At Market Hall Last Night

Peter Buffett, son of Warren Buffett, spoke and performed at Market Hall.

[chextvDOTcom]

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Peterborough's Creative, Arts & Technological Sector Is Booming

Read the Martin Prosperity Institute report on Peterborough here, which says our "distinct, almost bohemian, culture is of special interest contrasted against Peterborough's surrounding, more conservative counties."

[chextvDOTcom; The Impact Of Peterborough's "Creative Class" On Local Economic Innovation & Growth; Martin Prosperity Report On Peterborough]

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St. James Players Performing Broadway Production Of Chicago at Showplace

The St. James Players are performing the broadway production of Chicago at Showplace on November 4th through 6th, and November 9th through 12th. Director Brian MacDonald, Musical Director Pam Birrell, and Choreographer Rachel Bemrose are bringing together local talent to bring the show to life:

Murderesses Velma Kelly (a chanteuse and tease who killed her husband and sister after finding them in bed together) and Roxie Hart (who killed her boyfriend when she discovered he wasn't going to make her a star) find themselves on death row together and fight for the fame that will keep them from the gallows in 1920s Chicago.

You can purchase tickets through Showplace's website. Adult tickets are $25, Seniors $22 and Students $15.

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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Here's A Totally Inspiring Peterborough Video Message Called "Hip Hop Awakening"

This YouTube video from a Peterborough man is apparently a response to a Rap Battle that took place at Pappas Billiards on the weekend. But its articulate, positive and inspiring message extends well beyond Hip Hop and speaks to a lot of stuff going on in this community—including safety, the environment, jobs, poverty, food issues, social justice, love and youth culture.

[YouTube]

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Bedouin Soundclash Rock The Venue This Friday, Sam Roberts Band Rock It November 11th

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Julie Morris]

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Here's Video Of Sloan Performing At The Venue Last Week

[YouTube]

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The Purple Onion Festival Celebrating Local Food & Culture Is Tomorrow

Saturday in Millennium Park, the first annual Purple Onion Festival will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

There will be food, musical entertainment, workshops and vendors from the local area, including Camp Kawartha, Our Space, Peterborough Gleaning Program, Peterborough Green-Up and more.

For a full schedule of events, click here.

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Julie Morris]

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Calling All Artists: Ecofest Is Looking For Applicants For Their Trashfusion Design Awards

Ecofest Peterborough wants applicants for their Trashfusion event taking place October 22nd. Submissions are due in by October 1st, and first prize wins $500. Apply here. More deets in the poster below.

[Trashfusion]

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The Truth About Why Closing PCVS Would Be A Huge Blow To Our Community

THE PHILLIPS REPORTOnce again the public, and private, discussions about the closing of a Peterborough high school have sunk into anecdote and vitriol. Virtually all of the discussion surrounds loyalties—neighbourhood, school, alumni—or mythical nostalgia. As the final decision by the publically elected Board at the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board (KPRDSB) approaches, it is time to refocus the discussion on financial and economic realities.
 
Before addressing these issues, it is important consider the role of the Board and the role of its senior management. The Board is elected to see that the KPRDSB has the strategies, policies, facilities, finances, and administration are in place so that the organization—overseen by the senior managers it employs—can provide the best education possible given the resources. Importantly, the Board is responsible to its funders—property taxpayers (residential and business) in Peterborough and the taxpayers of Ontario. The Board’s senior administration must take these resources and deliver the required educational services. There is a clear distinction between the role of the publically elected Board and the role of the administrative staff it employs.
 
The Board now finds itself in a position where the facts show that there is declining enrolment in Peterborough high schools and more schools than are necessary to deliver its educational services. With very similar education services being delivered at the existing schools for several decades, it is difficult to argue that one fewer high school would put the Board in a position where it would be unable to fulfill its mandate.
 
In financial terms, declining high school enrolment and an abundance of property and facilities puts the Board in a position where it has the opportunity to consolidate its operations, sell some valuable property, and use the funds to deliver educational services, and, perhaps, provide taxpayers with some relief from ever-increasing educational property taxes.
 
After the contentious review process was completed, I was pleased to see that the Board added its offices to be part of the mix. With little commercial land available in the industrial parks in the City, the Board could sell its property (a value in the millions of dollars) in the industrial park and consolidate its operations in an existing high school. This is a creative response to a complex decision. However, after this creative financial option was offered by the Board, the pubic debate became increasingly entrenched in anything but the financial, economic, and administrative realities.
 
In economic terms, the issue centers on the future of PCVS. Beyond the issues of its property value (which is the lowest—according to Board’s own property evaluations—of all the properties being considered, and the least likely to lower education property taxes), the significance of the school in terms of its value to the community and its role in economic development were practically ignored. Many of the initiatives to renew and expand the infrastructures of the downtowns of Ontario communities are to increase, not decrease, the downtown’s population density. More importantly, a high school in the downtown represents a source of current and future creative talent.
 
Just over 100 kilometres from downtown Peterborough, at the University of Toronto, is an internationally recognized leader in economic development—Richard Florida. His research describes the significance of the "creative class" and its ability to interact at a social level in city cores as a key contributor to local economic growth. Even with him being an advisor on economic growth to the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, it seems as though his message is more readily heard further away, rather than closer to home.
 
There is little doubt that a downtown high school contributes in many ways to the economic development of a city. I have yet to come across any evidence, from Richard Florida’s point of view, or any other approach to economic development that would suggest that removing a downtown school would contribute to a community’s economic development in a positive way.
 
Basically, as much as there are compelling, anecdotal and nostalgic arguments to close PCVS, there is little substance—financial, economic, or administrative—to the arguments. This must be recognized as the Board’s takes its decision.
 
Earlier this year, I was given the opportunity to present this case in a ten minute presentation to the KPRDSB’s Accommodation Review Committee (ARC). After that presentation, I was given some feedback from a member of the committee that my presentation would have had more credibility if I had not been, "clearly," a PCVS alumnus and supporter.

On that point, I need to set the record straight. I did graduate from PCVS.  However, I disliked high school immensely. In hindsight, my five years of high school were insignificant given my subsequent academic pursuits. The fact that those five years were spent at PCVS has nothing to with the case I am making. My position comes from my community and professional perspective, not a nostalgic view.  I trust that the Board’s decision will be made in the same spirit.

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[Contributed by PtboCanada's Tom Phillips Ph. D. Phillips is Economist & Sustainability Director - Greater Ptbo Innovation Cluster.]

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