Brenda Johnson, Ward 11 councillor

I will be holding an open house and budget meeting Tuesday, Feb. 28 at the Stoney Creek Municipal Building, 777 Hwy. 8

We will start with the open house from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. and then starting at 6:30 p.m.,  will be a presentation on the 2012 municipal budget by Rob Rossini, general manager of finance for the City of Hamilton.

Mr. Rossini will give an overview of this years proposed budget and how it will affect you in Ward 11.  The open house will be an informal time and I look forward to meeting and talking with you personally. If you are unable to attend this day, a similar open house and budget meeting will be held at the Glanbrook municipal office on Thursday, March 1 at the same times.

Ontario Early Years Centre

Good news for the Ontario Early Years Centre that operates in Winona.  It is not leaving the community.

I met with Deb Myers, a key organizer of the early years program and she advised that the Winona centre is being restructured to meet the needs of the community and to enhance the service.

Ms. Myers confirmed that the funding is still in place but you may see a small interruption in service, you may see a different location or one or more locations. But you will see the service staying in Winona.

Ms. Myers advised they are looking for community partners in the Winona area. The current centre is in place until the end of March, but there will be an update of the new program before that time.

Some upcoming events in your community are:  Tea at the Lee on Feb. 19 in the Drive House from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

The Scouting and Guiding Service will be held at Fifty United Church on Feb 19 at 10:30 a.m. and on Feb. 25, Fifty United Church is having a ham dinner.

The new Winona Public School will have an open house Monday, Feb. 27 from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. This will be very informal and all are invited to drop by and have a tour of the new school.

The FOTEK (Friends of the Ermosa Karst) Dinner and Dance fundraiser is March 3.

These events and more are detailed in the calendar at my Web page, www.brendajohnson.ca.

Quick service tip

Did you know that you can now pay POA (speeding and traffic-related tickets) and municipal parking tickets at the Stoney Creek municipal office, 777 Hwy. 8 at Jones Rd?  The centre is open Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m?

As always, if you should have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact me  at (905) 546-4513 or Brenda.Johnson@hamilton.ca.