Council Planning

3:37All right, good morning everybody.

6:30Any of my colleagues online there,

6:33if you could throw on your camera, that would be great.

6:37But we do have quorum and so thank you very much

6:39for joining our Tuesday, March 10th, 2026 planning meeting.

6:46It is just 9.30 in the morning,

6:48so we'll kick things off by looking

6:50to move into a closed session.

6:53And it's only one item which is listed on the open agenda

6:58with the title council education session,

7:02which is land use planning and legal considerations.

7:06As per section 239, 3.1, one of the municipal act

7:11regarding a meeting held for the purpose

7:13of educating or training the members.

7:16It's the only item, and before I call the vote

7:19to consider moving into closed,

7:21does anyone have any disclosure of pecuniary interest

7:24or any general nature there of for that one item?

7:28Hearing nine, would someone be willing to move

7:31into closed, Boussatil and Hauser?

7:34Great, anything further?

7:36If not, I'll call the vote.

7:38Okay, I'll call the vote.

7:39Is anyone against moving into closed on that item?

7:42Nobody, that's great, that's unanimous then.

7:45And we'll do that now.

7:46And when we're done, I'll do a high level summary

7:50at the start time for our open session at 10 a.m.

7:53Thank you.

51:29Good day everyone, just 30 seconds

51:31as we get ready to start the open session, okay?

51:33Thank you very much.

51:34And I want to apologize for the delay in our start time.

51:38So just give us one second.

51:49All right, so we will start right away now.

51:52We do have quorum as confirmed by the clerk.

51:54So thank you very much.

51:57I normally would do my summary here of the in-camera

52:03meeting, but we actually did not finish it.

52:07We cut it off to come out here and get going

52:10in the open session meeting.

52:11So at the end of this, we will be going back

52:14into closed session to finish off

52:16that educational report and presentation.

52:22But at this time, there really is nothing to summarize

52:25because we're still having it.

52:27But I will just say, we are there for educational purposes.

52:30There's no decisions being made at all anyways.

52:33But I'll close that up at the end of the meeting

52:36with another statement just to make sure everyone

52:39is aware of that.

52:40With that, if you could please stand if you're able

52:43as we recognize our national anthem.

54:14Thanks everyone, just a moment of silent reflection

54:17as we continue with the agenda.

54:29Thank you in our territorial acknowledgement.

54:32As we gather, let us take time to reflect on our privilege

54:34to live and work here in Guelph,

54:36a city built over rich indigenous histories.

54:38As guests here, we should reflect upon the responsibility

54:41to care for this land and the people who live here today

54:43and the generations to come.

54:45For actions today can move us towards reconciliation.

54:47We should take pause and make those decisions

54:50with intention and gratitude.

54:52And this place we call Guelph has served as traditional lands

54:54and a place of refuge for many peoples over time,

54:56but more specifically, the Anoanarok and the Honanashoni.

55:00This land is held as the treaty lands in territory

55:03with the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation.

55:06Guelph also lies directly adjacent to the Haldeman track

55:09and is part of a long established traditional hunting grounds

55:12for the six nations of the Grand River.

55:14Many First Nations, Inuit and Métis people

55:17who have come from across Turtle Island

55:19call Guelph home today.

55:23Thank you, is there any disclosure of pecuniary interests

55:25or any general nature thereof

55:26for the items in front of us today?

55:29Yeah, Councillor Caron, please.

55:32Yeah, thank you, Mr. Mayor.

55:33I'll be declaring a conflict on consent item 5.1,

55:37which is a notice of intent to designate

55:39as the owners are immediate family members.

55:44Okay, appreciate that.

55:46What we'll do is we'll move right into consent

55:51just as a heads up, though I do have official regrets

55:54from Councillor Gibson today.

55:58With that, we'll actually maybe just ask you

56:02just to turn off your camera

56:04and I'll do look to my colleagues

56:07to maybe look to handle 225 Waterloo Ave

56:12as a consent item separately.

56:14So would someone be willing to move that one?

56:16First of all, does anyone need a poll?

56:19No, okay.

56:20So I saw Guller and Billings with moving of just 225

56:24Waterloo Ave notice of intention to designate.

56:27Can I call the vote on that one?

56:29I can, is anyone against that?

56:33Nobody, that's unanimous.

56:35So thank you.

56:36And at this time, I'll just ask if Councillor Kerrion

56:39could come back into the meeting now.

56:41Beautiful, thank you.

56:43And so while you're back,

56:44would you mind maybe moving the other consent item

56:47that are in front of us, 35 Foster Avenue?

56:51Yeah.

56:52Okay, thank you.

56:53Okay, thank you.

56:54And Councillor Allt, you're good to second that one.

56:56Great.

56:57Is there anything further on that item?

57:00No, okay.

57:00I'm gonna call the vote then on that.

57:02Is anyone against 35 Foster Avenue

57:04the notice of intention to designate?

57:08Nobody, so that is unanimous as well.

57:10Thank you.

57:12Okay, in regards to the public meeting now,

57:14to hear any applications,

57:16our first one is going to be 70 Fountain Street.

57:21We're gonna have a presentation from our own staff,

57:24and then we're gonna be moving into some delegations

57:27on this matter as well.

57:28There is correspondence that's attached.

57:31And so I will turn it over to you.

57:34And I'm sorry, I'm gonna embarrass myself,

57:38but I do that every day anyways.

57:41Is this your first time?

57:43Oh, I didn't embarrass myself, good.

57:45Excellent, welcome.

57:47And thank you for being here and presenting

57:50on behalf of staff.

57:51And am I gonna say your name right here?

57:54Let's see here.

57:55Is it Kachan?

57:56Yes.

57:57Did I say that right?

57:58Yeah.

57:59Okay.

58:00And is it Gadjt?

58:01Yeah, Kanchan Khadge.

58:03Whatever you said, that's great.

58:04Perfect.

58:05All right, well, welcome.

58:07And thank you for joining us.

58:08I'll turn it over to you to walk us through it, okay?

58:10Go right ahead.

58:17Good morning, Mayor Ghatri, members of the council,

58:20members of the public and staff.

58:22My name is Kanchan Khadge,

58:23and I'm presenting the Statutory Public Meeting

58:25for the proposed Official Plan Amendment

58:27and Zoning By-law Amendment applications

58:30for 70 Fountain Street East.

58:32This is a Statutory Public Meeting under the Planning Act,

58:35and no decisions are being made on the application today.

58:39Applications for the Official Plan Amendment

58:41and Zoning By-law Amendment have been received

58:43for the subject lands from up consulting

58:45on behalf of Fitzrovia residential Inc.

58:48To facilitate the development of a 24-story mixed use building

58:52having approximately 440 square meters

58:55of ground floor retail space,

58:57five stacked townhouse style units

58:59integrated into the building's podium

59:01at the lower and upper floor,

59:03upper ground floors, and a residential tower above

59:06having 419 purpose-built rental dwelling units

59:09along with indoor and outdoor amenities.

59:18The subject property is located

59:19at the southeast corner of Fountain Street East

59:22and Windham Street South,

59:24is approximately 2,030 square meters,

59:27that is 0.2 hectares in size,

59:29with 65 meters of frontage

59:31along Fountain Street and Parkour Street,

59:33and 33 meters along Windham Street South.

59:36The property is within the downtown secondary plan area

59:40and is adjacent to the Gualt Central Station,

59:42major transit station area.

59:44The subject lands are currently occupied

59:46by a three-story office building

59:48with surface parking at the rear.

59:50The existing building is proposed to be demolished

59:53to facilitate the redevelopment.

59:56The subject lands are within

59:57the downtown heritage conservation restrict.

59:59The property 70 Fountain Street East,

1:00:0475 Parkour Street, has been listed

1:00:07as a non-designated heritage resource built

1:00:10in the municipal register

1:00:12of cultural heritage properties since 2009.

1:00:15The surrounding land uses a predominantly

1:00:17a mix of commercial, residential,

1:00:19and mixed-use buildings.

1:00:24The subject lands are designated mixed-use one

1:00:28in Schedule II of Gualt's official plan

1:00:30and are within the downtown secondary plan area.

1:00:33The lands are also identified

1:00:35as part of the Urban Growth Center,

1:00:37downtown Gualt, and are located

1:00:38within a major transit station area

1:00:40as shown on Schedule Ia.

1:00:43Schedule D for downtown secondary plan

1:00:46maximum building heights, that is OPA 106,

1:00:49permits building heights of up to 24 stories

1:00:52on the subject lands.

1:00:57The official plan amendment application

1:00:58is proposing to retain the mixed-use one designation

1:01:01but is requesting a site-specific amendment

1:01:04to delete section 11.1.7.3.9.1

1:01:08of the downtown secondary plan.

1:01:10This section currently requires a minimum

1:01:12of 1,550 square meters of gross floor area,

1:01:16solely as office space,

1:01:17a maximum building height limit of 16 stories,

1:01:20and the applicable condominium conversion policy,

1:01:23which is policy, OP policy 7.2.5,

1:01:27which does not allow the conversion

1:01:29of condominium housing tenure to rental accommodations.

1:01:32The application is requesting removal of this subsection

1:01:35of the OP in its entirety

1:01:37to align with the broader mixed-use one permissions,

1:01:40including 24-story height permitted through OPA 106.

1:01:48The subject lands currently zoned downtown one

1:01:51with site-specific special provisions D127

1:01:54and has a holding provision H28

1:01:56in the city's comprehensive zoning bylaw.

1:01:59The applicable section 9.1 of the zoning bylaw

1:02:02permits a broad range of uses

1:02:05in a mix of highly compact development forms

1:02:08in downtown one zone.

1:02:10Section 9.2 of the zoning bylaw permits

1:02:12apartment buildings, retail, mixed-use buildings

1:02:15in downtown one zone, among other uses.

1:02:18Site-specific zoning provisions of section 18.14.29

1:02:22applicable currently to the site

1:02:25are a result of a previous zoning bylaw amendment

1:02:27that was approved at the OLT in March of 2022.

1:02:31The H28 holding symbol applies to the site,

1:02:34and H28 holding provision are applied to lands

1:02:37to ensure the development of the subject lands

1:02:40does not proceed till the sanitary sewer conditions

1:02:43and sanitary capacity is confirmed and available

1:02:46for the proposed development

1:02:48to the satisfaction of the city.

1:02:52The zoning bylaw amendment application requests

1:02:54to repeal the site-specific D121 zone

1:02:57and rezone the subject lands

1:02:59with a new site-specific special zoning provision.

1:03:02The application also requests the removal

1:03:04of the H28 holding provision.

1:03:09To facilitate the proposed development,

1:03:11the applicants are requesting the following site-specific

1:03:14special zoning regulations, which include

1:03:16a maximum floor plate of 1,128 square meters

1:03:21on the seventh and eighth floors,

1:03:23whereas the bylaw permits 1,200 square meters.

1:03:26A maximum floor plate of 1,059 square meters

1:03:30on the above the eighth floor

1:03:31compared to the permitted 1,000 square meters.

1:03:35And a length to width ratio of 2.2 is to one,

1:03:39whereas the bylaw requires a ratio of 1.5 is to one.

1:03:43A minimum one active entrance for Windham Street,

1:03:46whereas the entrance is required every 15 meters

1:03:48of street line.

1:03:52The site-specific special provisions also request

1:03:54to permit a minimum glazing of 56% of the facade

1:03:57up to 4.5 meters above grade,

1:04:00whereas 60% glazing is required

1:04:02to permit rooftop amenity space,

1:04:05to permit a maximum building height of 24 stories

1:04:08with the building height being measured

1:04:10from Farqua Street frontage,

1:04:12and to not consider lower ground floor as a story

1:04:14while counting the total number of stories.

1:04:20This slide shows the site plan of the proposed development

1:04:23with the top view of the building set,

1:04:26top view and the building step backs.

1:04:28We are looking at the rooftop amenities

1:04:30on the 24th story tower building,

1:04:32with step backs on the eighth and fifth floor.

1:04:35The proposed development also includes approximately

1:04:37440 square meters of ground floor retail space

1:04:40strunting Windham Street south.

1:04:42The plan shows the two vehicular accesses

1:04:45to the building from Farqua Street and Pountain Street.

1:04:50This slide shows the east and north elevations,

1:04:53which illustrate the 24th story tower

1:04:55on a four-story podium base.

1:05:00And this slide shows the south and west elevations.

1:05:07This slide shows the three-dimensional renderings

1:05:09of the proposed development.

1:05:14Once the application is reviewed and all issues are addressed,

1:05:17a staff report with a recommendation

1:05:19will be brought forward to council for a decision

1:05:21with members of the public wish to stay informed

1:05:23of any revisions or decisions on the application.

1:05:26Please reach out to the following email addresses

1:05:28and provide your name and contact details.

1:05:30And this concludes the staff presentation.

1:05:33Thank you.

1:05:34Thank you very much.

1:05:36We appreciate it.

1:05:37We'll jump to the delegates and see if there's any questions

1:05:42from us at the end of all that, okay?

1:05:44But again, thank you for the presentation.

1:05:46So on our agenda, we have several delegations,

1:05:50but I was told before the meeting that we have sort of

1:05:54one presentation with several people involved.

1:05:58We like that.

1:05:59So thank you.

1:06:01So we have Chris Vanderwater coming up, Greg Gilbert,

1:06:06and Renata, oh boy.

1:06:10Shamsa Danova?

1:06:13Did I say that right?

1:06:14Okay, thank you.

1:06:15Also we have Christian,

1:06:17yeah, Samatnitas?

1:06:23That was close, okay.

1:06:24And you are all from the applicant for this project, right?

1:06:29Okay.

1:06:30So you're gonna share the 10 minutes.

1:06:33What I was told, is that right?

1:06:34That's correct.

1:06:35Okay.

1:06:36Thank you for coming.

1:06:37Thank you for your application.

1:06:39You will hear a chime or, yeah, a chime

1:06:43at the nine minute and 30 second mark,

1:06:46which is your 30 second warning that you gotta wrap it up.

1:06:49And if you get to 10 minutes, the microphone goes off.

1:06:52So we don't want that, okay?

1:06:54And so when you are done, stick around.

1:06:57Just in case myself or any of my colleagues

1:06:59have a follow up question, okay?

1:07:01Over to you.

1:07:02Thank you.

1:07:03Thanks.

1:07:04Good morning, Mayor, members of council.

1:07:06My name is Christian Samatnitas,

1:07:08Senior Planner Without Consulting.

1:07:10So our firm has been retained to provide planning services

1:07:12on behalf of the applicant, Fitzrovia,

1:07:14who's in attendance this morning with you.

1:07:16And they'll provide formal introductions

1:07:18of Chris and Renata.

1:07:19So this presentation pertains to the Official Plan

1:07:21and Zoning By-law Amendment for 70 Fountains Street East

1:07:24in Guelph.

1:07:26So this slide here just provides an outline

1:07:28of the presentation, but I just wanna highlight

1:07:30that my portions will namely focus on the site,

1:07:32location and context, as well as the planning matters.

1:07:35And then I'll pass it along to the Fitzrovia team

1:07:37to provide a more detailed description

1:07:39of the development and who they are.

1:07:45Sorry.

1:07:46Yeah, so again, city staff already went through this,

1:07:48so I just will go over pretty quickly.

1:07:50So the site is known as 70 Fountains Street,

1:07:52bounded by three public streets.

1:07:55It's listed on the municipal heritage register

1:07:57and is not designated under the Ontario Heritage Act

1:08:02under part four and part five.

1:08:05What I wanna note here on this slide

1:08:07in terms of the surrounding context

1:08:08is that this is certainly an exciting opportunity

1:08:10for increased density within the downtown,

1:08:13being that a number of goods and services

1:08:15will be within walking distance of the subject property.

1:08:18Notably the site is within walking distance

1:08:20of Guelph Central Station and Transit Hub

1:08:22being a major transit station area.

1:08:27So I'll note that the applicant is proposing

1:08:28a mixed use development consisting

1:08:30of 424 purpose-built rentals units

1:08:33for height of 24 stories.

1:08:35Rental units, retail units are proposed

1:08:38along the ground floor, namely along the Windham frontage

1:08:41for a total of 440 square meters.

1:08:43While zero parking spaces are required within an MTSA,

1:08:46a total of 95 parking spaces are provided.

1:08:49So that's a 0.22 space per unit ratio.

1:08:53320 bicycle parking spaces are provided

1:08:55as well as some amenity space

1:08:57both on rooftop and indoor.

1:09:00This slide again, I won't go over too much in detail

1:09:03but what I will note is that the north

1:09:05is on the right hand side and generally the massing

1:09:08is transitioned from two stories on the podium,

1:09:10four stories, eight stories and then up to the 24 stories

1:09:13to provide an appropriate transition

1:09:16to the low rise residential that's existing

1:09:17on the north.

1:09:21Again, I won't go too much into detail on this

1:09:24but what I wanna note too is that Schedule D

1:09:26really here is the focus and that was the permission

1:09:29of 24 stories for a maximum height,

1:09:32for the new maximum height as a result

1:09:33of the downtown height study to which we believe

1:09:36that this is implementing the direction from council.

1:09:39In terms of the required planning approvals,

1:09:43so these site specific requests are detailed

1:09:46in the agenda package, however I like to note

1:09:48that the intent of these provisions

1:09:49are to essentially repeal and replace

1:09:51these site specifics from the previous development concept

1:09:55and implement ones that are tailored to this

1:09:57that are more so in the direction of OPA 106.

1:10:02And as part of the application requirement,

1:10:04you can see that a number of reports were submitted.

1:10:06You can really see that the technical nature

1:10:08that's involved so with that I'll pass it along

1:10:11to the Fitzrovia team.

