Tag: Grand River Conservation Authority

RECAP: The GRCA Board Votes to Proceed With Sale of Agricultural Land on Niska

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It’s unusual for the Grand River Conservation Authority Board to meet in July, but these are unusual times. For the most part, this meeting was reserved to start the 2027 budget discussion, a necessity given the Ontario government’s push to amalgamate the GRCA with three other authorities. For Guelphites though, there were other stakes: eight hectares of agricultural land next to the old Niska Waterfowl Park that the GRCA wants to sell. How did it go down? Check out the recap! Continue reading “RECAP: The GRCA Board Votes to Proceed With Sale of Agricultural Land on Niska” →

This Week at Council: Public Space Changes and the “Future” Reviewed

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It was the last city council meeting… before summer break! There will be a couple of more meetings in September before the October 26 election, but will there be anything as controversial as the unscheduled return of the Public Space Use Bylaw? That one was put on the revised agenda, along with a matter of development changes being applied to a non-profit’s renovation project. We’ll get that, and the update about the City’s Strategic Plan in this last recap of the summer! Continue reading “This Week at Council: Public Space Changes and the “Future” Reviewed” →

RECAP: City Council Meeting for July 22, 2026

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It’s the last city council meeting…. before summer break! We will plan for the last time before summer vacation! 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 July 22, 2026” →

MEETING PREVIEW: Grand River Conservation Membership Meeting for July 27, 2026

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No rest for the weary, at least if you’re interested in Grand River Conservation Authority business. Although the board typically takes July off, the demands of the pending amalgamation with the Catfish, Kettle Creek, and Long Point Region Conservation Authorities requires some conversations around the budget. For Guelph peeps, you’re favourite piece of environmentally sensitive property is coming back to the front burner. Here’s the preview! Continue reading “MEETING PREVIEW: Grand River Conservation Membership Meeting for July 27, 2026” →

City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the July 22, 2026 Meetings?

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One more meeting before summer vacation… Perhaps appropriately before taking a break, Guelph City Council will sit back to hear about the progress over goals they set near the beginning of this term. A team from City of Guelph senior staff, plus visitors from the local boards and shared services, will share our collective progress on achieving the directives of Future Guelph, aka: the City’s Strategic Plan! Continue reading “City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the July 22, 2026 Meetings?” →

GUELPH POLITICAST #510 – The Unknowable(?) History of the Waterfowl Park (Real Audio News)

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Last week’s discussion at city council about the City of Guelph buying a portion of the old Kortright Waterfowl Park lands on Niska Road captured a lot of attention from the community and community activists. No one’s going to debate the need for more parks and open space, but it’s hard to get a full sense of the history of *this* because it goes back before the internet, so can we ever really have a firm sense of that background and the stakes? Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #510 – The Unknowable(?) History of the Waterfowl Park (Real Audio News)” →

This Week at Council: No Raise, Except For Taxes

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There were back-to-back meetings at Guelph City Council this week, and the topic at hand was money. At Committee of the Whole, council had to deal with their own money, or at least the money that the councillors in the next couple will be paid as remuneration came up for debate. Then, at the other meeting, the 2026 budget process came to a close with the seven shared services and local boards. Let’s dig into the recap! Continue reading “This Week at Council: No Raise, Except For Taxes” →

RECAP: City Council Meeting for February 4, 2026

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Coming to you more than two months later, it’s the rest of the budget! 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 February 4, 2026” →

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

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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?” →

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

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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” →