New Playground for Valley Park

Posted on by Councillor Brad Clark

The Valley Park Playground will be closed Monday, September 29th until
approximately Friday, November 14th, 2025. The temporary closure is to allow the removal
of the aging playground. A brand-new playground including a new safety surfacing will be installed.

All other parts of Valley Park including the community centre, skate park,
walking paths, baseball diamonds, tennis courts etc. will remain open and
accessible. During this work, some areas of the Park may be fenced off or restricted by
construction access and equipment during daytime hours, Monday to Friday

This work is NOT funded through property taxes. It is funded through landfill royalties.

Budget Consultation

Posted on by Councillor Brad Clark

Councillor Brad Clark is asking residents to take a moment and draft an email with your position on the proposed budget and the tax increases. I will share the number of emails received and summarize residents feedback for Council deliberations.

Brad Clark Budget Town Hall

December 3, 2025

Salvation Army Church

300 Winterberry Drive

6:00 – 8:00pm

GFL withdraws appeal of Environmental Penalties and accepts fines totaling $15,000 for three odour complaints in 2023

Posted on by Councillor Brad Clark

There has been a recent development with the GFL appeal of the three MECP environmental penalties totaling $15,000. On my motion, City Council unanimously directed legal staff to seek participant/party status to the GFL appeal at the Ontario Lands Tribunal. GFL has now withdrawn their appeal. MECP lawyers have advised that there is no settlement and that GFL will be paying the fines.

Environmental penalties are a relatively new instrument that can be used under Ontario Regulation 222/07 under the Environmental Protection Act. Think of it as ticket or fine for an odours. In fact, the MECP issued just three environmental penalties for three incidents in 2023. Yet the MECP local district office advised me on July 29th, 2025 that the annual odour complaint numbers were as follows:

  • 2021: 1 complaint 
  • 2022: 0 complaints 
  • 2023: 1,109 complaints 
  • 2024: 939 complaints 
  • 2025: 884 complaints (as of July 29, 2025) 

MECP fined GFL for just three odour events that occurred in 2023. Yet, the actual odour complaints received by the MECP in 2023 were 1,109.

From January 1, 2023, to July 29, 2025, there have been 2,932 odour complaints received by the MECP. The odour complaints pinpointed the GFL landfill. Yet, there has only been 3 environmental penalties issued to date, totaling $15,000.

Notwithstanding, GFL’s decision to withdraw their appeal for these three fines. I still find it hard to accept. Three fines totaling $15,000 for a landfill whose landfill prompted 1,109 odour complaints to the MECP in 2023.

Coyote Awareness Information Session

Posted on by Councillor Brad Clark

August 28, 2025 6:30-7:30pm Valley Park Library

My office has received several reports of an aggressive coyote that may have denned in Valley Park. Animal Control reports 19 complaints about a coyote approaching people. The City has placed warning signs to help prevent encounters. We are also hosting a Coyote Awareness Information Session at Valley Park Library on August 28th at 6:30pm. It is free to everyone and all attendees will be given a free Fox Forty Emergency Whistle.

City of Hamilton Animal Control staff will be present to share helpful tips as to how you can protect yourself, your family and your property from coyote encounters.

Special thanks for the co-operation of Fox Forty and the Foxcroft family. Through their generosity, we have purchased 200 Fox Forty emergency whistles. They recognized the seriousness of this issues and were eager to assist. Thank you, Ron and Ronnie.

I wish to thank a Ward 9 resident, Collen Graham, who reached out to my office and suggested the distribution of emergency whistles to residents, who hike or walk these trails. It was a great idea.

I also want to thank Nancy Mungar, who acted quickly and installed professional signs warning people of the presence if coyotes in Valley Park. I appreciate your willingness to sponsor these signs. Thank you!

The city has installed signs similar to below: