Kitchener residents riled up over size of backyard build Residents are voicing their concerns about an additional dwelling unit being built in a Kitchener backyard. “It’s a 1,600-square-foot home,” explained David Weber, who lives next door to the property on Doon South Drive. “From what I understand, that’s 800 [square feet] on the main floor and 800 [square feet] in the basement.” Weber said his issue is with the size of the building and, in particular, the height. “You’ve got bedrooms at the back, on the left and the right side of the unit, so the window will overlook where we’re sitting,” Weber explained. The situation is worse for the neighbours on the other side of the property. “There’s another [window] on the other side that is raised high enough that it looks over the six-foot fence on that side, right into the backyard of that neighbor,” Weber said. “I can’t imagine that would be an appealing situation.” According to the City of Kitchener, the backyard home is within the parameters set out in the bylaw. “In this specific case it’s 75.2-metres-square in footprint size, so they’re less than the maximum 80-metres-square,” explained Mike Seiling, the city’s director of building. “The maximum height of the building is 4.5 metres, so they built it right to the max. They’re meeting the zoning bylaw.” Christine Michaud, Kitchener’s Ward 4 councillor, met with residents who were upset with the approval of the additional dwelling unit. “For this particular one? Yes, I’ll be honest, yes, I do think it is against the spirit [of the bylaw]. It’s still absolutely legal, and it’s what we agreed to,” she told CTV News. She still supports this version of gentle urban density, but feels some friction is bound to arise in neighbourhoods. Seiling said city staff is reviewing the bylaw and a proposal to reduce the overall size of additional dwelling units, from 80-square-metres to 75-square-metres. Council could receive that report early in 2026. One of the tallest hockey players in the world hits the ice in Brantford, Ont. One of the world’s tallest hockey players is playing in Brantford, Ont. Alexander Karmanov stands at 7’0” and, according to the online hockey database Elite Prospects, he is considered to be the tallest active hockey player in the world. The defenceman turned 17-years-old in March, but he is already making a name for himself on the ice. The Ontario Hockey League’s Brantford Bulldogs chose Karmanov as the 172 overall pick in the 2025 Canadian Hockey League Import Draft, however he has been hitting the ice with the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League’s Brantford Titans, where he’s already making a big impression. “There’s a lot of his game that needs to be improved to perform consistently at that level, and that’s what he’s here to do with us,” Jordan Clarke, assistant coach for the Brantford Titans, said. “He’s going to get a lot of minutes and get a lot of opportunities.” Standing next to his teammates, he certainly cuts an imposing figure on the ice. So far, he has one goal and three assists across six games this season. Helping him succeed also meant looking into getting special gear, including a custom jersey and extended sticks. “[The hockey sticks] come with an extension built in. I believe that they were at 71 inches, 122 flex. The biggest ones I’ve seen,” Kamryn Bain, assistant equipment manager for the Brantford Titans, said. Bain said they added six inches to the torso and seven inches to the sleeves of a standard jersey to make sure Karmanov had the gear he needed to represent Brantford proudly. “We got three jerseys. That’s it. One of each colour. Hopefully, I don’t need extra,” Bain said. The towering titan was born in Moldova, and he said hockey was not a popular sport while he was growing up there, but he fell in love with it anyway. “I like hockey. I chose it in my childhood, this sport,” he said. “I like the speed, I like the drive. It’s fun.” For now, he’s taking the opportunity to have some fun and continue to grow. “I’m trying to be physical because I’m big, so I have to use it,” Karmanov said. Embattled Ont. trustee resigns from Catholic school board Mark Watson, a Catholic school board trustee who drew the ire of Ontario’s education minister, has resigned. The move, announced Friday by the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic School Board, came five days after Education Minister Paul Calandra introduced legislation to fire Watson. Mark Watson, a Catholic school board trustee who drew the ire of Ontario’s education minister, has resigned. The move, announced Friday by the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic School Board, came five days after Education Minister Paul Calandra introduced legislation to fire Watson. “We respect Trustee Watson’s decision to step down from the board and will move forward, collaboratively, with a continued focus on teaching and learning, student well-being, and the strategic priorities that guide our Catholic school system,” said a statement from Carol Luciani, the board’s chair. No details were shared about what led up to the decision. “The board will not be commenting on the personal information of Trustee Mark Watson,” the post concluded. Watson’s resignation would go into effect, once approved, at the next Meeting of the Board on Oct. 28. Trustees with the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic School Board are also expected to discuss the replacement process at that time. The education minister called