In coordination with the Hanover Chamber of Commerce Christmas Luncheon held on December 5, 2023 at the P&H Centre and sponsored by OLG and the Town of Hanover, Mayor Sue Paterson delivered her Top 10 of 2023 to a crowd of 70 business stakeholders.
The following Top 10 presentation is in the words of Mayor Paterson:
Before I start the countdown I want to give an ‘oyez’, a shout out to our Town Crier.
Jenn Olivero is Hanover’s Official Town Crier and we are extremely proud to celebrate her 10 year anniversary with the Town. Jenn is an excellent ambassador representing the Town of Hanover at many of our special events. Her welcoming proclamations and cries bring uniqueness, heritage and distinction to our many community celebrations. Thanks to Jenn the Ontario Guild of Town Criers Provincial Championship was held in Hanover during the 2023 Hanover Fair and Jenn was recently elected as the president of the guild. Jenn it is an honour to have you represent Hanover. Cheers to you and may all your cries be proud, loud and dignified!
Let’s start the countdown!
Each year a theme emerges out of the Top Ten. This year, we have been working to advance important initiatives. We are preparing for a strong, sustainable community and the best way to describe 2023 is ‘planning for the future’.
Organizations do not fail for lack of good ideas; they fail due to ineffective planning. Goals that plan for the future require a commitment to the process. In order to move the needle and achieve greater success, we have a specific process – we start with the ideas, then we plan, and then we execute with measurable markers — in that order. We are in the planning stage preparing to implement the objectives in our recently approved corporate strategic plan.
#10 Communications
Working on my mandate to provide regular communications to our business community, residents and partners the first mayor’s breakfast for business was held in October with an outstanding attendance of 80 people. The staff presentations were informative and the Legion Ladies prepared a delicious breakfast.
We’re constantly working to share information and we recently launched an improved website. We’re committed to helping you find the information you need, in a simple and effective format.
Plans are complicated, like recipes. There are a lot of ingredients like updates, timelines and milestones and one very important ingredient in our ‘planning for the future’ is communication.
#9 Preparation
Did you know that annually our Town must complete both emergency training and a mock exercise with our Emergency Control Group (ECG) and their respective alternates? This year the situation and exercise was based on a hazardous material spill event. Participating agencies included representatives from Hanover & District Hospital, Electrical Contacts, Bluewater District School Board, Grey County Paramedic Services and Brightshore Health Services. Our ECG includes the mayor, deputy mayor, fire chief/Community Emergency Management Coordinator, police chief, the senior management team and all alternates. The training and mock exercise is an opportunity to review our Emergency Operations Centre setup, communications, practice response to an emergency situation and learn from other agency representatives involved. Planning and training reinforces preparedness should our community be faced with a real situation.
#8 Staff Engagement and Training Focus
In September, a first ever full staff professional development session was held. The agenda included a Keynote speaker and the topic was Understanding Work – Life Balance.
As our facilities were closed, I and a fellow councillor volunteered to greet visitors at the Civic Centre. We were busy answering questions, directing people and signing for packages. It was a good day interacting with people!
Employees are tied to the success of our community. They are skilled, knowledgeable, resourceful and patient.
We plan to continue to invest in our staff by providing a positive, safe working environment and continue to support annual recognition and appreciation events.
#7 Event Development and Events
2023 saw another successful year of applications that supported growth of events such as the Hanover Fair along with the Ontario Guild of Town Criers Provincial Championship, Plein Air Painting Festival and the Fall and Christmas Markets. This program provides funding aimed at enabling Hanover not-for-profit community organizations and private enterprise to plan and implement community events and initiatives.
Other successful events in Hanover were:
- The Tools in the Trades HIPP Apprentice event with Launch Pad
- A joint Cultural Roundtable meeting with Hanover, Minto and Wellington North, and a Cultural Exchange event to gain knowledge about Grant Writing for Not-For-Profits
- Culture Days with the Downtown Harvest Market in Heritage Square along with a Cultural Showcase that featured the Heritage Committee who proudly exhibited a unique heritage bedroom set made by the Knechtel Furniture Company. It is interesting to note that Knechtel’s was situated on the site which is Heritage Square. Hanover Community Players, Saugeen Artists Guild and Grey Bruce Singers also participated with interactive and creative displays.
FYI –Twenty years ago on Canada Day, Hanover Heritage Square was officially opened. This outdoor space has become a symbol of civic pride and the focal point for town activities.
I appreciate the foresight that council, staff and residents had in the planning and the development of a downtown vacant site into a very special place in our community.
#6 Community Improvement Plan (CIP)
Our Community Improvement Plan which was adopted in 2020 continues to be very successful. The program provides a menu of incentives to promote and support development and revitalization projects. To leverage this program the entire town has been designated as the CIP Project Area. It has a big impact on our downtown, supports growth of businesses, increases attainable housing stock, and promotes redevelopment or conversion of brownfield and vacant lots.
