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News, updates, and so much more…
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Ontario introduces new self-isolation rules for vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals
With Ontario facing a delta variant-driven fourth wave of COVID-19, the provincial government has released guidelines around testing and self-isolation for those who might be exposed to the virus — with the rules dependent on vaccination status.
Though the new rules are complex, they contain one basic theme: vaccinated Ontarians will be subject to fewer restrictions and more lenient isolation requirements compared to people who are unvaccinated.
Ontarians who are vaccinated, asymptomatic and exposed to a confirmed case are “likely” (depending on their specific public health unit) not required to self-isolate, but should get tested, the province says. Those people should also self-monitor for any symptoms for 10 days, as well as follow public health measures like wearing masks outside their home. An unvaccinated person has to self-isolate for 10 days and immediately get tested.
Click here for more information.
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City of Welland
For Immediate Release |
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John Mastroianni wins Ward 3 by-election
Welland, ON – On August 9, 2021, after all polling stations closed at 8 p.m., the City of Welland tallied the Ward 3 by-election returns, resulting in an unofficial victory for John Mastroianni.
CANDIDATE received a total of 712 of the 2018 votes cast, for 35 per cent of the vote. Overall, 24.95 per cent of eligible Ward 3 voters cast a ballot.
The results were as follows:
- Cathy CONNOR – 341
- Nancy DMYTROW BILBOE – 271
- Phill GLADMAN – 91
- John MASTROIANNI – 712
- Steve SOOS – 386
- Douglas R. THOMAS – 205
These statements of results will be returned to the Clerk and compiled. The Clerk will review all statements and supporting documents to ensure the authenticity of the reported results and certifiy the results.
Per Section 55(4) of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, election results are unofficial until such time that the Clerk – as soon as possible after voting day – declares the candidate or candidates, as the case may be, who received the highest number of votes to be elected.
This year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, voting was completed through vote-by-mail only. This process included voter kits mailed to elector’s homes and returned through Canada Post or dropped off at one of the City’s several ballot return locations.
Mastroianni will swear the oath of office before the regularly scheduled Council meeting on September 7, 2021. |
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For media inquiries, please contact:
Tara Stephens
City Clerk
905-735-1700, ext. 2159
pyrex@jryynaq.pn |
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Canada moving forward with a proof of vaccination for international travel
The Government of Canada is collaborating with the provinces and territories to develop a proof of vaccination that will facilitate cross-border travel, while reducing the risk of spread and importation of COVID-19. Travellers will be able to submit their proof of vaccination in ArriveCAN (mobile app or Canada.ca/ArriveCAN) when coming back to Canada. While the focus is on a digital proof of vaccination, the government will also make sure that these documents are accessible for all Canadians who may need to use them.
Click here for more information.
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Moderna, Inc. to build mRNA vaccine facility in Canada
Today, the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, announced that the Government of Canada has established a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with leading COVID-19 vaccine developer Moderna, Inc. to build a state-of-the-art mRNA vaccine production facility in Canada.
Click here for more information.
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The purpose of today’s communication is to provide you with details associated with the easing of border measures, effective August 9, 2021, announced by Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC). These changes will impact travellers who are currently permitted to enter Canada, including Temporary Foreign Workers (TFWs).
Expansion to the Canadian International Airport List
Effective August 9, 2021, international flights carrying passengers will be permitted to land at the following five additional Canadian airports:
· Halifax Stanfield International Airport;
· Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport;
· Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport;
· Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport; and
· Edmonton International Airport.
These airports, in cooperation with the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), the Canada Border Services Agency and Transport Canada, are working to implement the measures necessary to safely welcome international passengers, as soon as conditions dictate.
Fully Vaccinated TFWs entering Canada
Effective August 9, 2021, the Government of Canada is adjusting its post-arrival testing strategy for fully vaccinated travellers. The impact of the new border measures is outlined in the table below and identifies testing requirements for TFWs arriving into Canada, specific to the 13 exempted NOC’s in the agriculture, agri-food, fish and seafood sectors.
