City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the March 31, 2026 Meeting?

After a two week break, council gets back down to business with two referrals, one from earlier this month and one from last month. Council will finally have to make a choice about how much the next council will be paid, and they will also have to square that last piece of business about future plans for the Sleeman Centre. Also, this meeting will feature two special guests, who will give their annual reports on integrity and lobbying.

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 March 27. 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:

Bargaining Mandate Report Ontario Public Service Employees Local 231 – This union represents Guelph and Wellington County’s paramedics, and their current contract expires on March 31. This will be discussed in closed session due to matters “regarding labour relations or employee negotiations.”

Council Memo: Youth Facility Discount at Sleeman Centre – As you may recall, council had some concerns about youth ice rentals in the new plan to program the Sleeman Centre, and a memo included in this agenda goes into more detail about what’s at stake. Presently, five youth groups use 30 hours of ice time per week at Sleeman, and they will all be redirected to other arenas including the new South End Community Centre in September. Discount rates will still apply, and the impact on special events will be minimal, but staff sill believe that increased event bookings at Sleeman, and the increased revenue, are a good payoff for the disruption.

2025 Annual Report of the Integrity Commissioner – John Mascarin from Aird & Berlis LLP will return for his yearly check-in. There was only one formal Code of Conduct complaint received in 2025, which is down from four in 2024, and there were eight written advisories issued, half to councillors and half to members of the local boards. Much of that advice was around harassment and how to handle hostile interactions with the public, especially on social media. For the most part, the commissioner says that Guelph’s council and boards maintain a “good ethical standing”, but advises comprehensive ethics training after the election.

2025 Annual Report of the Lobbyist Registrar – Following up on the review of the registrar’s effectiveness, which was included on the agenda at Committee of the Whole this month, there’s the actual substance of the last year in lobbying activities at city hall. Lobbyist Registrar Suzanne Craig will report that things are running pretty smoothly. There were 57 lobbyist registrations, 42 lobbying activities recorded, six inquiries made, and no formal complaints or investigations last year.

Council Remuneration Review – Last month, council referred a final decision about the council compensation to get staff feedback about a more modest four per cent increase for the next term. According to staff analysis, Guelph councillor pay is close to market levels depending on who you’re comparing to, but at the same time several municipalities including London are planning their own significant increases. Council at this point much choose to proceed with the four per cent, the originally recommended increase, or something else.

Support for Bill 21, Protect our Food Act, 2025 – Last year, Guelph MPP Mike Schreiner and independent MPP Bobbi Ann Brady from Haldimand—Norfolk introduced this bill to create an Ontario foodbelt to “ensure the preservation and enhancement of a geographically continuous land base.” Several municipalities including City of Hamilton, Centre Wellington and Prince Edward County have endorsed the bill, and it seems like Councillor Rodrigo Goller wants Guelph to join them. Goller’s motion “strongly urges” the provincial government to support this measure and take “every measure to protect our farmland, to aggressively prevent further losses and to ensure the future of agriculture in Ontario for future generations.”

Consent Agenda items from the Committee of the Whole meetings on March 4. (Items can be pulled by a councillor seeking additional information, otherwise all items will be voted on as a slate without further debate.)