Friday, June 7, 2019 7 Brooklin Town Crier Celebrating Peter LeBel The Town of Whitby welcomes the community to meet with the Lebel family on Friday, June 7, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the Regal Room, Centennial Building, 416 Centre Street South, Whitby A Celebration of Life will take place, Saturday, June 8, from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. at the Theatre, Centennial Building, 416 Centre Street South, Whitby Please note: A live stream of the Celebration of Life will also be set up and made available in the gymnasium of 360insights (300 King Street) to allow for additional viewing space. A reception will follow from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the Regal Room at the Centennial Building. 1855 - the new innovation accelerator - will open its doors to the community on Saturday, June 8, from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. to allow for public visits to the newly named LeBel Hall. 1855 is located adjacent to the Centennial Building at 400 Centre Street South. In lieu of flowers, donations in Peter's memory can be made to the SickKids Foundation at sickkidsfoundation.com/donate: Designation - Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis Research. Alternatively, donations in Peter's memory can be made to the Town of Whitby, 575 Rossland Road East, Whitby, ON L1N 2M8 to support a range of community programs. All donations to the Town of Whitby in Peter's memory will be used to give back to the many programs that he was so passionate about, as well as to the community and the people who live and work in Whitby. The family will work with the Town to allocate time as well as funds raised in donations to causes that were close to Peter's heart. The family is committed to the successes and community spirit to the Town of Whitby and its residents forever. Peter and his partner Ally Deputy Mayor - By Rhonda Mulcahy Personal thoughts about Peter LeBel On Monday, May 27, during council, we learned of the passing of our Community and Marketing Services Commissioner, Peter LeBel. Many people in the community wouldn't have known Peter but to many of us, he was one of the driving forces behind some of Whitby's larger projects. He began his 27-year municipal career in 1992 as Director of Marketing and Economic Development. Under Peter's leadership, a number of major economic development and community focused projects were initiated and completed, including: the construction of the new Brooklin Community Centre & Library; acquisition of Cullen Gardens; development of the McKinney Centre; renovation and expansion of the Centennial Building; creation of the award-winning Whitby Central Library; and, development of Landmark Cinemas Entertainment complex on Consumers Drive. No cost domes He led the partnership with the Whitby Iroquois Soccer Club, which led to the installation of two soccer domes at no cost to the municipality. Most recently, Peter was one of the principal visionaries behind the creation of Whitby's new Innovation Accelerator - "1855" - which will play a pivotal role in helping to grow Whitby's innovation district. In recognition of the significant impact of these initiatives, the Rossland Road soccer fields and main hall within the 1855 Accelerator have been named in his honour. It was during the planning of the BCCL that I became acquainted with him. During the planning of Brooklin's new library and community centre, I missed no opportunity to challenge him. Looking back, I'm certain I was bit of a thorn, with my persistent questioning about renewable energies, saving trees and environmentally friendly materials. Worse yet, I was regularly reporting his responses in the Brooklin Town Crier. Peter listened carefully and took into consideration what I and others were saying. He applied the resources he could at the time to the project. In the end, we got a wonderful facility that preserved a great deal of the adjoining forest along with the use of eco-friendly materials in the construction. Though I never did get my renewable energy, the compromise still produced a happy result. Working hand-in-hand Fast forward over 10 years later and that prickly newspaper lady from Brooklin become the newly minted ward councillor. The first thing Peter did was invite me to breakfast in Brooklin when he then asked me what I wanted to see. We talked about how we were going to get there together. I couldn't respect him more for his approach. Together, we spent the last few years strategizing the new North Whitby Sports Facility. He had been instrumental in obtaining the location and had done a lot of leg work towards it. It breaks my heart that he will not be here to see the next phases of the project which will include community consultation. The Town of Whitby has placed a public book of condolence in the main lobby at Town Hall for the month of June. The book will be given to the LeBel family following its public display. The Region of Durham is sending a message of inclusion to everyone who visits its corporate headquarters building in Whitby, with the installation of a new rainbow crosswalk, just in time to kick off Pride Month in Durham Region. Durham Region's rainbow crosswalk was installed in-house by Works Department staff.