1:10:14Thank you very much everyone.

1:10:15To briefly introduce Fitzrovia,

1:10:17we are a purpose built rental developer.

1:10:20We also form Canada's,

1:10:31we form Canada's largest fully integrated

1:10:34rental housing platform.

1:10:35Our team includes approximately 450 employees.

1:10:40Over the past nine years we have built 11 purpose

1:10:42built rental towers across the GTA,

1:10:45all of which we manage ourselves,

1:10:47including previously acquired buildings.

1:10:49We currently manage more than 12,500 rental units.

1:10:55With our offices in Toronto and Montreal,

1:10:57we are very excited to be here in Guelph today

1:11:00and to expand beyond the GTA.

1:11:02The 70 founded proposal is part of the Fitzrovia's

1:11:06broader plan to grow our student housing portfolio

1:11:10with other student housing projects

1:11:13that we have in Kingston and London, Ontario.

1:11:19One of the Fitzrovia key strengths

1:11:21is fully integrated platform.

1:11:23What this means is that we develop,

1:11:25build, own, operate and manage buildings ourselves.

1:11:29We take a long-term approach.

1:11:31We care deeply about communities we create

1:11:33and make thoughtful decisions at every stage of the process.

1:11:38Our integrated model really gives us opportunity

1:11:41to share knowledge across the teams,

1:11:44take feedback and make our new buildings better.

1:11:50Our buildings also design with a strong focus

1:11:53on high quality materials.

1:11:54You can see on those pictures on the slide

1:11:58that we create thoughtful design

1:12:02pedestrian friendly communities.

1:12:05And to support this approach,

1:12:06we work with leading Canadian architects

1:12:09for 70 Fountain, we will be partnering,

1:12:12already partnered with award-winning firm

1:12:15a Harvey Rippon Torini Architects

1:12:17to develop this proposal.

1:12:23I would like to introduce you to the Waverly brand.

1:12:26This is our Fitzrovia student housing brand.

1:12:30So you can see on the slide as well

1:12:34the ground floor coffee lobby,

1:12:37which will give our resident students

1:12:40a welcoming place to meet, study and spend time together.

1:12:43The same thinking carries through our amenity spaces.

1:12:47We focus on creating high quality shared spaces,

1:12:49including the coworking lounges,

1:12:51commercial grade fitness center,

1:12:53virtually walking clinic and outdoor amenity as well.

1:13:00And having very successful Waverly project,

1:13:02we have studied student demographics

1:13:05across our portfolio today.

1:13:07And students already make up a really large number

1:13:10of the residents in many of our buildings.

1:13:13We see the demand for curated living for students.

1:13:17And this is one of the reasons we are here today in Guelph.

1:13:19And we are really excited about this project.

1:13:26Thanks, Renata.

1:13:27So I'll start my presentation just by saying,

1:13:30thank you to any of the community members

1:13:34or members of staff that we've engaged with today.

1:13:36We've received a fair amount of feedback,

1:13:39which we've already incorporated into our design,

1:13:41which was part of our zoning application.

1:13:45First off, I'll highlight that, yes,

1:13:46we have a 24 story building and we are planning

1:13:51on rooftop amenity space.

1:13:53Simply put, we've got mechanical equipment,

1:13:55elevator overruns, things that have to go on the roof anyways.

1:13:58And so across our new build portfolio,

1:14:00this is a standard approach of ours.

1:14:02And we see it as taking advantage of space

1:14:04that would otherwise go unused.

1:14:07The second nuance of this site that was raised by city staff

1:14:11is the long rectangular nature of the site itself.

1:14:14We recognize and incorporated feedback

1:14:17into the overall architecture that addresses the concern

1:14:20that we are going to have a long,

1:14:22sort of generic building face,

1:14:25whether you're at grade really close to the building

1:14:27or standing a little bit further away.

1:14:28I think we've appropriately addressed this concern

1:14:31with a number of different architectural features.

1:14:33You can see the four story podium,

1:14:35as well as a number of vertical and horizontal features

1:14:38as you work your way up the tower.

1:14:40Another challenge or at least technical aspect of this site,

1:14:43and I'm just gonna skip ahead to the best rendering of it,

1:14:47is that we've got about a five meter grade change

1:14:49from one corner of the site to the other.

1:14:52And the way we've designed around that

1:14:53is that number one, we've addressed a staff comment

1:14:56requesting grand storefronts on Wyndham,

1:14:59so you're looking at Wyndham right here.

1:15:01So you essentially end up with sort of a two story grand

1:15:03entrance to any of the retail spaces

1:15:05as well as the building itself.

1:15:06As you work your way towards the back of the building,

1:15:10you lose a fair amount of height.

1:15:12And so we've designed around that technically

1:15:14by having what we're calling a lower

1:15:16and upper ground floor.

1:15:18Alternatively, we could have titled that as a mezzanine space.

1:15:23We did receive during our public meeting

1:15:24a couple of comments around transportation.

1:15:29And so what we've done is we've been thoughtful

1:15:31about the amount of vehicle traffic in the area.

1:15:34We currently have vehicle entrances

1:15:36on both the fountain and Farcours side,

1:15:38which should alleviate a bit of those traffic concerns.

1:15:41And when you look at the lower left corner of this image,

1:15:44you can see three doors sort of in the lower left corner.

1:15:47You can see our bicycle entrance,

1:15:48our vehicular entrance and our garbage and loading

1:15:51all contained within the building

1:15:52and screened when not in use.

1:15:56Focusing a little bit on the architecture,

1:15:58we've tried to reflect and respect some of the architecture

1:16:01that you can see in downtown Guelph today.

1:16:03We were very mindful about the use of masonry

1:16:05and respecting again,

1:16:08some of those more historic features of downtown Guelph,

1:16:11while also trying to give a bit of a modern touch

1:16:14to the building itself.

1:16:17And finally, I'll close just with speaking about active uses.

1:16:20You heard about Renata highlighting

1:16:21how much we care about people using our ground floor,

1:16:24people actively using the space.

1:16:26We have a lobby that's open to the public.

1:16:28We have our 10 Dean coffee shop,

1:16:29at grade that's open to the public.

1:16:31We also have three retail spaces along Wyndham

1:16:33and we have a retail leasing team

1:16:37that is very passionate about leasing to one-off uses

1:16:41that really complement the unique features of the building

1:16:43and attract people to it.

1:16:45We often come up with a typical user

1:16:48that might be a University of Guelph student.

1:16:50She starts her day, comes down the elevator,

1:16:52grabs a coffee from 10 Dean and takes her bike

1:16:54or the bus to school in the morning.

1:16:57Thanks very much.

1:16:59Great, thank you.

1:17:00And thanks for staying within the time limit.

1:17:02I appreciate that.

1:17:05Is there any questions for this delegate at this time?

1:17:07Okay, we'll start here on my left.

1:17:10We'll go with Downer and then Mr. Timm.

1:17:11Thank you, through you, Mr. Mayor.

1:17:13So I really like, first I like your podium design.

1:17:16I think that's, it looks really good.

1:17:19The arch has reminded me of the front of City Hall.

1:17:23The other, the question I have though is that

1:17:26at one time we thought we were gonna get

1:17:28a Conestoga College downtown

1:17:30and that's sort of in question now.

1:17:33I don't know what the final outcome of that be,

1:17:34but it's not as optimistic as I once was.

1:17:38So you'd be catering primarily to the University of Guelph

1:17:42students and there's a lot of other housing,

1:17:45student housing sort of being talked about these days

1:17:48and under some of it under construction.

1:17:51Have you got concerns at all about

1:17:55filling this building up with students?

1:17:57Given the...

1:17:59Or would you change your plans at all?

1:18:00Sorry, go ahead.

1:18:01Yeah, so I'll highlight two points.

1:18:03Number one, from just looking at demographics of the area,

1:18:06it's very clear to us that supply is a real challenge

1:18:09and that I think runs the across the spectrum.

1:18:12One thing that we've heard from our early conversations

1:18:15is that, hey, when you add to supply,

1:18:17you might have students that move in here

1:18:19that otherwise might be occupying a single family home

1:18:21or some other form of housing.

1:18:22So we definitely see that as an advantage.

1:18:25Another piece that I'll speak to is that, yes,

1:18:27we're targeting the student housing demographic here.

1:18:30You do not need to have a University of Guelph student card

1:18:33to live in our building.

1:18:34Frankly, you don't have to be a student,

1:18:36but frankly, that's the lane and that's the demographic

1:18:38that we're choosing to market this building to.

1:18:41Great, thanks.

1:18:42And Bousatil is next and then I saw Karan and Kate.

1:18:45Thank you and through the mayor,

1:18:46thank you for your presentation.

1:18:48Similar to my colleague here,

1:18:49I don't have any questions about the building.

1:18:51I think you've responded to a lot of the concerns.

1:18:56But Renata, you were talking about the research

1:18:58on the student demographics and so on.

1:19:00And as part of your research,

1:19:01to piggyback on my colleague here,

1:19:03have you been aware of the desperate need for family units?

1:19:09So if you are constructing for students,

1:19:11those are singles or maybe doubles.

1:19:14Really, we need desperately family housing.

1:19:17And so my question is,

1:19:19your intent is to build and to rent exclusively to students

1:19:24who are hearing no, because I could be an older adult learner,

1:19:29but family units.

1:19:30And that is something that I will be looking for

1:19:33and I've asked our planners to ask developers

1:19:37to look at three units and family units as well,

1:19:40because that is a huge gap in the community

1:19:43and I'm very concerned about that.

1:19:47So I think that came across as a comment,

1:19:50but would you like to respond if it was a question?

1:19:53I will just highlight with one stat,

1:19:55it is available on the stats page of our application.

1:19:57We currently are planning for 35% of the units within the building,

1:20:01being two and three bedroom units.

1:20:04So perhaps you are an older student that has a child

1:20:07or someone else in your family that you'd like to live with.

1:20:10From our research, that goes above and beyond

1:20:13some of the unit mixes that we're seeing elsewhere

1:20:15in the multi-res sector within Guelph.

1:20:17And so thank you for that.

1:20:19If I could through the mayor.

1:20:21When I think of three bedroom,

1:20:23I think of university equal three bedroom student units

1:20:27versus a family residence.

1:20:29And that's my question is,

1:20:31are you building it for a family rather than three roommates

1:20:37is very different than a family?

1:20:40Thanks for the question.

1:20:41That's something that we debate and discuss heavily

1:20:44with within our office.

1:20:45I mean, you'll find that our three bedroom units

1:20:48are, I'll call it any more family size range

1:20:51that you would be used to.

1:20:53Let's call it anywhere from 1,000 to 1,200 square feet.

1:20:56So these are not, I would call it three small rooms

1:20:59connected with one bathroom.

1:21:00This is definitely meant for a family

1:21:02or multiple people within one unit.

1:21:06And so just to follow up a supplemental,

1:21:08I know you were saying that your intent is to rent

1:21:11to exclusively to students.

1:21:13Would your marketing and your communication

1:21:17also welcome families?

1:21:19Absolutely.

1:21:23Perfect. Thank you.

1:21:25So I'm gonna go up on the screen now joining us.

1:21:29I'll start with Koran, please, then Kate.

1:21:32And then I'll come back here in the room to call her.

1:21:35Great, thank you.

1:21:36I think Councillor Blisattila addressed

1:21:38my primary question.

1:21:39Is it when we're talking about a planning application

1:21:42which is what we're here for,

1:21:44we can only talk about the form and the zoning.

1:21:47We cannot talk about people's.

1:21:49So although it's good information to have,

1:21:55talking about who you're gonna market to

1:21:57in the demographic that will fill the building

1:21:59is people's zoning.

1:22:01So I just want to make sure,

1:22:02and I think I've heard you say that the way

1:22:05the building is designed,

1:22:07it could be available to anyone.

1:22:10Singles, working couples, families,

1:22:14and that students is just one part of that demographic,

1:22:17that you're designing it

1:22:18so that it could be rented to anyone.

1:22:21That is correct.

1:22:23Another use case that I keep imagining,

1:22:25given that you can see the GO station out your window,

1:22:29is that you might work in another municipality

1:22:32or another place.

1:22:34You might be a couple where one person's a student

1:22:36and one person's a working professional

1:22:38in another municipality.

1:22:39Given the proximity to the train station,

1:22:44I think it's quite possible

1:22:46that we'll have working professionals

1:22:47that want to live in this building.

1:22:49Okay, great.

1:22:50Just cognizant that when we talk about people's zoning

1:22:54as part of an application,

1:22:56that we're really crossing the line there.

1:23:01I wanted to ask about the zoning amendment

1:23:03related to ground floor calculations for height,

1:23:06because there was a site-specific zoning amendment

1:23:10that the ground floor would be at raid with barcour

1:23:14and not chanted from the ground floor at Fountain,

1:23:18which from Fountain would be a 25-story building

1:23:20from Farquhar would be 24.

1:23:22Can we confirm that that's one of the amendments

1:23:24that you're seeking?

1:23:26I can confirm that, yes, we had to sort of pick a spot

1:23:29to measure the ground floor elevation,

1:23:32which is how we ended up with the designation

1:23:35of lower and upper ground floor.

1:23:36And again, we could have used the term mezzanine

1:23:38or come up with another term for it.

1:23:40Okay, but the 24 stories is from the farquhar side

1:23:43of the elevation.

1:23:46Okay, next question has to do with the community energy.

1:23:52I know your community energy letter isn't part of the package

1:23:54that I've seen so far, that will come a little bit later,

1:23:57but please tell me about how this building

1:23:59will meet our community energy goals

1:24:01of being that zero by 2050,

1:24:03because utilities and rising costs in energy

1:24:09are going to affect affordability for future tenants.

1:24:13Yeah, absolutely.

1:24:14I'll say we share a corporate aim

1:24:17to make every new building more efficient

1:24:19than the previous one.

1:24:20Unfortunately due to groundwater and geotechnical issues,

1:24:24we can't do geothermal heating here.

1:24:26So one of the thoughts is having the building

1:24:29be net zero ready.

1:24:31And what essentially that means is have it ready

1:24:33to be fully electrified when the grid is available to do so.

1:24:39So we put a lot of thought into future proofing

1:24:42of our mechanical and electrical systems

1:24:43in order to meet those goals.

1:24:45Okay, thanks for that intro.

1:24:47And hopefully as the project progresses

1:24:49that our staff will help with providing guidance

1:24:53on meeting those net zero standards.

1:24:55Then my last question is on the elevation to the east

1:24:59on the fountain side, I see a lot of glazing

1:25:02in the renderings, is that parking

1:25:04or is that usable indoor space?

1:25:08So there are five townhomes that call it

1:25:11the southeast corner.

1:25:13And that's where the majority of the glazing

1:25:15on the fountain side would be.

1:25:17Okay, great.

1:25:18Thanks so much.

1:25:19It's an exciting project.

1:25:22Great, thank you, Councillor.

1:25:23And Councillor, Kate is next and then to Guller.

1:25:26Thank you, through you, Mr. Mayor.

1:25:29I had seen that you're proposing

1:25:32that you have less entrances than required.

1:25:37I was wondering if you could comment

1:25:39as to how this might cause any accessibility concerns

1:25:45or potentially fire hazards in terms of emergency exits?

1:25:51Certainly.

1:25:52So the original bylaw, if I remember correctly,

1:25:55reads that an entrance is required every 15 meters.

1:25:59When we were looking at dividing up the wind-em-side

1:26:02of the site into three different retail units,

1:26:05we were looking for flexibility on the bylaw simply

1:26:07to allow for each one of those units

1:26:09to have a discrete front door.

1:26:11We are absolutely professionally required to meet fire code

1:26:14as well as accessibility requirements.

1:26:17When you're speaking to a retail

1:26:18or a food and beverage provider,

1:26:20it's also their intent to have one sort of main accessible

1:26:25fire-rated front door.

1:26:26And so that's the intent here rather than to...

1:26:29So, and that was our thinking rather than to try

1:26:33and get away from any specific restriction of the bylaw.

1:26:40Thank you.

1:26:41I was also wondering about the parking spaces.

1:26:45So you've got listed for accessible parking spots,

1:26:49but I know that typically you have to have at least 15%

1:26:53of the units available as accessible

1:26:56or at least convertible to accessible.

1:27:00Do you think that's enough?

1:27:05So one of the benefits of owning and operating

1:27:08and managing the building

1:27:09is that we do have flexibility on things like

1:27:12electric vehicle charging or accessible parking spots.

1:27:15If given that the majority of our parking spots

1:27:20will be leased out to tenants,

1:27:22if there's tenant demand for additional accessible spots,

1:27:24we have the flexibility to rejig some of the parking

1:27:27within the building to meet those needs.

1:27:31And will any of the parking be for general residential,

1:27:37commercial access to the ground floor?

1:27:41We are required to have a few visitor spots.

1:27:44The exact number is escaping me right now,

1:27:46but the answer is yes.

1:27:48So of the four accessible spots,

1:27:50how many are dedicated for visitors

1:27:52versus residential currently?

1:27:55I would have to get back to you on that.

1:27:57Okay, thank you so much.

1:28:00Great, thanks and Councillor Goller.

1:28:04Thank you and through your worship.

1:28:05Thank you for the presentation.

1:28:08I've been hearing from my constituents

1:28:11some concerns, the folks that live in the area

1:28:14about the shortage of parking units.

1:28:16Now, could you tell us from your experience

1:28:19owning this style of building,

1:28:21how realistic is it that you would fill it

1:28:23with people that are not then going to park

1:28:26on the residential streets for the couple of blocks

1:28:30out away from the building?

1:28:33So in our experience in catering

1:28:36to the student demographic,

1:28:37we find that by and large the demand for cars

1:28:41or vehicle parking is a lot less

1:28:43compared to the general population.

