MPP Dave Smith Relocating Constituency Office to Chemong Road Plaza

Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith is on the move as his is relocating his Action Centre to 864 Chemong Rd. announced on Wednesday.

DAVE SMITH was re-elected as MPP on June 2, EARNing BACK-TO-BACK TERMS FOR THE CONSERVATIVE PARTY FOR THE PETERBOROUGH-KAWARTHA RIDING since GARY STEWART FROM 1995-2003. PHOTO BY David Tuan Bui.

The new location is in the Asta Spirit Plaza across from Brookdale Plaza. The signage has already been installed as of Wednesday. The current location at 1123 Water St. will be demolished to construct new housing units such as townhouses and two-bedroom apartments by Cherney Properties.

Over the last few months, the new location has undergone interior renovations to make it fully accessible for seniors and anyone with disabilities. The renovations include a wheelchair ramp, an automatic door opener, bathroom upgrades, widen doorways and the creation of open, barrier-free space for those with visual impairments according to a press release.

“After four years at our Water Street location, we’ve come to the decision that it’s time for us to move. We desperately need more housing in Peterborough,” said Smith. “We aren’t going far though. I’ve always said that it is important that people from across the riding, not just the city, can easily access the Action Centre. This location maintains the ample parking and access by the townships surrounding the City of Peterborough that our existing office has.”

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"I'm advocating on behalf of two million students." MPP Dave Smith Urges CUPE To Renegotiate and Stop Striking

MPP Dave Smith explains the province's steps and stance toward the Canadian Union of Public Employees’ actions which are fighting for a pay raise. He says the ball is in CUPE's court to act but wants to have students back in schools as soon as possible.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford has agreed to repeal Bill 28 if the CUPE workers agreed to stop striking. According to Ford’s tweet Monday morning, CUPE has agreed to withdraw.

I’m glad CUPE has agreed to withdraw its strike action so kids can return to class. We’ll be back at the table to negotiate a fair deal — for students, parents, workers and taxpayers.

— Doug Ford (@fordnation) November 7, 2022

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MPP Dave Smith Announces Murray Whetung Community Service Award Act To Be Introduced

MPP Dave Smith and other dignitaries have announced the introduction of the Murray Whetung Community Service Award Act in a teleconference held on Thursday afternoon.

(from left to right) MPP Dave Smith; Chief Emily Whetung; Michael Ford, Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism and Chief Mel Hardy, Anishinabek Nation Regional Deputy Grand Council Chief and former Chief of Curve Lake First Nation. Photo courtesy of MPP Dave Smith.

Michael Ford, Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism, Chief Mel Hardy, Anishinabek Nation Regional Deputy Grand Council Chief and Chief Emily Whetung, former Chief of Curve Lake First Nation were also in attendance to make the announcement.

The bill, if passed, creates an award for Cadet Corps and Squadrons at the Annual Ceremonial Reviews. Ontario’s 288 active Canadian Cadet Corps and Squadrons can select a member who has displayed exceptional volunteerism and citizenship over the past year to be eligible for the Murray Whetung Community Service Award.

“Murray Whetung was a pillar in our community. He volunteered to fight in the Second World War and dedicated his life to family and service. I was honoured to receive his endorsement for this legislation before his passing,” said MPP Dave Smith. “This bill does more than recognize the life of one man, it seeks to teach others of the injustices First Nations veterans faced for risking their lives in service to Canada.”

In the First and Second World Wars, roughly 7,000 First Nations residents voluntarily served. For those who served continuously, their rights were stripped for time away from the reserve. Indigenous veterans able to retain their status were often ineligible for benefits available to non-Indigenous veterans following the wars.

“My Shomis (grandfather) was humbled when MPP Smith approached him about the idea of an award named after him,” said Whetung. “My Shomis did what he thought needed to be done and didn’t expect special recognition. He was a shining example of choosing happiness in the face of adversity and an inspiration to so many of us.”

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Third Annual 'Winter is Coming' Food Drive Launched to Aid Food Insecurity in Peterborough County

The third annual ‘Winter is Coming Food Drive’ has been launched by Kawartha Food Share (KFS) and Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith to aid in food insecurity for Peterborough County announced on Thursday.

Non-perishable goods and monetary donations are being collected on five separate dates in different locations to aid their respective townships.

“These food drives are always such a great way for community members living in the county,” said Ashlee Aitken, KFS general manager. “The rising cost of food has made this a very difficult year for KFS, our member agencies and of course, food insecure community members.”

