Have you heard there’s a housing crisis? It’s pretty much all anyone can talk about, which is understandable, and the causes of the crisis are many. But have you thought about the Building Code? Chances are you haven’t, but this important document meant to govern our health and safety indoors might have some holes in it, and it might be causing complications that are getting in the way of desperately needed new units. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #389 – It’s In the Code”
As you may know, Ontario has set the goal of building 1.5 million houses by 2031, and Guelph’s share is 18,000, but there’s a difference between setting a goal and having the means to reach it. One of the people that’s been trying to promote that idea is a man named Mike Moffatt. You might have heard have him. Certainly everyone concerned about housing in Ontario has! Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #383 – The Housing Guru”
It’s been a couple of months since we’ve had something really juicy at a planning meeting to chew on, and boy was there ever something juicy at this planning meeting. Everyone’s favourite proposed student development was back at council again for the planning meeting, and after that, there was a council workshop that promised to be the first of many steps that will help council get their heads around the housing crisis. Continue reading “This Week at Council: Planning and Housing 101”
It’s time to talk about housing again! 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 on Twitter, or follow the tweets below. You can also watch the City’s own live-stream of the meeting here. Continue reading “LIVE BLOG: Second City Council Meeting for July 11, 2023”
The second Tuesday of the month is usually reserved for the planning meeting, and there’s no bigger planning matter right now than housing. So in a special meeting for this Tuesday, and as a special post-planning meeting treat, council will be holding a workshop that’s all about housing. What are the challenges? What are the opportunities? And what can council do to get more housing going in the city? Let’s take a look. Continue reading “City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the Second July 11 Meeting?”
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”
Over 850 people made their way to the Delta Hotel on Stone Road for the annual winter ritual of hearing the mayor talk. The Chamber of Commerce’s State of the City event for 2023 had the usual aspirational statements and hopeful outlook about the future, but it also came with a warning about the tough times ahead and the need to work together as a community to meet the challenges were all familiar with by now. Continue reading “Guthrie Drops Gimmicks for Serious Talk at State of the City”
It’s 2019 all over again! That’s how Guelph MPP and Green Party leader Mike Schreiner described the situation at Queen’s Park during his most recent appearance on Open Sources Guelph. It’s been a very busy first few months for the new Ontario Legislature, and as we close 2022, Schreiner has notes about Bill 23, Doug Ford’s leadership style, and whether or not he’s going to change team colours. Continue reading “On OSG, Schreiner Calls Out Ford Policies as “Dangerous” and “Unnecessary””
Coming off a municipal election that was, in many way, about affordability, comes a reminder of the stakes when it comes to what “affordability” really means. At the start of Living Wage Week 2022, the Ontario Living Wage Network has announced, perhaps unsurprisingly, that the living wage in Ontario has gone up once again. In Guelph and Wellington, that number is now $19.95, one of the largest in the province. Continue reading “A Living Wage in Guelph is Now Nearly $20 Per Hour”
There’s some unfinished council business to talk about at the end of the month. 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 on Twitter, or follow the tweets below. You can also watch the City’s own live-stream of the meeting here. Continue reading “LIVE BLOG: City Council Meeting for May 30, 2022”
Guelph Politico 