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Regional campus would benefit taxpayers As you may recall, Halton Region is looking at creating a Halton Regional Campus. This is an exciting initiative designed to take customer service to a new level while saving taxpayers hardearned dollars. Conceived by Halton CAO, Brent Marshall, who continues to co-ordinate and lead the project, this groundbreaking plan identifies opportunities for partnership. The initiative would see Halton Region, the Halton Regional Police Service, the Halton District School Board, the Halton Catholic District School Board and the Province deliver programs and services more efficiently, and save on capital and operating costs by sharing a common facility without restructuring the five organizations. We are currently in the process of securing provincial support for the project. The Campus plan offers the Province the opportunity to be part of a unique and innovative partnership that leverages the strengths and resources of the public and private sectors. The Province's possible involvement would be to continue their funding responsibility with the school boards, establishing a `ServiceOntario' site for Halton residents, provide funding for alternate energy initiatives, and consolidating the three existing court facilities in Halton to one facility on land adjacent to the Campus. In essence, the Campus would be a `one-stopshop' for Halton residents to access a variety of programs and services. A key component of the plan would be the Multi-Services Facility, featuring functional spaces shared by all the organizations. The Multi-Services Facility would act as access for the public to a wide variety of government services including ServiceOntario, government services kiosks, an education resource centre, a business information centre, a housing help centre, public health and immunization clinics, a police accident reporting centre and a social service consultation centre. Another opportunity being pursued is the consolidation of Halton's three court facilities into Women of year nominations sought "Do you know a woman within the Halton area who has made an outstanding difference in someone's life? Do you know a woman who has met challenges and has still inspired the lives of others? The Women's Centre is hosting its ninth Annual Women of the Year Awards, together with the first Annual Scholarship of Hope Award. The Scholarship of Hope Award is a new initiative to assist a young woman who has overcome physical, emotional or financial challenges. This gala event will be held on Tuesday, May 2. at the Glen Abbey Golf Club with keynote speaker, Connie Smith, one of the 2004 Women of The Year recipient and CHTV anchor/producer. This celebration raises awareness of community service work and is a major fund-raising campaign for the centre. If you are interested in nominating a recipient for Women of the year or the Scholarship of Hope you may obtain a nomination form at The Women's Information Centre, located at Hopedale Mall, Suite 210, by calling the Centre at 905-8479104, or by e-mail at admin@haltonwomenscentre.org. All proceeds from the event will support the programs and services of the centre-- a registered charitable organization. Joyce Savoline one central location at the Halton Regional Campus. The existing facilities (at present located in Burlington, Milton and Oakville) do not have sufficient capacity to meet Halton's current and growing requirements. It is expected that a centralized courts facility would result in significant efficiencies and savings for both the Courts and the Halton Regional Police Service. There are significant benefits to the implementation of the Halton Regional Campus plan. They include: · Enhanced services to the public; · $20M in savings; · Efficient delivery of programs and services made possible by co-location; · Advantages to a possible consolidation of Halton's Court Facilities; · Building on the Region's existing facilities and resources; and · Energy management and conservation opportunities. This is an excellent example of the ongoing efforts of your elected officials and staff working together for the collective benefit of all public sector partners, including the Province of Ontario, to provide more effective and efficient service for the residents of Halton. Regional Council, the Halton District School Board, the Halton Catholic District School Board and the Halton Regional Police Services Board will consider proceeding to the next phase of the project in the spring of this year. --Joyce Savoline is the chair of Halton Region