Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Briargreen Rink Startup

Hi folks,

It's that time of year again to start on the rink. Lots of snow today, so we need a hand today packing the snow. Bring your stomping boots, sleds, skis, snowmobile, lawn rollers, four wheelers, to help pack the snow. Thanks. The more the merrier!

For those who have not helped out before, it usually takes a couple of weeks to get the base ice in. During this time I try to get 3-5 people to go out a couple times a day to spend a couple of hours shovelling, packing, flooding etc. Then once the base ice is ready I hire students to do the regular rink maintenance 4 times a week. If you can help out with the rink startup this year please let me know. Thanks.

Steve Porter
Rink Coordinator

613-699-2556

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Monday Night Yoga starts in January

Monday night basic power yoga at Briargreen Public School will start up again in January (4 JAN 2016) and run until March break. Class runs from 6:30pm to 7:30pm in the classroom area at the back of the school. $5 drop-in. No yoga experience required.

Saturday, December 12, 2015

Briargreen Social Night review and thanks

The Briargreen Social Night on November 27 at the Royal Oak was a huge success! An estimated 60-70 residents attended, and the consensus seems to be that we'll hold another one next year.

We raised over $1,000 for community events at the silent auction table! Big thanks to the generous donations from our business sponsors:


Please patronize these businesses and be sure to thank them for their support of our community!

And last but not least, a very special thanks to the items donated personally by these individuals within the community:

  • Ross Clarke
  • Helga Shipman
  • Joyce Ryan and Miles Webster
... and a mystery "Friend of Briargreen".

Girl Guides: Briargreen Gift, Trade or Sell on Facebook

In an effort to lend a hand and build community, our local Briargreen Girl Guides have set up a Facebook page for residents to gift, trade or sell items or services. By joining this group you agree to give freely, trade and sell wisely and share creatively. You are encouraged to post anything you'd like to give away, lend, trade, sell or share among neighbours. Ask for anything you'd like to receive for free, borrow, trade or sell.

This is a closed page and only open to residents of Briargreen. To join this group, please click on the link to join the group now
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Briargreen/


If you haven't been approved, it's because we can't see enough of your profile here to verify that you're a real person living in the neighbourhood, or we've messaged you and it's gone to your other folder https://www.facebook.com/messages/other/. Send us a message if this happens to you and we'll sort it out.

If you have questions, please contact local volunteer Connie Stevens via Facebook private message.

Help us in our mission is to build our Briargreen community while reducing landfills.

Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Annual General Meeting brief summary

Last night's AGM included several lively discussions. Councillor Rick Chiarelli was in attendance to answer questions and advise us about city matters.

Motions were voted on and carried for the following items:
  • Girl Guides will establish a Briargreen Facebook page for selling, trading and giving items within our community
  • Annual membership fee to be increased to $20 (suggested) per household in 2016
Reports were presented concerning the Community Association's financial status, and neighbourhood watch.

Other items discussed included efforts to have washroom facilities built in Briargreen Park. Councillor Chiarelli is to keep us advised when this is before council (likely in the new year), at which time we'll need to voice our support.

Briargreen Park Playground Equipment Replacement

We have been striving to have the aging and partially decommissioned play equipment at Briargreen Park replaced. Originally, we had understood this would occur in 2015-2016. Here is the latest information on the matter from City staff, as relayed to us from Councillor Rick Chiarelli's office:

As you may know that we have planned Playstructure replacements in all wards to be implemented between 2016 and 2018 (i.e. this term of Council). So, each year we will prepare the design for certain parks and construct (replace) in the year after.

We continue validating our park assets all year round so our inventory data system is dynamic and depends on competing priorities among all parks in the 23 wards. Fund availability is another factor that impacts the selection of events for design and replacement. For example, among many parks, we have the need to validate the Playstructure at Briargreen park, which is currently showing 2017. As soon as we complete the validation, we will have a better picture of the condition. Based on the factors mentioned above, we will plan to fund the highest priority thus would have to postpone some of these events beyond the term of this council.


This being said, Councillor Chiarelli has advocated to put more money into the budget for Park Renewals. The following link is an article written during the last budget cycle in regards to this http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/councillor-chiarelli-wants-playground-cash-in-2015-budget

Parking By-Law enforcement

Submitted by Cynthia Kalhok

I wanted to let our community know about an incident that took place on Friday, October 16th. My friend arrived at my home at 9:30AM so we could car pool to an event. I live at Higgins and Redenda. She parked in front of my home, along a hedge and not in front of anyone's driveway. I drove to the event. When we returned, she had a $40 parking ticket on her car, timed at 1:20PM. My friend has parked in front of my house for an extended period exactly one time.