1:28:45We also think that it's part of our,

1:28:47I'll call it forward thinking as building developers,

1:28:50operators and managers,

1:28:52that we want to encourage people

1:28:53to use other forms of transportation.

1:28:55We want to encourage people to take the train,

1:28:59to take the bus, to ride their bike,

1:29:01to get to school or wherever they need to go.

1:29:04And so we built what we think is an adequate number

1:29:08of parking stalls for the population

1:29:10that we expect to live in the building.

1:29:13And just to follow up on that,

1:29:15that is, would that be backed up by your experience

1:29:17at other similar buildings that are built

1:29:20with much less parking than the number of units?

1:29:22Correct, and that's in consultation

1:29:24with our transportation engineer as well.

1:29:25Okay, thank you for that.

1:29:27Thank you, worship.

1:29:29Great.

1:29:31With that, doesn't seem like to see anything more.

1:29:37I only have one question.

1:29:38If this comes back for approval

1:29:40and if council gives approval,

1:29:42how quick can we see a crane in the sky?

1:29:44Great question.

1:29:45So just to spend a brief moment

1:29:48on our transaction with Conestoga College,

1:29:50it is expected to close in 2027.

1:29:53It's our intent that between now and then,

1:29:56we move through the zoning site plan

1:29:58building permit process.

1:29:59We'd love to be in there and starting construction.

1:30:02The day our transaction closes

1:30:04and they vacate the building.

1:30:06Okay, so do you have any idea?

1:30:092027 can be 365 days.

1:30:13Third quarter, 2027.

1:30:15Okay, and so you'll be working again with approvals.

1:30:18If you get the approvals with our staff as well,

1:30:22just have everything lined up

1:30:23so you're gonna be good to go right away.

1:30:25That's our intent to have a fully designed,

1:30:27fully permitted building.

1:30:28By the time we close on the transaction.

1:30:31Okay, thank you.

1:30:33With that, thank you very much

1:30:35for coming and presenting today.

1:30:37We appreciate it.

1:30:38We'll just move on to the others

1:30:39that have signed up to Dudley Key.

1:30:41And there's only two more.

1:30:42Paul Barson, you're in the front row and up next.

1:30:48And then, Anthony, I see you up there.

1:30:52You're in the wings.

1:30:53So get ready to come down, okay?

1:30:56And welcome, Paul.

1:30:57I think you heard me.

1:30:5810 minutes if you need it.

1:31:00And the chime at nine minutes, 30 second mark

1:31:02to give you the warning.

1:31:03Okay, go ahead.

1:31:04Thank you very much.

1:31:06Good morning, Mayor Guthrie, members of council.

1:31:09I live two doors away at 90 Fountain Street East.

1:31:12I live there with my wife, my three kids, and our dog, Chai.

1:31:16I do remember I delegated here a few years ago

1:31:19for almost the same building and the same spot.

1:31:22And I was one of, what, 40 delegates?

1:31:25How time tempers ire.

1:31:28So our family, we love downtown.

1:31:32We love it for all its warts, but it is suffering.

1:31:36We need more people downtown.

1:31:38People walking around, spending dollars,

1:31:40engaging in the community, people volunteering,

1:31:44people loitering, we need all of it.

1:31:45People in various stages of life,

1:31:47different backgrounds, different income levels,

1:31:49not just students.

1:31:50Hopefully that doesn't fill the building.

1:31:53Projects like this, although they may fail

1:31:55on most measures of when it comes to good city building,

1:31:59they certainly do bring more people.

1:32:02Although I would prefer four six-story buildings,

1:32:05over one 24-story, obviously, or 25,

1:32:08depending on what street you're looking from.

1:32:11And even though my backyard will lose a good portion

1:32:13of its daylight for a good portion of the year,

1:32:16we do need projects like this,

1:32:18just for the sake of more people downtown.

1:32:22For example, upcoming downtown events

1:32:24like the Guelph Recognition of Excellence in the Arts

1:32:25will benefit greatly from having more downtown engaged citizens

1:32:29visit gredis.ca to learn more.

1:32:33Also, we're looking for a good corporate sponsor

1:32:34if Fitzrovia is interested in some goodwill

1:32:39for affordable goodwill and free marketing.

1:32:42However, I am here today to speak mostly

1:32:44because my biggest concern I want to bring forward

1:32:46is the parking entrance locations.

1:32:50I believe that having an entrance off of an exit

1:32:54from the parking garage on Farquhar Street is a bad idea.

1:32:58So that's my street.

1:32:59There's three of us who have driveways on that street,

1:33:02and we exit onto Farquhar Street.

1:33:05And despite the low numbers of traffic

1:33:07in Fitzrovia's traffic count study,

1:33:10what it doesn't take into account is the difficulty.

1:33:12Visibility from Farquhar onto Wyndham is a nightmare,

1:33:16and it often takes a long time to turn left

1:33:19onto Wyndham from Farquhar.

1:33:22With increased traffic, this will become more evident,

1:33:25and there will be accidents.

1:33:26There already are and have been some pretty serious accidents

1:33:29at that intersection.

1:33:30On the Fountain Street side, although visibility

1:33:32is also not great, as cars come whipping out

1:33:36under the bridge from downtown, there are so many more paths

1:33:40to exit through Neve Street, Surrey Street.

1:33:43There's just more escape routes.

1:33:45So I would recommend having all of the parking exits

1:33:48onto Fountain Street.

1:33:50All the entrances can be from the Farquhar side for sure,

1:33:53but it's just the exits going onto Wyndham Street.

1:33:57I'd also wanna mention the lack of parking spots.

1:34:00I have to say this, I think.

1:34:02Tenants that move in will have to park somewhere.

1:34:05And even if their unit didn't come,

1:34:07or especially if their unit didn't come with a spot,

1:34:09this means our local streets will become

1:34:10essentially parking lots.

1:34:12They are already filled with local citizens parking there,

1:34:16people who work nearby.

1:34:18I do appreciate a kind of cars not required downtown,

1:34:23and that is coming someday.

1:34:25And maybe the way to do it is just to do it.

1:34:28I don't know.

1:34:29But I think it'll be many years of street parking chaos

1:34:33while we all figure out how to switch

1:34:35from the current reality that is Guelph,

1:34:38where we all have cars, to a new one

1:34:40that requires more walking.

1:34:45Maybe I would lean on the city for a solution,

1:34:47and suggest that maybe we should push

1:34:51to turn the Fountain Street West parking lot,

1:34:53or the lot at Neve and Fountain,

1:34:57into a parking garage.

1:34:59Time it with the opening of the Fitzerovia building

1:35:01so that there is more parking spots available.

1:35:05Just please don't make it 24 stories tall.

1:35:09That's it.

1:35:10Thank you.

1:35:11Great, thanks a lot, Paul.

1:35:12We appreciate that.

1:35:13Any follow-up for Paul at all before he goes?

1:35:16No, so thank you very much.

1:35:17Anthony, you're up next.

1:35:21Come on down, and you heard the same spiel

1:35:23I gave everybody else, so you can start whenever you're ready.

1:35:32Your worship, counselors, good to see everybody today.

1:35:37Couple things.

1:35:40First thing, we're fully behind this.

1:35:43We are the owners of 52 54 Cardin Street.

1:35:48All this development is needed for this downtown.

1:35:51The more people that live here, the better this downtown is.

1:35:54And right now, we're kind of at the lowest point

1:35:56we could ever be as a downtown.

1:35:59We have a big dig coming in.

1:36:01These guys are basically coming in around September, 2027,

1:36:05third quarter.

1:36:07So that's gonna create a staging area,

1:36:09traffic issues, inaccessibility to the downtown,

1:36:13which already is about to be hit with Wyndham Street,

1:36:17and whatever's gonna happen on Cardin Street, correct?

1:36:22So, we gotta figure some things out

1:36:26because the Feng Shui that we have going on downtown

1:36:30is broken.

1:36:32First thing, Wilson Street was,

1:36:35the direction was changed

1:36:37because of an environmental assessment

1:36:39that has no bearing on today.

1:36:42We have to really look at changing

1:36:44the direction of that street.

1:36:46We don't have very many entrances

1:36:48and this is getting taken away.

1:36:51If all these projects are going in at once,

1:36:54I become in a dry spot.

1:36:56I'll be shadowed in by construction,

1:37:00which means my commercial tenant is ruined.

1:37:03My residential, I don't know.

1:37:07So, my biggest concern is saving our downtown now

1:37:12rather than after all this construction,

1:37:15we're left with a big hole that we have to infill.

1:37:19Now, the other thing that's really hurting this area,

1:37:23mainly this street, is the splash pad.

1:37:27The restrictions that the splash pad put on the square

1:37:31don't create the ability to do good events

1:37:35and that's what's gonna save this downtown.

1:37:37Good events.

1:37:39The biggest driver for people or street people

1:37:42or walking traffic here is actually the train.

1:37:46And when we get two-way traffic,

1:37:49more regularly, then we move money.

1:37:53And when we start moving money, this downtown survives.

1:37:57And the whole thing is even Niagara

1:37:59has asked for more train routes.

1:38:02They've asked for more trains going to Niagara.

1:38:05We as a city need to do that as well.

1:38:09The only other thing I would say is

1:38:15we truly have to look at some of these things.

1:38:18As I said, the splash pad is actually

1:38:20a million dollar loser for this downtown.

1:38:23Wet kids don't spend money.

1:38:26Truly, this is a commercial zone.

1:38:29We have 13 other splash pads.

1:38:32We need to re,

1:38:33now that we have to get rid of it completely,

1:38:35we just need to rethink how we use it

1:38:37to its best ability.

1:38:39This was sold to us as a market square

1:38:42like Nathan Phillips Square.

1:38:45This ain't it.

1:38:47This is used to 10% of its potential.

1:38:51And we're just about to build another square.

1:38:54And we can't even use this one.

1:38:56It's called Market Square

1:38:57and it doesn't even have really a market.

1:39:00So we have to really think

1:39:02about how we want to rebuild this downtown

1:39:04and what investments,

1:39:05because we need to do it now,

1:39:08not further down the road.

1:39:10Thank you.

1:39:11Great, thank you very much.

1:39:12And we appreciate your delegation

1:39:15to any follow up at all.

1:39:17There isn't, thank you again.

1:39:19Appreciate it.

1:39:20So we're at that time now

1:39:21where we're gonna open it up for anybody else here

1:39:24if they would like to speak on the matter.

1:39:26Also a phone number will come up on the screen

1:39:29just in case anyone wants to call in.

1:39:31First of all, is there anyone in the audience

1:39:33that wishes to?

1:39:35No, okay.

1:39:36And I'll just yell at the number here, 519-837-5603.

1:39:42Again, that's 519-837-5603.

1:39:46We'll just wait a few moments here

1:39:48and we'll see if anyone wants to call in, okay?

1:42:44Okay, everyone, clerks has indicated I can bring us back

1:42:48and we did have one person call in.

1:42:50So Derek Mello, I believe I'm saying that right.

1:42:53Derek, it's Mayor Guthrie here.

1:42:55I think you need to hit star six.

1:42:58To be able to unmute yourself.

1:43:01Can you hear us okay?

1:43:06Hi there, Mayor Guthrie.

1:43:08I appreciate the time and the opportunity.

1:43:13Thank you, Derek.

1:43:14Yeah, go right ahead.

1:43:16Yeah, I would like to talk about 70 Fountain.

1:43:19This development I think would be a great development

1:43:22for the city of Guelph.

1:43:24It will create jobs, sorry.

1:43:29It will create jobs for the community.

1:43:32It will help local businesses

1:43:36by bringing new students in, buying everything

1:43:40in the city of Guelph, going to coffee shops,

1:43:43going to restaurants, many other things also.

1:43:48And then it will also,

1:43:51creating a student housing like this,

1:43:53it will, I believe, bring more investments

1:43:56and more developments in the near future.

1:43:59The building's going up before like 14 stories,

1:44:0315 stories, create a problem for developers

1:44:06to come in and invest.

1:44:08Going up to 24 floors, it's a great start.

1:44:12Hopefully one day it could go higher.

1:44:14That's what brings more developments in,

1:44:17where you're gonna bring more housing in.

1:44:20So I just wanted to make that point.

1:44:23And I think it would be a very great developments

1:44:26for the city of Guelph.

1:44:30Great, thanks Derek for calling in.

1:44:32We appreciate that.

1:44:33Is there any questions from my colleagues for Derek?

1:44:36There is not at this time.

1:44:38So thanks again, Derek, and have a great rest of the day.

1:44:41You too, thank you.

1:44:45All right, colleagues, it's back to us.

1:44:47I've been told Councillor Goller

1:44:51and I believe Wardmate Councillor Cossin

1:44:54are willing to move in second the receipt of this application.

1:44:59At this time, again, if anyone's following along,

1:45:01we're not making a decision here.

1:45:03It's just to receive at this time.

1:45:06Is there any comments that have not been stated

1:45:11that you would like to leave with our staff to take away?

1:45:15Okay, chew.

1:45:17And then is that your hand up, Cossin?

1:45:21Yeah, and then Quran as well.

1:45:23So you three.

1:45:25Okay, let's kick it off.

1:45:27Councillor Chew.

1:45:28Thank you, through you, Mr. Mayor.

1:45:31Just a staff, just in response to some of the comments

1:45:35made by the previous delegate,

1:45:38is there a way in which we can entertain,

1:45:41moving that garage entrance to Fountain instead of Farquhar

1:45:45and what's the feasibility of doing that?

1:45:59Yeah, we don't normally, can I be raised?

1:46:01No, it's okay.

1:46:02Just wanna say, we don't normally go back and forth,

1:46:04although I can see a jumpy wanting to.

1:46:07It's something that our staff will take away

1:46:09and they'll engage with you and others on.

1:46:11But Christa, do you wanna just maybe answer that out loud?

1:46:14Of course.

1:46:15Thank you, Mayor Guthrie,

1:46:16that how I was gonna respond,

1:46:17that we've heard the feedback today

1:46:18and we'll take it away and consider it

1:46:20during evaluation of the process

1:46:22and review of the traffic impact statements.

1:46:24Okay, yeah, no, it was just more of a confirmation

1:46:27that you guys can look into that.

1:46:29Yeah, no, I appreciate some of the comments

1:46:31made about the glazing as well.

1:46:33And I think there's a lot of goodwill in the community

1:46:35to support this application.

1:46:37So I'll just state that out there.

1:46:38First and foremost, and I think the attention to detail

1:46:41and intentionality to match the armory

1:46:45for the facade treatment is quite tasteful.

1:46:48So I think that's why you receive a lot of positivity here

1:46:50and I hope that can continue into the conversations of staff.

1:46:53But I think ultimately these conversations,

1:46:56even though we feel like a statutory,

1:46:58there's a lot of sincere concerns

1:47:01in regards with traffic circulation.

1:47:03And I think if we can evaluate the merits of that early on,

1:47:08it would move us better into a decision.

1:47:11So yeah, keep up the good work.

1:47:14Thank you.

1:47:15And I believe I'm going to the screen now.

1:47:19So that would be Klaassen and then Karan.

1:47:26Yes, thank you.

1:47:29I just wanted to say a lot of my questions

1:47:31were addressed within the presentation itself.

1:47:34So I didn't, most of them resolved,

1:47:37but I did really appreciate some of the attention

1:47:40to detail with regards to the masonry

1:47:42and the arches and sort of the architectural direction

1:47:45that the podium of the building brings to our downtown

1:47:51as well as the three spaces for retail

1:47:56outside of the cafe that will already be included.

1:48:00I think it's really important to have a mindful approach.

1:48:04And I heard that there's a retail leasing team

1:48:06who's dedicated to filling these spaces.

1:48:08We need active business storefronts downtown

1:48:13and we do need more people downtown.

1:48:14And I think that this is the type of development

1:48:17that can accomplish that.

1:48:20And so I did have a take, a couple of notes.

1:48:26One is I am concerned about all of the construction

1:48:30happening downtown and the impacts for our business owners.

1:48:33I don't think that's a surprise to hear from me,

1:48:36but there is the prospect.

1:48:39And I know that staff is aware of this,

1:48:41but our delegate from downtown is correct.

1:48:44All of the staging, all of the impacts

1:48:47to closures, to streets has an impact

1:48:50on our existing business owners downtown.

1:48:53And it's already post pandemic realities

1:48:57do make running and operating businesses downtown a challenge.

1:49:02And so as we move forward,

1:49:03I truly hope that we're being strategic

1:49:06about how we're making decisions,

1:49:09not decisions, but timing

1:49:11and how we're setting up our businesses for success

1:49:14as we grow and evolve our downtown.

1:49:16I think it's really important that we're thinking about them

1:49:19and everything that we do,

1:49:20because we want them to be around through the construction

1:49:24and after the construction to contribute to the thriving,

1:49:28you know, the thriving downtown that we want.

1:49:30And much of it does thrive.

1:49:32And I want it to continue to thrive.

1:49:35So that's my comment on that.

1:49:37And then we have the on street parking review coming up.

1:49:41And I hope that as a part of that,

1:49:44we're looking at the impacts

1:49:46that these developments might have on the surrounding streets.

1:49:49There is a little that little pocket of downtown,

1:49:53certainly is a weird combination of densities.

1:49:58And so I hope that this will line up

1:50:02the results of the on street parking review.

1:50:06We'll also address some of those concerns

1:50:07that our delegate had with regard to on street parking

1:50:11around the development.

1:50:13And that's it.

1:50:15Thank you.

1:50:16All right. Thank you.

1:50:18And Karan then Boussatel.

1:50:20All right. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

1:50:22I have some similar comments.

