Welcome to the Guelph Politico Tip Sheet, a thrice-a-week newsletter meant to “tip” you off about some of the important stuff going on in the Royal City. It arrives directly in your inbox on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
Reminder: Advanced polls are now open!
In case you missed it, the Guelph Chamber of Commerce debate was yesterday, and you can see the Politico recap here, or watch it on YouTube here.
CJOY hosted their debate with the four main party candidates, and you can watch it yourself here.
The registration for the Climate Change and Social Justice debate is still open, so click here to get your ticket for the virtual event.
People’s Party candidate Josh Leier will be holding an event with Wellington-Halton Hills PPC candidate Syl Carle on Sunday for “anyone who’s pro-freedom!”
A Kitchener man’s been arrested for uttering threats against the Prime Minister at a Justin Trudeau campaign stop in Cambridge on August 29.
Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health now looks to the hardest phase of the vaccination effort, getting shots to the last 20 per cent. Their also getting ready to roll out vaccine shots to kids under 12 whenever that gets approved.
A Guelph family is in a bind after the Ministry of Transportation is effectively evicting them from the current and reasonably priced rental home to make room for the Stone Road interchange at the Hanlon Expressway.
The Chartwell Wellington Park long-term care home at 181 Janefield Avenue is experiencing a COVID-19 outbreak, the first time a congregate care setting in Guelph is experiencing a COVID outbreak in four months.
A Guelph United FC match for today was cancelled after a member of Sigma FC, the opposing team, tested positive for COVID-19.
After a few weeks of delay, new barriers were set up along the bike lane on Gordon Street near a certain annoying fast food drive-thru.
A bike patrol led to a big drug bust, including over $2,700 in very bad red fentanyl.
In our region, the 7-day moving rate of confirmed cases has fallen again to 29.2 per 100,000 from 33.7 the other day, while the test positivity rate is holding steady around 3.7 per cent. By the cases, there were just 10 new cases on Friday, but only one of those cases was in Guelph, while the number of total active cases is now down to 104 after hitting 135 at the beginning of the week.
In terms of local vaccine distribution, four out of every five people in the region who is eligible to get a vaccine has now been fully vaccinated. On Friday, Public Health announced that 80 per cent of the region 12-and-over has been fully vaccinated while 85.4 per cent have received one dose. In Guelph alone, we seem to have plateaued at 91 per cent with one shot while 85.4 per cent have had both.
After a couple of days earlier this week when the province-wide new daily case count was under 600, things are now back up over 800. On Friday, there were 848 news cases after 798 new cases on Thursday. Of those 848 new cases, 77 per cent of them were in people who have not been vaccinated, are partially vaccinated, or whose vaccination status is unknown. There are right now 6,123 active cases in the whole of Ontario.
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Can’t speak to the weather forecast, but this is the last weekend to enjoy splash pads around the city. (They get shut off for the season on September 13.)
Need a vaccine shot, WDG Public Health will be in Market Square from 3 pm to 8 pm today. Spyke from the Guelph Storm will be there too, and you can be entered into a draw to win a Storm jersey.
Not for the first time, someone set a fire in the toilet paper aisle in a Kitchener-area Walmart.
There are about to be 25 total cannabis stores in Guelph once you combined the 12 already open and another 12 that have been approved to open in the not-too-distant future.
Guelph Black Heritage Society will be having a grand opening for their Freedom Project on Saturday September 25 at 10:30 am.
Jett, a police service dog, has sadly passed away after a short illness.
Planning Meeting of City Council – September 13, 6:30 pm.
The fall’s first planning meeting will feature first hearings on three different townhouse projects. You can see the Politico preview here, and you have until Friday September 10 at 10 am to register with the clerks office as a delegate or to send a correspondence.
Special Meeting of City Council – September 22, 6 pm.
In a special Wednesday meeting, council will consider the draft Official Plan Amendment for Clair-Maltby. You can see the Politico preview here, and you have until Friday September 17 at 10 am to register with the clerks office as a delegate or to send a correspondence.
Regular Meeting of City Council – September 27, 6:30 pm.
The agenda for this meeting will be posted on the City of Guelph’s website on Thursday September 16.
Committee of the Whole Meeting – October 4, 2021.
The agenda for this meeting will be posted on the City of Guelph’s website on Thursday September 23.
For more information on Guelph City Council meetings, from agendas to live-tweets to recaps, you can visit that page on Guelph Politico here.
This weekend at the Mustang Drive-In, check out the latest Marvel movie Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and the horror sequel Escape Room: Tournament of Champions.
Got some shredding? Get to Skyjack at 201 Woodlawn Road West as CrimeStoppers is having their shredding fundraiser until 1 pm.
The Ghost Walk of Guelph will be hosting another tour tonight!
The Outdoor Repair Café will fix your stuff at Harcourt United Church is today from 1:30-5:30 pm.
Heritage Guelph will meet in the virtual realm on Monday September 13 at 12 pm.
This year’s hybrid indoor/outdoor Guelph Jazz Festival begins on Tuesday September 14 and runs until Sunday September 19.
Tuesday Food Trucks in Exhibition Park is back for September every Tuesday from 4:30 to 8 pm.
The United Way will kick-off their 2021 campaign virtually on Wednesday September 15 at 12 pm.
ARCH is hosting a community barbeque – IN PERSON! – at the Green Roofed Pavilion in Riverside Park on Wednesday September 15 from 3:30 to 6:30 pm.
The Guelph Police Services Board meets virtually on Thursday at 2:30 pm, and the Transit Advisory Committee will also meet virtually that same day at 5:30 pm.
The virtual Take Back the Night will be held on Facebook Live on Thursday September 16 at 6:30 pm.
HOPE in the Street, a street party and benefit for HOPE House, will take place on Friday September 17 at 5 pm at Spring Mill on Arthur Street.
What’s at stake…
And finally, feel free to reach out to me by email at adamadonaldson [at] gmail [dot] com, or find me on Facebook, Twitter, and, of course, GuelphPolitico.ca!