The CIP recognizes that improvements serve as catalysts for further private investment and are critical to the overall revitalization plan.
#5 Infrastructure and Equipment Investment
Reconstruction of roads are important and necessary as it not only improves the long-term condition of roads, it helps to prevent problems in the future.
Reconstruction of a section of 11th Street was completed and Phase I of the reconstruction of 24th Avenue or County Road 28 was just completed. Urbanization (sidewalk and streetlights) improves the walkability in this area and will provide a link to our planned east end trail loop.
We partnered with Westario Power and Bruce Power to install two new charging stations that will support the regional EV network and help Hanover prepare for an electric vehicle future. By offering this service to our residents and promoting visits to our downtown and entertainment districts, users can charge while they shop and participate in our attractions or at our P & H Centre.
We work to annually invest in our equipment through our capital budget process, using our asset management plan to determine our priorities. This year we purchased a new trackless sidewalk machine and replaced our ice resurfacer. You may know the ice resurfacer as a Zamboni but we have an Olympia. Both are somewhat similar, but one advantage to us is that the Olympia can be serviced and minor repairs completed at a local dealership.
#4 Parks Planning
The disc golf course opened in July after 15 months of planning. The completely free course features nine holes that are accessible to all ages. Disc golf brings a new and unique experience to our prime greenspace, Hanover Park.
Disc golf is played much like golf except, instead of a ball and clubs, players use a flying disc. It is a healthy, inexpensive, recreational activity. Players of all levels of fitness can start slowly and gradually increase their level of play.
After receiving a feasibility study for a Community Splash Pad and Centre of Excellence Park, Council approved a Splash Pad Fundraising Plan outlining donor financial commitment and recognition levels. A committee has been established to guide the splash pad’s development and fundraise for this project.
The disc golf and the splash pad projects are examples of ‘working in partnership with the community, we create opportunities for leisure activities’ as noted in our Parks, Recreation and Culture Masterplan mission.
We are going to try again! An outdoor rink initiative is planned and provided Mother Nature co-operates, an outdoor ice rink is planned at Kinsmen Ball Park this winter. This is a partnership with community volunteers and our Parks, Recreation & Culture staff team.
#3 Long Term Infrastructure
We are planning for a new water tower and wastewater treatment plant expansion as we are nearing capacity with the current housing projects on our books. We are currently undertaking an Environmental Assessment for both projects.
The projected timelines are:
2025 | Construct a new water tower to replace the 7th Avenue tower that was built in 1957;
2025 to 2027 | Undertake the wastewater treatment plant expansion engineering project;
2028 to 2030 | Construct the wastewater treatment plant expansion project.
We proactively plan for the future of Hanover and take our responsibility of maintaining our existing infrastructure assets seriously. Annually, we consider and invest in operational and capital improvements within our financial capacity.
#2 Net Zero Fire Hall
In 2020 planning began for a new fire hall. A facilities review committee and a project committee brought us to the contract administration and construction tender award stage.
The need for a new facility has been discussed for many years and reinforced by numerous deficiencies in the current building. As our community has grown so has the need for a fire hall that will meet the needs of our residents, comply with provincial regulations and offer modern training spaces.
Focusing on design, functionality and climate action the facility will be a net zero building, meaning the building will produce as much energy as it uses.
The official ground breaking was on October 3rd, construction has started, and the building is scheduled to be ready for operation by fall 2024.
This is a ‘Hanover proud moment’ knowing this state of the art facility will meet the fire, emergency response, training and education needs of the department for at least the next 50 years.
#1 Strategic Plan
Our recently completed and adopted Corporate Strategic Plan is #1.
This Plan identifies important Town issues and opportunities and it builds off the success of Council’s direction from the previous Strategic Plan. The collaborative process included input from the Leadership Team which consists of members of council and the senior management team; a citizen questionnaire with 457 respondents; a staff questionnaire with 52 respondents; 2 leadership team working group sessions and 3 focus group sessions with 31 participants from various stakeholders.
The input received from the citizen questionnaire and the in-person focus group sessions were extremely valuable to us. We heard how important outdoor spaces, parks and trails are to residents and their families. And we heard that the most important “local government services to your household are “police, fire & emergency services” and “safe & well-maintained roads & sidewalks”.
The final plan, Building Our Future Together, is action-oriented and detailed in clear and simple language. It is a results-focused plan with 5 strategic goal statements that include 56 actions that will be monitored with a progress tracker document. Our strategic action plan goals include Safe and Reliable Infrastructure, Healthy and Welcoming Community, Strong and Vibrant Economy, Balanced Growth and Open and Responsible Government.
On behalf of myself, Members of Council, our Senior Management Team, and our entire Hanover staff team, we are committed to working together to achieve positive results for our community.
So, that concludes the Top Ten for 2023. 2024 promises to be another positive year.
See the full broadcast of the Mayor’s Top 10 of 2023 presentation on Wightman TV or visit their YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/Hoq36WX0VmI