1:50:24The first is that when we looked at this site many years ago,

1:50:28we noted that from Wellington Street,

1:50:31because of the elevation on the topography of the hill,

1:50:36it actually had a greater appearance

1:50:37in terms of max stories when looking from northward.

1:50:43And so I'm hoping that staff can take that into consideration.

1:50:47Obviously in 106, but 106 and OPA 106,

1:50:52we contemplated a maximum of 24 stories.

1:50:56But I'd like staff to perhaps provide some different renderings

1:51:01of what the elevation impact is.

1:51:03I don't know if staff would provide those

1:51:05or the proponent would provide those

1:51:07so that we have a better idea of what the actual impact

1:51:10of 24 stories is on that site from eye level,

1:51:13because we're seeing a lot of really beautiful renderings

1:51:15from a drone kind of view.

1:51:19Similar to that, I do have some concerns

1:51:21about measuring at grade on Farquhar.

1:51:24If truly it is a double grade,

1:51:26then the measurement of height should be from the lower grade,

1:51:30because that's where the visual impact,

1:51:33looking from the south to the north.

1:51:36And then just a comment that I know in the past,

1:51:40I've been rather hesitant on these taller buildings

1:51:43from an architectural downtown point of view

1:51:47related to the river and the skyline

1:51:49and the nearby heritage district

1:51:51and the designated amenities,

1:51:55the armories next door and the drill hole.

1:51:57I think obviously, OK, 106 changed all of that

1:52:01and I'm quite open to the additional stories,

1:52:04but I'd like some additional information and renderings

1:52:07on what that impact might be

1:52:08from different elevations at ground levels.

1:52:10So, and then of course, as you know,

1:52:13they're community energy,

1:52:14and I know you'll also address snow removal

1:52:16and waste management on site when you bring it back

1:52:20to potential stage areas for those civic functions

1:52:24that need to take place in the city.

1:52:26Thanks very much to staff.

1:52:28Okay, thank you.

1:52:29And to Boussatil please.

1:52:32Thank you.

1:52:33And through the mayor,

1:52:34I wanted to first appreciate the developers' response

1:52:38to my question about the three bedrooms

1:52:40that really this is a home and not a student residence.

1:52:43Really appreciate that.

1:52:44I think that's respectful.

1:52:47The second thing is for our staff,

1:52:50you've heard about family housing.

1:52:52We've been chatting unclear about the townhouse

1:52:56on Fountain Street if those are two bedrooms,

1:52:59three bedrooms, didn't quite clearly see that in there.

1:53:03If again, is it three?

1:53:05Okay, missed it.

1:53:07Problems loading this.

1:53:08And the last thing is just around the commercial.

1:53:11Downtown has talked quite a bit

1:53:13about the need for a grocery store.

1:53:16My parents are at 35 Church,

1:53:19grocery store there down on the Esplanade as well.

1:53:22Just really if you can have conversations

1:53:26around a grocery store, that would be great.

1:53:28Thank you.

1:53:30All right, thank you.

1:53:34Oh, Kate, I'm sorry.

1:53:35Oh my God, I just almost missed you there.

1:53:38Go ahead, you're gonna wrap us up.

1:53:40Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

1:53:41I was late to put my hand up, so you're all good.

1:53:46I was just, in terms of comments,

1:53:49as I said to the developers,

1:53:51I'm interested in accessibility impacts

1:53:55for the less entrances.

1:53:58I know that you're gonna be doing a traffic study

1:54:00to help look at if there's gonna be a need

1:54:04for crossing and lights in that area.

1:54:07And I do like that it's not exclusively students.

1:54:13And I think that the design is actually kind of cute.

1:54:16I have concerns with the height

1:54:19and not including that main floor,

1:54:22especially since it is so elevated as a story.

1:54:25And I was just wondering if we could get some information

1:54:30on the rooftop pool in terms of safety impact

1:54:34and water use when the report does come back.

1:54:38Thanks.

1:54:40Okay, thank you.

1:54:42Okay, nothing further.

1:54:46It's already been moved and seconded for receiving.

1:54:50My only comment is we had three delegates in a row

1:54:54that were positive about a development like this

1:54:57in the downtown.

1:54:59Bring it on.

1:55:03Yes, I think this is, that's a Christmas miracle, for sure.

1:55:08So I, yeah, that was,

1:55:12that just absolutely made my day.

1:55:15So I wish you all the best in answering the questions

1:55:18that have come up, maybe looking at things

1:55:19in a different way if you can,

1:55:23as it eventually comes back to us.

1:55:25And yeah, I've been told from others

1:55:31that you tend to get approvals and then you build.

1:55:35You're a builder.

1:55:35So we need that in our city and we want you to get going

1:55:41as soon as possible if the approval happens.

1:55:42So wishing you all the best.

1:55:45And with that, I'll call the vote on receiving.

1:55:48Is anyone against?

1:55:51Nobody, so that's unanimous.

1:55:52So thank you again.

1:55:54Council, we're gonna take a five minute break

1:55:56before we go to the next one,

1:55:59which is for the 328 Victoria Road South

1:56:04and 588 Stone Road East

1:56:07for the Official Plan Amendment and Zoning By-law Amendments.

1:56:11So let's come back here.

1:56:15Let's take a nine minute break.

1:56:19Let's come back and we'll start, start at 1130, okay?

1:56:23Thank you.

2:04:51If I could just have my colleagues on camera online,

2:04:54please turn their cameras on.

2:04:56That would be great just to at least start

2:04:58to see who's with us.

2:05:00Thank you.

2:05:05All right, we're good.

2:05:06We're gonna call the meeting back to order.

2:05:08As I said, we'll start off here

2:05:09with 328 Victoria Road South and 588 Stone Road East.

2:05:14Lindsay is gonna kick us off with the presentation

2:05:17and we have a couple of delegations.

2:05:21And that is it.

2:05:24So turn it over to you, go right ahead.

2:05:31Good morning, Mayor Guthrie, members of council,

2:05:33staff and members of the public

2:05:35who are here in person or watching online.

2:05:38Today, I will be presenting the statutory public meeting

2:05:41for the proposed official plan

2:05:43and zoning bylaw amendments for lands

2:05:45municipally known as 328 Victoria Road South

2:05:48and 588 Stone Road East,

2:05:51which are also referred to the Guelph Innovation District

2:05:54or a GID Block Plan Areas one and two.

2:05:57These development applications were received

2:05:59for the subject lands from MHPC Planning Limited

2:06:02on behalf of Fusion Homes.

2:06:04Today is a statutory public meeting for the applications

2:06:07and no decisions will be made on the applications today.

2:06:15The subject lands are mean as plain known

2:06:17as 328 Victoria Road South and 588 Stone Road East.

2:06:21The subject lands are located at the northeast corner

2:06:23of Victoria Road South and Stone Road East.

2:06:26The subject lands have a combined area

2:06:28of approximately 116 hectares with 1,497 meters

2:06:33of frontage along Stone Road,

2:06:36oh, sorry, with 1,497 meters of combined frontage

2:06:42along Victoria Road South and 874 meters

2:06:45of combined frontage along Stone Road East.

2:06:48The subject lands are primarily vacant

2:06:50and used for agricultural uses with two buildings

2:06:52located on the northwestern side of the subject lands.

2:06:59So the subject lands are identified as Block Plan Areas

2:07:02one and two in the Guelph Innovation District

2:07:04Secondary Plan.

2:07:05On September 10th, 2025, a special meeting of council

2:07:08was held to provide planning information

2:07:10and a staff recommendation to council

2:07:12regarding endorsement of Block Plans one and two

2:07:15of the GID secondary plan.

2:07:17At the special meeting of council,

2:07:18city council approved the applicant submitted Block Plans

2:07:21subject to revisions and directed the city's general manager

2:07:24of planning and building services

2:07:25to issue final Block Plan endorsement

2:07:28once required revisions are made to the Block Plan.

2:07:31The applicant has revised the Block Plan

2:07:32as directed by council's motion

2:07:34and the final version was submitted to the city

2:07:36in January of 2026.

2:07:40And the official plan in zoning bylaw amendments

2:07:42will facilitate the future subdivision of lands.

2:07:50In terms of the proposed official plan amendment,

2:07:52I'm just gonna go into some high level details.

2:07:55I know the applicant's gonna be speaking in more detail

2:07:58and the information is also provided

2:08:01in the planning justification report

2:08:04submitted with the application

2:08:05if you want the full details of the official plan amendment.

2:08:08At a high level, the proposed amendments

2:08:10to the city of Guelph Official Plan

2:08:11and GID secondary plan are summarized as follows.

2:08:15The amendment to schedule 1A of the official plan,

2:08:17the urban structure, which is to expand

2:08:19the strategic growth areas to reflect

2:08:21the additional residential designated lands

2:08:23on schedule B of the GID secondary plan land use,

2:08:26land use plan, an amendment to schedule 1B,

2:08:30which is the structure employment areas

2:08:33of the official plan.

2:08:34And so that is to reduce the employment areas

2:08:37to reflect the employment designated lands

2:08:39on schedule B of the GID secondary plan land use plan.

2:08:44Schedule A, the Guelph Innovation District

2:08:46secondary plan mobility plan,

2:08:49and amend the road the applicant is requesting

2:08:51to amend the road locations and classifications

2:08:53based on OPA 80, approved schedule B

2:08:56of the GID secondary plan

2:08:57and the council approved block plan.

2:09:07And continuing with the amendments

2:09:08to the proposed schedule,

2:09:09schedule B of the Guelph Innovation District

2:09:11secondary plan land use, amend the location

2:09:14of the designations for open space and park,

2:09:16residential mixed use corridor,

2:09:19employment mixed use, employment mixed use too,

2:09:21future city streets and amend the location

2:09:23of proposed parks.

2:09:25Schedule C, the Guelph Innovation District secondary plan

2:09:29built form elements, an amendment to amend the location

2:09:34of the two to six story, two to 10 story,

2:09:36four to 10 story, nine to six story,

2:09:38three to 12 story, three to 18 story designations

2:09:41and revise the future city streets

2:09:43to amend the location of the nodes.

2:09:48In addition to the amendments to the official plan

2:09:50and secondary plan schedules,

2:09:51amendments are proposed to the secondary plan text

2:09:54to align with the schedule changes made

2:09:56through official plan amendment 80

2:09:58and the approved block plan.

2:09:59Further revisions to the secondary plan wording

2:10:02are also proposed by the applicant

2:10:03to clarify policy implementation

2:10:06through the draft plan of subdivision

2:10:07and future site plan applications.

2:10:09So these amendments are detailed

2:10:11in the applicant submitted proposed official plan amendment.

2:10:17So specific proposed amendments

2:10:19to the GID land use schedule.

2:10:20There's the current schedule

2:10:22and proposed schedule on the screen.

2:10:25The applicant is proposing to amend the location

2:10:28of the designations for open space and park,

2:10:30residential, mixed use corridor, employment,

2:10:33mixed use one, employment mixed use two,

2:10:35future city streets and amend the location

2:10:37of the proposed parks.

2:10:43So the subject lands are currently zoned urban reserve

2:10:45and natural heritage system

2:10:47according to the city of Guelph zoning bylaw.

2:10:50The UR1 zone or urban reserve zone identifies lands

2:10:53which are subject to development constraints

2:10:55or require further study.

2:10:57The natural heritage system zone is intended

2:10:59to protect natural heritage features,

2:11:01provide open space for leisure

2:11:02and to prohibit development in the floodway.

2:11:11A zoning bylaw amendment is proposed

2:11:13for the subject lands to establish a zoning framework

2:11:15on the lands which will implement the permitted uses

2:11:18of the GID secondary plan

2:11:19and implement the future proposed draft plan

2:11:23of subdivision which includes approximately 4,544 dwelling units.

2:11:29The purpose of the zoning bylaw amendment

2:11:30is to change the zoning on the subject lands

2:11:32from urban reserve and NHS to the following zones.

2:11:36A low density residential, medium density residential,

2:11:39site specific, medium density residential six,

2:11:42site specific mixed use corridor,

2:11:44site specific mixed use corridor two and three.

2:11:56Site specific, another site specific mixed use corridor,

2:12:00community park, neighborhood park,

2:12:02site specific neighborhood park,

2:12:03site specific neighborhood park,

2:12:06urban square, employment mixed use,

2:12:08employment mixed use two, open space,

2:12:10natural heritage system.

2:12:17There are no site specific amendments proposed

2:12:19to the low density residential,

2:12:22employment mixed use one, employment mixed use two,

2:12:24open space or natural heritage system zones.

2:12:27The medium density residential six zone proposed

2:12:30for residential development blocks is proposed

2:12:33to include townhouse and stack townhouse units.

2:12:36A site specific provision is proposed

2:12:37for the medium density residential six zone

2:12:39to restrict the minimum building height to three stories.

2:12:42The lands which are planned for a mix

2:12:44of commercial apartment, townhouse and stack,

2:12:46townhouse buildings are proposed

2:12:47to be zoned mixed use corridor.

2:12:50Site specific amendments are proposed

2:12:51to reflect the GID secondary plan policies and schedules.

2:12:55In accordance with the mixed use corridor policies

2:12:57of the secondary plan, a mix of medium density

2:13:00and high density residential buildings

2:13:03are proposed to be permitted

2:13:04in the mixed use corridor exception one,

2:13:07mixed use corridor exception two

2:13:09and mixed use corridor exception four zones,

2:13:12including townhouse units, stack townhouse units

2:13:14and apartments.

2:13:16The mixed use corridor policies of the secondary plan

2:13:19also permit institutional and educational uses

2:13:24and the proposed site specific mix use corridor three zone

2:13:28seeks to permit a school in the mixed use corridor zone

2:13:30in accordance with the neighborhood institutional zone.

2:13:34Site specific provisions are also proposed

2:13:36in the mixed use corridor zones

2:13:38to amend the density permissions

2:13:39and to prevent minimum maximum building heights

2:13:42in accordance with schedule C of the secondary plan.

2:13:50The lands which are planned for parks

2:13:52are proposed to be zoned as community park,

2:13:55neighborhood park and urban square.

2:13:57There are no site specific provisions proposed

2:13:59to the community park and urban square zones.

2:14:02The council approved block plan included two parks

2:14:05which do not meet the city's neighborhood park zone

2:14:07requirements and so the site specific provisions

2:14:09are required to prevent reduced frontage

2:14:11in the proposed parks.

2:14:15And so the site specific neighborhood park,

2:14:17the first one would be to permit a minimum

2:14:19lot frontage of 50 meters.

2:14:21The site specific provision is required

2:14:24to remove the requirement of table 12.2

2:14:27of the zoning by-law to calculate a minimum lot frontage

2:14:31based on one meter of frontage per 100 square meters

2:14:33of park area.

2:14:35So block 63 or sorry, block 62 on the draft plan

2:14:38of subdivision provides 50 meters of lot frontage

2:14:41but would require 54.5 meters of frontage

2:14:44based on the overall park area.

2:14:51And then the next site specific neighborhood park zone

2:14:54is required to permit a lot frontage of 38 meters

2:14:57and the site specific provision is required

2:15:00to remove the requirement of table 12.2 again

2:15:04to calculate the minimum lot frontage

2:15:06based on one meter of frontage per 100 square meters

2:15:08of park area and a minimum of 50 meters of frontage.

2:15:12Block 64 on the draft plan of subdivision provides

2:15:15for 39 meters of lot frontage but would require

2:15:1964 meters of frontage based on the overall park area.

2:15:27So next steps for the official plan amendment

2:15:29and zoning by-law amendment applications

2:15:30include a full review of the applications

2:15:32and documents submitted.

2:15:34Once the applications are reviewed,

2:15:35a report from infrastructure development and environment

2:15:38with a recommendation will be considered

2:15:39at a future meeting of council.

2:15:41So if there are any members of the public

2:15:43who wish to be informed on any revisions

2:15:45or decisions on these applications,

2:15:47please provide your full name and contact details

2:15:49to planning at gulf.ca.

2:15:52And that concludes my presentation.

2:15:55Thanks Lindsay, we appreciate it.

2:15:57And again, any questions that pop up,

2:15:59we'll do it after any of the delegations.

2:16:01And so we'll start right away with those.

2:16:05Dave, come on down from Dave Aston from MHBC.

2:16:10This could have come as a representative

2:16:12for the application.

2:16:16And is make a turn and burn here.

2:16:20Okay, thanks Mike, you'll be in the wings, okay?

2:16:26And again, 10 minutes, no more than 10 minutes

2:16:28for this one as well, okay?

2:16:31Dave, welcome and we'll turn it over to you.

2:16:34Good morning, Mayor and members of council.

2:16:36Thanks for the opportunity to be here this morning

2:16:38to speak to the applications in the public meeting.

2:16:42I'm here this morning with Ryan and Meher from Fusion

2:16:45and Aliyah from our office.

2:16:47So as we get to questions, if we need to,

2:16:51we'll pull the rest of the group in to respond.

2:16:55First of all, thanks to Lindsay for her presentation.

2:16:59She covered a lot of the details.

2:17:00I think I'll just keep it at a high level

2:17:03and share what the objective is with the applications.

2:17:08And I think one of the things that Lindsay had mentioned

2:17:13is we've gone through a lot of background on the lands.

2:17:18The city's been involved in a lot of background,

2:17:21a lot of history on the land.

2:17:22And right now we're looking forward to get to the opportunity

2:17:30to develop the lands.

2:17:32There's been a lot of work done on the secondary plan,

2:17:35working with staff on the changes made to the secondary plan

2:17:40and then working through the block plan itself.

2:17:43One other thing I'd just like to mention

2:17:45is as part of the block plan process,

2:17:48there were a number of open houses that were held.

