Media Releases

Residents invited to Touch-a-Truck on May 25

Burlington, Ont.—May 7, 2024— The City of Burlington is bringing back its annual Touch-a-Truck event on Saturday, May 25 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Mainway Recreation Centre.

The outdoor event gives residents and their families an opportunity to:

• Get an up-close look at City vehicles, including a Burlington Transit bus, street sweeper, snowplow, fire truck, zamboni, and more.
• Visit and learn about the services provided by City staff from various departments.
• Experience what it’s like to operate a snowplow and backhoe in a simulator.
• Visit the forestry booth to speak with staff on what’s invading our trees, ways to improve tree health, and more. Forestry staff will also be giving away a limited number of trees on a first come first serve basis.
• Connect with members of Halton Regional Police Service, St. John’s Ambulance and the Burlington Fire Department.

Event Details:

Date: Saturday, May 25, 2024

Time: 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Location: Mainway Recreation Centre, 4015 Mainway, Burlington

The event is held...

City of Burlington launches Civic Recognition program: Nominations open now

Burlington, Ont.—May 2, 2024— The City of Burlington is excited to introduce a new civic recognition initiative to celebrate the individuals and groups who volunteer to make Burlington better. Civic recognition will be awarded twice each year, in the spring and fall. The application period for spring civic recognition nominations is open now until May 30 at burlington.ca/civicrecognition.

How to submit a nomination

Nominating an individual or group is easy.

• Visit burlington.ca/civicrecognition
• Review the civic recognition criteria. Nominated individuals or groups will have demonstrated a high level of achievement in one of the following areas:
  • Contributed significantly to the quality of life in the community through volunteer efforts
  • Identified and addressed a priority need in the community and put a solution into action
  • Achieved provincial, national, or international recognition and, in doing so, have brought honour to the City of Burlington 

• Review the civic recognition eligibility. To be...

City hosting education sessions and sharing safety tips as part of Emergency Preparedness Week

Burlington, Ont.—May 2, 2024— During Emergency Preparedness Week, the Burlington Fire Department will be hosting two Emergency Preparedness education sessions at Central Library and the Burlington Seniors’ Centre. These free education sessions provide an opportunity to learn about preparing for an emergency so you can protect yourself and your family during an emergency.

Event Details Emergency Preparedness Education Session #1

• Date: Sunday, May 5, 2024
• Location: Burlington Public Library - Central Branch - 2331 New Street
• Time: 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.
• Advanced registration is available here. Space is limited.

Emergency Preparedness Education Session #2

• Date: Wednesday May 8, 2024
• Location: Burlington Seniors' Centre
• Time: 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.
• Advanced registration is available here (A Live and Play account is required, and that the Course ID is 00198481). Space is limited.

In addition to the above in-person education opportunities, there are easy ways to better prepare you and your family during an emergency,...

City of Burlington: Enabling More Homes through technology

Burlington, Ont.—April 30, 2024— Technology has a part to play in enabling more homes in the City of Burlington. At the April meeting of the Pipeline to Permit Standing Committee, members received an update about some of the innovative ways the City is using technology to speed up the permitting process and make progress on our housing targets.

1.     Assistive AI pilot projects - Using assistive AI technology, the City has undertaken two digital pilot projects to explore how technology can improve the permitting process. 

The two pilots include:

• An AI tool to assess the zoning bylaws related to industrial-commercial buildings, which can be further extended to all building types. In this case, the digital tool completes a review of the plans uploaded by an applicant to ensure they meet the requirements for things such as setbacks, heights, floor area ratios, landscape areas and parking ratios. 

Burlington is the second city in Canada to use this technology to improve its permitting process and the...

Burlington recognized as a Tree City of the World for second year running

Burlington, Ont.— April 26, 2024— The City of Burlington has been recognized by the Arbor Day Foundation and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations as a Tree City of the World.

This is the second year in a row the City of Burlington has been recognized with this prestigious status for leading the way in urban and community forestry.

To earn Tree Cities of the World recognition, a city must demonstrate its commitment by meeting five program standards: establish responsibility for the care of trees, set rules to govern the management of forests and trees, maintain an updated inventory or assessment of local tree resources, allocate resources for a tree management plan, and hold an annual celebration of trees to educate residents.

In recognition of this designation, a Tree City of the World flag was raised at City Hall this morning.

Some recent examples of the City demonstrating its commitment to program standards include:

• On April 16, Burlington City Council approved the...