Otonabee Conservation Conducting Spring Dam Operations

Otonabee Conservation staff are conducting spring dam operations including placing stop-logs into dams and installing warning buoy-lines upstream of Authority-owned dams.

Hope Dam. Photo courtesy of Otonabee Conservation.

The hazards around dams can be serious and if ignored, could include serious injury or death. Warning buoy-lines act like ‘floating fences’ that warn paddlers, anglers, and boaters to stay away. They are installed each spring and then removed in the fall before winter freeze-up. This is one of many public safety measures that reduces risks for people who enjoy water-based activities on local reservoirs and waterways.

 In addition, land-based signs warn boaters of a dam ahead, and there are also signs mounted on the dams themselves that warn about the presence of dam inflow and outflow areas.

Dam operations will be undertaken over the next two weeks. The affected dams include:

• Warsaw Dam (Warsaw)

• Lang Mill Dam (Lang)

• Hope Mill Dam (Lang)

• Millbrook Dam (Millbrook)

Otonabee Conservation urges the public to respect the warning booms and signs and to stay away from dams.

The water around dams can look peaceful, but the area upstream and downstream is more dangerous than it appears. Water surges over the stop logs of the dam, creating strong undertows and currents around the dam. The most serious danger is that the water pressure can pin a body below the water for an extended period of time.

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City Of Peterborough Requiring City Employees To Wear Face Masks While Indoors

Based on guidance from Peterborough Public Health, the City of Peterborough is requiring City employees to wear face coverings while indoors and in vehicles in the workplace.

These measures are intended to be temporary. The Emergency Control Group continues to monitor the situation.

Visitors to City facilities are not required to wear face masks; however, wearing a face mask in public indoor spaces is strongly encouraged.

Provincial regulations require the wearing of face masks in certain higher-risk settings, including public transit, shelters and other congregate care settings. Visit ontario.ca/covid19 for information on provincial information related to COVID-19.

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New Downtown Doughnut Shop 'Tragically Dipped' Becomes Instant Hit

Arriving early for a bite at local downtown doughnut shop Tragically Dipped may be a good idea as the new joint sees daily sellouts since its soft opening last week Wednesday.

The name “Tragically Dipped” is an homage to the popular Canadian band “The Tragically Hip” and also references Frampton’s past work as a biohazard technician. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

"We were sold every day last week and we're sold out for pre-orders every day this week," said Mike Frampton, Tragically Dipped owner.

The new business owner says he makes roughly 485 doughnuts a day for preorders. He makes them available on Mondays at 10 a.m. but typically sells out by 4:30 p.m.

Frampton is overjoyed by the customer base and volume he’s attracted in his first week open.

"I couldn't have asked it to be busier so no complaints,” he said. “It's exactly what I wanted it to do and it's doing it."

Frampton’s doughnuts are all nut-free including tree nuts (almonds, Brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, walnuts, etc.). Some doughnuts include gluten-free crullers, fritters, Boston cream, lemon-filled, jelly-filled, maple and honey dips that are available on rotation.

The shop also sells coffee and tea with homebrew options.

Frampton started the business as a change of direction and a mental health break from his previous job. He was a biohazard technician for 15 years, cleaning up contagions such as death scenes or hoarders’ homes.

The doughnut entrepreneur said he was finished with his past career’s trauma and wanted to go from ‘death to doughnuts.’

"Everyone in the city would know me as the 'death guy' before this and now I'm the 'donut guy' and I'll take it," he said. "This is so much better for my mental health.”

@ptbo_canada Move over Tim Hortons there’s a new Canadian favourite in town @TragicallyDippedDonut has no-nuts donuts made from scratch every day! #LocalEats #tragicallyhip #CoffeeShop #DonutShop #PTBOCanada ♬ Ahead By A Century - The Tragically Hip

Frampton had the storefront since May last year but ran into roadblocks and financial hiccups before opening last Wednesday.

Prior to the brick-and-mortar store, Frampton operated Tragically Dipped out of a food truck after receiving a $5,000 startup grant from the Peterborough and the Kawartha Economic Development in March last year.

In an effort to bolster and promote the community, Tragically Dipped will host First Friday Art Crawls to invite artists and chefs to do pop-ups to feature their work.

Customers can view local art and purchase it from the artists or enjoy food made by the chefs that come to in Tragically Dipped.

"Chefs to me are just as artistic as someone who is painting," remarked Frampton. "I would host a chef and they would come up with maybe a fun doughnut-themed or maybe not and we'd do food here and art."

The new entrepreneur thought his vision of a doughnut shop was not going to happen but was relieved to finally get his store open. He was overwhelmed by the response and publicity he received after his first week of business.

