-4.5 C
Niagara Falls
Thursday, December 11, 2025

Opinion

The Turner Report: What turned NOTL real estate skunky

"Sure, overpriced homes will continue to sit, but there are lots of properties now priced at 2022 levels, getting no action. Sellers are anxious. Many are willing to deal," writes Garth Turner.

Arts review: Bidding adieu to the Royal George with ‘A Christmas Carol’

"Some will mourn the final performances of 'A Christmas Carol' at the Royal George for the foreseeable future. Others will mourn the passing of the theatre itself," writes Penny-Lynn Cookson.

Arch-i-text: ‘If not here, then where?’ Not there.

"The basic precepts of good urban development planning place the onus on the local government to proactively identify low, medium and high-density locations," writes Brian Marshall.

The Forum: Our held-over then cancelled patio roller-coaster ride

"The only thing certain about this ongoing great town patio debacle is that it is not over," writes Steve McGuinness.

Dr. Brown: The long road travelled and ended — and a big thank you

"Over the last six years, I’ve witnessed their hard work, dedication and faithfulness to care for their charges much as they would their own. That’s been a privilege to witness first-hand, and never more so than in Jan’s last few days," writes Dr. William Brown.

The Turner Report: How many is too many? Maybe 231

"Unhosted short-term rentals are a bad idea. Period. Most municipalities in Canada have banned them. Having an Airbnb unit in your house is far different from buying a property and operating a ghost hotel with nobody living there full-time," writes Garth Turner.

Arch-i-text: It’s time: Let’s go over the draft of the new official plan

"The more public input that is provided at this juncture, the more likely it is that staff — principally Fiona Main, senior policy planner — will be able to meet their published timeline," writes Brian Marshall, in the first of a series of columns analyzing the town's latest official plan draft.

Arts review: In ‘Major Barbara,’ women confront class, power and morality

"In 'Major Barbara' of the Salvation Army, we hear the voices of Victorian women aspiring to liberation, to work, to earn money and have the right to social, political, legal and gender equality," writes Penny-Lynn Cookson.

Dr. Brown: A new telescope to solve old mysteries in the universe

"Given the high-tech nature of this telescope and wide window on the universe the Rubin telescope provides, we should get answers to many puzzling questions within the decade," writes Dr. William Brown.

Ross’ Ramblings: From Marilyn Bell to Vicky Mboko, many wonderful Canadian women athletes to love

"I totally climbed aboard the (Victoria) Mboko bandwagon, cheering for this wonderful tennis player with a positive on-court personality," writes Ross Robinson.

Growing Together: Give tired annuals a mid-summer boost with these tips

"Whether planted in garden beds or containers, they can lose energy and appear tired or leggy — especially during hot, dry weather," writes Joanne Young.

Bottom Line: Understanding how investment income is taxed

"By understanding how income on different investments gets taxed, you can enhance your after-tax yields by holding the more tax-advantaged investments outside of your RRSP and tax-free savings account," writes Steve McGuinness.

Letter: Preserving our history takes time and effort

"We are all in awe when we walk down historic cities or villages in Europe, yet we are totally oblivious to the effort it has taken local communities and administrations to protect what they have," writes Lydia Madonia.

Letter: Council can lead in demanding a rethink of Royal George plans

"At this point in the Royal George rebuild project, council should be holding all the cards it needs to win the game and the day," writes Terry Davis.

Letter: New cellphone tower doesn’t belong at Nelson Park

"The site is immediately beside the densest residential area in the Old Town and in a beautiful park, which has a steady stream of walking and biking visitors," writes Catherine Cornell.

Letter: Cell tower at Nelson Park should go elsewhere

"Why have they picked the most densely populated area in Old Town? There are some 130 residents nearby," writes Mike Henry.

Letter: Despite disagreeing with Turner Report, appreciate its existence

"I, for one, appreciate that The Lake Report gives Garth a prime-position soapbox even though I thoroughly disagree with his assessment and conclusions," writes Doug Mepham.

Letter: Where Chautauqua needs improvement — and where it should be preserved

"Change will indeed occur, it is inevitable — but aren’t there some types of change that are within one’s control?" writes Ruth Denyer.

Bottom Line: Bed, breakfast and tax

"Residents living on our once quiet town streets, in homes neighbouring unhosted short-term rental sites, complain about irresponsible renting to unruly groups," writes Steve McGuinness.

Dr. Brown: The Muon experiment was successful. Does it matter?

"Telescope design, whether for space or land-based, manufacture, launch and maintenance, to say nothing of the scientists and engineers involved, are all very expensive," writes Dr. William Brown.

Growing Together: Exploring the versatile world of ornamental grasses

"Grasses can be used as focal points in the garden. Many of the tall or dramatically coloured grasses can be used to draw the eye and anchor garden beds," writes Joanne Young.

Opinion: The importance of these streetscapes should not be overlooked

In a statement from the Niagara Foundation issued this week, it writes, "We recognize and value the Shaw Festival as a core cultural element and encourage it to be equally respectful of the heritage elements of this town, ensuring the Royal George 'fits' within our heritage district."

Arts review: Entire cast shines in Shaw presentation of ‘Gnit’

"Despite the absurdity of life and perhaps unreached dreams, our aspirations remain, and we can still find magic in the power of language and theatre," writes Penny-Lynn Cookson.

The Turner Report: Sorry, boss: Theatre design still sucks

In response to editor-in-chief Richard Harley's July 31 editorial, The Lake Report, writes Garth Turner, "embraces the size, the massing, the demolitions, the height, the truck bays, the big-box architecture, the gobbling-up of a residential street and the three or more years of construction chaos involved."

Arch-i-text: Where is the Parliament Oak hotel project’s engineering report?

"In the event this report has not been completed — which would be odd given that we’re eight months into 2025 — the question then becomes why would staff be proceeding with this application in the absence of any form of validation of the applicant’s claims?" writes Brian Marshall.

Letter: Council should be hiking, not advocating to lower, Parliament Oak hotel project’s fees

"Clearly, council shouldn’t have approved such a colossal commercial development on a property surrounded on four sides by single-family houses on quiet, narrow laneways," writes Wayne Murray.

Letter: Latest redlined official plan ‘slap in the face’ to Chautauqua

"Diluting this promise to a mere 'consideration' in the latest red-line version of the plan feels like a slap in the face," writes Robin Cardozo.

Letter: Lord mayor’s response to inquiries leaves us in limbo

"The lord mayor appears to be refusing to provide the information and has instructed the new CAO to merely prepare a summary of the historical correspondence and to 'close the loop,'" writes Gienek Ksiazkiewicz.

Letter: Let’s be civil when talking about public projects in town

"Robin is a respected festival director and tireless advocate whose efforts have made a meaningful cultural impact. Her support for the Shaw proposal stems from a sincere desire to see our town thrive," writes Kate Morris.

Letter: Chautauqua residents group gets ‘unfairly’ criticized by lord mayor

"The town asked for input on the revised official plan and as a respondent, the Chautauqua Residents Association (in my opinion) gets unfairly criticized," writes Brian Crow.

- A word from our sponsors -

Follow us

HomeOpinion

Subscribe to our mailing list