This Week at Council: Niska Lands Blocked, Renoviction Bylaw Unlocked!

It was a pretty big week for Guelph City Council in terms of both length and substance. The planning meeting also had scale, between the approval of a massive new project for the downtown area and the protection of a big piece of land in the south end. There were also big implications for supporting affordable housing in the city, as staff brought back three very in-demand new bylaws. So let’s get all the details from two mega meetings in this recap! Continue reading “This Week at Council: Niska Lands Blocked, Renoviction Bylaw Unlocked!”

RECAP: City Council Meeting for June 9, 2026

It’s going to be a long one at this month’s city council planning 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 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 June 9, 2026”

City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the June 9, 2026 Meeting?

June’s planning meeting will not be short on controversy. The Niska Lands are back on the agenda, and the activists who came out to speak for it being parkland earlier this year are probably going to have a bad time with this staff report, and there’s also a mysterious item from the mayor that will likely prompt some heated discussion. Plus, one very big (tall) project will be brought forward for approval, and there will be pretty big new subdivision proposed for the south end. Continue reading “City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the June 9, 2026 Meeting?”

This Week at Council: Big Nights for Big Projects

It was a packed night, or make that a couple of nights, at Guelph City Council. Two nights, two big planning projects, one in the south end and one in the east end. Both have been hotly anticipated (dreaded?), at least one for many, many years, and while one is still at least theoretical, the other is now moving on to the next phase of development. For all the details, let’s get right into this week’s recap of council business… Continue reading “This Week at Council: Big Nights for Big Projects”

RECAP: City Council Meeting for September 9, 2025

Plans are made, and plans are made to be approved. 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 September 9, 2025”

City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the September 9, 2025 Meeting?

The first planning meeting of the fall has an application for more units than have been approved all year so far, but will council be interested in chasing them given the cost? That will be one of the questions councillors will tackle in this meeting as they hold a statutory meeting on this massive new project. In terms of small moves, look out for an update to everyone’s favourite planning bylaw, and something that will be discussed in closed… Continue reading “City Council Preview – What’s on the Agenda for the September 9, 2025 Meeting?”

MEETING PREVIEW: Committee of Adjustment Meeting for February 8, 2024

Committee of Adjustment will get together again in February to tackle a fresh slate of minor zoning variance requests, about half of which will be familiar if you’re a fan of Committee of Adjustment business. As for the new business, think bigger! More space for a driveway, more floor space for an accessory building, and more floor space for a garage. Plus, there’s some administrative business involving a rules change!! Continue reading “MEETING PREVIEW: Committee of Adjustment Meeting for February 8, 2024”

MEETING PREVIEW: Committee of Adjustment Meeting for January 11, 2024

The Committee of Adjustment will not be given a chance to ease into the new year because they have to get right back at it with about eight different files that are all looking for some kind of accommodation. New additions, separations, and some musical parking spaces are all on the agenda, plus a special request from a vital community service that’s looking to expand its capacity. Let’s look at the list of applications for January… Continue reading “MEETING PREVIEW: Committee of Adjustment Meeting for January 11, 2024”

RECAP: Committee of Adjustment Makes Tough Call on Commercial Building

There were a couple of complicated plans for the Committee of Adjustment to chew at their last meeting of the year. One had to do with an additional use variance for employment lands in the Ward, and the other concerning an addition to a residential property that has seen more than a few additions in it’s time. So how did it all turn out for those and other applications. Let’s recap the meeting… Continue reading “RECAP: Committee of Adjustment Makes Tough Call on Commercial Building”

MEETING PREVIEW: Committee of Adjustment Meeting for December 14, 2023

There’s no early holiday break for the Committee of Adjustment, they still have a pretty busy agenda of new applications this month, and they’re all asking for a variety of variances. A new balcony, a new front yard, some new additions, and a couple of new accessory units are among the items up for committee’s consideration, and the applicants are hoping that it’s a happy Christmas for their construction projects! Continue reading “MEETING PREVIEW: Committee of Adjustment Meeting for December 14, 2023”