This has been an exceptionally busy week for the City of Guelph’s planning department. As the staff were getting for the final approval of the new Comprehensive Zoning Bylaw this week – the first update in nearly 30 years, remember – the Government of Ontario dropped their decision on Official Plan Amendment #80, the latest version of Guelph’s Official Plan. It never rains, but it pours! Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #369 – What’s the Deal with OPA 80?”
When we’re talking about the housing crisis we frequently talk to activists or government representatives. This is understandable, but there are a lot of pieces to the housing puzzle and we don’t lean on all of them equally, and in so much as we want to vilify the people who take part in the open housing market that so many of us are priced out of, we still need them if we’re going to have a hope in developing solutions to the crisis. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #368 – The Realtor’s View of the Housing Crisis”
Pickleball is huge. Don’t believe it? Consider this line from a recent CNN Business story: “The number of people playing pickleball [in the U.S.] grew by 159 per cent over three years to 8.9 million in 2022.” Here in Canada, a survey by Pickleball Canada last year showed that eight per cent of Canadian households have one pickleball player who plays the game at least once a month. This is a growing trend too. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #367 – The Pickleball Revolution Begins”
James Gordon decided last year that eight years on city council was enough and that he would step away to return to his first love, music. Of course, Gordon never really left music to take part in local politics; all the while he was on council he was still touring and still releasing new music as a city councillor, but can he now quit politics so easily? We’re going to find out… Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #366 – The Other James Gordon”
We’ve always thought of Guelph as a uniquely artsy place, but is that still the case? Like with just about every aspect of life, COVID-19 had an effect on the arts; it’s hard to get out and see a band, or a local theatrical production, or to take part in a local festival when there’s no going outside. But as we recover from COVID we’re learning that the pandemic is not the only pressure point on the arts and local artists. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #365 – The State of the Arts”
It was this week three years ago when the City of Guelph announced that they were closing all their public facilities, when the University of Guelph started sending all students in residents home, when all Guelph students started online learning, and every business in town, except for the most essential, closed their doors. It was start of the first COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, and three years later we still have questions. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #364 – COVID Questions Remain”
It was about this time back in 2019 that Guelph and Wellington County were announced as the winners of the Smart Cities Challenge. The challenge was to develop a circular food economy that was going to reduce food waste, promote sustainable food development, and increase access to nutritious food and produce. By many metrics, the project has been a success, so what happens when the funds run out this year? Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #363 – The Future of Our Food Future”
The weather has been pretty good reminding us this past week that winter is dangerous, especially when driving on snowy icy streets. That’s why we salt, but the evidence is building that we salt our roads too much and it’s had a profoundly negative impact on our rivers and streams. So are we sacrificing our water quality for winter road safety, and is there a way that we can have both? Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #362 – A-Salt on the Water”
Thursday marks one-year since the official end of the “Freedom Convoy”, a series of protests against COVID protection measures, vaccine mandates and lockdowns that paralyzed downtown Ottawa and border crossings at Windsor and Coutts for weeks. Yes, the Convoy flamed out, but the complex web of thoughts and ideas behind the Convoy are still out there. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #361 – The Convoy Was the End of the Beginning”
It hasn’t gotten any better. Last year about this time, the news was grim with stories about the banning of certain books, political influence on what’s being taught in schools, and rhetorical fist fights on whether library material is appropriate given the subject matter. What little difference a year makes because Freedom to Read Week rises again with more threats against Free Expression. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST – Freedom to Read Week Again”
