Author: Adam A. Donaldson

When he’s not the main/only contributor to Guelph Politico, Adam A. Donaldson also contributes to GuelphToday.com as their city hall columnist and co-hosts a political and current affairs show on CFRU 93.3 fm called “Open Sources Guelph" as well as the movie review show "End Credits."

This Week at Council: The Princess Auto Diaries

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At June’s planning meeting, a lot of ground was covered but there were two primary modes. First, there were a lot of heritage files needing some work, including the latest heritage conservation district and a couple of individual designations that were unexpectely controversial. And then there was the Princess Auto file, an interesting confluence of confusing planning rules that nearly scuttled the future Guelph location of that chain. Here’s the recap! Continue reading “This Week at Council: The Princess Auto Diaries” →

POLICE NOTES: Bank Robbery, Driveway Repair Scams, and a Perfume Heist

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There are 145,000 stories in the Royal City, and this is some of them. Looking at a week’s worth of media releases from the Guelph Police Service, there’s a lot going on in our little city crime-wise speaking, so let’s run down some of the charges, issues, and requests for information from the Guelph Police Service over the last seven days. Continue reading “POLICE NOTES: Bank Robbery, Driveway Repair Scams, and a Perfume Heist” →

City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the June 24 Shareholder Meetings?

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If it’s June, then that means it’s time for the annual shareholder meetings of Guelph Municipal Holdings Inc. and Guelph Junction Railway. Guelph City Council is the one and only shareholder of both these corporations and every sixth month of the year they sit in a special meeting to hear the financial information and governance updates from both companies. Well, it’s that time again, so let’s dig into the updates! Continue reading “City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the June 24 Shareholder Meetings?” →

City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the June 24, 2025 Meeting?

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June comes to end, at least in terms of council business, with the usual midyear visit from the external auditor. That’s pretty much the one major piece of business for this month’s regular meeting of council, but there will be another crack at the Committee of the Whole agenda, and there will some more actions concerning the filling of a recent council vacancy. After tonight, there’s just one more month till summer vacation! Continue reading “City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the June 24, 2025 Meeting?” →

MEETING PREVIEW: Accessibility Advisory Committee for April 15, 2025

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Of all the shake-ups at the Advisory Committees of Council, this might be the most shook up. Although the Accessibility Advisory Committee is perhaps the least altered, it was the subject of controversy last April when most of the committee, including the chair, vice-chair, and former vice-chair, all resigned after staff refused to grant the AAC the increased autonomy they were seeking. Now, they will start again. Build back better? I guess we will see… Continue reading “MEETING PREVIEW: Accessibility Advisory Committee for April 15, 2025” →

RECAP: County Staff Tested on Housing Momentum at JSSLAC Meeting

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The June meeting of the Joint Social Services and Land Ambulance Committee Meeting was stacked. Many, many reports were delivered to the committee especially in the realm of updates about social housing and paramedic services planning. There was some friction here as Guelph councillors expressed frustration with a lack of momentum on housing, while Wellington councillors want more expanded paramedic services, so let’s dig into the recap for more!

Continue reading “RECAP: County Staff Tested on Housing Momentum at JSSLAC Meeting” →

GUELPH POLITICAST #474 – Running on Empties (feat. Karen Wirsig)

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When Doug Ford and the Ontario government announced that they were expanding alcohol sales to grocery and convenience stores it was seen as a positive move to break up a government monopoly, but The Beer Store still has one important piece of that monopoly: returns. It was an effective example of what we now call the circular economy, but in making alcohol more available, has it cost us the most successful recycling program we’ve ever had? Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #474 – Running on Empties (feat. Karen Wirsig)” →

RECAP: City Council Meeting for June 10, 2025

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Planning is  buffet at this month’s meeting! You can click here for the amended agenda from City Hall, and you can click here for the Politico preview. For the complete blow-by-blow of today’s council meeting, you can follow along during the meeting on Blue Sky or recap the complete thread after the meeting below. You can also watch the City’s own live-stream of the meeting here. Continue reading “RECAP: City Council Meeting for June 10, 2025” →

This Week at Council: The Waiting *Was* the Hardest Part

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At the June Committee of the Whole meeting we spent almost as much time waiting for the meeting to begin as we spent in the meeting. There was some important stuff on the agenda, but it seems that it was pretty straightforward; employee engagement, the review of Community Benefit Agreements, and more on Corporate Asset Management were all topics needing discussion and decision, so how did it all turn out? Continue reading “This Week at Council: The Waiting *Was* the Hardest Part” →

POLICE NOTES: Attempted Murder, Thieves with Hammers, and Fires in Royal City Park

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There are 145,000 stories in the Royal City, and this is some of them. Looking at a week’s worth of media releases from the Guelph Police Service, there’s a lot going on in our little city crime-wise speaking, so let’s run down some of the charges, issues, and requests for information from the Guelph Police Service over the last seven days. Continue reading “POLICE NOTES: Attempted Murder, Thieves with Hammers, and Fires in Royal City Park” →