2:17:51And so information was gathered from the public

2:17:55on the proposed block plan that really informed,

2:17:59ultimately, the decision that was made by council.

2:18:02And well, it may have seemed like a lot of amendments

2:18:06and modifications and changes.

2:18:09Those really are a result of implementing

2:18:13the block plan that was approved

2:18:16or endorsed by this council.

2:18:18And then ultimately approved as we worked with staff

2:18:22to adjust the conditions

2:18:24and the final approval of the block plan.

2:18:26So we're here really with these applications

2:18:29to implement the direction

2:18:34and the approval of the block plan

2:18:38that has occurred in the past.

2:18:40And it's the official plan amendment

2:18:42and zoning bylaw amendment.

2:18:44And as Lindsay mentioned, the draft plan of subdivision,

2:18:47that is really another tool and planning approval

2:18:51that will really get into the details

2:18:54of how the lands will be developed.

2:18:56But it will reflect the approved block plan as well.

2:19:02So the proposed amendments,

2:19:05this just gives you a bit of a picture

2:19:07of the changes that are proposed to be made.

2:19:09Again, really all of these changes are implementing

2:19:13the block plan endorsement and approval,

2:19:17which also were part of the consideration

2:19:21of various amendments to the official plan

2:19:23through the city and minister approval of the official plan.

2:19:27So implementing past decisions.

2:19:34So the amendments, I don't want to really go

2:19:37into too much detail of them, they were covered off,

2:19:40but they relate to land uses,

2:19:41they relate to the transportation network

2:19:44and how we're dealing with those

2:19:47and how we're integrating the uses

2:19:49to implement the block plan that was endorsed.

2:19:56And there was changes associated with heights

2:20:01and how we're dealing with density

2:20:03and how we're looking to propose density

2:20:06kind of across the block plan areas,

2:20:09a way to calculate to provide for a range

2:20:12and mix of housing types throughout

2:20:14the entire block plan area.

2:20:19The vision you've heard,

2:20:21this has been something that's carried us through,

2:20:24working through the block plan

2:20:26and continues to be part of the design vision

2:20:30for the plan of subdivision

2:20:32and then future development of the lands

2:20:34in each of the blocks.

2:20:36And so these are key elements

2:20:38that we will continue to work toward

2:20:41to build this community within the city.

2:20:49And the concept plan, there's a few here,

2:20:51just gives a bit of a preliminary idea

2:20:53of where housing units would be located,

2:20:58general conceptual framework

2:21:00for how building forms may occur

2:21:04where massing may locate within the blocks.

2:21:10And again, just another way to illustrate

2:21:12a general approach to how we'll look at a building form

2:21:17and massing in relation to the various streets,

2:21:20the open space elements, the parks

2:21:22and utilization of the various land use types

2:21:25within the community.

2:21:28This plan is just giving me some indication

2:21:31of how the density allocation will occur,

2:21:35primarily looking at density along the main street

2:21:40into the lands and then extending outward

2:21:45with a lower density around the edges

2:21:48of the proposed development adjacent to the open space areas.

2:21:54So giving a good context of where density will be allocated,

2:21:58which will be generally integrated

2:22:01with the transportation network

2:22:03and in proximity to the mixed use areas,

2:22:06the retail areas, the school,

2:22:09to provide for good walkability

2:22:11and active transportation connections.

2:22:16The open space network and implementation

2:22:18of the block plan, but just to circle back on it,

2:22:22there's the natural heritage system,

2:22:24which will include existing trails

2:22:27and an opportunity for new trails

2:22:29and trail connections to those

2:22:32to continue that connectivity of trails.

2:22:36As we look at the road network

2:22:38and the cross sections of the road,

2:22:40there'll also be multi-use pass sidewalks

2:22:43that will provide internal connections

2:22:46to these various open space trails and parks.

2:22:54The proposed zoning, again, a mix of different zones

2:22:59at this point, proposing to utilize the zones in general

2:23:03that the city has incorporated or approved

2:23:08as part of the new zoning bylaw,

2:23:10generally reflecting the land use designations

2:23:13and the densities that are proposed

2:23:16in accordance with the block plan.

2:23:22And the site specific amendments to the zoning,

2:23:25Lindsay really did a great job

2:23:27at working through all of those.

2:23:28So there are a number of different aspects associated

2:23:31with the zoning bylaw,

2:23:33where changes need to occur

2:23:34to implement the land uses and other changes

2:23:38that are a result of the block plan.

2:23:43A number of technical studies have been submitted

2:23:47and these are under review now,

2:23:51but include everything from your environmental studies,

2:23:55servicing studies, hydrogeological, noise, traffic,

2:23:59heritage design.

2:24:01So the full range of study requirements

2:24:04that have been requested

2:24:06were submitted in our under review.

2:24:10And so in conclusion, as we made our submission,

2:24:14we appreciate the opportunity to receive public feedback.

2:24:17We believe that the proposed applications

2:24:20are implementing the direction of council

2:24:22as it relates to the block plan

2:24:24and are consistent with provincial planning direction

2:24:27and conform with the city's official plan.

2:24:30And we look forward to the opportunity

2:24:32to work through the process of the official plan and zoning

2:24:36and then get through the plan of subdivision

2:24:38so that fusion can be really working towards developing

2:24:43this community in short order.

2:24:45And happy to answer any questions.

2:24:49Thank you, Dave, for your presentation

2:24:51and walking us through that.

2:24:53May I just ask any colleagues at this time

2:24:55if there's any follow-up questions?

2:24:58Not at this time.

2:25:00All right, thank you very much.

2:25:03And our next one is Meg,

2:25:05Meg Thurmburne, coming on up

2:25:06from the Guelph Trail User Groups Coalition, I'm sorry.

2:25:12And welcome, Meg, and up to 10 minutes

2:25:16if you need it as well

2:25:17and you can start whenever you're ready.

2:25:19Okay, I'm just gonna make sure I know

2:25:22how to use this thing to change slides.

2:25:28Is there a pointer on this?

2:25:39Sorry, how do I get to the slides?

2:25:46And if I wanna go, I got them in reverse.

2:25:54That one's, please.

2:25:56That's forward.

2:25:58That one's backward.

2:25:59Okay, thanks.

2:26:01Sorry for the delay.

2:26:06I know, but I'm pushing the forward.

2:26:13Yeah, sorry for the delay.

2:26:15Mr. Mayor and members of council,

2:26:17thank you for this opportunity to speak.

2:26:18My name is Meg Thurburn.

2:26:20I'm the former chair of G-TUC,

2:26:22the Guelph Trails User Groups Coalition,

2:26:25standing in for the new chair who is currently at work.

2:26:28We are often here before you to raise concerns

2:26:31or oppose developments, projects, or other decisions.

2:26:35Thankfully, that is not the case today.

2:26:38I'm delegating in support of the Fusion Block Plan proposal.

2:26:42We thought it important that you hear

2:26:43from Guelph's trail using community on positive occasions

2:26:47as well as times of concern.

2:26:50We want to recognize and applaud good development

2:26:52when the needs of the community

2:26:54and our official plans are being met.

2:26:56We greatly appreciate Fusion's emphasis

2:26:59on active transportation connectivity

2:27:01within the development

2:27:02and to the adjacent trail system in the natural areas.

2:27:06We would further like to thank Fusion

2:27:09for signing a five-year land use agreement

2:27:11with our member club, the Guelph Hiking Trail Club,

2:27:14allowing continued access and maintenance of the trails.

2:27:18These are trails that have been used

2:27:19by Guelph residents for generations.

2:27:23As some of you may not be overly familiar

2:27:26with these trails, I've brought a couple of slides.

2:27:29So the first slide here is actually taken

2:27:32from the GHTC land use agreement with Fusion.

2:27:36And there's three trails I want to mention.

2:27:39The red trail on the top is part of the 37 and a half

2:27:44kilometer hiking trail connects Guelph

2:27:47to the Bruce trail near Limehouse.

2:27:51The blue line at the bottom of that slide

2:27:55represents the Cliff Top trail,

2:27:59a scenic hiking trail that runs along the top of the cliff,

2:28:04much beloved by hikers, dog walkers and runners.

2:28:07This will be a tremendous feature asset

2:28:10of the Fusion development.

2:28:13And then the middle trail there in blue

2:28:15is the Awkwood trail, which is heavily used

2:28:19for connectivity as well as recreation

2:28:22and will be a very important link for Fusion residents.

2:28:25The Awkwood trail is the route preferred by most

2:28:28for local connectivity to the Smith property in Arkel

2:28:32and for regional connectivity to the south and east of Guelph.

2:28:35The other options for connection York and Watson

2:28:37or Victorian stone roads are very dangerous.

2:28:44Now, as you can see, you've seen this slide before.

2:28:48These trails are in significant and other natural areas

2:28:53and it appears, I'm not gonna try to point it out,

2:28:55but that Fusion is planning to develop some trails

2:28:58to connect to the Cliff Top trail,

2:29:00the existing Cliff Top trail, which is really great.

2:29:03These existing trails are not only well embedded

2:29:06in the fabric of the community,

2:29:07but in city master plans as well.

2:29:10These documents secure those trails legacy

2:29:13and their growth as the city grows.

2:29:15They are important to connectivity,

2:29:18recreation and well-being.

2:29:20Although these trails are protected by our official plans,

2:29:23Guelph citizens do ask that we continually reiterate

2:29:26their point importance at every opportunity

2:29:29as some departments seem less familiar

2:29:31with their history usage and documentation.

2:29:34As you know, detox member organizations work

2:29:37with multiple municipalities, organizations, developers,

2:29:40private landowners and other interested parties.

2:29:43So again, I wish to commend Fusion

2:29:46for working so proactively with the community

2:29:49and our member club, GHTC.

2:29:51When a developer moves forward in a positive manner,

2:29:54intelligently recognizing the importance of trails

2:29:58and natural areas in the community,

2:30:00we feel we need to point it out

2:30:02and commend their insight and wisdom.

2:30:05However, that being said, we do have concerns

2:30:09with recent city developments affecting these community trails

2:30:13as they pass through Fusion's natural areas.

2:30:17We recognize this is not the forum to tackle

2:30:20the recent closure of these generations old trails.

2:30:25But please know that Fusion's natural heritage lands

2:30:29are also at risk from GJR decisions.

2:30:34This is a grave concern for the community.

2:30:36GJR's inability to work with the community

2:30:39to ensure access to these trails,

2:30:42as well as the possibility of trained sightings

2:30:45on the natural heritage land,

2:30:47will have a huge impact on Fusion's future residents,

2:30:51as well as thousands of other Guelph residents,

2:30:54ability to use these trails for enjoyment

2:30:57and or active transportation connectivity.

2:31:01Fusion has done extensive public consultation for

2:31:05and been highly transparent about their block plan,

2:31:08whereas GJR has been installing sightings

2:31:11and interfering with trail use and development

2:31:13throughout the city with no public consultation,

2:31:16no transparency, and seemingly no oversight.

2:31:20Surely natural heritage areas are not the place

2:31:24to store empty chemical tankers.

2:31:26As I said, this needs to be addressed in a different forum.

2:31:31We will be requesting a meeting to address the issue

2:31:35of how a city owned corporation does not act

2:31:37in the same transparent and puny manner

2:31:39as has Fusion a private corporation.

2:31:42To reiterate, GJR is in support

2:31:44of the Fusion block plan proposal.

2:31:47Yes, I am done.

2:31:48I'm happy to answer any questions.

2:31:51Okay, yeah, definitely a different forum.

2:31:54And I'm glad that you recognize that,

2:31:57and we are always open to having that conversation

2:31:59in a different forum, but today we're not here

2:32:02for that issue, we're here for this one,

2:32:03so I'm glad you stuck mostly to that.

2:32:06So thank you very much for doing that.

2:32:08Is there any other follow-up questions or conversation

2:32:12with this delegate on this matter?

2:32:14Seeing none, thanks for waiting your whole time too

2:32:17to make that delegation, we appreciate it, okay?

2:32:19Thank you.

2:32:20Thank you very much.

2:32:22Is there anyone else in the room

2:32:23that would like to speak to this particular item?

2:32:27Nope, okay.

2:32:28And a number's gonna come up on the screen here

2:32:30at 519-837-5603, again, that's 519-837-5603.

2:32:40And we'll just wait a few moments

2:32:43as we see whether or not there's anyone

2:32:45that wanted to call in, okay?

2:32:47So thank you, just pause for a few moments, thank you.

2:34:08Just while we're waiting for a few moments

2:34:09if someone wants to call in,

2:34:11just like staff to just be able to respond

2:34:14to what was indicated by the delegates

2:34:15a few moments ago.

2:34:19Yeah, thank you Mayor Guthrie, and through you,

2:34:21I'd just like to acknowledge that, you know,

2:34:24certainly the city and GGR and through its practices

2:34:26follow many transparent public processes

2:34:28and community engagement practices,

2:34:30and specifically as we're designing

2:34:32the city's trails system and bringing reports

2:34:34to council, master plans and things of that nature.

2:34:37There's substantial public engagement,

2:34:39and we're happy to continue to work with the community

2:34:42as those plans come forward.

2:34:45Okay, thank you very much.

2:34:48To clerk, so if we had anybody call in,

2:34:49would you like to wait another minute or are you okay?

2:34:52Okay, so we're good.

2:34:53So nobody's called in,

2:34:54and nobody in the gallery wants to speak

2:34:57to the issue as well.

2:34:59So it's back to us.

2:35:01Would anybody be willing to move receipt

2:35:04for this one, billings and a Pouser?

2:35:08Thank you very much.

2:35:10Is there anything that needs to be taken away

2:35:12on this one that has not been stated?

2:35:14It is just to receive only.

2:35:16Does anyone need to add anything to this?

2:35:19No, okay, that's great.

2:35:22Well, I'll just go get ready to call the vote then.

2:35:25Thank you again to Fusion for the application

2:35:27and for getting this in front of us.

2:35:30I do want to encourage that this comes forward

2:35:33as quickly as possible.

2:35:35I think that there has been a lot of work

2:35:38and time put into this,

2:35:39so hopefully both the applicant and staff

2:35:43can work together in trying to get this in front of us

2:35:46as soon as possible.

2:35:47We definitely need to see this move forward, so.

2:35:50That's great, thank you very much.

2:35:52I'll call the vote.

2:35:53Is there anybody against?

2:35:56Nobody, that's unanimous.

2:35:57Thank you very much.

2:35:59Okay, we are at our last,

2:36:03I think it's our last, let me look for a call.

2:36:05Yeah, it's our last.

2:36:06This is just under the items for discussion.

2:36:10It is a presentation that's gonna be done

2:36:13and then we can chat if we need to, of course.

2:36:16The report in front of us,

2:36:17it's the annual report for 2025.

2:36:20It's called Housing and Guelph.

2:36:22And so our staff have put together a presentation

2:36:28that is actually really important.

2:36:33Let's all make sure, me included,

2:36:35that we're really paying attention to this

2:36:36because there's been a lot of great work

2:36:41and to have it compiled in one report like this

2:36:44for not only us, but for the community

2:36:46is very, very important.

2:36:48And right off the top,

2:36:50I just wanna say on behalf of council,

2:36:52thank you to staff for all the work you do

2:36:54throughout the entire year when it comes to housing,

2:36:58but to be able to see it come together

2:37:00in sort of one presentation in one report

2:37:02is a good reminder.

2:37:04It's also a good presentation to be able to share

2:37:07with the public and also to correct a lot of misinformation

2:37:10that is sometimes out there too.

2:37:13And so this is a nice way of being able to amplify this

2:37:16in the public realm so that any disinformation

2:37:19or misinformation is tackled in this manner.

2:37:22So I really appreciate staff doing that

2:37:25and I'll turn it over to our CAO, Tara,

2:37:27to kind of kick us off.

2:37:30Great, yes, and thank you, Mr. Mayor, members of council.

2:37:33I am just gonna take a very small part

2:37:36of the presentation today to kick things off.

2:37:38We are very pleased to be here before you

2:37:41to share the recent housing ready accomplishments,

2:37:44key housing projects underway and highlight next steps

2:37:48in our journey as a partner

2:37:49in getting more homes built here in Guelph.

2:37:52This report is a function of our commitment

2:37:54to report twice annually on our housing progress.

2:37:58In 2025, the city made significant progress

2:38:01in advancing housing readiness

2:38:04and major initiatives continue through 2026.

2:38:09Progress on housing within our community

2:38:11goes well beyond the measures of housing units.

2:38:14Housing considerations have become a central force

2:38:17shaping many aspects of our work,

2:38:20driving operational priorities,

2:38:22long-term strategic planning, civic dialogue,

2:38:26budget investments, advocacy,

2:38:28and council decision-making.

2:38:31In our most recent edition

2:38:32of the Housing and Guelph Annual Report,

2:38:34we've now aligned our progress

2:38:36with the Ontario Big City Mayors or OBCMs,

2:38:39efforts to share the story and data

2:38:41of the work undertaken to advance housing

2:38:44by municipalities across the province

2:38:46in a consistent framework.

2:38:48So as described by OBCM,

2:38:51cities and municipalities play a vital role

2:38:54in meeting housing demand

2:38:55and building sustainable communities.

2:38:58Cities are working with regional governments

2:39:00and housing service managers

2:39:01to expand infrastructure and support affordable housing

2:39:04through five key strategies.

2:39:06Unlocking land for housing, enabling greater density,

2:39:10reducing barriers for developers and property owners,

2:39:13streamlining reviews and approvals,

2:39:15and supporting affordable and non-market housing.

2:39:18We're proud to be here before you today

2:39:21with this revised presentation

2:39:24and to share significant progress

2:39:26within each of these five areas.

