Breezy Breakfast Radio Hour

Episode 186: Upgrading Guelph's Infrastructure

We're in the middle of construction season.  
Most of Guelph's infrastructure is ancient, so many water and sewage lines are being replaced and upgraded. 
New infrastructure must be installed to keep up with Guelph's growth.

This week, we learn about stormwater ponds, infrastructure work in the downtown area, the Emma/Earl bridge, budgetary concerns, and the sinkhole on Speedvale avenue.

Our guests are Terry Gayman and Reg Russwurm, two Professional Engineers on staff at the City of Guelph.  

They skillfully address more than a few hot-button issues.

Find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/breezybreakfast

We're on the website formerly known as Twitter:  The Breezy Bullhorn

Join our community through this link: http://eepurl.com/bXUnm5

Support us via e-transfer to breezybullhorn@gmail.com.

          - OR -

Slip us a few bucks after our in-person meetings.

Breezy Breakfast:  where the infrastructure is always of the highest quality.

 

Bill 185: Creating more chaos in Ontario's housing crisis

Since it was elected in October 2018, the Ford government has proposed and pushed through a myriad of Bills in an attempt to lessen the housing crisis in Ontario.

Bill 108, The More Homes, More Choice Act, is an omnibus bill containing extensive amendments to legislation related to housing development in Ontario, including substantial changes to the planning and appeal process, municipal revenue generation tools, and environmental protection.

Bill 109, The More Homes for Everyone Act, contains the legislation to implement Bill 108.

Bill 23, The More Homes Built Faster Act, is an omnibus bill that made fundamental changes to the land-use planning system in Ontario through changes to the Development Charges Act, Planning Act, Municipal Act, and others.

Today, we unpack Bill 185, The Cutting Red Tape to Build More Homes Act, another omnibus bill that introduces changes to 15 statutes, including key land-use planning legislation.

If you are concerned about responsible land-use planning and the democratic process, consider Bill 185 as the icing on this multi-layered chaos cake.

Our guest Kevin Thomason is the Vice-Chair of the Grand River Environmental Network.

He knows these bills inside and out.

The rapid changes in planning legislation has resulted in planning chaos in municipalities across the province.

Find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/breezybreakfast

We're on the website formerly known as Twitter:  The Breezy Bullhorn

Join our community through this link: http://eepurl.com/bXUnm5

Support us via e-transfer to breezybullhorn@gmail.com.

          - OR -

Slip us a few bucks after our in-person meetings.

Breezy Breakfast:  where hot coffee brings some semblance of order out of chaos.

 

Episode 164: Resident Engagement on MMIWG2S

This week on Breezy Breakfast, we discuss Truth and Reconciliation and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit. 

Dana Nuttley's ex-wife was an Indigenous woman.  Denise was a victim of abuse and was killed by her boyfriend.  Dana, in an emotional opening, outlines how this affected him and his son.  He offers us a model to understand past and current settler-Indigenous relations.

 

Mike Askewe is a residential school survivor who has been living in Guelph from some time.  Mike outlines how residential schools traumatized him and how he personally views Truth and Reconciliation.

 

 

Breezy breakfast:  where the opinions are stronger than the coffee and the conversation is never over easy.

 

Find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/breezybreakfast

We're on the website formerly known as Twitter:  The Breezy Bullhorn

Join our community through this link: http://eepurl.com/bXUnm5

Support us via e-transfer to breezybullhorn@gmail.com.

          - OR -

Slip us a few bucks after our in-person meetings.

Episode 163: Alternative Entertainment

This week, we're learning about some of the non-traditional forms of entertainment here in the Royal City.

Our guests welcome us into the worlds of lawn bowling, pro wrestling, curling, and drag shows.  

 

Lawn bowling's history is appropriately "royal" in nature.  

Are the wrestling moves real?  

Why does the curling club need 200 volunteers in January 2025?  

How much time and money goes into being a drag queen?

What does it mean when a venue, such as Which Craft on Wyndham Street, is a designated safe space?

 

Breezy breakfast:  where the opinions are stronger than the coffee and the conversation is never over easy.

Find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/breezybreakfast

We're on the website formerly known as Twitter:  The Breezy Bullhorn

Join our community through this link: http://eepurl.com/bXUnm5

Support us via e-transfer to breezybullhorn@gmail.com.

          - OR -

Slip us a few bucks after our in-person meetings.

Episode 162: April is Autism Acceptance Month

This week we are discussing Autism Acceptance and asking what is Autism? It has often been misunderstood as a mental disability but is now recognized as a form of neurodivergence.

 

Listen in as we hear from Lulu Larcenciel, an Autistic Mental Health Advocate as well as Councillor Erin Caton and their daughter, Agent, about their experiences living, working and going to school as autistic individuals.

 

Breezy breakfast:  where the opinions are stronger than the coffee and the conversation is never over easy.

Find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/breezybreakfast

We're on the website formerly known as Twitter:  The Breezy Bullhorn

Join our community through this link: http://eepurl.com/bXUnm5

Support us via e-transfer to breezybullhorn@gmail.com.

          - OR -

Slip us a few bucks after our in-person meetings.

Episode 161: Are the Kids Alright?

We live in a time of unprecedented safety, wealth, and comfort.

So, why are kids today more anxious, depressed, risk-averse, lonely, distracted, and less social than ever before?

Is it our society's addiction to smart phones, demanding our constant attention?

