Alpine Community

Neighbourhood
Association

Alpine Community
Neighbourhood
Association

Thank You Neighbours!

ACNA NEWSLETTER January 2015

CONTACTS: President of ACNA, Graham Jeffery, 519-578-9603, gwjeffery@rogers.com

Website: http://alpine-cna.blogspot.com/

AlpineAtCommunity
Halloween, Joe and Sandra's family at 52 Lucerne used their Haunted House to collect
Neighbourhood
108 pounds (48 kg) of food for the Food Bank of Waterloo Region. Thank you all! The
regular ACNA Halloween Food Drive was rained out for the fourth year in a row. By now,
Association
quite a few children in the region will automatically associate Halloween Trick or Treat
with getting wet. Oh well, getting free sugar isn't always easy.

During the autumn, Ken Waite noticed how much litter and garbage was accumulating in
the woods of Alpine Park, even after the spring Earth Day clean-up that ACNA organizes
each year. So he used the ACNA Facebook page to bring together a group of neighbours
to come out on a sunny September day and clean up the woods. Thanks to all those who
participated!
Andrew Wenger used the ACNA Facebook page to ask people to get together on an October Saturday to rake leaves for free. Just to help people out in the neighbourhood. Four
rakers showed up and they completed 5 lawns in two hours. Thank you everyone.
During a recent rainstorm, Flint Drive was partly flooded, as fallen leaves had blocked
the storm drains. The water was creeping over the curbs and the police were stationed at
two points to warn drivers of the water. Joe Whittle went out, and later joined by another
neighbour, he cleared the drains of leaves, so the water could flow away. Thank you for
your quick action!

Our Upcoming Meetings

We meet every month between September and June, usually at Alpine Public School, in the
Library. We enjoy getting together to discuss issues in our neighbourhood and the ACNA
events we plan each year. Our meetings are on Tuesdays and start at 7:00 pm. Please be
on time to enter at the school's main door off the parking lot, as the door has to stay locked
after the meeting starts. Meeting dates coming up are:
- January 6th
- February 3rd
- March 3rd
- April 7th
- May 5th
- June 2nd
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Alpine Community
Neighbourhood
Association

Alpine Community Neighbourhood Association Newsletter Jan. 2015

Contact: Graham Jeffery, 519-578-9603, gwjeffery@rogers.com

Page 1 of 6

ACNA's Holiday Lights Contest Winners

Our Holiday Lights contest has been conducted for the seventh year in a row, and the winner this year is
the duplex at 123/125 Selkirk Drive. Congratulations! Their combined display was bright and cheery,
especially along the front roof line and on the columns of their porch. Thanks to Susan, Janet and Karen
for judging this year. We pick a new winner each year, so everyone has a chance to win, but also to
cheer up our dark winter evenings with your lights.

Alpine Community
Neighbourhood
Association

Alpine Community Neighbourhood Association Newsletter Jan. 2015

Contact: Graham Jeffery, 519-578-9603, gwjeffery@rogers.com

Page 2 of 6

Plowing and Salting Kitchener Streets in the Winter

You might be wondering, during a snow storm, where the snowplows and salt trucks have disappeared
to. The City crews do work hard to meet their performance standards, and get to work as soon as the
snow starts to fall, starting with salting. There are a number of factors including temperature, future
forecasts and precipitation that determine how and when plowing, salting or sanding take place. It is
important to note that it takes between 16 and 24 hours to complete all snow plowing after the snow has
stopped falling.
The City of Kitchener manages winter plowing and salting on a priority basis.
The first priority is major arterial roads. In our area these are
- Homer Watson Blvd
- Ottawa Street
Plowing starts when 5 cm (2 inches) of snow accumulates on major roads.
The second priority is major collector roads and bus routes:
- Alpine Road
- Block Line Road
- Flint Drive
- Gracefield Crescent
- Kingswood Drive
- Lucerne Drive
- Selkirk Drive
- Strasburg Road
The lowest priority is local residential streets:
- Alpine Court
- Appalachian Crescent
- Geneva Crescent
- Jay Court
- Roberts Crescent
- Selkirk Court
City standards specify that up to 8 cm (3 1/2 inches) may be allowed to accumulate on local residential
streets before plowing starts.
Snow clearing facts:
- Salt is applied to streets when the temperature is above -12C. Sand is applied when it is colder than
-12C.
- Snow is cleared from bus stops by Grand River Transit (519-585-7555)
- The City cannot remove the snow that they plow into peoples' driveways

Alpine Community
Neighbourhood
Association

Alpine Community Neighbourhood Association Newsletter Jan. 2015

Contact: Graham Jeffery, 519-578-9603, gwjeffery@rogers.com

Page 3 of 6

Snow Clearing and Winter Parking - Our Responsibilities

Homeowners are expected to clear the sidewalks in front of their own homes within 24 hours of the end
of a snow fall. Only after that time has elapsed can you call 519-741-2330 to report un-shovelled sidewalks.
Between December 1st and March 31st, parking on City streets is prohibited between 2:30 am
and 6:00 am. On-street parking is also prohibited for all 24 hours of the day a "Snow Event" is declared
by the City due to a large snowfall or expected snowfall. Offending vehicles can be fined and towed.
Check with the media or the City website to be notified of snow events.