2:39:28So with that, I'll hand it over to DCAO Gaiman.

2:39:39Thank you, CAO Baker,

2:39:40and good morning, Mayor Guthrie and council.

2:39:43Over this four-year term of council,

2:39:45through your approval and direction,

2:39:47staff have achieved many significant milestones

2:39:50as shown on the roadmap.

2:39:52To summarize these milestones,

2:39:53collectively contribute to things

2:39:55like a robust policy framework,

2:39:58data-driven growth plans and budget investments

2:40:00for critical infrastructure,

2:40:02short and long-term strategies and action plans,

2:40:06successful grant applications,

2:40:08process improvements and innovations,

2:40:11and we have advanced key developments

2:40:13that support more housing in the community.

2:40:16More than 120 housing-related staff reports

2:40:20have been before you for deliberation

2:40:22over this term of council.

2:40:23In 2025 alone, there were 34 housing-related reports.

2:40:29We're proud of the work that the city is leading,

2:40:31supporting and influencing,

2:40:33and to help address the housing crisis,

2:40:35sustain growth, strengthen investment readiness,

2:40:39and enhance wealth's overall livability.

2:40:42In our time together today,

2:40:43we're gonna focus on what we accomplished in 2025

2:40:47and the work that is underway this year.

2:40:49As you can see in the roadmap,

2:40:51as we look forward to the future of this year and beyond,

2:40:54our progress and momentum continue to build.

2:40:59Now, I will give you a heads up.

2:41:00The presentation is lengthy,

2:41:02maybe a bit longer than we normally would bring to you,

2:41:05but for good reason.

2:41:06There's a lot of good information

2:41:08that we need to highlight and recap in

2:41:10and to the mayor's point, get the information out.

2:41:13And so please bear with us.

2:41:14We appreciate your focus

2:41:16as we get through this presentation today.

2:41:18We are going to cover in this presentation

2:41:23the status of the housing units and data insights over time,

2:41:27a summary of the work we advanced in 2025

2:41:30and what we are working on now,

2:41:32the focus of our advocacy efforts,

2:41:35updates on grant funding,

2:41:37some of the challenges we will continue to face

2:41:40and highlights from our communications

2:41:42and engagement efforts.

2:41:44There are many takeaways here,

2:41:45so I'd like to be deliberate in pointing

2:41:47three of them out for you.

2:41:48Guelph's housing ready progress is evident.

2:41:52We see this in the increasing housing units identified

2:41:54through development applications in 2025,

2:41:57compared to 2024.

2:41:59Although building permit numbers were lower in 2025,

2:42:02the total number of housing units increased.

2:42:06That's an early indication

2:42:07that the city's strategic efforts are helping offset

2:42:11external pressures such as slower population growth

2:42:13and economic uncertainty.

2:42:15Despite challenges, Guelph remains on track

2:42:17to meet its long-term population forecast,

2:42:20continues to adapt to new economic realities

2:42:23and is well positioned for growth and investment.

2:42:26With that, I'm going to now invite Crystal Wachey,

2:42:28our chief planner and general manager

2:42:30of planning and building services up to the podium.

2:42:35Thank you, Mr. Gaiman.

2:42:37So as you will see on this first slide,

2:42:40that this is our housing pipeline.

2:42:43We have a number of units and we're showing 2024

2:42:47on the top in the dark blue and 2025 in green on the bottom,

2:42:51and that's going to continue for the next couple of slides.

2:42:54So our housing development applications

2:42:56are definitely trending positively,

2:42:57which demonstrates Guelph's housing readiness.

2:43:00At the pre-submission stage,

2:43:01the number of housing units for development applications

2:43:04was 4,903.

2:43:06This is nearly double those from 2024.

2:43:10There were 1,743 housing units approved

2:43:13in development applications last year,

2:43:15which is a 14% increase compared to 2024.

2:43:21When we moved to the site plan stage,

2:43:24again, the same formula for 2024 on top,

2:43:30we saw a 60% lower in the pre-submission stage.

2:43:35However, those that moved to formal were substantially higher.

2:43:38So we've done the early work early on

2:43:41and now they've moved into the formal application

2:43:44and we definitely saw more formal applications

2:43:46approved last year,

2:43:48and we are already halfway to that number

2:43:51so far this year in 2026.

2:43:54So site plan is moving along quickly now.

2:43:58As Mr. Gaiman indicated, our building permits though

2:44:00are still lower reflecting the market

2:44:05and the uncertainty that is around the housing realm

2:44:08and potential GST rebates and a bunch of other items.

2:44:11The highest number of permits

2:44:13were four additional dwelling units at 239.

2:44:16And it's worth noting as was indicated

2:44:18that our housing number, these are our permits,

2:44:21but the province counts housing starts,

2:44:24which is a different metric

2:44:27and is somewhat complicated and often difficult

2:44:29to calculate, but last year we did receive

2:44:33the Build Better Faster Fund

2:44:34because of the number of housing units that did occur.

2:44:39Consents, and this is worth noting

2:44:41what we wanted to share with council

2:44:43is it shares an important role in housing and wealth.

2:44:48In 2025, the committee approved 78 new residential lots

2:44:52in increase of 46 compared to 2024,

2:44:57but the 78 new lots represents 237 units

2:45:03that were brought forward.

2:45:04And that is a direct result of the three unit

2:45:08as a right policies that were implemented by this council.

2:45:12So our application volume

2:45:14at committee of adjustment is quite high.

2:45:18We have a 36% increase year over year

2:45:22and our volumes again this year are very, very high.

2:45:26So the committee of adjustment is a mechanism

2:45:28to support infill housing, intensification,

2:45:31additional residential units

2:45:34and conversion and expansion of existing dwellings.

2:45:39So unlocking land for housing.

2:45:42As CAO Baker indicated in the introduction,

2:45:45the city is advancing five key strategies

2:45:47to meet housing demand and build sustainable communities.

2:45:51One such strategy is unlocking land for housing

2:45:54by advancing critical water, wastewater, transportation

2:45:57and transit infrastructure upgrades

2:46:00to remove servicing constraints and create new homes.

2:46:04We're also generating more development sites

2:46:06through the strategic disposal of unused city land.

2:46:13Looking back over the past year,

2:46:15here are some examples

2:46:16and how we delivered on this strategy.

2:46:18We sold at fair American value half an acre

2:46:22of unused city owned land to our private developer

2:46:25to build a future residential development with 57 units.

2:46:28We continue to advance housing readiness

2:46:30through several environmental assessments

2:46:32for downtown, clear Maltby

2:46:34and the Guelph Innovation District.

2:46:36We substantially completed $13.5 million

2:46:40worth of linear construction, 2.5

2:46:42which was funded through development charges.

2:46:45And this resulted in the construction

2:46:46of 6.2 meters of road, 0.3 kilometers of water main,

2:46:510.3 kilometers of sanitary and 0.3 kilometers of storm

2:46:54because they're typically built together

2:46:56and one kilometer of cycling tracks or multi-use pass.

2:47:00We also started construction on projects in 2025

2:47:03that we'll be completing this year.

2:47:05And a notable highlight is the $2 million

2:47:08Street Sewer Up-Size Project on Wellington Street

2:47:11which unlocked housing and development

2:47:14and you had one of those housing applications

2:47:15before you earlier this morning

2:47:18which is a direct result of that Wellington Street

2:47:21construction that occurred last year.

2:47:24So the city is also now available

2:47:25to offer financial agreement opportunities

2:47:29for key infrastructure to remove servicing constraints

2:47:31and unlock capacity for new homes

2:47:34through the launch of what we call

2:47:35the municipal financing servicing and financing agreements

2:47:38but that's also known as the front end agreement

2:47:40that was put forward.

2:47:43So we found ways to increase budget certainty,

2:47:47speed up timelines for developers

2:47:49and we also made investments to improve

2:47:51our transit system and service which is needed for housing.

2:47:59Here's what you can expect this year.

2:48:02In the downtown, obviously the Windham Street

2:48:05reconstruction starts at the end of this month.

2:48:09And the Macdonnell Street, Macdonnell Bridge,

2:48:12Allen Dam structure and the downtown pedestrian bridge

2:48:16detailed designs are starting this spring.

2:48:20In the Claremont B secondary plan area,

2:48:23we have two environmental assessments underway.

2:48:26The Gordon St. Clair Road and Laird Road site

2:48:31as well as the Street A collector

2:48:33which runs parallel to that north-south

2:48:36and that will unlock servicing capacity

2:48:38for 27,000 residents.

2:48:41And both projects have open houses planned for this spring

2:48:44and there are web pages on those projects.

2:48:47For the Guelph Innovation District

2:48:48which we also talked about earlier,

2:48:51last summer the Victoria Road, Stone Road

2:48:53and McQuillen's Bridge municipal class EA started

2:48:57and the study team is looking for options on that

2:49:00which we will be bringing forward.

2:49:02We also have improvements to Stone Road

2:49:04which are planned for detailed design in 2030

2:49:07and construction in 2031.

2:49:10Other growth infrastructure, York Road Phase Four.

2:49:14I know we've had lots of talks about York Road

2:49:16but its construction continues in 2026.

2:49:19Exhibition Park, neighborhood area Phase One

2:49:23starts this year and the Hamlin Sanitary

2:49:26and Water Main Crossing detailed trunk design

2:49:29starts this year as well.

2:49:31University Avenue West construction starts later this year

2:49:35and we also note 87,000 new transit service areas

2:49:39will be added between 2026 and 2031

2:49:42subject to our annual budget process.

2:49:49Our second strategy is that we're enabling greater density

2:49:52through new policies and programs

2:49:54that make it easier and more affordable to build housing

2:49:56while keep growth aligned with our community priorities.

2:50:01In December, you'll recall Council approved an amendment

2:50:04to our ADU grant program as part of the

2:50:07Affordable Housing Community Improvement Plan

2:50:10which have unlocked additional potential,

2:50:12increased funding and eligibility amounts.

2:50:16The grant program so far has incented 15 affordable units

2:50:20all under the homeowner stream.

2:50:24Another key highlight of the CIP is the $320,000

2:50:31which was awarded to Wyndham House

2:50:33through the Cities Affordable Housing CIP

2:50:35Vacant Unit Renewal Grant.

2:50:38And this was for 10 youth spaces on Waterloo Avenue.

2:50:43And with the new support of housing development,

2:50:45this puts Guelph on track to become the first

2:50:47mid-sized city in Canada to end chronic youth homelessness.

2:50:53Last April, we approved the Official Plan Memant 106

2:50:58that allows taller buildings in the downtown

2:51:00secondary plan area to meet our population

2:51:03and employment growth to 2051.

2:51:06We are also bringing forward the downtown

2:51:08Community Planning Permit System next month

2:51:11for Council's decision.

2:51:18The CPPS will be brought forward next month.

2:51:22And then with that, we'll also be bringing later this year

2:51:24the accompanying built form standards

2:51:27to talk about height and have a city-wide standard

2:51:31on what that looks like so we can increase the clarity

2:51:34and certainty for developers for what we're looking

2:51:36on housing as it comes forward.

2:51:39Grant funding is still available through the city's

2:51:42Affordable Housing Community Improvement Plan

2:51:45and staff are continuing to work with interested parties

2:51:48in the affordable housing development space

2:51:50and encourage other housing nonprofits,

2:51:52builders and residents to apply.

2:51:55And we continue on our outreach

2:51:57and communication for that program.

2:52:03Our third strategy is what we're calling reducing barriers

2:52:06for developers and property owners

2:52:08by improving processes, shortening timelines,

2:52:10increasing flexibility in land uses

2:52:12and creating clear, more predictable development pathways.

2:52:17Last year, our building services team

2:52:19enhanced their services to better support

2:52:21the segment of customers calling

2:52:23for Building Permit Applications Assistant

2:52:25and for assistance remotely.

2:52:27Through the use of an app, customers can now share

2:52:29their screen with staff and together walk through each step

2:52:32in the application process from the comfort of their home.

2:52:36We also undertook a lean yellow belt

2:52:39continuous improvement project to increase the number

2:52:41of complete additional dwelling unit permit applications.

2:52:45Through their hard work of staff,

2:52:46they reduced incomplete ADU permits by 33%

2:52:51and allowed ADU permits to come in much easier

2:52:54and quicker for the applicants.

2:52:58Last April, this council approved the Stoneman-Edenborough Road

2:53:02Community Planning Permit System.

2:53:04So we're trying to bring a bunch of processes together,

2:53:07site plan, official plan amendment, zoning,

2:53:10minor variants all into one 45 day process.

2:53:13And as we talk, we do have two applications

2:53:15that are in the pre-console stage and stage in that area.

2:53:18So that's great news and the program is exciting

2:53:21for both those applicants.

2:53:25Planning has also started our multi-phased official plan

2:53:28amendment updates, phase one,

2:53:30which was presented to council in February,

2:53:33included provincial changes to the Planning Act,

2:53:36the Ontario Heritage Act,

2:53:37and the new Provincial Planning Statement.

2:53:40And phase two is underway,

2:53:41which is to be presented to council for approval in 2027.

2:53:46And it focuses on employment, transportation,

2:53:48and will include an interim employment land strategy

2:53:52because of changes to the definition by the province.

2:53:56As was approved last month,

2:53:57WEALTH will apply additional rigor

2:54:00in tracking our servicing allocation

2:54:02to proactively manage the city's unallocated water

2:54:06and wastewater servicing capacity.

2:54:13Last week, staff brought forward to council the DC updates

2:54:17that outlined regulatory changes and a call to action

2:54:20on other levels of government to help fund the gap.

2:54:24And last month, we also approved the citywide terms

2:54:27of reference for the parking study.

2:54:30Bill 185 enables municipalities to impose lapsing provisions

2:54:35on site plans and draft plans

2:54:36if a building permit is not issued

2:54:38within a prescribed period of time.

2:54:40We have been doing this for plans of subdivision

2:54:43as it was previously approved,

2:54:45but we are going to be doing it for site plans as well

2:54:48to encourage developers to move quickly through the process.

2:54:51And that is coming forward to council next month.

2:54:57Our fourth strategy is that we're streamlining reviews

2:55:00and approvals by digitizing our processes,

2:55:03improving transparency, and strengthening collaboration,

2:55:06resulting in faster, more efficient housing delivery.

2:55:12As part of our half action plan initiative number two,

2:55:15we committed to a series of milestones

2:55:17that will support and streamline development

2:55:19and the construction of new housing.

2:55:21To realize this, the planning services team

2:55:24and the IT department hired an outside consultant

2:55:28to review our work, to review our process workflows.

2:55:31And we worked together to complete a broad review

2:55:33of our development processes,

2:55:36I think for the third time since I've been here,

2:55:39but the results is a roadmap

2:55:41for making better use of our technology

2:55:43and expanding our digital services

2:55:44in a streamlined development review process.

2:55:48So the city's planning and IT teams are working together

2:55:51on how we can use our existing technologies

2:55:54as they relate to development processes.

2:55:56And this will be completed in Q2, 2026

2:56:00with the primary focus on customer needs,

2:56:03allowing for a IT solution versus a paper solution

2:56:10where applicants can track their progress

2:56:13in the development approval process.

2:56:15They can pay their fees online

2:56:17and everything can move to a digital system

2:56:20from the paper process we currently have.

2:56:22So again, we're trying to make it easier

2:56:23and quicker for developers to work within the city.

2:56:29Through our city's development advisor,

2:56:32we are proactively engaging the development community

2:56:35and identifying pain points.

2:56:38And the development advisor is working on those pain points

2:56:41to improve the processes

2:56:43and identify those key relationships

2:56:45with our interest holders.

2:56:51The other thing to note is last year

2:56:52in the planning department,

2:56:53we reorganized our structure

2:56:55and created a dedicated site plan team

2:56:58to get to that last mile, to get that last step

2:57:01to ensure that developers can move quickly

2:57:03from a early site plan process to a building permit,

2:57:06which would get shovels in the ground quicker.

2:57:08And we are seeing through that site plan stage

2:57:10that that is working.

2:57:19So in Q2, council will be receiving also recommendations

2:57:24for the value for money audit

2:57:27of the building permit process and inspections.

2:57:29And that was part of the council's audit plan.

2:57:32So again, we're continuing to look at our processes

2:57:34and see how we can do things better.

2:57:36And if there's any areas, gaps that can be found.

2:57:39So with that, now I will turn it over to Kushler Matthews,

2:57:43the city's manager of community and affordable housing.

2:57:46Great, thank you very much, Ms. Wauke.

2:57:58So our fifth and final strategy will come as no surprise.

2:58:03We're expanding affordable and non-market housing options

2:58:06through the implementation

2:58:07of the housing affordability strategy.

2:58:12So to recap for 2025,

2:58:15the housing affordability strategy was adopted

2:58:18by council in December of 2024.

2:58:20And we have the first year of implementation

2:58:22under our belts.

2:58:24Staff have been making strides

2:58:26in the first year of implementation,

2:58:28including the Stone Edinburgh Road

2:58:30Community Planning Permit System implementation, or CPPS,

2:58:34fulfilling action 1.1.2

2:58:36and allowing for that additional density

2:58:39and affordable housing through a more streamlined process.

2:58:42And as Krista mentioned or Ms. Wauke mentioned,

2:58:45to date we have met with developers

2:58:46at the pre-consultation stage.

2:58:48And specifically for Stone Edinburgh,

2:58:50there is a project with the possibility

2:58:52of 275 units total, some of which will be affordable.

2:58:57Last March, the affordable housing community improvement plan

2:59:00was approved by council in sending 17 units

2:59:02at the time of writing this report

2:59:05and completing action 1.1.5.

