A Message from - Doug Dickerson

Pickering Retail News - October 2008

Over the summer months, I am sure many of you were actually able to take notice of all the beautiful flowers, and flower beds, flourishing throughout the city. Not to mention the lovely flower casements found attached to the railings of city bridges. This fabulous orchestration of colour, and beauty, is growing our reputation throughout the Province. It is only the second year we have actively participated in the provincial "Communities In Bloom" competitions.
 
As the Chair of Sustainable Pickering, I wish to offer my congratulations to the co-chairs, Councillor McLean and Mayor Ryan, along with city staff, residents, and the Pickering Horticultural Society, for bringing home, for the second straight year, the highest award - "5 Blooms". Well done, in only the second year the city has been registered. This year, at the Communities In Bloom Awards held in Gravenhurst, Pickering also came home with top honours for "Landscaped Areas"; and in a very special moment, although without award attached, our community was made special mention of for our youth initiatives; and on how involved they had become in the competition - often amongst themselves - with all residents the winners. The toughest decision the CIB Committee now faces is on whether to go for a "three-peat", or head for the nationals. My advice - be all that you can be!
 
A question was asked of myself about a month ago - and one that I simply couldn't answer until after asking around of our staff. The question involved a resident who, for whatever reason, had requested the News Advertiser not be delivered to her home. The question arose when she did not receive a copy of the City Services & Leisure Guide, which is distributed to every urban residential unit in Pickering by the News Ad. Not getting the paper, she didn't receive the 100+ page Guide.
 
After discussing this with our Director, Culture & Recreation, I was pleasantly surprised to know that the City will mail a copy to you in the event, perhaps, you might be in the same predicament by refusing the newspaper. Copies are also readily available at City Hall, all libraries and the Recreation Complex - as well as on-line through the city's web-site.
 
On another high note, more community groups have come forward to render their services for the City's "Adopt-a-Park" program. Amongst other things, they commit to assisting in reducing vandalism by watching out for suspicious activity in their adopted park, keeping an eye on local children using the park, and doing at least three litter pick-ups a year.
 
Congratulations go out to the Tamil Cultural and Academic Society, formed just a year ago with the leadership of President, Raveena Rajasingham. They have adopted Bonita Park, located on Fairport Rd. at Bonita Ave. The Fairfield-Beechlawn Neighbourhood Association, with Annette McIntosh, adopted Beechlawn Park; while another recently formed group organized by Alvin Adams of Durham Educational Mentoring Program, took up the task with the adoption of Village East Park located on Pickering Pkwy.
 
And finally, another Neighbourhood Watch group has been certified by the Durham Regional Police and the City. The group, known as Frenchman's Bay-West Shore Neighbourhood Watch, have exceeded the requirement of at least 75% resident participation within their area and raised the funds for identifying signage which will be installed by city works staff. With each Neighbourhood Watch born, vandals and criminals know their chances of being apprehended by the police grows substantially should they decide to "work" their unsavory ways within that community. Bravo to those residents, who care enough, to become involved!
 
Doug Dickerson
City Councillor, Ward 2
E-mail: ddickerson@cityofpickering.com<mailto:ddickerson@cityofpickering.com>