This Month in Lambton - March 2023

The March 2023 edition of This Month in Lambton includes the following news, service updates, programs and events:

• Lambton Renovates and Homeownership Program
• Household Hazardous Waste Collection Events
• Stronger Together summit prompts community collaboration
• Lambton County supporting local early years sector expansion with career fair
• County introduces Seniors Advisory Committee
• Council Approves 2023 County Budget
• Upcoming events at JNAAG
• One Seed Lambton selects Dwarf Grey Sugar Snow Pea for 2023
• Lambton Public Health hosting low-cost rabies clinics

Lambton Renovates and Homeownership Program

The County of Lambton is accepting applications for the Lambton Renovates and Homeownership Down-Payment Assistance Programs. 

The Lambton Renovates program provides one-time financial assistance for home repairs. The Homeownership Down-Payment program offers one-time financial assistance in the form of a 20-year forgivable loan for a 10% down payment to be used towards the purchase of a new or resale home.

Applications can be downloaded at www.lambtononline.ca/lambtonrenovates and 
www.lambtononline.ca/homeownership. Interested applicants can also call the Housing Services Department at 519-344-2062 to request a paper application via mail.

The Lambton Renovates program offers financial assistance to eligible households in one of two ways:

• One-time assistance in the form of a 10-year forgivable loan, secured by registration on title, for home repairs to a maximum of $20,000 per household.
• One-time assistance in the form of a grant, which does not require repayment, for accessibility improvements to a maximum of $5,000 per household.

Eligible repairs under the Lambton Renovates program may include major repairs and rehabilitation required to make your home safe while improving energy efficiency, or modifications to increase accessibility.

The Homeownership Down Payment Assistance program offers financial assistance to eligible households living in rental accommodations. The program offers one-time assistance in the form of a 20-year forgivable loan, secured by registration on title, for a 10% down payment to be used towards the purchase of a new or resale affordable home.

Applicants for these programs must meet a number of qualifications related to residency, income, asset level and home value, which can be found online at www.lambtononline.ca/lambtonrenovates 
and www.lambtononline.ca/homeownership.

Applicants are asked to review the Lambton Renovates Information Sheet and the Homeownership Down Payment Assistance Information Sheet prior to completing an application.

Household Hazardous Waste Collection Events

Bring your household derived hazardous waste to one of the upcoming Household Hazardous Waste Day events and it will be disposed of by experts, at no cost to you!

Household Hazardous Waste Day events will be held at Clean Harbours Canada, 4090 Telfer Road, St. Clair Township from 9:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. on the following dates for the 2023 season:

• Saturday, March 25
• Saturday, April 29
• Saturday, May 27
• Saturday, June 24
• Saturday, September 30
• Saturday, October 28

Corrosive, toxic, reactive and flammable materials will be collected. These items should never be placed in a regular landfill because they have the potential to injure sanitation workers and the potential to damage our environment.

Examples of these types of materials include:

• Corrosive - Batteries, Drain Cleaners, Oven Cleaners
• Toxic - Pesticides, Rat Poison, Cleaning Fluids, Pharmaceuticals
• Reactive - Pool Chemicals, Ammonia, Bleach, Aerosols
• Flammable - Gasoline, Paints, BBQ Starter, Oils, Solvents, Propane Cylinders

Items NOT accepted include: PCBs, commercial, industrial or radioactive wastes, electronics and explosives (flares and ammunition).

For more information visit lambtononline.ca/hhw or call 519-845-0801.

Stronger Together summit prompts community collaboration

On Tuesday, March 21, community partners from across Lambton County gathered at Lambton College to discuss the current state of housing, homelessness, and addictions locally, and collaborate on how to make a lasting change in these areas.

The Stronger Together: Collaborating for a Vibrant Community summit brought together over 170 individuals from a variety of organizations related to housing, homelessness, and addictions.

