There’s an interesting process underway in Guelph’s south end. One of the two Ward 6 city councillors, Dominique O’Rourke, has moved on to a new job in Ottawa as you might have heard, which leaves her old seat at city council vacant. Nature, and local politics, abhor a vacuum, so next month O’Rourke’s former colleagues will choose her successor. At least until next year’s municipal election… Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #476 – How to City Council (Special Presentation)”
Just when you thought that the 2022 Municipal Election was over… On Monday, the ultra rare Municipal Election Compliance Audit Committee met to consider a petition to audit the campaign expenses of Ward 1 candidate Thai Mac, and the ultimate result of those deliberations was to not send this application forward for an external audit. What the committee heard, and how they got to their decision, is revealed below. Continue reading “RECAP: Election Committee Decides No Audit Needed For Mac Expenses”
As you may have heard, there’s a byelection in Toronto on Monday to choose their next mayor. As you can imagine, this is a massive undertaking when you have four years to plan for it, but in the case of this byelection, the Toronto clerks office had to do it four months. But they do have help from colleagues in other municipalities, including Guelph! Several members of our local clerks office will be taking part in the election on Monday. Continue reading “Guelph Clerks Called in to Assist Toronto with Mayoral Byelection”
Last week, we covered the transition from the previous council to the new, and this week, we look far-ish into the future to the next election, the one in October 2026. You will hear in this podcast that planning for the next election begins almost immediately after the one that’s just completed, because there are a lot of complicated questions that need to be answered before the time comes to vote again. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #348 – What’s Next? Part 2: The Next Election”
On November 15, five new city councillors are going to formally take their seat around the horseshoe, and they’re five people bringing a variety of skills and experiences to the table. Joining them are eight experienced councillors, so how do all these ingredients gel to immediately form a cohesive unit that will tackle some of the biggest challenges our local government has faced. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #347 – What’s Next? Part 1: The Transition”
When members of city council, and members of the public, return to the council chambers Tuesday evening for the final meeting of the term, they will notice some changes. Since the last in-person hybrid meeting in the chambers in mid-July, City staff and contractors have been busily performing upgrades to reflect our new reality of hybrid council meetings, and to create a more accessible environment for everyone. Continue reading “Clerks Preview Upgrades to Council Chambers”
Now, you too can enjoy the hustle and bustle of an in-person council meeting. Stating with the Committee of the Whole meeting on April 4, all members of the public will be able to attend city council meetings in-person, in the council chambers, in city hall. Naturally, there are still options for the people not so sure about being among the public in an enclosed setting, but for the most part, it’s back to business as unusual at the horseshoe! Continue reading “Now (or in April), Everyone Will be Able to Do Council Business at Council”
March 9, 2020. That was the last time that Guelph City Council met in-person. Appropriately enough, almost exactly two years later, city council will once again be meeting in-person again starting on March 7. Well, half of them will be meeting in-person anyway. That’s one of the caveats announced by the City of Guelph’s clerks’ office on Tuesday, another sign that we’re slowly entering a post-pandemic world. Continue reading “We’re Back! (Sort of.) Council Returns to In-Person with Hybrid Model This Month”
In the second half of June, much of the business of city council focused on itself. There were back-to-back meetings about the new ward maps and council composition, and then, at the end of the month, it was a triple header with shareholder meetings for Guelph holding corporations and a complex series of actions at the regular council meeting. Here’s the rest of the council recap for the month. Continue reading “This Month at Council Part 2: New Ward Maps and Accessible Voting”
At Monday’s city council meeting the topic of the 2022 Municipal Election will come up again, but this time, it’s not about maps or the number of councillors. This Monday, the topic is voting itself, or rather making sure that everyone in town is able to vote in the next election regardless of any issues with accessibility they might be facing. As it stands right now, the barriers that some people are still facing are quite profound. Continue reading “Accessibility Committee Wants a Better Option Than Vote from Home for 2022”
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