February 23, 2023 Meeting Highlights

Grey County Council met on February 23, 2023 in the Council Chamber and virtually on Zoom. The meeting was immediately followed by a session of Committee of the Whole. Recordings of the meetings can be found on Grey County’s YouTube Channel.

County Council

• Council approved the minutes of the February 9 County Council and Committee of the Whole meetings.  Council   Committee

Committee of the Whole

• Council discussed a notice of motion from Paul McQueen regarding the expansion of Grey Gables. Grey County received preliminary approval for an additional 62 bed licenses for the home in 2020. After considering additional information about redevelopment costs and complexity of the projects in 2021, the Council of the day voted to continue moving forward with the redevelopment of Rockwood Terrace and pause the expansion of Grey Gables. Councillor McQueen’s motion raised concerns about the possibility of losing the allocation of the new beds and directed staff to bring back a report for Council to revisit the decision. Current Ministry timelines will require significant design work to be completed and a project to be tendered by the end of August of this year to be eligible for additional funding announced in November of 2022. After much discussion, Council voted to defer the motion until the tender process for Rockwood Terrace redevelopment has been completed.
• Council heard a delegation from resident Alan Wisniewski regarding proposed enhancement plants for Grey Road 19 in the Town of The Blue Mountains. Mr. Wisniewski expressed concerns with the widening of the road and the addition of a roundabout. The delegation requested Council not support a recently completed environmental assessment for the project. Presentation
• Council approved the advanced purchase of two ambulances for 2024 due to 20-month delivery timelines.  Report
• Council previously approved $3 million to support Lutheran Social Services in building a 40-unit affordable housing building. Staff brought forward a report outlining how the funds will be distributed for operating and capital needs.  Report
• Council ratified a three-year collective agreement with OPSEU Local 266 representing 41 Social Services staff.  Report
• Council ratified a three-year collective agreement with UNIFOR local 206 representing 149 staff at Rockwood Terrace.  Report
• Grey County, Municipality of Grey Highlands, Town of The Blue Mountains and Regional Tourism Organization 7: BruceGreySimcoe have received funding from the Province to develop the first Sustainable Tourism Strategy and three-year Action Plan for the Beaver Valley. This strategy seeks to find alignment among stakeholders balancing nature conservation with sustainable development for communities. Work is expected to be completed by the end of this year.  Report

• Bill 23, the More Homes Built Faster Act was passed by the province in late November 2022. One of the key changes in Bill 23, which came into effect on January 1, 2023, was to limit conservation authorities’ role in the planning and development review process. Conservation authorities are no longer able to provide natural heritage review comments. Council discussed the gap left by this change and directed staff move forward with hiring an additional staff member to take on this responsibility. In addition, Grey County will collaborate with interested member municipalities who are interested in accessing this service.   Report

The Clerk’s Department maintains the official record for Grey County. This publication is intended to provide meeting highlights only. For official records, please refer to the meeting minutes, or contact the Clerk’s Department at 1-800-567-4739.