Ontario Government Approves $15 Million for Hospital ER Expansion

There’s an election coming. The writs must be drawn up in the next 48 hours, but in that time it looks like there’s going to be a lot of announcements from all parties about wonderful new spending initiatives. Guelph General Hospital was the recipients of one of those cool funding announcements today, but this one comes with the seal of approval from the Minister of Health herself. Continue reading “Ontario Government Approves $15 Million for Hospital ER Expansion” →

LIVE BLOG: Committee of the Whole Meeting for May 2, 2022

Money matters, and some election related matters open the month of May at city council. 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: Committee of the Whole Meeting for May 2, 2022” →

This Month at Council: Parks, Solid Waste, and Community Benefit Charges

It was a very consequential month at Guelph City Council, especially if you’re a fan of parkland and infrastructure. Bookended by intense debates around the demand for more park space, new bans on a variety of single-use plastics, and the delegation of authority to staff when planned capital go way over budget, the month also dealt with a heritage appeal, a new big density development and the new Community Benefit Charges. Here’s the recap for April. Continue reading “This Month at Council: Parks, Solid Waste, and Community Benefit Charges” →

Committee of the Whole Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the May 2 Meeting?

For this May meeting of Committee of the Whole, there are money matters on the agenda, and some administrative stuff for the coming election. It’s a good time for both these topics considering that Monday May 2 is also the official kick-off of Municipal Election season, the first day that people can file their nomination papers. Perhaps there’s something in this meeting that people will be interested in running on. Continue reading “Committee of the Whole Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the May 2 Meeting?” →

LIVE BLOG: City Council Meeting for April 13, 2022

It’s parklands and growth on the agenda for this special Wednesday 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 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 April 13, 2022” →

City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the April 13 Meeting?

This is definitely going to be a meeting that gets a lot of attention from our park-happy public. In a special meeting of city council, the horseshoe will look at changes to the Parkland Dedication Bylaw and the new Community Benefit Charge, which means we’re talking about parks and growth. Get ready for another long night! Continue reading “City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the April 13 Meeting?” →

Now (or in April), Everyone Will be Able to Do Council Business at Council

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” →

This Month at Council: MAT and PACE, Plus Short-term and Long-term Rentals

February is the shortest month of the year, but there were some very long meetings indeed as council tackled a number of very complex issues. From a new tax designed to help bolster tourism, to new licensing for AirBnB and other short-term rentals, to a new program to let the community help lead Guelph to net zero, there was a lot to cover policy-wise, and there were also a few planning decisions too. This was February at city council. Continue reading “This Month at Council: MAT and PACE, Plus Short-term and Long-term Rentals” →

We’re Back! (Sort of.) Council Returns to In-Person with Hybrid Model This Month

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” →

LIVE BLOG: City Council Meeting for February 28, 2022

It’s the last meeting on the last day of the month! You can click here and here for the amended agendas 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 February 28, 2022” →