Testing requirements effective from August 9, 2021
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Pre-Arrival Test
(Pre-Flight)
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Day 1 Test**
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Day 8 Test
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Quarantine ***
(14 Days)
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Fully Vaccinated* TFW
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Required
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Randomly Selected
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Not required
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Not required
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Unvaccinated TFW
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Required
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Required
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Required
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Required
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*To be considered fully vaccinated, a traveller must have received the full series of a vaccine — or combination of vaccines — accepted by the Government of Canada at least 14 days prior to entering Canada. Currently, those vaccines are manufactured by Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca/COVISHIELD, and Janssen (Johnson & Johnson). Travellers must provide proof of vaccination in English or French (or a certified translation). Travellers can receive their vaccine in any country. (Source: Health Canada Website)
** If a traveler tests positive on-arrival, he/she must isolate from others right away; will be contacted by local public health authority and must follow instructions; and keep copies of proof of vaccination for 14 days. (Source: Travel Canada Website)
*** Final determination of whether or not a traveller qualifies for the quarantine exemption is made by a government representative at the border. The traveller must therefore be prepared to quarantine for 14 days, in case the traveller is symptomatic and/or does not meet the requirements. (Source: Travel Canada Website)
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More information on the easing of border measures can be found on the Government of Canada’s website, including updated FAQs available in English, French, and Spanish.
Additional information will be shared as it becomes available.
Thank you,
Service Canada / Ontario Region / Government of Canada
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GREAT NEWS! MTO has announced in September they will be opening a temporary exam center in Niagara to help with #roadtest backlog!
Need a rental car for the day of your exam? Need a refresher course before your test? Or maybe you just need more driving practice with a licensed instructor? Whatever you need, AAPEX Driving is here to help! Contact us today at 1-800-463-1436 or visit us online at www.aapexdriving.com
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Canada loosens more travel restrictions for fully vaccinated travellers
For more than a month, fully vaccinated Canadian travellers have been allowed to skip quarantine when returning home from abroad. In a continuation of its phased reopening of the border, effective today, fully vaccinated Americans can both enter Canada and skip the mandatory 14-day quarantine.
To be considered fully vaccinated, Americans must have received all required doses of a Health Canada-approved COVID-19 vaccine 14 days prior to entering Canada. Only U.S. citizens and permanent residents residing in and travelling from the United States will be permitted entry.
Click here for more information.
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City of Welland
For Immediate Release |
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Council directs staff to make application to new federal intake program for Dain City infrastructure improvements
Welland, ON – On Tuesday, August 10, Welland City Council directed staff to apply for two streams of funding to assist with infrastructure in Dain City.
“The City will work closely with Member of Parliament Vance Badawey’s office,” said Mayor Frank Campion. “As we navigate these applications through the system, it will be important to work closely with our federal partners to achieve success for Welland residents.”
Resulting from a significant storm event in mid-July that saw over four inches of rainfall in a 14-hour timeframe, the City received reports of more than 80 flooding incidents; noticeably in Ward 6.
“Like many municipalities, Welland faces the challenges related to inflow and infiltration of stormwater into the sanitary network,” said Sherri-Marie Millar, director of infrastructure services and city engineer. “Successful funding applications would accelerate projects that benefit Welland now and in the future.”
Though not technically or financially feasible to design stormwater infrastructure to accommodate the higher intensity, less frequent storm events, the City can explore measures to reduce the negative impacts of wet weather events on residents and the environment.
Options for funding to mitigate future significant wet weather events include the Council-approved small-scale ($1M – $20M) application for the Disaster Mitigation Adaptation Fund (DMAF) to support the City’s inflow and infiltration reduction efforts within Dain City.
The other opportunity is through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) – Green Stream, which prioritizes drinking water projects associated with water infrastructure Projects subject to a $5 million funding cap for total eligible costs.
There are approximately $48M of funded capital projects and initiatives (since 2018) designed to reduce inflow and infiltration and improve the collection and conveyance of stormwater throughout the City. The City DMAF for $13.8M to design and construct new storm sewers within Dain City and the ICIP – Green Stream for $5M to design and construct a secondary trunk watermain to secure the supply of potable water to Dain City. |
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For media inquiries, please contact:
Sherri-Marie Millar
Director of Infrastructure Services/City Engineer
905-735-1700 x 2210
fureev-znevr.zvyyne@jryynaq.pn |
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Pop-up clinic to open Saturday in Fort Erie (Crystal Beach)
Residents who need a first or second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine are invited to an upcoming Niagara Region Public Health clinic at the Crystal Ridge Community Centre in Fort Erie. This pop-up clinic will be available for walk-ins only, and both Moderna and Pfizer vaccines will be offered. Anyone aged 12 years or older can be vaccinated. The clinic will be open on August 14th from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Crystal Ridge Community Centre, 99 Ridge Rd S, Fort Erie, ON L0S 1B0.
Click here for more information.