Upon further investigation, we learned there is a bylaw in the City of Ottawa that no car can park more than 3 hours on any city street. We also learned that a bylaw officer will not come to a neighbourhood like Briargreen unless a resident makes a complaint. When a complaint is made, bylaw may come in the next few days or in the weeks to come. If called to an area like ours, they will check all the streets in the area as a cash grab and often return a few more times within a small time window to increase the chances of ticketing the person about whom the complaint was made. My friend was unfortunately in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Please know that if you call bylaw regarding a parking problem, it will impact other innocent people who would never expect to get a ticket on our neighbourhood streets. Perhaps a note on the offending car would be more effective.

Neighbourhood watch update

Recently, a suspicious male driving a small black 4-door sedan approached a teenage female walking in the Qualicum neighbourhood (near the Queensway Carlton Hospital). The male is described as non-white, late twenties, 6 feet tall with a small ‘scruff’ of facial hair, wearing all black clothing.

The male exited the car (left the car running) and approached the female teen to inquire if she needed a ride anywhere. When she declined, the male continued to approach and asked, “Well, can you at least stop and stay and talk to me for a few minutes?”  Seeing a man walking his dog ahead, the girl caught up to the dog walker, and began to walk with him. At that point, the suspicious male returned to his car and drove away.

When this incident was reported to police, they indicated that encounters of this type have been on the rise in the west end of Ottawa recently. Police recommend that all teens program the direct line to Ottawa Police dispatch –  (613) 230-6211 – into their cell phones.  If an incident does occur, teens should call the police right away while they are walking away. In addition to walking/running away quickly, police suggest that individuals also make a loud and big scene to garner attention and scare off the individual.

Monday, November 2, 2015

Briarvine

The Fall 2015 edition of the Briarvine is now available online, and print versions will be going out later this week!

Important upcoming dates:

Annual General Meeting: Tuesday, November 10, 7:30pm
Briargreen Public School

Briargreen Social Night: Friday, November 27, 7:30pm
Royal Oak, Centrepointe

Scouts Food Drive: Wednesday, November 25, 6:30pm-8:30pm

Children's Christmas Party: Saturday,  December 5, 2pm-4pm

Monday, September 7, 2015

19th Nepean Beaver Scouts (ages 5 - 7) and Cub Scouts (ages 8 - 10)

Unlike recent years, we have lots of room left for new members in both Beaver and Cub Scouts!  The 2015/2016 Scouting year starts mid-September 2015 and runs until early-May 2016. 

Beavers meet Thursdays 6:30pm - 7:30pm at Briargreen Public School.  Cubs meet Wednesdays 6:30pm - 8:00pm at Briargreen Public School. 

Registration fee is $220. Parent volunteers are always appreciated. For registration information Shaun Hennessy at 613-721-6538 or shaun.hennessy@alcatel-lucent.com, for general program information contact Natacha Macaig at 613-440-3392 or 19thNepeanGC@gmail.com, for Beaver program information contact Robynn Kearns at Beavers19thNepean@gmail.com, and for Cub program information contact Charles Pierce at 19thNepeanCubs@gmail.com.

Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Shakespeare in the Park: Friday, July 31, 2015


a Company of Fools presents:


The Comedy of Errors


a Company of Fools is back with the ever popular Torchlight Shakespeare – bringing Shakespeare to Ottawa parks all summer long!  This season’s production is the farcical play The Comedy of Errors.

When: Friday, July 31, 2015 - 7pm

Where: Briargreen Park

Cost: Pay What You Can, suggested donation of $15/person

More info and to see other dates and locations visit www.fools.ca

About The Comedy of Errors

When two sets of identical twins separated at birth are brought to the same town by circumstance, mistaken identities abound! Antipholus of Syracuse and his servant, Dromio of Syracuse, arrive in Ephesus, which turns out to be the home of their twin brothers, Antipholus of Ephesus and his servant, Dromio of Ephesus. When the Syracusans encounter the friends and families of their twins, the result is a series of wildly comical mishaps which challenge the notion of truly knowing one’s friend, spouse, neighbour and self!

Meet the Fools – Our Cast and Crew

Directed by Catriona Leger, this season’s case includes Warren Bain, Al Connors, Scott Florence, Gabrielle Lazarovitz, Geoff McBride, Katie Ryerson.  Featuring costume design by Vanessa Imeson and set design by David Benedict Brown.

Do good things really come in pairs? Will the real Antipholous please stand up? Double the trouble means double the fun in The Comedy of. Bring a lawn chair or blanket, bug spray and your sense of humour.  Pass-the-hat donations are collected at the end of the performances and can be submitted in the form of cash or check. More information and a detailed park schedule can be found at www.fools.ca or by phoning 613-863-7529.

Monday, June 8, 2015

2015 Membership Drive

It has come to our attention that not everyone received a membership form. If you did not receive one, you can download and complete the form by clicking the link below, and return it to one of the addresses listed at the bottom, along with your $10 fee.