Aitken says the food bank aided 7,000-8,000 people prior to the pandemic that began in March 2020. That number rose to 9,000 during the winter months. During the pandemic, demand would increase by 20 per cent to 12,000 people.

Smith is collecting at most of the listed dates and aided the campaign in its last two years. The grand total has raised almost $40,000 worth of cash and food donations in November 2020.

“I was a member of the Kinsmen Club and our motto was to 'serve the community's greatest needs' and I've always taken that to heart,” explained Smith. “I now have an opportunity where people recognize my name more than they did say 10 years ago with different groups. I have that opportunity to use my name and do good for my community.”

The following is a listed schedule of the ‘Winter is Coming’ campaign:

• Havelock Foodland collecting for Havelock-Belmont-Methuen Food Bank from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Oct. 1

• Lakefield Giant Tiger collecting for Lakefield Community Food Bank from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Oct. 20

• John’s Your Independent Grocer collecting for Bridgenorth Food Bank from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Oct. 28

• Buckhorn Foodland collecting for Rural Outreach from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Oct. 29

• Morello’s Independent Gorce collecting for North Kawartha Food Bank from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Nov. 5*

*A special drive to support the Apsley food bank, who has lost their community’s only grocery store in a fire late last year.

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Ontario Government Bringing High-Speed Internet Access to Peterborough County

The Ontario Government is bringing another expansion of high-speed internet across Peterborough County announced by MPP Dave Smith at the Douro-Dummer Township Fire & Rescue Department Station 4 on Friday morning.

The Ontario government has committed over $950 million to nearly 190 broadband, cellular and satellite projects to date, bringing faster internet access to over 375,000 homes and businesses across the province. Photo by Luke Best.

In attendance with Smith was J. Murray Jones, Warden of Peterborough County and Mayor of Douro-Dummer and Coun. Heather Watson.

Townships affected by the investment include Trent Lakes, Havelock-Belmont-Methuen, Douro-Dummer, Selwyn and North Kawartha. The Ontario Government wants to connect the entire province by end of 2025.

“We live in an increasingly interconnected and digital world, and we cannot allow our small rural communities fall behind,” said MPP Dave Smith. “Students depend on high-speed internet to learn and our farmers and small businesses need access to reliable service to remain competitive and showcase their products.”

The provincial government estimates around 9,000 remaining homes and businesses without high-speed internet in Peterborough County. Within that number, there are 1,350 in Selwyn, 1,640 in Trent Lakes, 2,380 in Havelock and 1,870 in Douro-Dummer that will benefit from the upgrade according to Smith.

He adds that customers can expect to receive high-speed Internet within 30 to 60 days.

“The infrastructure is almost completely in place now,” Smith explained. “It'll (high-speed internet) be offered to all of those residents, the tower itself has been upgraded and it's ready to go. It's just a matter of those final small pieces of hardware and then making that the offer out to customers.”

Clients will have a choice between Rogers Communications Canada, Xplornet Communications Inc. and Bell Canada to access the high-speed internet. Those companies have signed an agreement with the province to bring high-speed internet access to homes and businesses in the county as stated by Smith.

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Lions Club Shoe Drive Collects Over 1,400 Pairs of Footwear For Third-World Countries

The second annual Peterborough Lions Club Shoe Drive saw continued success as 1,402 pairs of shoes were collected to be given to third-world countries announced on Tuesday.

MPP Dave Smith (right) donated three pairs of shoes to contribute to the final total. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

Gently-used or brand-new footwear of all kinds was accepted at the drive from the month-long campaign from May 14 to Tuesday. Community members could drop off their donations at the club at 347 Burnham St. or at designated locations around the area.

The shoes will go to Soles4Souls which are given to women in third-world countries to help them get out of poverty according to Judy Jenkins, Lions service chair.

“They clean them, they sell them in the market where they give them to kids who don't have shoes because in the third-world countries, the kids have to have shoes in order to go to school,” she said.

MPP Dave Smith remained involved with the drive, donating three pairs of shoes as the last official tallied donation. The inaugural drive last year yielded 2,549 pairs but Smith says this year’s number is misleading and is still an impressive feat given the circumstances.

“When they started the drive, it was just before the beginning of May and we had that storm that just came through,” said Smith. “They lost about 10 or 12 days of activity going out into the community to try and raise awareness.”

