September County Council Highlights

Grey County Council met on Tuesday, September 6, at 10:00 a.m. in the council chamber. Below are highlights from the meeting.

• A public meeting with a presentation from Hemson Consulting was held at the beginning of Council to discuss proposed updates to the Development Charges By-Law. Development charges recover a portion of the cost of new, growth-related infrastructure from developers. Members of the public asked questions and made comments about the proposed changes. Comments will be considered by council before final decisions are made.

• Grey County Council will pilot a new meeting structure from January to June 2017. Grey County’s Council and standing committee structure will change to Committee of the Whole and Council meetings on alternate Thursdays. Report

• Council passed a motion opposing the proposed changes to the Niagara Escarpment Plan. Council is requesting the commenting deadline be extended and is open to working together with the Niagara Escarpment Commission and the Province to develop a suitable consultation process. Council also agreed to resubmit a request made in October 2015.

• Council passed a by-law allowing all-terrain vehicles and off-road vehicles on some Grey County roads as a one-year pilot. A map and brochure will be posted on Grey.ca and shared with local municipalities and ATV clubs. Report

• Jon Farmer presented to council about youth political and civic engagement. Jon encouraged more youth outreach and shared his experience participating with Samara Canada. Jon also provided copies of a youth engagement poster.

• Francesca Dobbyn, Executive Director of the United Way Bruce Grey, presented Grey County with a plaque commemorating the sale of County Childcare Centre building to the United Way ten years ago.  Grey County sold the building to the United Way for $1.

• Grey County is receiving Social Infrastructure Funding from the Ministry of Housing. $2,270,000 will help improve local social housing in 2016. Another $754,500 in funding will be used in 2017-2018. Report

• Grey County is happy with the current response time targets for Paramedic Services and will keep the same targets. Report

• Grey County is continuing to work on a Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder program that will be presented to the committee at a future date. Grey County is exploring the use of a service dog. Report

• Community safety zone signs will be extended south of Clarksburg.

• Grey Roots will decommission around 2,300 artefacts that are duplicates or are in poor condition. Report

• Council approved the addition of an Orange Lodge to the Moreston Heritage Village at Grey Roots. The Sarawak Loyal Orange Lodge has raised funds for the project and will cover construction costs. Report

• Grey County will submit comments to the Ministry of Natural Resources about the review of the Conservation Authorities Act. 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.