Volunteers communicating the need for Pickering Airport
By Mark Brooks In October, 2020, the Member of Parliament for Pickering-Uxbridge, Jennifer O’Connell, sponsored an E-Petition in the House of Commons calling on the federal government to cancel a new airport being planned in North Pickering. It called for the existing leases on a billion-dollar government land parcel to be extended for decades to […]
The Greater Toronto Area (GTA) has a transportation dilemma. The GTA is the beating heart of Canada’s economy, but while its population and economy are growing at break-neck speed, its transportation facilities are becoming a bottleneck, which can be a safety hazard. Canada relies on aviation to connect the economy to the world and to […]
By Mark Brooks and Ted Nickerson On November 18, 2020, the Urban Land Institute (ULI) held a virtual event called “Transform Pickering: Big Moves in the GTA’s Frontier City”. Moderated by Emma Ward (Bousfield Inc), the session provided a forum for Dave Ryan, Mayor City of Pickering, assisted by Paula Bustard, Fiaz Jadoon, and Johan Van’t Hof, to present key strategic projects and the long-term vision that will fundamentally transform the City of Pickering. The City’s vision […]
By Mark Brooks Only a few years ago, booting someone from an online discussion for politely suggesting alternative views or new facts was considered unthinkable censorship. The free exchange of ideas and views points in an organized manner is considered the basis of democracy. But today, deleting a comment or banning a user is easy […]
By Mark Brooks Today, five of the six local municipal governments, including the city of Pickering, support building a new airport and economic development zone. But aviation is a federal jurisdiction and one of the local Members of Parliament, Jennifer O’Connell, is opposed. The new airport, to be built on land already set aside for it […]
By Ted Nickerson A local pilot noticed during a training flight what appears to be a substantial construction project underway on the federal Pickering Airport Lands. The pilot, Mark Brooks, posted the photo on social media. Naturally, this gets the immediate attention of Pickering Airport supporters. What is this? Does it negatively impact a future airport? […]
Written by Mark Brooks The hubris of a new E-petition authorized by Member of Parliament Jennifer O’Connell is raising eyebrows on both sides of the Canadian House of Commons. The reason? It appears to twists the findings of a government report and use misdirection in the wording of the petition. The petition asks the government to transfer a […]
By Mark Brooks In response to a Freedom of Information request, we have received the list of leaseholders for the Pickering lands retained for economic development, including an airport. A big thank you and shout–out to Transport Canada for doing what they could on this politically–charged topic. Although heavily redacted, the response provides enough information […]
Written by Mark Brooks, Oct 5 2020. The Canadian economy is in recession, the planet is on fire, racial injustice has been laid bare and a global pandemic threatens to kill our most vulnerable citizens. As 2020 turns into a dumpster fire of a year overburdened with multiple crisis, or are they related, and which […]
Mark Brooks, Sept 17, 2020 In 2029, Pickering Airport will be open. What type of aircraft will call it home? To answer that question, we need to understand two of the forces driving the need for the new airport. One is the economic freedom behind the success of the municipalities in the Greater Toronto Area, the immigration it attracts and […]