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Second phase of Connecting Families program announced, bringing high-speed internet to more low-income families and seniors
Today, the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, and the Honourable Deb Schulte, Minister of Seniors, announced the second phase of Connecting Families, which will help connect hundreds of thousands of low-income seniors and families to affordable high-speed home Internet in 2022.
Connecting Families 2.0 is introducing significantly faster speeds and increasing the data usage amount. At 50/10 megabits per second (Mbps), the download and upload speeds will be five and ten times faster respectively than Connecting Families 1.0, with 200 GB of data usage for $20 a month. This new phase will also broaden eligibility from families receiving the maximum Canada Child Benefit (CCB) to include low-income seniors.
Click here for more information.
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PrintNightmare is Still a Nightmare
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Microsoft Just Can’t Seem to Get This Under Control
Last month a vulnerability was identified in the Windows Print Spooler program and Microsoft took ages (in computer terms) to fix it. We launched our defense in the meantime, but while it worked, it came with some serious gotchas.
The first iteration of the Microsoft patch was shown the very next day to have not completely solved the problem. Microsoft continued to recommend that the print pooler service be disabled on all servers and potentially workstations. That translates to users not being able to print. Period.
Microsoft released another patch on Tuesday. Yesterday Microsoft confirmed that the issue is still unresolved. This morning bleepingcomputer.com is reporting that “Ransomware operators have added PrintNightmare exploits to their arsenal and are targeting Windows servers to deploy Magniber ransomware payloads.”
We’re stuck waiting for a permanent fix. We have teamed up with a 0-day micro patch service that helps mitigate vulnerabilities until vendor supported patches are available. There is a cost to this however. I recommend this service on all computers we service, particularly servers.
The price of the service will be $7/mth per computer or server and that includes our monitoring of the patches it provides. For the next three months however, we can roll this out to servers for $36 if you would like to give it a try. That should be long enough to get past this PrintNightmare nightmare.
Cheers,
Glen
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City of Welland
For Immediate Release |
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Surplus lands on Rice Road sold
to develop housing, grow reserve funds
Welland, ON – The sale of over 31 acres of City-owned lands received approval by Welland City Council on Tuesday, August 10, 2021.
The land, located at 469 Rice Road (formerly the location of the Welland Soccer Club), has an accepted offer from the Schout Corporation and will feature future various housing types, including single-detached, semi-detached, townhouses, and multiple dwellings. A minimum density of 50 residents and jobs combined per hectare is required.
The City will transfer proceeds from the sale into the Youngs Sports Complex (YSP) Sustainability Reserve. The Reserve supports the development of long-term strategies, ensuring no impact on the tax levy due to YSP deficits or capital requirements.
“The new Youngs Sports Complex Sustainability Reserve ensures sustainability, and funding is in place for both operating and capital funding for the Young Sports Plex,” said Steve Zorbas, CAO.
The property’s requirement that it be within the City’s urban boundary was met earlier this year when Regional Council approved its inclusion in the urban boundary as part of the Northwest Secondary Plan.
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For media inquiries, please contact:
Steve Zorbas
Chief Administrative Officer
905-735-1700 x2120
fgrir.mbeonf@jryynaq.pn |
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Niagara COVID vaccination tracker
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Niagara’s most up-to-date vaccination numbers are presented below, along with comparison data from Ontario, Canada, and G7 countries.
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Percentage of population with one dose
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Percentage of population fully vaccinated
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Niagara
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70.7%
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62.7%
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Ontario (all)
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71.6%
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63.9%
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Ontario (adults)
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82.2%
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74.0%
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Canada
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71.6%
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62.4%
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United States
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59%
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50%
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United Kingdom
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71%
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60%
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Germany
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63%
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56%
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France
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67%
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51%
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Italy
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67%
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57%
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Japan
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48%
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36%
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Governmental Financial Support and Resources
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, August 19, 10:00am
Business etiquette has changed due to the pandemic. Etiquette is constantly evolving — join us for a look at how business greetings and formalities have changed, and how to use empathic and benevolent etiquette. With guest Julie Blais Comeau, Chief Etiquette Officer, etiquettejulie.com |
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, August 23, 12:00pm
Join us for news on COVID-19, reopening, vaccination progress and other health updates from Dr. M. Hirji, Medical Officer of Health and Commisioner, Public Health, Niagara Region. |
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Best regards,
Alexis Higginbotham
Executive Director
WDBIA
60 East Main Street
Welland, ON
L3B 3X4
905.736.2884
downtownwelland.ca
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