NOTL homeowners will pay more than $16 million for policing in 2025, but that total could be a lot lower if regional council stops using home values to calculate how the service is funded, says the former chair of Niagara's police services board.
After Konzelmann Estates Winery became the centre of a lawsuit by a Niagara-on-the-Lake resident last fall over allegations of violating town rules for special events, the winery is responding to concerns by seeking permission to host outdoor weddings.
While those involved don't know what the town’s share of the $41 million will be, the funding will allow long-planned upgrades to its user-paid municipal irrigation system to go ahead, said Coun. Erwin Wiens.
NOTL is in the home stretch of having a new plan that'll guide how the town will grow and how its land will be used — and, it hopes, one that the province will give a thumbs up to.
After the Shaw Festival's open house last week at the Royal George Theatre, some Niagara-on-the-Lake residents are feeling more optimistic about the planned rebuild — while others remain cautious.
Contrary to speculation in local Facebook groups and a freshly painted building, no approval has been granted for a microbrewery and farm distillery at the former Harvest Barn property in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
A new five-year safety plan from Niagara Region is putting renewed focus on crisis intervention in Niagara-on-the-Lake, aiming to stop emergencies before they happen.
Beachgoers are now expected to check the region’s website or assess real-time conditions themselves — a shift that left a Niagara-on-the-Lake councillor, along with some visitors at Queen’s Royal Beach last month, feeling uneasy.
Gary Zalepa said he thought it was important to "bring clarity" to the town of NOTL and make it clear to the new CAO that he would like to hand these responsibilities back to him.
The new theatre being proposed would be noticeably larger and occupy more of downtown Old Town, moved slightly further north from its current location on Queen Street and seat around 360 people.
“Bed and breakfasts and country inns need to separate from other short-term rentals,” said Doug Johnson, who owned a bed and breakfast in NOTL for 19 years. “Bed and breakfast owners have to live in their place … If residents were bothering people, they were bothering me, too."
