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Back to Pickering residents protest growing stink over sewer expansion
Pickering residents protest growing stink over sewer expansion

July 24, 2010

Carola Vyhnak

The smell at Pickerings city hall just got worse and its called secrecy, a group of 30 protesters complained at a York-Durham sewage system expansion project.
Bad enough theyll have York Regions raw waste flowing through their community, worse that council changed about fighting the region in court, said protesters carrying “stop the stink” signs and pictures of toilets.


But worse still, the decision was made behind closed doors, leaving them without a voice and in the dark about dropped.


“As a Pickering taxpayer I want to know why we had three legal opinions and the mayor saying a few months ago case,” said Dan Murphy, whos lived in the city for 28 years. “They owe it to us to explain the reasons. Theres too At a public council meeting on July 12, Mayor Dave Ryan announced that during a closed meeting a week earlier, action because they had little chance of winning. They agreed to negotiate a settlement with York instead.


The lawsuit alleged that York failed to treat Pickering residents fairly or consult them on all aspects of the so-called More than $400,000 had been set aside to cover legal costs.


“I want them to tell us what theyre doing but they hid and ran,” demanded Michael Borie, who lives 300 metres control facility on the route Yorks sewage will take to a treatment plant on Lake Ontario.


“I want leadership, I dont want dictatorship,” he said to cheers from the small crowd, which did a quick tour through with a security guard in pursuit.


Councillor Jennifer OConnell, a vocal opponent of the sewage expansion project, repeated her accusations of a councillors about details of the July 5 closed meeting and vote.


“Behind closed doors they stabbed us all in the back,” she said. “Coming here today shows them were not goingThe city clerks reminder to councillors to keep quiet “is just wrong,” OConnell said. “I dont believe you can tell cant share with the community how they voted, and Im furious at the lack of transparency.”
But Ryan denied there was a gag order, saying little information could be released because of the pending settlement be made public at the end of the process, he said in an interview.


Thats little comfort to Marie Thomas, a runner and Pickering resident who lives close to the existing sewage system.


“My real concern is the smell and the waste going through a once-pristine area,” she said. “In the heat of summer, from the old sewage pipe.”


Marion Thomas added a lone voice of dissent as the protesters gathered on the street.


“Im dead against the pipe but Im dead against continuing with the lawsuit. Theres no hope in hell of winning.”


Thomas said she already pays more than $5,000 in taxes for a two-bedroom house and homeowners like her can“Its unfair for Pickering residents to bear the costs of this lawsuit,” she said. “But having made the deal (to drop clean on how they voted.”