Participants heard presentations from representatives with the County of Lambton’s Social Services and Public Health Services divisions, the Canadian Mental Health Association Lambton-Kent, the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness, and from a local individual with lived experience who was willing to share her story. Indigenous partners also shared reflections, cultural knowledge, and offered song throughout the day.

The afternoon was filled with collaborative discussion through breakout groups. Focusing on questions surrounding current strengths, resources, gaps, and opportunities within housing, homelessness, and addictions, the groups also discussed the community’s top priorities as we move forward and how we can collectively and individually make progress on these priorities within the next year.

The outcomes and ideas from today’s event will be reviewed by staff from the County’s Social Services and Public Health Services divisions and will be shared publicly in the future.

To learn more about the Stronger Together: Collaborating for a Vibrant Community summit and to see copies of the presentations and other resources from the event, please visit www.lambtononline.ca/summit. 

Lambton County supporting local early years sector expansion with career fair

On March 9^th local licensed child care providers participated in a dedicated Child Care Career Fair at the Sarnia Legion. Child care providers on site were thrilled to be able to share more about the opportunities they have available with a great turnout of jobseekers.

This Career Fair is a part of a new, local marketing campaign that highlights the value and importance of Child Care and Early Childhood Educators. The event was open to the public to network, apply for positions, discuss opportunities, and learn more about careers within the industry.

If you missed the event but are interested in learning more about available positions, please complete the online inquiry form to receive more information.

For more information on child care in the County of Lambton, please visit www.lambtonchildcare.ca or www.earlyonlambton.ca.

County introduces Seniors Advisory Committee

The Seniors Advisory Committee is ready to make a difference in the County of Lambton. The Committee, which advocates on behalf of local seniors, held its inaugural meeting in February 2023.

“The main premise the Committee operates under is ‘All seniors are entitled to age safely and with dignity’,” said Bill Weber, Seniors Advisory Committee Chair. “We have a great group of individuals who are excited to work together and make a difference in our community and connect with residents.”

The Seniors Advisory Committee reports to the Warden and County Council on issues that affect seniors in Lambton County by acting as a liaison for seniors to enrich the health and quality of life for all seniors and by soliciting input and acting as a representative for issues that affect local seniors.

“Ultimately, the Seniors Advisory Committee will work hard to advocate on behalf of all seniors in Lambton County,” continued Weber. “The Committee is working to identify concerns and challenges experienced by seniors and ready and willing to work with other seniors advisory groups and organizations to ensure the supports and services seniors in our community need are in place for everyone who needs them.”

Current Committee members include one senior representative from each of the 11 local County of Lambton municipalities, one County of Lambton Councillor, one County of Lambton staff member, and one member from Navigating Seniors Care Lambton. The Committee has also identified Indigenous representation on the Committee as a priority moving forward.

The Seniors Advisory Committee meets on the third Thursday of every other month for the 2023 year. To learn more, visit www.lambtononline.ca/SAC.

Council Approves 2023 County Budget

Lambton County Council has approved a net levy rate increase of 4.02% to the County property tax levy, finalizing the County's 2023 Budget at the Council meeting held Wednesday, March 1.

In total, the budget calls for spending $265.8 million in 2023, $89.3 million of which will be raised through local property taxes.

Council agreed to contribute $2 million in 2023 towards local affordable housing options, representing a $800,000 increase over the $1.2 million contributed in 2022. This contribution, which will be supported by funding partnerships to offset the total project costs, will help increase the number of affordable housing units available in Lambton County and reduce the number of families and individuals experiencing homelessness within the community.

Council also added $100,000 to the 2023 budget to complete a preliminary design study on the intersection of County Road 4 (Petrolia Line) and County Road 31 (Kimball Road) that will outline the options of installing traffic signals or a roundabout at the intersection. The study will take place in 2023 with the results being brought back to Council for its review and consideration in the same year.

The County of Lambton operates a wide variety of programs and services available to the public such as land ambulance, provincial offences court, three Long-Term Care Homes, 25 library locations and related digital resources, two museums, an art gallery, archives, local roadways, public health services, housing services, social services, building services and planning and development services. The Corporation employs approximately 1,200 employees across over 40 sites.