The club’s goal was 1,000 pairs and almost did not meet it until a surge of donations came through out of nowhere.

“The Peterborough community, they're outstanding when it comes to generosity," said Jenkins. "All of a sudden in the last week, we went from 540 a week out and now we're over 1,400."

The community can still contribute to the cause by donating to Bioped Footcare at 655 The Queensway, Unit 6.

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MPP Dave Smith Elected For Second Term In Provincial Election

It’s four more years for Conservative candidate and MPP Dave Smith as he won the 2022 Peterborough-Kawartha Riding for the provincial election held on Thursday night.

Dave Smith earns back-to-back terms for the Conservative Party. Gary Stewart was the last Conservative MPP for the Peterborough-Kawartha riding to get elected for consecutive terms from 1995-2003. Photo by Luke Best.

Smith won the riding with 20,188 votes, getting a 38.5 per cent share of the ballots. This win marks the start of his second term as MPP.

"Anytime you're an elected official, the whole goal is to help the people that have put you there," said Smith. "For this many people to step forward once again and say, 'we like what you've done, we believe in you, please represent us again,' it's a very humbling experience."

Smith held his election party at the Peterborough Golf & Country Club that had a small and quiet crowd in the final hour before ballots closed at 9 p.m. EST.

The crowd picked up to roughly 80 people once ballots were being counted. It only took 38 minutes since the polls closed before Smith was declared the winner. There were chants of ‘four more years’ and a loud cheer once the result was in.

"When we went out there with Covid, I tried listening to what the challenges were," said Smith. "People recognized that I was there in their corner in a tough time and I was trying to do things that were going to make life better for them."

Smith’s victory was a stepping stone for the Conservative Party as Premier Doug Ford was re-elected to a second term 11 minutes after polls closed. They earned a majority government seven minutes later.

"I think people were happy with what we did over the last four years," said Smith. "They recognized that Premier Ford has a heart of gold and his whole intent is for the people of Ontario.”

Smith says ‘the work is not done yet’ as he has several issues he wants to tackle after being re-elected. He says he has a start on addressing the healthcare challenges in the province by rebuilding the economy and getting people jobs first.

"When the economy is moving well, we have more money as government to do all of the extra things we need to support people," he said.

Smith notes that more work needs to be done in healthcare, long-term care, education skills trades, natural resources, forestry and Indigenous affairs.

All photos by Luke Best.

The following were the results of the Peterborough-Kawartha Riding:

• Dave Smith (Conservative) - 20,188 votes (38.5 per cent)

• Greg Dempsey (Liberal) - 16,021 votes (30.6 per cent)

• Jen Deck (New Democratic) - 11,210 votes (21.4 per cent)

• Tom Morazzo (Ontario Party) - 1,973 votes (3.8 per cent)

• Robert Gibson (Green) - 1,914 votes (3.7 per cent)

• Rebecca Quinnell (New Blue) - 1,078 votes (2.1 per cent)

Dempsey made a brief visit congratulating Smith’s win while Deck and Gibson spent a longer amount of time with the Conservative candidate after his win.

Ontario Liberal Steven Del Duca lost his hometown riding of Vaughan-Woodbridge and stepped down as leader. He lost to Michael Tibollo who defeated him back in 2018.

NDP’s Andrea Horwath resigned as leader however the party remains as the official opposition. She won her riding of Hamilton Centre in a landslide by nearly 12,000 votes (57.3 per cent share).

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Express GO Bus Line to Richmond Hill Is Being Proposed For Peterborough

Getting to Toronto in three to four hours via public transit may be a thing of the past as MPP Dave Smith is proposing a new Express Go Bus line in Peterborough to the GO Bus station at Hwy 407 and Yonge Street in Richmond Hill.

File Photo.

The proposed line from Peterborough will arrive at the GO Bus station at Hwy 407 and Yonge St. in Richmond Hill with stops at Trent University, the Peterborough Bus Terminal and Fleming College.

A trip to Toronto/Peterborough would cut travel times with due to less traffic congestion on Highway 407 and would cost less roughly than $30 according to Smith.

The line will provide Peterborough with a direct route to Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) buses and subways, York Region Transit, GO buses, and access to the GO train and VIA Rail service. The service could reduce several hours in travel for a round-trip to Toronto and vice versa.