2015 Membership Form

The latest (Spring) edition of the Briarvine Newsletter is also available online.

Thursday, May 7, 2015

Scouts Bottle Drive, Part 2: Wednesday May 13, 6:30pm - 8pm

We were a victim of our own success!  There were so many bottles to collect that we were not able to finish the whole neighbourhood (and not able to fit them in a single-car garage).

Briargreen Scouts will continue the bottle collection and flier/newsletter delivery next Wednesday evening (13-May) from 6:30pm to 8:00pm.  If that is too late, people may call Charles Pierce at 613-596-0382 to arrange for pickup before then.

Thanks for your continued support,
Charles

Wednesday, May 6, 2015

Canada Post Community Mailboxes: May 5th Meeting Summary

With little notice, we were invited to send a BCA Executive member to a meeting with Canada Post, hosted by Rick Chiarelli's office*. The purpose was to bring forward the concerns of Briargreen residents regarding the proposed Community Mailbox (CMB) sites. An email notice (Briarvine Extra) was sent out to residents, inviting them to share their concerns with us.

The meeting took place on Tuesday, May 5th at 2:15pm. We were allotted a half hour, as part of an afternoon of back-to-back meetings for which many other communities sent representatives.

In attendance were:

Terry Kelly, Delivery Planning Project Manager for Canada Post
Andrew Walasek, Municipal Engagement Manager for Canada Post
Councillor Rick Chiarelli and his staff members, Victoria Laaber and Nancy Cairns
myself, Remie Geoffroi, for Briargreen Community Association

Key points from the meeting:
  • I relayed concerns expressed by Briargreen residents over certain mailbox locations, and passed a handout to all in attendance which included every email we received from residents, unedited (email addresses were withheld)
  • My principal requests were for greater Information Sharing, Democratic Site Selection and/or Committee Consultation — none were entertained
  • Canada Post still considers the site locations “fluid” and the locations won’t be solidified until month’s end (May 31)
  • Canada Post refuses to deal with us as a community, and instead opts to deal directly with individuals (I challenged this as ineffective and what has caused us to be in the current predicament)
  • I was shown an overview map of site locations but was not given a copy and was obstructed while taking a photo. The map showed Briargreen divided into roughly 18 colour-coded catchment areas, with a CMB box site in each area. Each site is to serve approximately 36 addresses
  • An overview map of the sites proposed for the entire neighbourhood won’t be provided, reason given: locations are still fluid and this may prove confusing to some residents (I read this as their attempt to hinder our collective knowledge - Councillor Chiarelli noted his office had resorted to sharing individual "location access codes" to determine locations)
  • Andrew Walasek admitted failures on their part, including improper delivery of site notices and inadequate responses to complaints
  • the Glenbrook Way location came up more than once as a contentious site being reviewed
  • Canada Post doesn’t believe we could achieve consensus as a community on box sites, which is why we haven’t been engaged in the selection process

Next Steps:

The Canada Post representatives committed to further reviewing and investigating our concerns.
To (hopefully) address the present lag in response, concerns can now be voiced directly to Terry Kelly and Andrew Walasek. I suggest email, so that you can CC Rick Chiarelli’s office assistants, who are now actively involved and monitoring progress.

For privacy reasons, email addresses and phone numbers will be provided to Briargreen residents upon email request.

Additionally, you may wish to consider contacting the Canada Post Ombudsman with your concerns.

*Special thanks to Councillor Chiarelli and his staff for providing the forum and opportunity to voice our concerns

Monday, May 4, 2015

NEW DATE: USED BOOK SALE, WEDNESDAY MAY 6

The Used Book Sale will now be taking place on Wednesday, May 6th from 4 - 7pm at Briargreen Public School.

Thursday, April 30, 2015

Canada Post’s New Mail Distribution

As most of you probably know by now, Canada Post will be replacing door to door mail delivery later this year with centralized community mail boxes. Notices were dropped off across the neighbourhood this month indicating where your specific mailbox will be located.

The decision to undertake this change is purely economics, but falls squarely into the category of “you can’t please everybody”, or, “not in my back yard (NIMBY)”.

Regardless of your stance on the subject, our city councillor, Rick Chiarrelli is offering the community association an opportunity to be heard by a Canada Post representative. We were given minimal notice, so if you do have thoughts on box placements, etc., please raise your concerns immediately by sending an email to briarvine@gmail.com, and we will table these at next week’s meeting.

Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Scouts Bottle Drive: Wednesday, May 6th, 6:30pm - 8pm


The 19th Nepean Scouts will be doing a door-to-door bottle collection on Wednesday, May 6th from 6:30pm to 8:00pm.  Please help support your local Scouts by donating refundable wine and beer bottles (all proceeds stay within the 19th Nepean Scouts to help subsidize camps and purchase camping equipment).  Should you not be at home but still wish to donate, you can leave the bottles on your doorstep by 6:30pm on 06-May, or call Scouter Charles at 613-596-0382 to have them collected beforehand.  Thanks for your support!