"This city is everything to me so to be able to do this in this city is fantastic. I wouldn't do this anywhere else,” reflected Frampton. “I'm blown away. Every time I peek out that door, there's a lineup of people and we're selling out.”

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Peterborough Petes Wrap Up Regular Season With Annual Awards Ceremony

Peterborough Petes staff, family, and friends gathered online on Tuesday for the annual year-end awards ceremony.

File Photo.

To commemorate the season players were presented with various awards.

• Mark Teevens Memorial Award (most assists) – Emmett Sproule (56 assists)

• Ed Redmond Memorial Trophy (scholastics and hockey) – Sam Alfano

• Outboard Marine Veterans Award (sportsmanship and ability) – Brian Zanetti

• Black’s Family Trophy (rookie of the year) – Nick Lardis

• Vince and Lottie Garvey Award (off-ice contribution) – Walter DiClemente (Petes Billet, Security and Risk Management Liaison)* 3-time winner

• Molson Cup (most three-star selections voted by media) – Tucker Robertson

• Donnie Marsh Memorial Trophy (most dedication to team) – Donovan McCoy

• Ed Rowe Memorial Award (most goals) – Tucker Robertson (41 goals)

• Norm Bryan Award (most improved player) – Jax Dubois

• Ushers Trophy (best defenceman) – Samuell Mayer

• Bill Bennett/CKPT Memorial Award (leading scorer) – Emmett Sproule (86 points)

• Gary Dalliday Award (community service) – Konnor Smith

• Petes Executive Trophy (most valuable player voted by teammates) – Tucker Robertson

In addition, the Board of Directors and Alumni Association announced gifts to the graduating and overage players Kaspars Ziemins, Tye Austin, Shawn Spearing, Joe Carroll, and Emmett Sproule.

The Petes play Thursday night for Game One of the Eastern Conference Quarter-Finals in Hamilton against the Bulldogs.

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Ontario Government Investing $3.3 Million In Fleming College And $2.5 Million In Trent University

The Ontario government is investing $5.8M in funding in 2021-22 at Fleming College and Trent University to help provide a modern and safe learning environment for students, faculty and staff, both virtually and on campus.

Dave Smith makes announcement at Fleming College on Wednesday. Photo by Angela O’Grady.

The funding is part of the government’s $583 million investment over three years to help institutions modernize classrooms by upgrading technology, carrying out critical repairs, improving their environmental sustainability and supporting virtual learning projects that increase access to postsecondary education for students.

“Despite a global pandemic, there are 500,000 more net new jobs today than in 2018. Our efforts to eliminate job-killing red tape, reduce fees and costs on businesses and people, and invest in education, training, and skills development are working; laying the foundation for long-term economic growth in our region and across Ontario,” MPP Dave Smith said. “Today, we take one more step in that direction with a $5.8 million investment to deliver better, more accessible education for students – training them for the jobs of the future.”

The $3.3M investment at Fleming College will help to modernize learning spaces, equipment, and infrastructure in the School of Trades and Technology, School of Environmental and Natural Resources Sciences, and the School of Health and Wellness.

The $2.5M investment at Trent University will help to renovate and upgrade IT/AV infrastructure to enable virtual/real-time delivery to support micro-credential programming as well as to enhance the ability create AV content in particular for nursing and STEM. It will also support a variety of projects including roof and skylight replacement and repair and mechanical and electrical improvements.

“Ontario’s postsecondary institutions offer world class education, which is critical to the future of the province, and our economy,” said Jill Dunlop, Minister of Colleges and Universities. “Our government’s investments to build Ontario will help colleges and universities renew and modernize their facilities and buy vital training equipment so they can continue to deliver high-quality education to students – anytime and anywhere.”

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Registration For Free Tree Pickup Opens Thursday

The City of Peterborough will be giving away free trees to city residents on May 14.

Stock Photo.

This is part of the city’s Trees for Canopy Conservation initiative.

To receive a free tree, residents who own property in the City of Peterborough must register in advance to pick up a tree during one of four time slots on May 14 at Beavermead Park.

The trees will be native growing species that are approximately two feet tall.

Registration opens on Thursday at 9 a.m.

• Register: 9 a.m to 10 a.m. pickup

• Register: 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. pickup

• Register: noon to 1 p.m. pickup

• Register: 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. pickup

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Auxiliary To Campbellford Memorial Hospital Donates $32,000 To Purchase New Stretchers And Provide Training To Employees

The Auxiliary to Campbellford Memorial Hospital (CMH) presented its annual gift to the hospital in the amount of $32,000.