the resignation long overdue. “Mr. Watson still owes the board thousands in taxpayer dollars, and I expect him to pay it back,” he said in a statement to CTV News. “Those funds should be supporting student achievement, not paying for lavish all-inclusive European summer vacations for out of touch school board trustees.” Education Minister Paul Calandra’s bill to fire Watson followed the trustee’s failure to pay for a pricey Italy trip to buy religious artwork for two new schools in July 2024. The total cost was an estimated $190,000. A review of the trip found Richard Petrella, Dan Dignard, William Chopp and Mark Watson spent money on luxury cars, high-end hotel stays and fancy dinners at a Michelin star restaurant. While all four trustees agreed to his demand, Watson never repaid his $12,370 portion. The education minister introduced a bill to fire Watson during Monday’s legislative session at Queen’s Park. Why neighbours have a problem with a Kitchener parking lot A parking lot in Kitchener has left residents confused and convinced it was built without proper city approvals. The lot in question is on Highland Road West, just east of Ira Needles Boulevard, beside a new condo development. Omar Zela said the bright lights on the property keep his family awake at night. He believes, along with other neighbours, that the property is being used for overflow parking. “We noticed they were starting to pave the parking lot, and this is when we brought up concerns with the city councillor and, basically, see if the proper approvals were in place,” explained Kitchener resident Lindsay Markle. CTV News visited the property on Friday and were approached by someone who identified themselves as a representative of Savic Homes, the Waterloo Region-based developer behind the Avalon condo development. They asked us to leave. CTV News then spoke directly with Savic’s operations manager who said the lot was being used by tradespeople working on a nearby project. Neighbours disputed this claim. “We haven’t seen anybody working here at all,” Zela said. Markle’s theory is tenants in the condo development are using the lot, not tradespeople. “There’s lots of people that live in those buildings, and they don’t have enough parking for the people who live there,” she hypothesized. In a call to Avalon’s leasing department, a representative said it was being used for residents who need additional spaces at a cost of $100 per month. “This is a parking lot that has been built illegally, based on the information we got from the city,” Zela claimed. He showed CTV News emails he exchanged with the City of Kitchener. In them, a city manager confirmed the paving was done without any planning approval and a city employee said a violation notice had been issued to the landowner. Meanwhile, the region, which is responsible for Highland Road, knew nothing about the parking lot. According to Zela’s emails, the property owner was working with the city to bring the lot into compliance. That process, the city explained, could take time. The operations manager for Savic Homes declined CTV News’ request for an interview and the City of Kitchener did not have anyone available to comment on the situation. Drop in complaint calls for Diwali fireworks Fireworks lit up the sky Monday night as millions of people around the world, and here in southern Ontario, celebrated the “Festival of Lights.” Diwali is a major religious event for followers of Sikhism, Jainism and Hinduism, and represents the victory of light over darkness, goodness over evil and knowledge over ignorance. Fireworks are an important part of the celebration but their use, during any holiday, has recently stirred up debate in Waterloo Region. Some cities want to restrict fireworks displays over safety concerns stemming from bad behaviour at unauthorized Canada Day parties. Both Kitchener and Waterloo have taken steps to ban fireworks sales in 2026. While fireworks are allowed for Diwali, the rules around setting them off differ from community to community. Kitchener only permits fireworks displays between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m., with Cambridge and Woolwich Township allowing them as late as 11 p.m. Fireworks in Waterloo are permitted on Monday, and also Tuesday, between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. CTV News reached out to Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge on Tuesday to find out if residents were following the rules. “Kitchener experienced fewer complaints related to fireworks over the Diwali celebrations than in previous years,” the city said in a email to CTV News. “From Saturday to Monday, we received 111 complaints and issued just over 20 charges, which is less than half the complaints received in previous years.” “The main charge that we issued was for fireworks being set off in areas that weren’t permitted, such as on the sidewalk, on the street, in parks, that type of thing,” Ian Misheal, Kitchener’s manager of enforcement, told CTV News. Waterloo, meanwhile, received 19 calls for service. However, only one charge was laid for setting off fireworks outside of the permitted times. By comparison, in 2024, bylaw officers in Waterloo responded to 30 calls for service during Diwali. One charge was also laid. Cambridge said they had six charges related to Diwali celebrations. One of those was issued Sunday and the remaining five were handed out on Monday. The city said they were still compiling data on the number of calls officers responded to.