Don't Miss Any of our Facebook Postings

Make sure you are seeing all the postings for the "Alpine Community Neighbourhood Association" Facebook group. Facebook does not automatically place
all the postings for people/groups you "Like" in your home newsfeed.
Towards the top of the page, you will see the word "Notifications". Click on
"Notifications". When the drop-down menu appears, click on "All Posts". Then
you're done.
The Country Hills Library - Events and Services
Our local branch of the Kitchener Public Library has activities for people of all ages, and it's right near
by, attached to St. Mary's High School, just off Block Line Road. Here are some special events at our
branch in the next few months:
- Storms and our Trees. Tuesday Jan 13th - 7:00 pm. A talk on how severe winter weather affects our
trees.
- Keep up with technology and how the library uses tech to extends its services. For all of the sessions
below, reservations are required - call the branch at 519-743-3558:
1) eBook Download Clinics on Jan. 6th at 7:00 pm (wireless devices) and Feb. 10th at 2:30 pm (wired
devices)
2) One-on-one Technology Coaching. Get help with your tablet, smart phone, eReader or mobile device. Call to book a 30 minute to 1 hour session. Mondays 5:30-7:30 pm and Thursdays 9:30-11:30 am

Alpine Community
Neighbourhood
Association

Alpine Community Neighbourhood Association Newsletter Jan. 2015

Contact: Graham Jeffery, 519-578-9603, gwjeffery@rogers.com

Page 4 of 6

3) Learn about library apps that give you access to free magazines, music, videos and more. Bring your
device if you wish to take advantage of help to start downloading - Jan. 26th, 7:00 pm
- In the past "Seedy Saturday" has been held at our local branch, but will be held at KPL's Central Library, 85 Queen St. N. on Saturday Feb. 21st from 9:00 am to 2:30 pm. There will be gardening talks,
gardening information tables and a seed exchange.
There's much more in the current issue of KPL's "In Touch" magazine, which you can pick up at any
library branch or find on-line at www.kpl.org.

McLennan Park Toboggan Hill Rules and Regulations

This is text from sign posted at the bottom of the McLennan Park toboggan hill.
------------------------------------------------------------------Caution - Unsupervised Area
For your safety please only slide down designated hill, which is marked by signs. It is prohibited to
toboggan outside the designated area.
- Hours of Operation - 6:00 am to 11:00 pm
- Parents - stay and supervise your children - this hill is unsupervised
- Alcohol is strictly prohibited
- For your protection, helmets are strongly recommended
- Always sit of kneel facing forward on your sled
- Keep your hands, arms and legs inside your sled to prevent injury
- Avoid using the hill if it is icy
- Do not stop in the middle of the hill - someone could get hurt
- Keep a safe distance in front of you
- Pay attention to other sledders
- No snow jumps allowed! Keep everyone safe.
WARNING - All persons using this area do so at their own risk. The City of Kitchener is not responsible for and accepts no liability for injuries, loss or damage claimed or suffered by any person related to
the access and use of this area, however caused.
Report any problems to:
Park Operations, City of Kitchener
Phone, (519) 741-2557
Email, parksop@kitchener.ca
In emergency: please call 911

Alpine Community
Neighbourhood
Association

Alpine Community Neighbourhood Association Newsletter Jan. 2015

Contact: Graham Jeffery, 519-578-9603, gwjeffery@rogers.com

Page 5 of 6

Some important numbers:

Emergency! - Call 911 if there is an immediate risk to the safety of people or
property, like a crime in progress, medical emergency, fire, or serious motor
vehicle collision.
Call the police at 519-653-7700 for non-emergency situations, like theft from
a vehicle, property damage where suspects have fled the scene, a motor vehicle collision where no injuries are reported, and general inquires.
For Alpine Public School property issues, please call Bestel Security at 519-749-3838
For Our Lady of Grace School property issues, you can call the Catholic School Board facilities department at 519-578-3660 x 5555.

What can you do to be more involved in your neighbourhood?

- Come out to our monthly meetings. We enjoy getting together. We plan events, discuss issues of concern, exchange information.
- Tell us what you want in this newsletter, suggest a topic, or write something yourself; perhaps an interesting story you want to share.
- Pay a tribute to a special neighbour, through the newsletter, blog or Facebook page.
- Get involved in our events - like our Earth Day Cleanup, or Halloween Food Drive.
- Join our Facebook page and contribute there.
- Help us deliver the newsletter. It's a volunteer effort! Four times a year and no more than a few dozen
for each person to deliver.
Call Graham at 519-578-9603 or email gwjeffery@rogers.com for details on any of these.

Alpine Community Neighbourhood Association - Who Are We?

We are the neighbourhood association for the area bounded by Block Line Road, Homer Watson Blvd,
Strasburg Road and Ottawa Street. Anybody living within these boundaries is welcome to join. We volunteer to ensure a better social, economic and business climate in the neighbourhood. We publish this
newsletter, organize events, hold an annual food drive, provide our neighbours with useful information,
and focus on problems in the neighbourhood. We meet once a month during the school year, usually
the first Tuesday of each month, in the Alpine Public School library, at 7:00PM. Feel free to come to a
meeting! For more information, call Graham Jeffery 519-578-9603.

Alpine Community
Neighbourhood
Association

Alpine Community Neighbourhood Association Newsletter Jan. 2015

Contact: Graham Jeffery, 519-578-9603, gwjeffery@rogers.com

Page 6 of 6