John Russell, CMH Foundation Executive Director; Robbie Beatty, Auxiliary Co-President; Eric Hanna, CMH Interim CEO & President; and Maureen Marvin, Auxiliary Co-President. Photo courtesy of Campbellford Memorial Hospital.

The funds were largely raised through events such as the Auxiliary’s Annual Polar Plunge, the Rotary Spring Fling, Sharpe’s Tapes, Rotary Club Diners & Duffers Value Books and the Christmas Market.

“These past 2 years have been challenging from a fundraising perspective,” said Auxiliary Co-President Robbie Beatty. “We have had to change the way we run events and come up with creative ways of engaging the public. I am so proud of our volunteers and our community who step up time and again to support our local hospital.”

Funds raised in the past year will help CMH purchase additional stretchers as well as contribute to the cost of implementing the new Clinical Information System that came online in December 2021. 

 In May the Auxiliary will be launching their 2022 fundraising campaign with the goal of purchasing a new defibrillator for the hospital.

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Nomination Period For City Council Opening In May Candidate Information Session This Week

The campaign period for the municipal election on October 24 begins on May 2 with the opening of the nomination period to file to run as a candidate for City Council or school board trustee in the election.

Photo by Luke Best.

Nomination forms will be available at the City Clerk’s Office at City Hall, 500 George St. N. To run as a candidate in the City of Peterborough, candidates must include with their nomination form endorsement signatures from at least 25 people who are eligible to vote in the municipal election in Peterborough.

The nomination filing fee is $200 to run as a mayoral candidate and $100 for Councillor and school board trustee positions.

In the City of Peterborough, positions for election are Mayor and two ward Councillors for each of the five wards (Otonabee, Monaghan, Town, Ashburnham, and Northcrest) for City Council as well as trustee positions for the local school boards:

• Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board

• Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington Catholic District School Board

• Conseil Scolaire Catholique MonAvenir

• Conseil Scolaire Viamonde

The City and Peterborough County townships are holding an information session for anyone who may be interested in running for municipal council positions.

The event, which is called Election Candidate 101: An information session with Fred Dean, runs from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Wednesday at Market Hall, 140 Charlotte St. in Peterborough. Doors open at 6 p.m.

Registration is required to attend the event in person as attendance is limited to 100 people. Register at eventbrite.ca. Wearing a face mask is encouraged for anyone attending the in-person event. The event will also be streamed online at peterborough.ca/livestreams.

Topics for the event will include:

• Municipal powers

• Roles and responsibilities

• The public’s role in local government

• The difference between governance and administration

• Municipal conflict of interest and other personal responsibilities as a member of Council

The event will help people interested in running for council decide on whether to become a candidate. It will help provide a clear understanding of roles and responsibilities for council members. It will provide information on the impact that the duties and responsibilities of public office has on council members. The event is not a debate forum, and it does not include information on the technical aspects of running a campaign.

For more information on the upcoming municipal election, visit peterborough.ca/election.

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Ontario Government Invests $2.7 Million In New Jobs Program For Peterborough

The Ontario Government is investing $2,714,847 for Pathways to Prosperity to provide workers with training for in-demand and well-paying jobs announced at the Venture North Building on Tuesday.

Rhonda Keenan, PKED President & CEO (pictured) speaking alongside MPP Dave Smith who was there on behalf of Monte McNaughton, Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The project is administered by Peterborough and the Kawarthas Economic Development (PKED).

PKED is focusing on workforce development over a 12-month period. The project’s goal is to have those employed or unemployed into sustainable well-paying jobs according to PKED. The program has three pillars:

• Pre-Employment Support: readiness, participant supports, referral to training, long-term retention support, including any mental health support.

• Job Seeker Training: 15 cohorts of job seekers will receive comprehensive training designed for four sectors: line cook, manufacturing, agriculture, and construction

• Business Recruitment: recruit 50 local businesses or more to participate and offer job placements for the job seekers at the end of their training.

“We laser-focused on job creation in our region; creating opportunities for workers and families to enter the middle class through well-paying local jobs,” MPP Dave Smith said. “This jobs program will see hundreds of people receive the training and skills development needed to upgrade their careers and earn more money for their families.”

“Creating a collaborative partnership that not only supports the job seeker, but the businesses in this community that are facing a critical skills shortage, was the focus of this program,” said Rhonda Keenan, PKED President & CEO. “Businesses will have greater support to successfully hire people with the skill sets that are most in demand in the City of Peterborough, Peterborough County, and the City of Kawartha Lakes region.”

This initiative is supported by the government’s Skills Development Fund. They have provided over $200 million in funding for innovative projects that address challenges to hiring, training, or retraining workers during the pandemic according to the Ontario Government.

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