What about the siren songs of social media platforms whose main goals are to keep us online for as long as possible?

How did COVID exacerbate the already declining mental health of young people?

Our guest is Courtney Bell, a Guelph psychotherapist who has spent seven years in a Community Health Setting and five years in private practice.  She works with children and teenagers.

She helps us navigate this disturbing situation by sharing her experiences and expertise, identifying some of the core problems, recent trends, and effective approaches, and discussing the factors involved in positive mental health outcomes.

Breezy breakfast:  where the opinions are stronger than the coffee and the conversation is never over easy.

Find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/breezybreakfast

We're on the website formerly known as Twitter:  The Breezy Bullhorn

Join our community through this link: http://eepurl.com/bXUnm5

Support us via e-transfer to breezybullhorn@gmail.com.

          - OR -

Slip us a few bucks after our in-person meetings.

 

Episode 160: Tiny Homes and Much More

Today on Breezy Breakfast, we hear from representatives of a community-led tiny homes project.

Liz Hales is a Primary Health Care Nurse Practitioner who has been working with underhoused and homeless folks in Guelph for almost 25 years. 

Ingrid Ohls is an Outreach worker who helps people access all sorts of health and social services.

Liz and Ingrid speak of the challenges of safely housing our outdoor neighbours. They describe the challenges regarding shelter systems, mental health and substance abuse disorders, and harm reduction models of care.

Our audience learns why a community-led initiative - rather than a city-led effort - might result in housing people more quickly.

Breezy Breakfast:  where everyone can have a solid meal to start the day.

Find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/breezybreakfast

We're on the website formerly known as Twitter:  The Breezy Bullhorn

Join our community through this link: http://eepurl.com/bXUnm5

Support us via e-transfer to breezybullhorn@gmail.com.

          - OR -

Slip us a few bucks after our in-person meetings.

 

Episode 159: Climate and Environmental Activism in Guelph

This week on Breezy Breakfast we learn about the activities of a few citizen-led organizations in the Royal City.

For example, there is now a Community Climate Survey:

http://tinyurl.com/communityclimate2024  

Our guests share perspectives on the challenges of climate change and local effects.  Water, energy, poverty, and even class conflict are hot topics.

Karen Rathwell from Guelph Wellington Coalition for Social Justice,

John Steggles from Guelph Climate Action Network,
and
Horeen Hassan from Guelph Environmental Justice Collective.

We still miss Bev who is recovering from her recent stay in hospital.
Ashley - our Diner Diva in Training - keeps the warm drinks flowing and the rather crusty crowd content.

Breezy Breakfast:  where the conversation is as hot as the coffee and the issues as filling as Mom's flapjacks.

Find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/breezybreakfast

We're on the website formerly known as Twitter:  The Breezy Bullhorn

Join our community through this link: http://eepurl.com/bXUnm5

Support us via e-transfer to breezybullhorn@gmail.com.

          - OR -

Slip us a few bucks after our in-person meetings.

 

Episode 158: Downtown Infrastructure Renewal - Update

In January 2023, Reg Russwurm and Stacey Laughlin gave us the lay of the downtown land. Some of the infrastructure in our downtown is over 100 years old - water and wastewater pipes and storm sewers - and we must prepare for the next 100 years.

This massive renewal project will take several years to complete and beings on Wyndham Street from Carden Street to Woolwich Street.

Topics of interest include - pacing, trees and parking.

Our guests are:

Reg Russwurm - Manager of Design/Construction

Andrew Miller - Project Engineer

and

Stacey Laughlin - Downtown Revitalization Advisor

Find us on Facebook at Breezy Breakfast.
We're on the website formerly known as Twitter @ The Breezy Bullhorn.

Join our community through this link: http://eepurl.com/bXUnm5

Support us via e-transfer to breezybullhorn@gmail.com.

          - OR -

Slip us a few bucks after our in-person meetings.

Episode 157: International Women's Day

Welcome to the Breezy Breakfast observance of International Women’s Day.  Our theme this year is "Women helping Women."

In the 1920's, the Women’s Labour League emerges in Canada to defend female workers, calling for equal pay, maternity leave, birth control, and minimum wage laws.

Nellie McClung, Emily Murphy, Henrietta Edwards, Louise McKinney, and Irene Parlby are known as the "Famous Five."  Because of their tireless efforts, in 1929, Canadian women were declared to be PERSONS under the law.

In 1952, married women could continue to work in federal public services.
In 1970, women’s shelters are formed.
In 1981, the postal workers union CUPW won the right to Maternity Leave.
In 1983, it is a criminal offense for a man to rape his wife.
In 2016, Manitoba passes legislation to give victims of domestic violence paid and unpaid leave.

We've come a long way over the past 100 years.  How are we doing now, and what are the issues that need to be addressed?

Our guests share their perspectives.

Janice Folk-Dawson is the Special Assistant to CUPE Ontario and former Vice President of the Ontario Federation of Labour. Janice is also the NDP Candidate in the 2025 federal election for Guelph,

Sly Castaldi is the Executive Director of Guelph-Wellington Women in Crisis. Sly has been tireless in her work on behalf of women escaping domestic violence and abuse.

Find us on Facebook at Breezy Breakfast.
We're on the website formerly known as Twitter @ The Breezy Bullhorn.

Join our community through this link: http://eepurl.com/bXUnm5

Support us via e-transfer to breezybullhorn@gmail.com.

          - OR -

Slip us a few bucks after our in-person meetings.