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 Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Paul Calandra came to Guelph to announce that we’re getting a nearly $4.7 million bonus for doing good on our housing starts last year. A giant novelty cheque was involved.
New capital projects and staff hires have been frozen at city hall in the wake of the mayor’s “Strong” directive to shave six per cent off the 2025 budget.
Guelph’s Fire Chief and the Ontario Fire Marshal teamed up to warn people that a fatal house fire this week likely killed two people because they didn’t have a working smoke detector.
Adding to fire concerns, there was another blaze on Wednesday afternoon, this time at a residential garage in the north end.
A big haul for Guelph Police after a months-long investigation resulted in the recovery of over $5 million in meth, cocaine, fentanyl, and an assortment of illegal firearms.
Loblaws is not making a new friends with their latest pilot project that requires customers to scan their receipt in order to leave the building at four Ontario stores.
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The County’s social services committee is pleased with the direction post-Health and Housing Symposium, but some County councillors didn’t like the tone of one of the City’s motions from the February 14 meeting on encampments.
Don’t get too use to the spring-like weather, there’s a cold snap coming at the beginning of next week.
Hybrid work models are now a part of the DNA at Guelph City Hall reportedly.
The University of Guelph will have an alcohol recovery room open on St. Patrick’s Day to help relieve some of the pressure on Guelph General Hospital.
Metrolinx is planning on cracking down on some types of ebikes that are allowed on GO Trains as the number of people getting on GO with their bikes to take on food delivery gigs in Toronto have exploded.
A pair of curlers from Guelph/Eramosa are heading to the Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Championship next week.
The Wellington County Museum and Archives wants to get a permanent liquor license but can’t because of a local bylaw that dates back 100 years to Ontario’s own prohibition era.
More fire news, this one back in January at St. Mary Catholic School in Mount Forest, a report obtained through a freedom of information request said that the school’s alarm system wasn’t working.
A facility in Cambridge that will pay for blood donations slated to open in 2025 is raising eyebrows, and cause for concern.
Pope Francis says he has no plans to retire, health issues be damned (so to speak).
Planning Meeting of City Council – Wednesday February 20 at 10 am.
Development charges and Demolition Control are on the agenda. You can see the Politico preview here, and you have until next Friday at 10 am to register with the clerks office as a delegate or to send a correspondence.
Regular Meeting of City Council – Tuesday March 26 at 10 am.
Council will revisit the agenda from Committee of the Whole and talk about a resolution from the City of Hamilton that petition’s the Ontario Energy Board to end the gas pipeline subsidy. You can see the agenda on the City’s website here, and you have until next Friday at 10 am to register with the clerks office as a delegate or to send a correspondence.
Committee of the Whole Meeting – Wednesday April 3 at 10 am.
The agenda for this meeting will be posted on the City’s website on Thursday March 21.
For more information on Guelph City Council meetings, from agendas to live-tweets to recaps, you can visit that page on Guelph Politico here.
The YMCA of Three Rivers has announced the recipients, and the date, for this year’s Women of Distinction Awards.
The Ontario government has shared a parent’s guide to the provincial school system.
Guelph General Hospital has been upgraded to a Level III Trauma Centre, which is part of a strategic action to improve trauma care delivery in the Waterloo-Wellington region.
There’s a public meeting about Educational Development Charges co-hosted by both the Upper Grand District School Board and the Wellington Catholic District School Board at the latter’s office at 255 Speedvale Avenue West on Thursday March 21 at 7 pm.
The City of Guelph has granted a noise exemption for the Junction Craft Beer Fest at 7 Edinburgh Road South from June 21 to 22. If you’re impacted by the exemption, you have until February 21 to request that council review the exemption.
More than $31.8 million in new funding from the federal government has been secured by the University of Guelph for a variety of research projects.
Crime Stoppers Guelph Wellington is offering a chance for one lucky kid, age 12 or under, the chance to be the Youth Fire Chief for the Day with Centre Wellington Fire Rescue.
For Wellington County folks there’s a public information session about the Tri-County Green Development Standards on Monday March 25 at 5:30 pm at the Wellington County Museum and Archives.
The Grand River Conservation Authority has released a new interactive map that will show you possible locations for a commemorative benches or kilometre marker sponsorship.
The University of Guelph has announced that they’re launching a new degree program for a Master of Sustainable Agriculture.
The United Way Guelph Wellington Dufferin’s annual event, Women United, will take place at the Spring Mill Distillery in Guelph between 5 to 8 pm.
Current “Have Your Say” opportunities: Downtown Heritage Conservation District Study, Drew Park Revitalization, Guelph’s Bicentennial, Housing Affordability Strategy, Outdoor Sport Facility Strategy, and York Road Reconstruction Phase Three.
Transit Detours/Notices:
Nothing to report.
Upcoming Construction:
City crews will be working to remove a variety of invasive plant species at various parks and wooded areas around Guelph from now until November. Work at each location will take about a week to complete.
Work will resume on the roof of the West End Community Centre starting on Monday March 18 and running all next week before resuming again on the week of April 8.
#Yikes
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!