This last meeting of the month is not the last meeting of the month in November. No, after this meeting there’s still the multiyear budget decision meeting the very next day, but on this night, there’s some relatively lighter matters to consider. Among them are the ratification of this month’s Committee of the Whole agenda, some new appointments and a couple of new motions from members of council.
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 November 24. 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:
November 2023 Appointments to the Committee of Adjustment and Elliott Board of Trustees – Any appointment to any of the advisory committees of council (ACOC) needs to be discussed in closed session before being brought into the open session for approval.
Guelph Barrier Free Access Recognition Awards – The Guelph Barrier Free Committee gives out awards for individuals or businesses that have “gone above and beyond to remove and prevent barriers for people with disabilities.” The meeting will begin with a recognition for this year’s distinguished winners!
- Outstanding Contribution of a Group of Individuals: Waterloo-Wellington Regional Aphasia Program Participants and Care Partners
- Outstanding Contribution of a Business: The Guelph Enabling Garden Board of Directors
- Outstanding Contribution of an Individual: Heidi Torreiter
- Outstanding Contribution of an Individual: Maddy Workman
- Outstanding Contribution of a Business: MyLife Counselling Guelph
November 2023 Appointments to the Committee of Adjustment and Elliott Board of Trustees – Although recruitment’s been paused for most committees as the ACOC framework is being reviewed (see below), there’s a still need to maintain quorum, so the City must fill two vacant spots, one on the Elliott Board of Trustees and one on the Committee of Adjustment. As usual these vacancies will be filled after council talks about the nominations in closed session.
Daytime Drop-In Services Update – Following up on two of the numerous motions approved at the October 17 special meeting of council dedicated to housing, City of Guelph staff are recommending that they don’t proceed with a competitive procurement process to facilitate daytime drop-in services at this moment.
Staff say that the service falls outside of the mandated City services and is discretionary in nature, and after consulting with the Wellington County it was determined that further explorations on this might fall better under the purview of the local Ontario Health Team. Staff also say that it might be premature to launch an RFP like this until the Health and Housing Symposium in the new year, but they do present options for council if they wish to continue funding daytime programming at Royal City Mission in the short term.
Intimate Partner Violence – Ward 6 Councillor Dominique O’Rourke will present a slate of motions in order to join about 70 other municipalities around the country who have declared ntimate partner violence and violence against women an epidemic. Among other things, the motions call on the Ontario government to follow suit and declare an epidemic on these issues, plus promote the need for more action from the federal and provincial and to marshal City recourses, including Guelph Police, to see what can be done on the local end.
Encampments Within the Downtown – Mayor Cam Guthrie has put this on the agenda, and it will surely be controversial. It’s a motion to direct staff to bring back to council “as soon as possible” a bylaw that “prohibits erecting temporary or permanent structures or shelters without permission on lands owned or occupied by the City of Guelph within the downtown secondary plan geographical area.” The bylaw will also prevent “any illegal, dangerous, or flammable items that might cause damage or injury” from being brought downtown.
This motion seems directed at the tents that have been popping in the garden areas in front of city hall lately, and some of the ad hoc shelters erected in St. George’s Square and other areas of the core. No staff report was included with the initial agenda in order to inform the motion.
Consent Agenda items from the Committee of the Whole meeting on November 6. (Items can be pulled by a councillor seeking additional information, otherwise all items will be voted on as a slate without further debate.)
- Staff Report: Mayor and Council Expense and Education Policy Update
- Redesigning Advisory Committees of Council: A Governance Framework
Guelph Politico 