I am thankful for the opportunity to again address you as President of the IDA. In last year’s remarks, I spoke about the collective experience, the continuous dedication and the constant presence of this Board and its members, in this community.
From gravel pits to rock groynes, the IDA has been involved.
- We are proud of our strengthened connections with Coalitions such as Simcoe County Greenbelt and Rescue Lake Simcoe
- We continue to work with staff and Council on hot-button issues such as IBP, the Rivkin OMB hearings and ongoing development challenges and opportunities
- We are very excited to announce our website and social media channels are undergoing a makeover! Updating the look; creating opportunities for more dialogue and discourse; posting frequent news articles and encouraging more engagement were chief among our goals. We wish to recognize and thank Board Directors Mary Borthwick and Karen Kessler for their tireless efforts to bring us this new platform!
What exactly have we done in the last year?
For an organization fueled by passion, purpose, and participation, I think it’s important to note that we all are volunteers. We are non-partisan and not-for-profit. We depend on your annual membership fees to continue the work we do which is in large part to inform and involve Innisfil residents in what matters to us all.
- Last Fall, we co-sponsored, co-facilitated and ran a very successful 2018 All-Candidates debate for 24 candidates!
Speaking of debates, you may be aware that an organization called Greenpac – no affiliation to the Green Party – is coordinating a Canada-wide “100 Debates on the Environment”; all of which occur on the same night – October 3rd, 2019.
The Barrie-Innisfil riding debate will take place right outside those doors; I’m told they have a very enthusiastic moderator!
- Earlier this year, we supported a benefit fundraiser entitled ‘Love Letter to the Lake’, with all monies raised to protect Lake Simcoe; we attended a Protect our Plan event in support of the impending review of the LSPP; finally, the IDA were once again active volunteers at the best-ever Pitch-in day on record!
- This winter, on behalf of resident Lindsay Histrop, several of our Board Directors appeared as Participants at OMB Hearings regarding the proposed Rivkin over-water boathouse. This potentially precedent-setting case has spanned several months, now years, culminating in May 2020 OMB hearings.
- As a member of Lake Simcoe Watch, we joined forces with 30 other agencies and Environmental Defense to fight regressive Provincial policies and launch a coordinated response to counter the attack on our environment and our province.
Our next BIG Project
To be perfectly candid, we’ve had many conversations about ‘the next BIG project’, what it should be, where to direct our energy and our focus.
And we came to the realization that that project was right at our doorstep, the entire time. In fact, it’s in our positioning line and in the vision of the founders of the IDA.
We will continue to work on protecting the health of Lake Simcoe and our natural environment.
I was recently quoted about Lake Simcoe saying, ‘This is the fight of its life.’ It wasn’t an idle comment; it was a clarion call.
One of many being made around the Lake.
With current, future and proposed development – both residential and commercial abutting the Lake, higher than ever beach advisories and overall increased usage, there are limits to its ability to remain healthy and vibrant.
Working with stakeholders to ensure the Lake Simcoe Protection Plan review is maintained, strengthened and expanded is important to us, indeed it should be important to us all.
In closing, I’d like to reiterate my comments from last year, because they seem even more urgent now:
My mandate is to grow the IDA both in scope and in size.
The residents of Innisfil need a voice and we’re listening.
I am thankful to our Directors, past and present for the ongoing opportunity to lead, to learn and to listen.
Most of all, I thank our members for their ongoing support.
We’re here to stay and we’re moving forward to “Shape Tomorrow’s Innisfil Today”.