“Ontario is undergoing the largest transportation infrastructure expansion in the history of the province including a $28 billion transit expansion in the City of Toronto,” said Smith. “I want Peterborough to be included in that so that residents can easily work, make medical appointments, attend classes, and visit the entire region of Toronto.”

One benefit of the bus includes some relief from the housing crisis. There could be increased vacancies as a result of students making a commute to post-secondary schools in Peterborough.

“If I have 200 students that no longer move to Peterborough, that frees up 40-50 hours or apartments,” explained Smith. “If you have less demand, the market price doesn’t go up as fast. It should alleviate some of the pressures as rent goes up.”

Smith adds that tourism could see an increase as anyone from the GTA area has increased access to Peterborough.

“When you take a look at the leisure side of things, you could go see a Blue Jays game, the Raptors, the Leafs game,” said Smith. “Before, you could only have one tallboy and that’s it because you had to drive. Now you can enjoy a few extra adult beverages with the express bus.”

Smith held an open virtual town hall with Metrolinx on Tuesday night providing surveys to the general public regarding the need for the express bus.

Roughly 60 people were surveyed with approximately 96 per cent responding in favour of the bus line according to Smith.

If approved, the express bus could start in 18-24 months.

To take the online survey regarding the Express Go Bus, click here.

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Youth Emergency Shelter Receives $52,900 Through Ontario Grant For Staff Training

The Youth Emergency Shelter (YES) has received $52,900 to aid in staff training from the Ontario Trillium Foundation at the Murray St. Baptist Church on Tuesday.

Last year, Ontario Trillium Foundation nearly $112M was invested into 1,384 community projects and partnerships to build healthy and vibrant communities and strengthen the impact of Ontario’s non-profit sector. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The money came from the Resilient Communities Fund grant which was designed to help non-profits rebuild and recover from the impacts of COVID-19.

The extra funding will be used to help with adding more staff training programs. This included Mental Health First Aid for, Natural Support Connection training provided by A Way Home Canada and the development of an organization-wide well-being strategic plan.

 “The YES Shelter for Youth and Families provides a critical service to young men and women in our community facing unique challenges. I have been proud to support their team as they carry out their diligent and compassionate work,” said MPP Dave Smith. “It’s often said that you should take care of the hands that take care of you. In this case, the mental health support this funding enables will ensure the dynamic, high-quality service offered by the staff at YES can continue as we move forward.”

YES has seen an increase in mental and physical health crises amongst those experiencing homelessness with far fewer supports available since March last year.

There has also been an organizational rise in staff burnout accompanying the additional pressures on front-line positions according to Aimee Le Lagadec, YES interim executive director.

“The onset of COVID-19 significantly increased the mental health needs of youth and families experiencing homelessness in Peterborough,” she said. “The Ontario Trillium Foundation made it possible for us to provide our staff with impactful training that has further equipped our organization to support youth and families during a crisis.”

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Summer Food Drive Ends With 8,000 Pounds of Donated Goods

Peterborough County showed its generosity as over 8,000 pounds of food was donated to Kawartha Food Share (KFS) in a summer campaign announced Tuesday.

(left to right) Murray Jones, Ashlee Aitken and Dave Smith at Kawartha Food Share. KFS distributes 150,000-200,000 pounds of food in a month which feeds over 9,000 individuals. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The drive began in early June where Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith toured around participating grocery stores around the county. Roughly $5,000 in cash donations was given as part of the drive.

Smith was accompanied by KFS general manager Ashlee Aitken and warden of Peterborough County, J. Murray Jones to make the announcement of the food drive’s conclusion at the KFS warehouse.

Over the summer, food drives were held twice at Morello’s Your Independent Grocer, John’s Valu-mart Lakefield Giant Tiger, Buckhorn Foodland and Havelock Foodland.

“This is our second food drive since the COVID-19 pandemic began,” said Smith. “I am always shocked at the generosity of the people in our community, having raised over 8,000 pounds of food for our communities and $5,000 in cash donations.”

“The food drive truly reaches those who need a helping hand,” said Jones.

These drives supported the local food banks in Lakefield, Havelock-Belmont-Methuen, Curve Lake First Nation, Buckhorn, North Kawartha, and the Lovesick Lake Native Women’s Association.

“This initiative has raised over 3000 pounds of food for our local North Kawartha Food Bank which is incredible,” said Carolyn Amyotte, North Kawartha mayor. “Having lost our only grocery store to fire last December, Dave’s efforts to re-stock community food banks like ours is humbling and very much appreciated.”