2:59:08Council direction was also provided in November 2025

2:59:12to begin work on the vacant home tax,

2:59:15the rental renovation bylaw,

2:59:16and the rental replacement bylaw.

2:59:18And that supports the advancement

2:59:20of action 2.1.1.

2:59:23Staff are also evaluating the city's role

2:59:25in building affordable housing, which is action 1.1.3,

2:59:30and are advancing this work on two city-owned sites

2:59:32at Five Normandy and Seven Eastview Road.

2:59:37Work is also underway on an affordable housing land strategy,

2:59:40adding to action 1.2.1.

2:59:44And Guelph's affordable housing seed funding program

2:59:47was also launched in 2025, completing action 3.3.1.

2:59:52So the seed funding program is funded annually

2:59:55through the Affordable Housing Reserve.

2:59:58And last year, the full program allocation of $100,000

3:00:03was committed to four organizations.

3:00:05And this money is expected to support the potential

3:00:08for at least 43 affordable units.

3:00:11And the four recipients of the seed funding program

3:00:15are Threshold Home and Supports for 14 Edinburgh Road,

3:00:18Kindle Communities for 10 Shelldale,

3:00:21Upbuilding Nonprofit Homes at 65th

3:00:24and Hardcourt Memorial United Church on Deedon Avenue.

3:00:28The 2026 allocation of $100,000 is also currently available.

3:00:36So as mentioned, work is underway on drafting

3:00:38a vacant home tax, the rental renovation bylaw,

3:00:41and the rental replacement bylaw.

3:00:44Have your pay page, have your say page,

3:00:49has been up since mid-February,

3:00:52providing our community with information

3:00:54on the purpose of this work and the summary of the direction

3:00:58that has been provided by council.

3:01:01In addition, a survey on the vacant home tax

3:01:04just closed yesterday and we'll be reviewing the responses

3:01:08as we continue to meet our Q2 deadline

3:01:10for returning to council with drafts of this work.

3:01:15Other light engagement touchpoints on the have your say page

3:01:18will be shared towards the end of this month

3:01:21on the renovation and rental replacement bylaw pieces.

3:01:26As mentioned, we're also very keen to take the lead

3:01:29on building some affordable rental units on city owned land.

3:01:33And an RFP is now posted on the city's bids and tenders page

3:01:37that will be up until April 16th,

3:01:40seeking a proponent to construct the 12 units

3:01:43on both the sites using CMHC's housing catalog

3:01:47forplex design.

3:01:49City staff are also exploring the potential

3:01:52to co-locate the new paramedic station at 218 Speedvale

3:01:58with potential future affordable housing.

3:02:00More information will be shared with council

3:02:03at a future date following further analysis.

3:02:07Two requests for proposals are also being prepared

3:02:09for the separate housing affordability strategy actions,

3:02:13the first of which is for that action 1.1.3

3:02:17to evaluate the city's role in getting more affordable

3:02:20housing built and really looking into the long-term

3:02:22financial and legal implications of that.

3:02:26So this work will build on affordable housing delivery models

3:02:31that were identified in a council report in 2025,

3:02:34council report 2025 461.

3:02:38And it will also provide the city with a framework

3:02:40for evaluating how it should participate

3:02:43in the delivery of affordable housing

3:02:45based on varying development contexts.

3:02:48It will also help us understand

3:02:49and provide a financial strategy for the city

3:02:52to understand the required investment

3:02:55needed to meet the targets identified

3:02:58in the housing affordability strategy.

3:03:00And its associated impacts on our existing

3:03:03financial strategies such as our debt strategy.

3:03:08The second RFP is related

3:03:09to the affordable housing land strategy

3:03:12and it's to study all city owned land,

3:03:14including in use land for sites that could be appropriate

3:03:18for affordable housing development.

3:03:20This builds on the findings that 97, sorry, 99%

3:03:25of city owned land is actively used

3:03:28for community or operational purposes

3:03:31and puts into action, Merrill direction

3:03:33and council's direction to explore the development

3:03:35of downtown surface parking lots

3:03:37and other properties excluding park land

3:03:41and sites earmarked for future green space.

3:03:45This work will identify criteria

3:03:47and sites to develop or add affordable housing as a use

3:03:51as well as analyze the potential costs

3:03:53and the community impact.

3:03:56This work on both those RFPs are scheduled to both start

3:04:00and conclude at the end of the year

3:04:02as a deliverable on housing affordability strategy

3:04:04action 1.2.

3:04:07Staff are also preparing the first housing affordability

3:04:11strategy monitoring and implementation report

3:04:14and that is planned to be released annually

3:04:16with the first release expected this summer.

3:04:22So now moving into grant funding updates.

3:04:27Progress on capital grant programs

3:04:29supporting housing initiatives is reported

3:04:31through the quarterly budget monitoring process

3:04:34and the third quarterly report was most recently published

3:04:37in December of 2025.

3:04:40And since then Guelph was awarded 3.69 million

3:04:44through Ontario's building faster BFF fund

3:04:48in December of 2025.

3:04:51Last August, the provincial government increased

3:04:54the municipal housing infrastructure program

3:04:56or M-HIP by $1.6 billion to speed up construction

3:05:01of homes and associated infrastructure

3:05:04like roads and water systems.

3:05:08We've also participated in eligible M-HIP streams

3:05:11since the program opened and secured funding

3:05:14for the Wyndham Wellington Water

3:05:16and Wastewater Capacity Improvement Project.

3:05:19And that's a key initiative to unlock

3:05:21additional housing potential in the downtown area.

3:05:26As of January, 2026, no new funding intakes

3:05:29of existing streams or new streams have opened

3:05:32but staff are closely monitoring this.

3:05:36Last year, the federal government opened

3:05:38a new federal agency called Build Canada Homes or BCH

3:05:42to support the growth of affordable housing in Canada,

3:05:46foster collaborative relationships to support building

3:05:49and financing affordable homes

3:05:51and catalyze a new housing industry.

3:05:54BCH is now accepting proposals

3:05:57and they're prioritizing those that demonstrate

3:05:59strong partnerships featuring collaborative projects

3:06:03that successfully leverage capital

3:06:06and really bundle submissions for regional impact.

3:06:10So city staff are engaged in collaborative discussions

3:06:14with numerous community interest holders

3:06:16with the goal of potentially supporting a proposal

3:06:19in 2026 that will advance growth

3:06:22of affordable housing and wealth.

3:06:25The federal government will also invest $51 billion

3:06:29over 10 years through the new build community strong fund

3:06:32or BCSF which will be administered

3:06:35by Housing Infrastructure and Communities Canada.

3:06:40The community or HIC, so the community stream of HIC

3:06:43is a rebranded version of the former Canada

3:06:46Community Building Fund and it continues to provide

3:06:49the city with an annual allocation

3:06:52to support a variety of infrastructure projects.

3:06:57The federal budget 2025 indicated the Canada Housing

3:07:01Infrastructure Fund or CHIF is to be repurposed to BCSF

3:07:06or that what I just mentioned,

3:07:07the Building Community Strong Fund.

3:07:10The city's CHIF application for $34.8 million

3:07:14was submitted last March

3:07:16and was supported with strong advocacy.

3:07:20However, in January of this year,

3:07:22the city was notified that this application

3:07:24was not selected for funding.

3:07:27However, it may be considered for funding under BCSF

3:07:34once it is established.

3:07:36So staff will also continue to monitor

3:07:38active funding opportunities and advocate

3:07:41with funding partners on applications currently under review.

3:07:49So as we move into advocacy,

3:07:52in 2025, the city focused on elevating Guelph's

3:07:55housing challenges and pushing for coordinated

3:07:59system-wide solutions across all levels of government.

3:08:03The city emphasized that municipal tools alone

3:08:06cannot address the scale of need,

3:08:09especially as Guelph continues to experience

3:08:12population growth, escalating construction costs,

3:08:16and mounting pressure on emergency

3:08:18and supportive housing systems.

3:08:22Our advocacy underscored how regulatory barriers,

3:08:25inconsistent funding streams, and misaligned policies

3:08:29across governments slow progress

3:08:31towards achieving collective housing goals.

3:08:35During the federal and provincial election periods,

3:08:37the city met with candidates

3:08:39to reinforce Guelph's housing priorities.

3:08:41And we continued that advocacy

3:08:44at the 2025 AMO conference

3:08:46in discussion with provincial representatives.

3:08:50These discussions focused on building awareness,

3:08:53strengthening partnerships, and encouraging collaborative

3:08:57action and support to address shared challenges

3:09:00across the housing continuum.

3:09:06So now moving into housing communications,

3:09:09marketing, and engagement.

3:09:12In 2025, we launched an ambitious,

3:09:15integrated marketing and communications plan for housing.

3:09:19Our goal was to provide clear,

3:09:21timely, and accurate information.

3:09:25We wanted to help our community understand

3:09:26the city's housing work and progress

3:09:28across major housing initiatives.

3:09:31This work was led by a dedicated team

3:09:34from our Strategic Communications

3:09:36Community Engagement Department.

3:09:39The plan combined organic social media,

3:09:42paid digital ads, website updates, media relations,

3:09:46community engagement, and more.

3:09:48And staff collaborated to bring housing conversations

3:09:51and stories to the forefront in Guelph.

3:09:59So here are some examples of how we turned

3:10:01our housing communications strategy

3:10:03into high impact outcomes.

3:10:06So we have a centralized housing hub.

3:10:09In 2024, we updated and centralized

3:10:12the city's housing web pages on guelph.ca slash housing.

3:10:16In 2025, we added a housing spotlight

3:10:19to highlight grants and other key opportunities.

3:10:23Staff also worked to refresh highly visited websites

3:10:27or web pages like guelph.ca slash ADU.

3:10:31Content was simplified.

3:10:33We also added resources and the ADU fee estimator,

3:10:36and then this week we'll be launching

3:10:38a new ADU assessment tool to help homeowners visualize

3:10:43how an ADU could fit on their property.

3:10:47We've also used our social media channels

3:10:49and paid digital ads strategically to reach residents,

3:10:52not for profits, housing providers, and builders,

3:10:56where they already spend their time online.

3:11:00We have an enhanced media approach.

3:11:03We kept our community informed

3:11:05through local and regional news outlets.

3:11:10We issued 18 news releases,

3:11:12and staff had 23 news interviews

3:11:15related to housing last year.

3:11:18We moderated conversations across the city's platform

3:11:22to answer questions and point people

3:11:24to the right information, and we corrected,

3:11:28we worked to correct misinformation quickly.

3:11:31As we gathered feedback from residents,

3:11:33agencies, and partners as part of our engagement

3:11:36on upcoming infrastructure projects that support housing.

3:11:41We also held regular meetings

3:11:43with the County of Wellington's communications team

3:11:45to coordinate housing updates.

3:11:48We connected with local nonprofits,

3:11:51housing providers, and home builders

3:11:53to encourage them to promote housing updates

3:11:56through their channels.

3:11:58So we worked with groups like

3:11:59Wealth Wellington Poverty Elimination Collaborative

3:12:02and the Grand Highland Home Builders Association.

3:12:06We also partnered with Wealth Transit for public ads,

3:12:09had postcards at service counters,

3:12:12and shared housing information on screens

3:12:14and city facilities, libraries, and community centers.

3:12:19And then later this month,

3:12:21the city will issue our first ever

3:12:22quarterly housing e-newsletter.

3:12:26People can get timely updates

3:12:28about the city's housing related work

3:12:29straight to their inbox.

3:12:32And to sign up, we encourage the public

3:12:34to go to gulf.ca slash housing

3:12:36and click on the blue sign up button that will be there.

3:12:44So our team is data driven.

3:12:47We are constantly evaluating key metrics

3:12:50and updating our approach based on

3:12:51what we're hearing from the community.

3:12:54And here are some data points that showcase

3:12:56how our housing story connected with the community in 2025.

3:13:02So our content appeared more than 11 million times.

3:13:05And so this content is an aggregate of,

3:13:08the aggregate impressions from organic social

3:13:10as well as paid Google, Meta, and LinkedIn ads,

3:13:15which is the equivalent of over 74 views

3:13:17per Guelph resident.

3:13:20This tells us we achieved broad awareness

3:13:23of the city's housing initiatives and progress.

3:13:28More than 800 people shared our housing content

3:13:30with friends, family, and networks.

3:13:33Those shares move our information through the community

3:13:36faster than we could ever achieve alone.

3:13:40Over 37,000 people clicked through

3:13:43to learn more about programs, grants, and initiatives.

3:13:48Our organic engagement rate was 2.5 times higher

3:13:53than the government average.

3:13:55A measure of how often people interact with our posts

3:13:58through likes, comments, shares, or clicks,

3:14:02showing strong consistent interest

3:14:04in the city's housing work.

3:14:07Earned media coverage reached about 835 million people

3:14:12in 2025, and this sounds like a phenomenally large number

3:14:16and because it is.

3:14:18So earned media reach estimates how many people could

3:14:22have seen the content using audience and traffic models.

3:14:27This combines news outlet circulation,

3:14:30social audience size, and engagement signals of platforms

3:14:35where the city of Guelph is mentioned.

3:14:37Media stories helped amplify our city updates

3:14:41and decisions far beyond our own channels.

3:14:44So what does all this mean?

3:14:47We're diversifying our channels to reach people

3:14:50where they're at and get uptake for our programs.

3:14:54We're able to target Guelph residents directly

3:14:56through digital campaigns and go broader when needed.

3:15:01And high engagement, earned media reach, and web visits

3:15:05show that housing remains a priority for our community.

3:15:10This work is continuing into 2026 and beyond.

3:15:14And with that, I'd like to invite DCO Gaiman

3:15:17back to the microphone.

3:15:24Thank you, Kushla.

3:15:26All right, we're almost there.

3:15:28Council, you've heard an impressive recap

3:15:31of the work done in Guelph to keep moving us forward.

3:15:34And what you should be feeling is a bit of a maturing approach

3:15:37on the housing delivery that the city is working towards.

3:15:40But despite all this great work, there's still more to do

3:15:43to tackle the housing file challenges.

3:15:45For instance, the city is navigating many lengthy

3:15:48development appeals, critical labor shortages,

3:15:52rapid and complex provincial legislative changes,

3:15:56economic uncertainty affecting housing supply,

3:15:59and the slowing population growth.

3:16:01The reality is that this creates operational strain,

3:16:05destabilizes development activity,

3:16:07and increases pressure to manage risks

3:16:09for our long-term growth.

3:16:11Staff are mitigating these impacts where possible

3:16:13through advocacy, internal and external collaboration,

3:16:16strategic planning, and innovative approaches,

3:16:19including development process refinements.

3:16:22We're also monitoring and assessing any opportunities

3:16:25these challenges present, which may result

3:16:27in evidence-based recommendations

3:16:29for future council consideration

3:16:31as we continue to improve our strategies, policies,

3:16:34and processes so that Guelph is ready

3:16:36for the housing market to bounce back.

3:16:42Housing considerations are central

3:16:44to how the city operates,

3:16:46supports sustainable long-term growth,

3:16:48and strengthens investment readiness.

3:16:50It's in our DNA staff to consider housing

3:16:52in everything we do.

3:16:55As we wrap up our presentation

3:16:56and open the floor to questions,

3:16:57I ask that you remember that we are unlocking housing,

3:17:01sorry, land for housing, enabling more density,

3:17:04reducing barriers, streamlining processes,

3:17:07and expanding affordable and non-market housing options.

3:17:10We saw an increase in 2025 of housing units

3:17:13in development and site plan applications.

3:17:16This offers evidence of strong market interest

3:17:19and a reflection of Guelph's housing readiness.

3:17:22Guelph is resilient and continues to adapt

3:17:24to economic realities and is well positioned

3:17:26for upcoming growth and investment.

3:17:29We are in fact ready.

3:17:31Thank you.

3:17:32Great.

3:17:33Thank you again to staff

3:17:34and thank you for putting this presentation together.

3:17:38Yep, sure, well, clap.

3:17:42Was there any questions at all?

3:17:44Okay, Boussatil, Gullwur, Koran, and Alt.

3:17:51Okay, go ahead, Boussatil, please.

3:17:53Thank you, and through the mayor

3:17:55and to the staff, huge amount of work,

3:17:57just huge appreciation.

3:17:59I think we should be doing a wave

3:18:00or something here in council.

3:18:02Amount of work with the changing regulations,

3:18:04and at the same time, our earlier presentations

3:18:07of the shrinking purse, our public purse,

3:18:11what is it, something from nothing?

3:18:12We're Matt magicians here

3:18:14making something happen with nothing,

3:18:16even with the funding that we get through half and so on.

3:18:20Just, I'm really proud of the work that you're doing,

3:18:23which is really, really proud

3:18:24and really respect that you're listening to council

3:18:27and to the community as well.

3:18:28I do have two questions.

3:18:31On page 16, the section 1.13 about the RFP

3:18:36and then below it, 1.2.1, just want to publicly ask,

3:18:41if this work also includes,

3:18:44I always bristle at affordable housing.

3:18:47I know Chris is gonna nod her head.

3:18:50Affordable housing to me is a provincial affordable housing

3:18:54and my question is about whether or not

3:18:56those sections will also look at community,

3:19:00which is the new county term for public social housing.

3:19:04If that scope of work will also look at

3:19:08the city's role in using our underutilized assets

3:19:13for not only affordable provincial housing,

3:19:16but also for partnerships with thresholds and so on,

3:19:22like we've already done.

3:19:22If that research work will encompass that.

3:19:29Through the mayor to council,

3:19:31Bruce Till thank you for the question.

3:19:33In terms of the RPs, yes.

3:19:35We, at this point, we would be putting out an EO,

3:19:38or an expression of interest in terms of,

3:19:42we would be using the provincial definition

3:19:44of affordability, but it, depending on applicants,

3:19:48we could get deeply affordable right up to just below market

3:19:52affordable for the units that come in.

