Archive
Lettres - Letters
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20 juin / June 20
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Aylmer councillors and Mayor Bureau trade barbs
Julie Murray
Overgrown, weed-filled parks and the ruined marina docks are evidence the amalgamated city neglects Aylmer, contends Councillor André Laframboise. Instead of replacing the 40 year-old docks, city council put off the repairs for the Parc des Cèdres renovation plan. “It’s always postponed. Now it’s time to act. We can’t neglect the situation any longer,” said Mr Laframboise in the first of a series of exchanges in the media. “The city is letting Aylmer go. We don’t have the attention we deserve.”
Mr Laframboise argued that Aylmer Interclubs and the Heritage Association must fight “a continual battle for funding” and that not one Aylmer street is included in the city’s new speed-reduction plan. Nor is Aylmer represented on council’s executive committee, an old complaint of Mr Laframboise. The councillor’s comments were “inappropriate,” fired back Mayor Marc Bureau. Putting Aylmer on the executive committee “is not something I will do in this mandate. And comments like that won’t help.” He added that Aylmer is not on the executive committee because the sector’s councillors are “inexperienced.” Mr Laframboise bristles, “Inexperienced? I was an Aylmer municipal councillor for ten years, and for six years I served on the Outaouais Urban Community.” Councillor Frank Thérien also served three terms on the council of the old city of Aylmer. Mr Thérien told The Bulletin, “The mayor had nerve, calling André and I ‘rookies’.”
Aylmer got a pool and parks, says mayor
“We’re not neglecting Aylmer,” said Mayor Bureau, who visited Aylmer, June 10, to inspect the damaged docks. “We’ve built a new pool in Aylmer, and we don’t have one in Hull or in Gatineau. We’ve built parks and are going to synchronize the traffic lights on Boulevard Taché.” Councillor Alain Riel also believes Aylmer is getting its fair share, telling the media, “It’s not true that Aylmer is getting less than other sectors. To say otherwise is demagoguery. It’s dishonest and unhealthy. Aylmer is well served. It’s getting as much as other sectors and I challenge my colleagues to prove otherwise.”
In reply, Councillor Thérien told The Bulletin, “Per capita, Aylmer contributes more in residential taxes than any other sector in Gatineau.” Despite that, “We have 20 kilometres of unpaved roads in Aylmer. Lower Lucerne Boulevard belongs in a third world country. The city has no plans to fix it.” Last year, council voted to close 11 skating rinks in Aylmer, in an effort to “harmonize” services across the city. Similarly, despite its aging population, last year Hull received 54% of the city’s sports and recreation grants.
History of dispute
In January, 2006, The Bulletin reported that the quality of maintenance equipment in Aylmer was so poor that a wheel fell off of a snowplow in the middle of a snow storm as workers attempted to clear the streets. After Councillor Thérien commented on the shoddy equipment, and Councillor Laframboise spoke out against the city’s issuing an $850,000 contract without going to tender, both men were warned by a city official to vet their remarks through the mayor’s office before speaking to the media.
Mr Riel pointed out that Gatineau has invested in the Aylmer pool, the new fire station on Allumettieres Boulevard, the water filtration plant, and, as well as the skateboard park and the Boucher Forest study. Councillor Laframboise noted that the old city of Aylmer had set already aside enough money for the pool. “Aylmer was going to build the pool itself,” said Mr Thérien, adding that the city must build a new fire station to comply with new provincial requirements, and that the water filtration plant “isn’t a perk, it’s a necessity,” given Aylmer’s rapid growth. This summer, June 14, Klock Road residents were without water for several hours and one resident reports that water pressure is low regularily.
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La semaine de Gatineau
Les célébrations de la Semaine de Gatineau au Parc de Cèdres: un franc succès! Ce fut une journée absolument éblouissante que celle de la célébration de la Semaine de Gatineau en ce dimanche 10 juin au parc des Cèdres. Il fallait voir jeunes et moins jeunes s’adonner joyeusement aux activités organisées par la ville, le tout sous un ciel radieux; jeux d’enfants, ballon-volant, piques-niques, sans oublier la plage et ses nombreux(ses) adeptes, sous les douces mélodies d’un véritable orgue de barbarie!
Nos remerciements aux employé(e)s de la Ville et aux nombreux bénévoles pour leur très compétente organisation de cet évènement qui permet de mieux connaître notre ville, ses employé(e)s ses nombreux services, ainsi que d’autre organisations telles les Scouts. Toute une réussite!
Mille fois bravo, on a déjà hâte à l’an prochain!
Manon Boucher, Présidente
Association des résidents du Vieux Aylmer
La fête nationale à la craie
Impératif français et l’artiste Gilles Pelletier invitent les gens de l’Outaouais à venir célébrer la fête nationale, craie à la main. Venez participer en grand nombre à une oeuvre collective où vous pourrez dessiner soit votre propre silhouette, soit celle d’un ami, écrire un message ou simplement colorier dans des formes déjà prédéterminées.
Venez célébrer avec nous en exécutant une oeuvre gigantesque à même la piste cyclable d’Aylmer sur le site des grandes festivités de la fête nationale du Québec, près de la scène Gerry-Boulet, les 22, 23 et 24 juin entre midi et 17 h 30.
Pour vous inscrire à cette activité artistique, composez le 819 684-5735 et laissez-nous votre nom ainsi que le jour et l’heure qui vous conviennent.
