October 24 Meeting Highlights

Grey County Council met on Thursday, October 24 at 9:30 a.m. in the Council Chamber for the regular session of council. The meeting was immediately followed by a session of committee of the whole. A recording of the meetings can be found on Grey County’s YouTube Channel.

County Council

• Council accepted the minutes of the October 10 County Council and Committee of the Whole meetings.  Council   Committee
• Council accepted the minutes of the October 15 Strategic Planning session.  Minutes
• Council accepted the minutes of the October 8 Long-Term Care Committee of Management meeting. A motion to apply for 96 new long-term care beds was pulled, discussed, and approved. Staff will bring back more information about costs and other impacts as work is completed on the application.  Minutes

Committee of the Whole

• Council heard from Stuart Doyle of Barry’s Construction about an entrance permit request in Owen Sound. Mr. Doyle spoke on behalf of the property owner.
• Dana Howes and Gerry Clover, co-chairs of the Grey Bruce Ontario Health Team Planning Committee spoke about what is being done to create a regional health team. Healthcare partners have come together to create a readiness assessment which will be submitted to the Province this fall.
• The Province is making changes to the Aggregate Resources Act and is looking for comments from municipalities. A large amount of aggregate is extracted in Grey County each year. Staff will be sending comments to the Province and circulating them with member municipalities.  Report

Good News and Celebrations

• On November 28 at 12:00 p.m. the Legion Veterans Ombudsman’s Accommodation Award will be presented to Ken Reimer at the Chatsworth Legion. Mr. Reimer was World War 2 pilot. He had a business in Owen Sound and was a Legion member for 70 years.
• On October 20, Thornbury Clarksburg Rotary Run Blue Mountains attracted 337 runners.
• October 17 was the physician recruitment committee meeting for the south Georgian Bay region. One doctor is already interested in working at the Bumstead clinic in Meaford.
• The Meaford Dragon’s event is October 30 at Meaford Hall at 7:30 PM. The host is comedian Andrew Chapman and tickets are $30.
• The Grey County Federation of Agriculture annual general meeting was held recently and members thanked Grey County for lowering the agricultural tax rate.
• Past Warden Duncan McKinley is now a member of the Niagara Escarpment Commission representing the public at large.
• The Tourism Industry Association of Ontario conference is next week at Blue Mountain Resort.
• Grey Ag Services thanked Grey County for ongoing support. Grey County provides office and meeting space in Markdale for their services.
• Construction of the new hospital in Markdale will be going to tender in the new year.
• The Town of Blue Mountains declared a climate change emergency, joining voices with other local municipalities.
• Volunteer appreciation events were hosted this week for agricultural society volunteers in West Grey.
• The Children’s Safety Village in West Grey is now open and running classes.

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.