There shouldn’t be anything terribly spooky on the agenda for October’s Committee of the Whole meeting. Not that many tricks either, but there are treats if you’ve been looking forward to the long-simmering Parks and Recreation Master Plan coming back to council for approval. There will be much thanksgiving for the completion of other City plans too, but it remains to seen if those initiatives will be easily digested by committee.
NOTE #1: Delegates will be able to appear at this meeting in-person or via tele-presense but you do have to register with the clerks office before 10 am on Friday September 29. You can also submit written delegations and correspondences for agenda items.
NOTE #2: In addition to meeting in-person, this meeting will also be live-streamed on the City of Guelph’s website here.
CLOSED MEETING:
Clair-Maltby Second Plan Ontario Land Tribunal Update – A you may know, the Clair-Maltby Secondary Plan is presently before the Ontario Land Tribunal. There was a case management conference on the plan earlier this month, and the next meeting is in December, so is a resolution in progress? Can’t say because this can only be discusses under Section 239(2) (e) and (f) of the Municipal Act for “litigation or potential litigation, including matters before administrative tribunals, affecting the municipality or local board and advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege, including communications necessary for that purpose.”
Emergency Management By-law and Program Amendments – According to provincial dictates, the City of Guelph has to have an Emergency Management Plan Bylaw, which got a considerable workout in recent years. Committee is being asked to repeal the current bylaw and approve the current one along with the accompanying documents and Emergency Management Plan.
Community Grant Policy Update – Two challenges are driving this update, deliberating allocations in open session and ongoing barriers for Indigenous groups to applying and receiving grants. That first part is due to changes in local boards, which is what the Community Grant Panel is now, it’s required by law to run the same way as Heritage Guelph of Committee of Adjustment. Previously, panellists were able to debate and deliberate in-camera, which allowed for discussion to flow freely.
This new model will maintain the panel, who will then make recommendations to the DCAO of Public Services and that person will approve the allocations with that delegated authority.
As for creating more access to Indigenous groups a number of issues were identified including barriers like language, incorporation, assessment criteria and the fact that the process puts the municipal government, a colonial institution, in a position of authority over Indigenous groups. Staff tried to address those issues with more accessible language, a new equity lens, and allowing unincorporated groups to team up with incorporated not-for-profits to apply for funding. Staff are also looking at a Community Investment Reserve to support Indigenous communities with additional funds more directly, and outside of the Community Grant program.
Public Art Policy Update – It’s been nearly 10 years since the last time that the City’s Public Art Policy was updated, and it turns out that there wasn’t that much to update. The one major change is that there’s no longer an exemption for murals in the policy.
Culture Plan 2030 Staff Report – In brief, “Culture Plan 2030 articulates a long-term municipal and community strategy to stabilize and advance arts, heritage, and creative industry in Guelph.” In terms of the more long-winded version, the plan outlines how the City of Guelph can “cultivate, connect and champion” arts and culture in the area for the next several years. The need for affordable housing is cited as a key need to attract and retain artists and cultural workers, and Guelph’s bicentennial in 2027 is presented as a future event that we can make a cultural splash with.
Parks and Recreation Master Plan – Finally, after months of engagement, City staff are ready to unveil the updated Parks and Rec Master Plan, which is the first time the doc has been refreshed since 2009. Bottom line, the plan represents $17.23 million in new capital investment over the next 10 years, and it will feed into other plans including the Guelph Trail Master Plan, the Sports Field Strategy and the Parkland Acquisition Strategy.
There are 97 total recommendations which cover all manners of issues from department and administrative directives as well as service delivery and immensities. (You can see all 97 recommendations and their timetable for completion starting on page 114 of the master plan.) The agenda package also includes the Parks and Recreation Needs Assessment, which outlines how many additional indoor and outdoor rec facilities that the City will need over the next 25 years whether that’s dog parks, baseball fields, or even picnic tables.
Guelph Politico 