Gilles Pelletier
Aylmer
Le placement étudiant en ligne
Le placement étudiant au Québec est sous la responsabilité d’Emploi-Québec qui se spécialise dans la recherche et la sélection de candidatures étudiantes. À partir du site Internet du Placement étudiant, emploietudiant.qc.ca, vous aurez accès à Placement en ligne. Ce service d’emploi permet aux employeurs d’afficher des offres d’emploi et de sélectionner des candidatures étudiantes tout à fait gratuitement et à leur rythme.
Placement en ligne vous permet d’inscrire et de diffuser vous-même vos offres d’emploi, et ce, 24 heures sur 24. Il vous permet également d’inscrire des « Alertes-Candidats », ce qui signifie que vous pouvez recevoir par courrier électronique, tous les jours ou une fois par semaine, les nouvelles candidatures qui correspondent à vos critères de recrutement.
Si vous avez besoin d’aide afin de publier une offre d’emploi dans Placement en ligne ou si vous n’avez pas accès à Internet, vous pouvez rejoindre le Centre d’assistance au placement au 1 866 640-3059.
Vous devez fournir votre numéro d’entreprise du Québec (NEQ) pour vous inscrire à Placement en ligne. Vous pouvez l’obtenir en communiquant avec le Registre des entreprises (REQ) au 1 888 291-4443.
Mon mandat en tant que coordonnateur du Placement étudiant du Québec en Outaouais est de favoriser le rapprochement entre les étudiants et employeurs et ainsi améliorer l’embauche des jeunes dans leur champ d’études et injecter un savoir-faire nouveau dans les entreprises.
Savio DeMorais
Coordonnateur régional du Placement étudiant du Québec
Gatineau
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Parks vs pets
Neighbours and myself are having problems with dogs in our park; starting last year, pet owners have been coming into our park and letting their dogs run loose.
Three daycares use this park every day and it is becoming dangerous. Since the spring I have had two incidents with my two children in the park. My thirteen-month-old was playing in the sand and unburied dog poop. Two weeks ago I politely told a child who was in the park with her pet to bring her dog home since she wasn’t allowed in the park with her dog; 15 minutes later I had a “rough conversation” with her parent who was not aware that no animals are allowed in Gatineau parks — in front of my seven year old and my baby.
Our play structure has dog urine running down all the corners which ends up in the sand where the children play. We need to get the No Dogs Allowed signs back up in the parks. Citizens do not know pets are not allowed because all the signs are gone. When I spoke to 3-1-1 a couple of weeks ago, they told me to call every time I see an animal in the park, but for one by the time the dog catcher ends up here the dogs are gone (which is not his fault as he has all of Aylmer to look after), and, number two, if I call on the weekends this will cost a fortune in overtime, which comes out of our taxes.
We need to keep our parks as clean and safe as we can for our kids; this is the only green space they have left in Aylmer. We need our signs back.
Nathalie Gauthier (pet owner)
Aylmer
Bringing balance to the world
On a day in which the Canadian Cancer Society has reminded me that one in three people are diagnosed with cancer, I am reading life-giving articles restoring community, and connection, in The Bulletin! Headlines such as “A ton of food for Aylmer’s Food Bank”, May 2, and “Councillor, mayor, and kids clean up Boucher Forest”, May 30, show people caring for each other and the world we live in. To be successful in this, we have to educate people, but also giving them ways to be included, so as to learn new choices, is empowering.
To help clean and nurture planet Earth, our Indigenous people, the National Peace Council, and others are initiating the annual Canada River Day to clean along the Ottawa River. Such projects are about self-responsibility. Our world has been a mirror to us of the disease and disharmony that can occur when greed replaces spirituality and our connection is lost with Mother Earth. Our region is blessed to have such projects as on Victoria Island, June 10, with a blessing ceremony on the vision of William Commada of an Indigenous Interpretation, Healing, and Peace-building Centre. Canada River Day is a day of respect & solidarity, inviting in a spirit of cooperation with Algonquin peoples, all groups and municipalities to help clean along the Ottawa River next year. For details call Dr. Peter Stockdale at 613-421-2273 (peterstockdale@rogers.com).
Like the call of the mighty Ottawa helping us to be good stewards of the Ottawa River, The Heart + Soul Light Centre and Spiritual Frontiers Canada invite people to cross bridges and widen community, June 20 at 7:15pm at Christ Church Hall, Frank Robinson Road in Aylmer. In a healing circle with three guest speakers, participants will share the theme, “Celebrating Indigenous First Nations Spirituality.” Such evenings help us to awaken spiritually to the relevant issues of our times and to see what we can do. We are all called to bring balance and healing to our own lives, that we may bring the same to Earth. We have much to learn from our Indigenous sisters/brothers and from each other. Learning to listen and act upon what we learn, replacing fear with love through mutual care and compassion, we are the transforming force of a power greater than ourselves. How we choose to live our lives is crucial to our health and the well being of our world. The stories The Bulletin prints show us replacing disease and greed with balance and human caring. Thanks to The Bulletin, we can see the transforming possibilities happening in our world, and that getting well is everybody’s shared responsibility.
Judith Matheson
Heart + Soul Light Centre
Aylmer
Vandalism
This is a letter to the clever person who filled the exhaust of one of our cars up with spray foam insulation the night of Thursday June 14. We thought it was hilarious; the fact that my wife drove all the way to work with potentially flammable foam covering the outside and plugging the outlet of her muffler is really amusing. You know who you are and we would just like you to think about one thing... had her car caught fire perhaps you could have been charged with manslaughter instead of vandalism. I suppose that never crossed your mind? Next time you’re out amusing yourself at the expense of others, try thinking about the consequences of your actions.
S. King
Aylmer
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