The 50th Anniversary of the Town of Halton Hills - January 10th 2024
On Jan. 1, 1974, the Town of Halton Hills officially came into effect and the new council was sworn in Jan. 3 at the council chambers in Stewarttown.
Halton Hills is officially wearing its party hat.
Dozens, if not hundreds, of years of institutional and cultural memory were represented at the Mayor’s Levee on Wednesday evening (Jan. 10). Elected officials past and present as well as dignitaries and ordinary citizens launched a year of celebrating Halton Hills’ 50th anniversary.
“We've certainly grown and changed as a community in the last 50 years,” current Mayor Ann Lawlor told the gathered crowd in the Helson Gallery.
“We remain, however, as a unique town with an enviable blend of rural and urban landscapes and a population of invested, engaged and talented participants that contribute and enjoy the life that this town has to offer.”
Four of Halton Hills’ former mayors - Pete Pomeroy, Marilyn Serjeantson, Kathy Gastle and Rick Bonnette - were present, as were several ex-councillors including Pam Sheldon, Norm Elliott, Dave Kentner and Mike Davis, to name a few.
Each of the mayors were asked to take the mic and speak about their terms in office, becoming one of the many history lessons of the evening. Pete Pomeroy praised the very building where the levee was being held, the Halton Hills Public Library and Cultural Centre.
“When I became the mayor, one of the big issues was, what are we going to do with the library?" Pomeroy said. “The council at the time was going to move it to Cedarvale Park. I had a business downtown at that time. I thought, I can't support that. It (the library) is too critical to the growth and sustainability of the downtown.”
Serjeantson recalled two railway crossing accidents and a bus accident in Halton Hills. She added that necessary changes were made to prevent such catastrophes.
Among the good things she remembered were buying the lands for Dominion Gardens and Trafalgar Sports Park. The Mountainview Road bridge over Hungry Hollow was built as well.
At that time we had a fundraiser. I did hold a cheque for $1 million as one gift, which I've never done again,” Serjeantson said in speaking about pursuing the Gellert Community Centre. She also pointed to ActiVan as one of the projects during her time in office.
Kathy Gastle’s short but sweet words recalled where she and her colleagues were during the blackout of the early 2000s.
"A lot of politicians were out on the golf course up in Acton, in Blue Springs (Golf Club), and we got the call,” Gastle said. “We all had to go back to headquarters at the Halton Region.”
Rick Bonnette, whose mayorship was the longest among the speakers, spoke about his most touted accomplishments. Combating former US president Barack Obama’s Buy American policy got him notoriety across the globe.
“One time, I was coming home from the Region, a phone call came in [saying], ‘You got to call this number. It’s a Japanese newspaper.’ I said, ‘What!?’” said Bonnette, drawing laughter from the crowd.
He also helped save the obstetrics department of the Georgetown Hospital, keep the town together during the 2010 ice storm and guide Halton Hills through the pandemic.
Once the speeches, and performances by the North Halton Community Singers (formerly the Georgetown Choral Society) were finished, the gathering entered the John Elliott Theatre.
There, Historian and Archivist of the Esquesing Historical Society Mark Rowe gave the audience a thorough retelling of Halton Hills’ history in a lecture called The Sum of its Parts.
Some takeaways from the talk:
“These accolades on the occasion of the town's 50th anniversary are well-deserved, but they may be fleeting,” he said.
"Halton Hills is the last small town of the GTA because regional government allowed forward-thinking mayors and councils to resist the pressures to pave paradise.”
He also said: “We hope new residents support these ideas, because the future of our town depends on their participation to preserve and improve the achievements of the past.”
Dozens, if not hundreds, of years of institutional and cultural memory were represented at the Mayor’s Levee on Wednesday evening (Jan. 10). Elected officials past and present as well as dignitaries and ordinary citizens launched a year of celebrating Halton Hills’ 50th anniversary.
“We've certainly grown and changed as a community in the last 50 years,” current Mayor Ann Lawlor told the gathered crowd in the Helson Gallery.
“We remain, however, as a unique town with an enviable blend of rural and urban landscapes and a population of invested, engaged and talented participants that contribute and enjoy the life that this town has to offer.”
Four of Halton Hills’ former mayors - Pete Pomeroy, Marilyn Serjeantson, Kathy Gastle and Rick Bonnette - were present, as were several ex-councillors including Pam Sheldon, Norm Elliott, Dave Kentner and Mike Davis, to name a few.
Each of the mayors were asked to take the mic and speak about their terms in office, becoming one of the many history lessons of the evening. Pete Pomeroy praised the very building where the levee was being held, the Halton Hills Public Library and Cultural Centre.
“When I became the mayor, one of the big issues was, what are we going to do with the library?" Pomeroy said. “The council at the time was going to move it to Cedarvale Park. I had a business downtown at that time. I thought, I can't support that. It (the library) is too critical to the growth and sustainability of the downtown.”
Serjeantson recalled two railway crossing accidents and a bus accident in Halton Hills. She added that necessary changes were made to prevent such catastrophes.
Among the good things she remembered were buying the lands for Dominion Gardens and Trafalgar Sports Park. The Mountainview Road bridge over Hungry Hollow was built as well.
At that time we had a fundraiser. I did hold a cheque for $1 million as one gift, which I've never done again,” Serjeantson said in speaking about pursuing the Gellert Community Centre. She also pointed to ActiVan as one of the projects during her time in office.
Kathy Gastle’s short but sweet words recalled where she and her colleagues were during the blackout of the early 2000s.
"A lot of politicians were out on the golf course up in Acton, in Blue Springs (Golf Club), and we got the call,” Gastle said. “We all had to go back to headquarters at the Halton Region.”
Rick Bonnette, whose mayorship was the longest among the speakers, spoke about his most touted accomplishments. Combating former US president Barack Obama’s Buy American policy got him notoriety across the globe.
“One time, I was coming home from the Region, a phone call came in [saying], ‘You got to call this number. It’s a Japanese newspaper.’ I said, ‘What!?’” said Bonnette, drawing laughter from the crowd.
He also helped save the obstetrics department of the Georgetown Hospital, keep the town together during the 2010 ice storm and guide Halton Hills through the pandemic.
Once the speeches, and performances by the North Halton Community Singers (formerly the Georgetown Choral Society) were finished, the gathering entered the John Elliott Theatre.
There, Historian and Archivist of the Esquesing Historical Society Mark Rowe gave the audience a thorough retelling of Halton Hills’ history in a lecture called The Sum of its Parts.
Some takeaways from the talk:
- There were a lot of taverns in the early days of the communities that went on to form Halton Hills.
- Acton’s Beardmore Tannery was the largest tannery in all of the British Empire.
- Terra Cotta was originally called Salmonville as the waters of the area were the spawning grounds for the eponymous fish.
- The stretching of municipal services and Georgetown’s rapid growth led to amalgamation.
“These accolades on the occasion of the town's 50th anniversary are well-deserved, but they may be fleeting,” he said.
"Halton Hills is the last small town of the GTA because regional government allowed forward-thinking mayors and councils to resist the pressures to pave paradise.”
He also said: “We hope new residents support these ideas, because the future of our town depends on their participation to preserve and improve the achievements of the past.”
