City Versus Protesters, Part III

The week started back in provincial court on Monday as Justice Bonnie Wein’s one week reprieve for the protestors came due for final arguments. This time it was Justice Douglas Gray that would be hearing the case, sitting before another packed courtroom of friends and supporters of the occupiers of the land upon which the city wants the future HCBP to sit.

So walking into court Monday morning, as they had only six days early, many were wondering if this moment would indeed mean the protest’s end. But the system surprised once again as Gray reserved his decision to grant the City's injunction until his written decision was delivered to attorneys on both sides at the end of the week. Justice Gray also upheld the conditions put down by Justice Wein in her decision the week before, but the protesters had to allow the city to do additional repair work such as removing log barriers and filling in trenches dug by the protesters that obstructed vehicles from entering the site.

Basically it came down to our old friend the Jefferson Salamander. Amongst the evidence presented was a correspondence from the Ministry of Natural Resources in May and July that recommending the City not proceed with construction until further examination was done for the presence of the salamander’s habitat following the discovery of a hybrid salamander on the site in April. Ian Hagman, Guelph district manager for the Ministry of Natural Resources, as a witness for the city, testified that no legal action was taken to stop the city from doing construction on the site. Basically, without knowing the exact spot of the salamander's habitat, the Ministry's hands were tied. The Friday before this latest court appearance, the HCBP protesters through their attorney filed their own motion of injunction against the city claiming that their environmental assessments weren't extensive enough.

It was Thursday morning when Justice Grey delivered his decision, and while the city’s injunction to have the protesters removed from the HCBP site was upheld, so was the protestors injunction to stop construction and giving the Ministry of Natural Resources 30-Days to decide if its going to issue a stop work order on the site. True, it was one of those rare cases in life where everybody wins, but the victory was immediately taken up by the protesters and their supporters as a sign that you can beat City Hall. “So it would seem that we beat them at their own game,” said a message from the Facebook group ‘Save Our Old Growth Forest.’ “[This means] that work at the HCBP cannot continue for 30 Days! 30 days ahead brings us to September 13, just two days before the city's deadline to have work completed. It has set this deadline in order to comply with restrictions around fisheries and habitat protection.”

The City did its own spin on the day’s events though. “The City was successful in obtaining an injunction to keep people from trespassing and interfering with construction activities in relation to the Phase 1 lands,” said a press release issued later on Thursday. The mayor added, "We're pleased with Justice Gray's decision," said Karen Farbridge. "It sets the stage for more constructive dialogue with MNR in the coming month and beyond." The press release continued by saying that the city takes its responsibilities seriously and that they look forward to continuing a dialogue with the MNR.

On Friday, the protesters left as peacefully as when they arrived. In summation they noted on the HCBP occupation blog the circumstances of their last morning there. “Today was a hot day, and after camp was taken down, a few of us had a special dip in the creek, saying our goodbyes and humble gratitudes to this sacred place. The blue heron circled around the meadows as we hung around the front gate, and as much as we will miss this place, it feels great to give the heron its home back.” The question is though: for how long? (Not) The End.

HCBP Update and Bike Racks

Apparently, You Can Fight City Hall

The Tuesday following the Civic Holiday dawned with the anticipation that the occupation of over 50 protesters at the site of the future Hanlon Creek Business Park was just hours away from a forced end. The call went out the night before as organizers spread e-mails, IMs and Facebook messages to get as many people out to the provincial court house on Woolwich St. The intention was to show as much support as possible in the court room to make the inevitable harder to follow through on. But in an act of cosmic irony, Justice Bonnie J. Wein decided to give the protesters a six day reprieve, effectively allowing the occupation to continue an extra week.

There were provisos however. Judge Wein ordered that there cannot be more than 30 people on site at a time and that only included people who had set up shop on the site for at least 24 hours. The protesters also had to allow the re-staking of survey stakes and the repair of the silt fencing and they were barred from adding any new structures to the site. A rope was also ordered put up as an ad hoc fence around the site, and all that work got underway on Wednesday morning. “So in short, this is a huge victory, and nearly unprecedented in Canada for the Defendants of an injunction to be allowed to stay in place while the case is adjourned,” wrote an anonymous poster on the HCBP Occupation blog. “The plus to that is that this case law is now available to support other such land defence actions!”

The city was pushing for a complete removal from the site to a designate protest area in the spirit of so-called “free speech zones,” similar to the type used at party conventions last year in the United States. The judge was concerned about the protesters health and safety, but was reportedly impressed with the cooking and toilet amenities used on site. Further, the protestors came prepared, hiring Toronto attorney Eric K. Gillespie, who’s familiar with Guelph development issues having represented the Kortright Hills Neighbourhood Association in their fight against the HCBP at the Ontario Municipal Boar; he was also part of the decade-long epic struggle to keep Wal-Mart out of town. The protesters are now looking to raise about $6,000 for legal expenses, and are accepting donations to keep up their fight. Everyone was back in court Monday for the next chapter of the story, the full details of which can be conveniently read now on my blog at http://guelphpolitico.blogspot.com

Guelph Transit racks ‘em up

Bikes that is. Perhaps you noticed the odd metal racks on the front of Guelph Transit buses last week. Well, it turns out that this is part of Transit’s priority to make alternative, and green friendly transportation in the City of Guelph a little more viable, and are taking citizen’s advice seriously in order to make it happen. The City conducted a survey back in April asking Guelph residents to send it thoughts and suggestions about how to improving biking in the Royal City. A press release last week stated that of the 400 residents polled, 31 per cent said that bike racks on buses would motivate them to cycle more frequently in Guelph. “Providing our riders with travel options that make their daily commute more convenient and enjoyable is important to the success of our transit service,” said Rudy Stehle, Interim Manager of Guelph Transit. Now following in the footsteps of other transit systems in K-W and Toronto, for example, Guelphites can use a combination of bus and bike to get around. “Guelph is committed to providing many sustainable transportation options to residents,” said Mayor Karen Farbridge. “This logical public transit enhancement will help further reduce greenhouse gas emissions and make our city more bicycle-friendly.”