This week Guelph city council is taking a holiday break, and perhaps understandably, because it has been a very busy year in the chambers so far. The first four months of the year brought a lot of change, a lot of drama, and some pretty big decisions that tested the fiscal and political capacity of a rapidly growing Ontario city. Now, we will pause and take stock of just how far we’ve come so far… Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #471 – The Year at Council So Far Part 1 (January-April)”
There was a lot going on at this meeting, and some of it had nothing to do with what was on the agenda. For instance, one city councillor was absent because they’re now busy chasing a new gig at a different level of government. In terms of stuff at the meeting, there was a new development around the Public Space Use Bylaw, which caused some controversy despite how little about it was available in the agenda. Hopefully this recap has more detail! Continue reading “This Week at Council: More Debate on Public Space, Plus Road Safety”
Council has the last word for March, but will it go out like a lamb or a line? Tune in and see! 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 “RECAP: City Council Meeting for March 25, 2025”
The last meeting for March is a recital of the past. Yes, as usual, we will revisit the (almost whole) agenda from this month’s Committee of the Whole meeting, but there’s also new/old controversy with a returning bylaw that caused a lot of hand wringing last year. The ball will be in the people’s court (so to speak) to see if they have anything new and interesting to say on these matters, otherwise this could be a short meeting. Continue reading “City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the March 25, 2025 Meeting?”
Last year was very busy for Guelph City Council, and the last four months of the year were perhaps the busiest. In fact, the business of council has gotten so busy to properly cover it all this “Year in Review” podcast now has to be done in three parts, splitting the year into three near equal sections for over two hours of combined content. So now, at the end, the final part of this trilogy. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #450 – The Year at Council (September – December)”
What do you think this year will be remembered for in the annals of Guelph history? Will it be the debate over the Public Space Use Bylaw? Was it the announced closure of the consumption and treatment site downtown? Was it when the mayor re-opened the 2025 budget to try and shave off two-thirds of the proposed levy increase? In any event, all roads lead back to one place, or rather, one person. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #447 – The Strong Mayor Year (feat. Cam Guthrie)”
The last meeting of the year goes to the Accessibility Advisory Committee. For this one you should expect a lot of wrap up for the work of 2024 and some teeing up for the work of 2025, but the main point of interest might be seeing what happens in this first meeting after a fairly fractious October meeting where members of the AAC laid down the law, and their concerns, about their own autonomy. So let’s check out what’s on the agenda… Continue reading “MEETING PREVIEW: Accessibility Advisory Committee for December 17, 2024”
Watching the Accessibility Advisory Committee meetings over the last several months there’s a particular undercurrent that some members of the committee feel like they’re not being listened to, and that there was a disconnect between their expectations and what City of Guelph staff wanted them to do. And then came the Public Space Use Bylaw and the waters got even choppier. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #441 – The AAC Spills the Tea (feat. Lorelei Root)”
Here, at the end of October, there’s a lot going on from new budgets to potential strikes to changes to our recycling, so it seems like a good time to pause and talk about some recent events before the news gets even crazier. This week, we’re going to catch up with a friend from a different show, and we’re all going to catch up with all the important issues going on in the news. The Guelph Stuff! Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #439 – Guelph Stuff (feat. Scotty Hertz)”
This month’s Accessibility Advisory Committee was delayed by two days, and if you think that wasn’t a topic of conversation, you are wrong! Still stinging from the lack of engagement before the passage of the Public Space Use Bylaw almost two months ago, the AAC had some notes about their relationship with staff, and they also had notes about the bylaw. For that, and all the rest of the agenda, check out the recap below… Continue reading “RECAP: The AAC Tells Staff – Respectfully – That They’re the Captain Now!”
Guelph Politico 