The last meeting of the short council calendar this January will be a half-and-half, meaning that half the subjects will be handled in closed session and half the subjects will be in the open. In the open half look for another fun discussion into the ways that the City of Guelph needs to do more on climate action, and a petition from a resident concerning the payment of a specific development fee. Here’s the preview…
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 January 23. 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:
Chief Administrative Officer 2026 Performance Objectives Update – How is Tara Baker doing now over one year into her role as CAO? Can’t say because this will be discussed in-camera under Section 239(2)(b) and (d) of the Municipal Act for “personal matters about an identifiable individual, including municipal or local board employees and labour relations or employee negotiations.”
Sloan Hill Park: Encroachments – As you may recall, this is the new park being planned for Beaumont Crescent, for which there are apparently some encroachment issues. Because this is a matter regarding “advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege, including communications necessary for that purpose,” it has to be discussed in-camera.
Corporate Climate Action Plan – According to this report, since 2018 there’s been a 17.2 per cent reduction in energy use and an 11.3 per cent drop in per-capita corporate emissions, which has result in more than $11 million in savings for the City of Guelph. So where do we go from here? Well, in order to meet Race to Zero targets, Guelph will need to reduce corporate emissions by more than 10,000 tonnes annually and that means high-performance building retrofits, low-emissions fleet expansion, process efficiency upgrades, and increased renewable energy generation. Now most of this isn’t presently funded through the 10-year capital forecast, and doing that will need more support from residents in the form of higher tax levies and wastewater rate increases. Council will be asked to approve the plan subject to capital investments.
Petition: Parkland Development Fees at 53 Woodside Road – A rare petition coming to council for consideration courtesy of Ward 5 Councillor Leanne Caron in whose ward you can find this address. The petition asks for a “full or partial refund of the Parkland Dedication fee paid for the demolition and reconstruction of 53 Woodside Road.” Caron will present the petition and discuss next steps in the meeting.
Guelph Politico 