Committee of the Whole Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the February 3, 2026 Meeting?

It’s the first Committee of the Whole meeting of the year, and there’s a lot on the plate in a variety of areas. The Chief Administrative Officer will layout here priorities for the year ahead, which presumably includes the launching of the city-wide review of parking that’s on this agenda. Also, a long-awaited policy involving water is here, and the always popular conversation about how much our local politicians should be paid. Here’s the preview! Continue reading “Committee of the Whole Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the February 3, 2026 Meeting?”

City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the February 4, 2026 Meeting?

At the end of November when council finished the 2026 City of Guelph budget, it came with a big “To be continued…” sign. (Not literally.) This is the conclusion. At this special meeting of council, they will tackle the third of the budget that is generated, and in part controlled, by the seven local boards and shared services, but will there be the same wheeling and dealing that happened in November with the City portion? Here’s the preview! Continue reading “City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the February 4, 2026 Meeting?”

RECAP: City Council Meeting for January 20, 2026

Back for the first official meeting of council for the year, and there’s lots of planning to do! 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 January 20, 2026”

The Week at Council: Two Hours In Camera

Surprise! It’s a surprise meeting, and that means a surprise meeting recap! Following up the first big political controversy of 2026, a special city council meeting was called to figure out what was to be done about the sudden cancellation of the daytime shelter plan out of Royal City Mission and Stepping Stone. The details were mostly in-camera, but you will learn all about what came out of it in this recap of the meeting… Continue reading “The Week at Council: Two Hours In Camera”

City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the January 27, 2026 Meeting?

The last meeting of the short council calendar this January will be a half-and-half, meaning that half the subjects will be handled in closed session and half the subjects will be in the open. In the open half look for another fun discussion into the ways that the City of Guelph needs to do more on climate action, and a petition from a resident concerning the payment of a specific development fee. Here’s the preview… Continue reading “City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the January 27, 2026 Meeting?”

RECAP: City Council Meeting for January 13, 2026

Let us wrap up a very busy, and a very difficult 2025 in the council chambers. 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 with the thread below from BlueSky, or you can watch the whole meeting for yourself by watching it on the City’s website here. Continue reading “RECAP: City Council Meeting for January 13, 2026”

City Moves to Quell Concerns About Daytime Shelter Debacle

It seems as though the City of Guelph is feeling the heat following the sudden announcement on Thursday that a long-awaited daytime shelter program for the unhoused and precariously housed would not open as scheduled on Monday. A demonstration downtown on Saturday seems to have pushed Guelph’s mayor to pencil in a special council meeting this coming week while the City of Guelph is explaining itself in a surprise Sunday post. Continue reading “City Moves to Quell Concerns About Daytime Shelter Debacle”

City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the January 20, 2026 Meeting?

The first official council meeting of 2026 is a planning meeting, and most of it is focused on downtown! Back for final approval is the plan for running the core as a heritage district, and since we’re talking about the past, we will also talk about the area’s future with a new plan to streamline development. But that’s not all, there will be a decision about a major downtown development project, and even some decisions about a south end project. Here’s the preview… Continue reading “City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the January 20, 2026 Meeting?”

GUELPH POLITICAST #504 – The Rest of 2025 at Council (September-December)

Guelph City Council is taking an extended holiday (but not as extended at the Ontario government), so as we wait for their inevitable return, it seems fitting to pause here at the start of the year and to look back at all the action last fall in the council chambers. Before we unlock the future we must first find the keys to the past so join us in this search for the keys… Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #504 – The Rest of 2025 at Council (September-December)”

This Week at Council: Squares, Downloading, and Bike Lanes End 2025

It was the last council meeting of the year, and it’s been a wild ride, but there were at least a couple of surprises left for civic policy nerds before Christmas Break. Yes, as expected, council discussed the final, final design for St. George’s Square as council sought the ever nebulous “wow” factor. In addition to that there was some push back from council about changes to conservation authorities and a twist ending for fans of bike lanes. For the last time in 2025, here’s the recap… Continue reading “This Week at Council: Squares, Downloading, and Bike Lanes End 2025”