A final version of the County's 2023 Budget will be available online at lambtononline.ca/budget.

Upcoming events at JNAAG

Family Saturday Studio Drop-in

Families and members of the public are invited to join JNAAG in the art studio every Saturday afternoon for engaging, art-based programming.

Drop-in anytime between 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. for a short, artist-facilitated studio activity inspired by current exhibitions. New activities will be offered every month, with the same activity running weekly for the entirety of that month.

Upcoming Family Saturday dates:

Abstractions in Ink
Saturday, April 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Be inspired by one of Canada’s most colourful artists. Experiment with various inks on a fine art plastic paper to create vibrant abstracts full of texture and movement.

Art Pod

Specifically designed for youth with special needs and an interest in fine arts; at Art Pod you have the chance to explore art through self-expression.

Upcoming Art Pod Dates:

Collaged Landscapes
Thursday, April 27, 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. (Early arrival welcome at 6:00 p.m.)

Using cut paper, images from magazines and even our own designed pieces, we’ll create images of our favourite places, real or imagined.

Please visit jnaag.ca to register.

Family Holiday Drop-in

May Flowers Close Up with Riley Shortt
Victoria Day, Monday, May 22

April showers bring May flowers. Drop in to JNAAG on Victoria Day, Monday, May 22, to examine flower anatomy and its influence on creating art. Participants will examine flowers close-up with magnifying glasses then use inks and pens to create beautiful abstract artworks influenced by those magnified views.

One Seed Lambton selects Dwarf Grey Sugar Snow Pea for 2023

Lambton County Library will be distributing free packets of Dwarf Grey Sugar Snow Peas, its selected seed for this year’s One Seed Lambton program, starting on March 1.

One Seed Lambton unites the community around growing a single type of seed. This Lambton County-wide initiative also nurtures food literacy and gardening skills through workshops led by local experts.

Beginning in March, participants can pick up a free packet of seeds from any library location. Peas mature best in cooler temperatures and should be planted as soon as the soil can be worked in April. To support gardeners throughout the planting, growing, and harvesting process, Lambton County Library will offer several free workshops throughout Lambton County.

In addition to the One Seed Lambton program, Lambton County Library also offers a seed library which is a collection of more than 60 flower and garden seeds. To learn more about Lambton’s seed library, visit www.lclibrary.ca/seedlibrary or your local library.

For further information on upcoming library programs, including One Seed Lambton workshops, visit www.lclibrary.ca/calendar.

Lambton Public Health hosting low-cost rabies clinics

Several low-cost rabies vaccination clinics will once again be held throughout Lambton County in April and May.

These clinics are open to all cats and dogs over three months of age. Animals must be restrained, in good health, and cannot have been vaccinated against rabies within the past year. The cost per animal is $30 and is payable in cash only.

Clinic locations and dates include:

• Brights Grove
  • Brights Grove Animal Hospital, 2684 Lakeshore Road
    Saturday, Apr. 15, 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
• Brooke-Alvinston
  • Brooke-Alvinston-Inwood Community Centre, 3310 Walnut Street
    Saturday, Apr. 15, 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
• Dawn-Euphemia
  • Cairo Public Works Garage, 1345 Cairo Road
    Saturday, Apr. 1, 9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
• Enniskillen
  • Enniskillen Works Garage, 4465 Rokeby Line
    Saturday, May 13, 9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
• Oil Springs
  • Oil Springs Fire Hall, 4589 Oil Springs Line
    Saturday, Apr. 15, 9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

Rabies is a fatal, viral disease spread by the saliva of an infected animal such as a dog, cat, fox, raccoon, bat, livestock, etc. Saliva can enter the body through a bite or scratch. Owners of dogs and cats are required by law to vaccinate their pets against rabies.

For more information, visit LambtonPublicHealth.ca or call 519-383-8331.