Thursday, April 16, 2015

UPDATE: NEW DATE Annual Used Book Sale: WEDNESDAY, May 6th - We need your books!

Briargreen Public School Needs Your Help! The school is holding our Annual Used Book Sale and we need your help to make it our best one yet!

There are two ways you can help:

1.  Go through your bookshelves and donate any gently used books (children's and adults') to the school.  You can drop them off at the school (go to the main office and there's a table set up for book donations).  No textbooks or magazines please.  Books can be dropped off during school hours up until May 6th.

2.  Come to the sale!  The Used Book Sale is open to the public on Wednesday, May 6th from 4 - 7:00 pm.  All proceeds from the sale support the amazing students at Briargreen PS.

Contact Amy by emailing amybriargreen@gmail.com if you have any questions.

Thank you for supporting our great neighbourhood school!

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Briargreen Community Garage Sale: Saturday, May 9, 2015


Start emptying out your basements and closets! The Annual Briargreen Community Garage Sale will be held Saturday, May 9, 2015 (rain or shine!)

More event details to follow.

Wanted: Community Leader


Rick Chiarelli needs your help please! Rick is seeking a volunteer to be a Community Leader in the fundraising campaign to raise money for the Acute Care for the Elderly (ACE) Unit at Queensway Carleton Hospital! Please email Nancy Cairns by May 1st if you are willing and would like to attend a Leadership breakfast on May 4th.

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Briargreen Rink Closed

The Briargreen rink is officially closed for the season. Thank you for all your help. It is greatly appreciated by the entire community. Without volunteers, there would not be a rink. If the rink freezes again, go ahead and enjoy a skate, but please make sure everything is locked up when you leave and the nets are off the ice. I don't want the nets to get frozen in. It doesn't look like the conditions are going to be suitable for much more rink maintenance.  Enjoy!

Steve Porter
Briargreen Rink Coordinator

Monday, February 9, 2015

Request: Canadian Tire money!




Please keep that Canadian Tire money coming! It's not too late to dig out those few bills you keep forgetting to use and donate them to the Briargreen Community Association. 

We need to buy supplies for Community Day and replace T-ball and Kid's soccer equipment. Please drop off whatever you have (it all adds up) to 1 Crofton Road or 14 Moorcroft Road.

Briargreen Skates!

Horse-drawn sleigh featuring Tiny and Prince!
Despite the frosty temperatures and biting wind the atmosphere around our local rink was very warm indeed for the annual Briargreen Family Skating Party on Sunday. We had a great turnout! The rink was in perfect shape thanks to Steve and Jill Porter and their crew who come out in snow and frigid temps to scrape and flood several times a week. And we are so fortunate to have such a large and beautiful park area for the sleigh ride. I think some lucky kids even got to "steer" the horses. Our local Pathfinders' group dropped by to sell yummy Beavertails. Theay are raising money for their trip to London, England next year. Stay tuned for other creative fundraisers from this group - they are highly motivated.

It was great to meet new neighbours and see so many young Briargeen residents. There is certainly something very Canadian about learning to skate on your local outdoor rink, eh? Even our local counsellor, Rick Chiarelli came by to say hello.

Many thanks to the Tim Horton's at Greenbank Hunt Club Centre for donating coffee, hot chocolate and Timbits. They were very much appreciated by all.

Huge thanks also to Mike and Deb McCartney for donating a wad of Canadian Tire money plus a cheque (wow) towards the Skating Party. We purchased an awesome drinks dispenser to keep hot drinks hot and cold drinks cold for our community events.



Saturday, January 31, 2015

the Briarvine - Winter 2015 Edition

The latest edition of the Briarvine is now available online and will be hitting your mailbox soon!

Friday, January 16, 2015

Briargreen Family Skating Party



The annual Family Skating Party is coming up on Sunday, February 8th from 2pm to 4pm.

Update: Briargreen Pathfinder’s (Girl Guides) will be on hand selling homemade beavertails for only $3 each!

Beat the winter blues and join us for this fun family event. Even if you don’t skate, there is lots to do. Take a ride around the park on a horse-drawn sleigh! Warm up with hot chocolate and treats while you enjoy music, family games and more. Inspired by the recent skating competitions on TV, why don’t you come out and show us your moves on the main rink? Family hockey will also be allowed on the side rink. 

Volunteers are always needed. If you can help with the music (we need a device with a good playlist) or making hot chocolate, please contact us at briarvine@gmail.com.

Are you a goalie? We would love to have someone in a net on the smaller rink.

Special thanks go out to our local Tim Hortons at the Greenbank Hunt Club Centre for providing refreshments for this event!