3:19:54So again, it could be any number of levels of affordability

3:20:02in terms of what's coming in on city owned lands.

3:20:04Okay, thank you.

3:20:05Thank you for that.

3:20:06And the second one is,

3:20:08during your presentation there,

3:20:09Chris, you were talking about writing funding applications

3:20:12and collaborative proposals,

3:20:14same kind of question around affordable,

3:20:18my assumption is that the collaboration could also be

3:20:22for deeply affordable community public housing.

3:20:27I think we need to have some consistency in the language,

3:20:30but we're also, we're not just looking at affordable,

3:20:33but also those community housing that we have seen

3:20:37a dearth of development and a huge need for that

3:20:40with the centralized wait list.

3:20:45Through the mayor to council, Bruce Till, that's correct.

3:20:49Again, the definition of affordability

3:20:52or what could be provided through grants and applications

3:20:55could be arranged right from deeply affordable

3:20:57right up to below market.

3:21:00Thank you.

3:21:01And again, just excellent work to the planning department

3:21:04and the rest of the team and everyone,

3:21:06just thank you very much for this.

3:21:08Thank you.

3:21:09And Guller is next.

3:21:12Thank you through your worship to staff.

3:21:15I wanted to echo councillor Bush Till's

3:21:17congratulations on this huge amount of work

3:21:21that has been done.

3:21:22I also wanted to just remark that a few years ago,

3:21:27when it came down to housing issues,

3:21:28I would ask Wellington County,

3:21:31how much affordable housing does wealth need?

3:21:33And they would say, well, that's up to you.

3:21:35And now we had this issue where we didn't have the capacity.

3:21:37So I want to acknowledge that we've pivoted very quickly

3:21:40in the last year and a half to now have dedicated staff

3:21:43that are doing this work in-house to give us that information

3:21:47and to create this plan,

3:21:49which I'm very, very grateful for.

3:21:51I have put this out to my constituents

3:21:54and a couple of them have asked within the scope

3:21:58of what the city is doing or can do,

3:22:01where does senior housing fall into that in terms of,

3:22:05I know there's a very long list of long-term housing

3:22:09and I do acknowledge that the city does work

3:22:12through the Elliott and that there was some beds added

3:22:16in the last year or so,

3:22:17but if you can tell me within this body of work,

3:22:19how does senior housing fall into this?

3:22:24Through the mayor to the councillor.

3:22:25So senior housing has two elements.

3:22:28So it's the licensed facilities, such as the Elliott.

3:22:32And then, I think some of the questions we've heard is,

3:22:35what are we doing to promote senior housing

3:22:37that's not licensed?

3:22:38So as we've shared even earlier today, we can't people's own.

3:22:42So it's an apartment typically,

3:22:45and whether it's geared towards students

3:22:46or geared toward seniors or geared toward families,

3:22:51for us it's just an apartment,

3:22:54which is the difficulty that I understand

3:22:58we're hearing in the community.

3:23:00Certainly we would encourage private developers

3:23:04to bring that forward,

3:23:06but we have not seen those in recent years come forward.

3:23:12Thank you for that.

3:23:14I understand that in terms of the non-licensed housing,

3:23:18but we have seen that a lot of people are coming to build

3:23:21student housing in Guelph, and I'm very grateful for that.

3:23:24In terms of that long-term care facilities,

3:23:27the city does have one,

3:23:28but is there anything we can do to encourage

3:23:30other long-term care facilities to come

3:23:33and set up shop in Guelph?

3:23:35Do we have tools to encourage that type of development

3:23:38to come to the city?

3:23:44Yeah, through the mayor to the councillor,

3:23:45so we don't have any specific tools for that.

3:23:49I know in the past few years,

3:23:51earlier maybe four or five years ago,

3:23:52we had a couple of proposals

3:23:53that have not come to fruition.

3:23:55They were proposals potentially on contaminated sites

3:23:57that are a problem,

3:23:59so we have seen proposals come forward,

3:24:01but they've not been built at this point in time.

3:24:04Okay, thank you for that.

3:24:06So, following along the questions of Councillor Bustatilo's

3:24:10question about the community housing,

3:24:13as we put out these explorations of city land

3:24:17and underused land and co-locating land,

3:24:22would that co-location,

3:24:24as well as looking at affordable rental housing,

3:24:27would we consider a co-location

3:24:29with new long-term care facilities,

3:24:32thinking of the 900 plus people in Guelph

3:24:35that are waiting for long-term care housing?

3:24:42So, through the mayor,

3:24:44I guess I would really look back at the policies

3:24:47that Council has endorsed at this point,

3:24:50and so we as staff are very much focused

3:24:53on the affordable housing strategy

3:24:55that has just been approved.

3:24:57If the long-term care beds

3:25:01or whichever other type of maybe housing

3:25:05falls into that affordable range in terms of price,

3:25:09then we are absolutely in,

3:25:12would be considering that type of development.

3:25:15Just specifically to your question about long-term care,

3:25:19the province is involved in the allocation

3:25:21of the licenses for those beds.

3:25:23And so there is a bit of a nuance there too.

3:25:26I understand that Guelph does have, not the city,

3:25:31but Guelph geographically,

3:25:33does have beds licenses that are yet to be built.

3:25:37And so that's an avenue that staff

3:25:40and others continue to have conversations

3:25:45with about next steps in that sense.

3:25:50Well, thank you for all this work.

3:25:51I really appreciate it,

3:25:52and I'm very excited to see all these developments.

3:25:54Thank you.

3:25:55Thank you.

3:25:56Thank you.

3:25:58I'm so sorry, I know it's Alton Karan.

3:26:00I just can't remember what order it was.

3:26:02I'll go Karan first, and then I'll go to Alton.

3:26:06Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

3:26:07And I joined my colleagues

3:26:08in applauding this presentation

3:26:10and all the work we're doing.

3:26:12You know, a few years ago, we as a council, as a group,

3:26:16as we were strategic planning,

3:26:17we were unanimous in our resolve

3:26:19that we were going to be the council of housing,

3:26:22and we were going to move forward.

3:26:24The housing agenda like was never done before.

3:26:27And then we delegated so much to staff.

3:26:30And then we don't often see in the public

3:26:34how much is really being done behind the scenes.

3:26:36This presentation, I think, is really timely

3:26:39as we head into 2026 at the end

3:26:41of our kind of strategic planning window.

3:26:44So my questions are related to,

3:26:47I like to have data as we're moving forward,

3:26:50and we've done a number of things.

3:26:51And in the list of the suite,

3:26:54the ecosystem of changes that we've made,

3:26:56whether they've been in politics on us,

3:26:58or whether we've followed our own planning advice,

3:27:03or whether we are best practice leaders in the province.

3:27:06There's a number of different things that we're doing.

3:27:09How are we measuring the success of each item?

3:27:12So is there something that we're doing

3:27:14that has led to a higher percentage of building starts

3:27:18and others that are just not working or not impactful?

3:27:24That relationship with our home builders

3:27:26and our development partners and in the community

3:27:29is essential to getting that feedback.

3:27:31So I wonder if you could talk just a little bit

3:27:32about how we're evaluating each one of those measures

3:27:35so that we can be doing the right things moving forward.

3:27:45No, no, who's tonight?

3:27:51Through the mayor to Councillor Caron.

3:27:53In terms of reporting, there are several ways

3:27:56that we will be reporting on measures of success.

3:27:58So the first is we do report

3:28:00through our housing accelerator fund.

3:28:03We do report on that and some of that reporting

3:28:05captured in this semiannual housing report.

3:28:08Also, as mentioned, we're doing our first annual

3:28:12housing affordability strategy,

3:28:14monitoring and implementation report,

3:28:17which does have indicators of success included in that

3:28:22for each of the actions there.

3:28:25So that will be upcoming in July,

3:28:28where we will start to get a baseline of information on that.

3:28:32And then I may hand it over to Ms. Wauke.

3:28:36So we'll, sorry, just to parse that out a little bit.

3:28:40So we'll be able to see how each action is impacting.

3:28:42So for example, our community planning permit system,

3:28:45did we get say a 40% increase in those zones

3:28:48compared to the rest of the city?

3:28:49I'm just trying to ensure that as we allocate resources

3:28:53to advance our housing agenda,

3:28:55they're reporting our resources to the right actions.

3:29:02Through Mayor Guthrie to Councillor Caron.

3:29:04So for that indicator and for many of the other indicators

3:29:07in the housing affordability strategy,

3:29:09it will be looking at the number of units

3:29:11that have been brought online or affordable units

3:29:13that have been brought online

3:29:15due to the particular action that is being measured.

3:29:20Great, that's what I'm looking for.

3:29:25Advocacy, I'm wondering,

3:29:28I know that we've used AMO,

3:29:32we've got our various associations that we've worked through.

3:29:37I'm just wondering how this council

3:29:38can be a little bit stronger in advocacy,

3:29:41not only on behalf of our home builders

3:29:43and our developers on behalf of our community and our staff.

3:29:46And I wonder, I've got a potential motion

3:29:49to add to this report receipt to ask the province,

3:29:55through the mayor, for a two year moratorium

3:29:59on all legislative changes under the Ontario Planning Act

3:30:02that impact our land use planning resources,

3:30:04our staffing and our responsiveness.

3:30:07We have spent so much staff time responding to changes

3:30:11that it's slowing down.

3:30:12We're hearing this from our development community,

3:30:16is that we have to respond to every legislative change

3:30:19and then we have to wait until we're in compliance.

3:30:22So instability in regulations

3:30:27is impacting our development community

3:30:30and being able to move forward on projects

3:30:32where they had a set of rules and then the rules change.

3:30:35I think a two year moratorium will go a long way

3:30:37in getting that regulatory stability back.

3:30:41And I'm just wondering what our staff think

3:30:43that council could make a statement to that effect.

3:30:49Through the mayor and a councillor, Karan,

3:30:51thank you for your comments.

3:30:52And certainly I think 444 Ontario municipalities

3:30:56would agree that it's been a really challenging environment

3:30:58for a lot of years.

3:31:00I think realistically, and of course,

3:31:02it's to the will of council,

3:31:03we have very strong advocacy priorities

3:31:06through the advocacy strategy that council endorsed.

3:31:08And that allows the intergovernmental team

3:31:10to sort of prioritize our limited resources

3:31:13and be moving towards delivering action

3:31:15that advance files in our community.

3:31:17And so certainly a secondary message

3:31:20for us every single time we meet with them

3:31:22is the impact that legislative change is having.

3:31:24I think though we also have to sort of balance that

3:31:26with what we hear this government signaling

3:31:29and they are returning to work quite shortly

3:31:33to the legislature and we're expecting

3:31:35quite a busy spring session.

3:31:38And so I think when we think about the messages

3:31:40that are in front of them right now for us,

3:31:42our priority messages are around achieving some of the things

3:31:45that enable us to get shovels in the ground,

3:31:47get housing built and ensure that we have infrastructure

3:31:50that we can maintain and afford to maintain

3:31:55for our community, right?

3:31:56With all of the changes that we have seen

3:31:58and continue to expect on development charges.

3:32:01So to the will of council, whether you'd like us

3:32:05to share that message in some formal way

3:32:08on your behalf about the instability this is providing,

3:32:11but realistically when we look at the environment

3:32:13that they are telegraphing for the spring,

3:32:15we're certainly gearing up for another busy season of change.

3:32:19Yeah, thank you for that input

3:32:20because I did just send a potential motion

3:32:23and Mr. Mary you can have it put on the floor

3:32:25whenever you think it's appropriate.

3:32:27But I do think a statement on the regulatory instability

3:32:31is needed before any major changes,

3:32:36even if they're already planning those major changes,

3:32:38I still think a statement is needed

3:32:39because it is affecting our development community

3:32:43and they're telling us that.

3:32:44But my last question has to do with,

3:32:47and you alluded to it in your presentation,

3:32:49Guelph is not alone.

3:32:50We all of our GTA neighbors are struggling

3:32:54with the same competition for staff and resources,

3:32:58the same economic formula, labor and materials.

3:33:04So my question has to do with in comparison

3:33:07to our neighboring municipality.

3:33:11Are you hearing from me?

3:33:12I know you work with planners across the region.

3:33:14So this is directed to our planning staff.

3:33:17Are we seen as leaders?

3:33:18Are we following best practices?

3:33:20Are there other ideas, policies

3:33:25that you're seeing among your colleagues

3:33:27that you think might work in wealth

3:33:29that you'd like to bring forward to have us review

3:33:32or are we leading the pack?

3:33:34And others are looking to ask for leadership

3:33:37and best practices.

3:33:42Through the mayor to the councillor.

3:33:44So I think it's a bit of both.

3:33:45So, I think we had brought in three units as of right

3:33:48before the province mandated it to municipalities.

3:33:51So we were definitely ahead of that.

3:33:53The CPPs were definitely ahead of the curve on that one

3:33:57and the five units reports that's coming back

3:34:00for some further direction at the end of Q2.

3:34:03So in some areas we're leading,

3:34:05but we also talked to our municipal counterparts

3:34:07all the time, probably on a monthly basis

3:34:10to talk about what they're doing,

3:34:11how they're moving things forward.

3:34:13We have exchanges for even for our heritage

3:34:17and try to address the heritage register.

3:34:18We had the city of Toronto staff up here

3:34:20to look at what we're doing.

3:34:22Today I shared insurance rates with the chief planner

3:34:26and Kitchener and said, here's a cheat sheet.

3:34:28We've already done the work, you can use it.

3:34:29So we definitely share as we can

3:34:34and are looking at what we can do to impact

3:34:38the number of housing units

3:34:39and the potential in Guelph as quickly as possible.

3:34:42And if you again refer to that roadmap

3:34:44that was attached to this and one of the attachments,

3:34:46there's a lot.

3:34:47It's pretty full, that one page infographic.

3:34:50So this council has brought forward a lot of policies

3:34:54and recommended a lot of work

3:34:55that is actually improving our supply as we go forward

3:34:58and making sure Guelph is housing ready.

3:35:01Great, thanks.

3:35:02Final comment is just to applaud you Ms. Locky.

3:35:05You and your team have been on a roller coaster

3:35:08for four straight years

3:35:09and you kept motivated and inspired

3:35:12and keep getting the work done.

3:35:13So thank you so much for this report.

3:35:15I think it's a testament to the leadership you and your team.

3:35:19Great, thank you.

3:35:21And to councillor Alters,

3:35:24I think the last one that wanted to speak at least,

3:35:26and then we can get to,

3:35:28I know councillor Bruce-Auto wants to move her seat

3:35:29and we can talk about something else

3:35:31if you need to as well.

3:35:32So councillor Alters, please.

3:35:33Thank you, Mayor Guthrie, through you to staff.

3:35:36And I think the first two questions that I have

3:35:39are to move Walke.

3:35:41And Ms. Walke, you had mentioned that the Ontario mayors

3:35:44have established a consistent framework

3:35:47for, I believe it is for reporting on housing permits

3:35:52and development.

3:35:55Could you explain why they've done that

3:35:58and how that helps?

3:35:59Does it help to refute disinformation

3:36:02about cities obstructing development proposals?

3:36:13Through the mayor of the councillor.

3:36:14So some of the reporting metrics

3:36:16that have been agreed upon

3:36:18are really to have a consistent framework

3:36:21across the big city mayor region.

3:36:25We report to the province as planning departments

3:36:28every quarter as well,

3:36:29but it's to ensure that we're all talking the same thing.

3:36:32And we can share that information.

3:36:33So the metrics are intended to align municipal reporting

3:36:37so that we're sharing the same information.

3:36:39Okay, and in the interim or in the immediate,

3:36:43is it apparent that municipalities are consistent

3:36:47in their approaches to permits

3:36:49and to the requirements for building

3:36:53as a consequence of this?

3:36:59Through the mayor to the councillor.

3:37:02So the Ontario big city mayors set out the framework

3:37:05for which we report on into them.

3:37:06So I think our reporting is consistent that way.

3:37:10And then our building permits that we report on annually

3:37:14are a number of permits issued

3:37:15and then CMHC captures starts.

3:37:17So again, that's the discrepancy in permits and starts

3:37:20because we don't necessarily control when starts happen.

3:37:23So there are some discrepancies in the system

3:37:25but we're trying our best to work

3:37:27within the frameworks that we have.

3:37:30And thank you because that does lead

3:37:31to the next part of this question.

3:37:33And it's the yet to be built corollary.

3:37:38We have talked in the past of the number of approvals

3:37:41that we have made that are not yet started

3:37:46and there's two things about that.

3:37:47What are we looking at that have not yet

3:37:50put shovels in the ground?

3:37:51And are we able to please provide information

3:37:55to the public about how far back some of those go?

3:38:01Yeah, through the mayor to the councillor.

3:38:03So we did have on our housing website at one point in time

3:38:06kind of that list of long lead times.

3:38:11We identified additional ones

3:38:13in our servicing allocation policy recently,

3:38:16those that are 10 years and older

3:38:19and how do we get those moving based on historical numbers?

3:38:23And then in July of every year,

3:38:26we bring forward the annual growth monitoring

3:38:28and affordable housing report.

3:38:29And in that report, we provide an update

3:38:32on our short-term housing supply,

3:38:34how many units we have ready.

3:38:35And we often highlight those that have been sitting

3:38:38for a long time or those that are not quite ready to go.

3:38:42So we do report on it in a couple of different spaces,

3:38:45especially those that are longer

3:38:47with the servicing allocation policy

3:38:49that was recently approved.

3:38:51Staff are reaching out to all of those

3:38:54with approvals that are 10 years and older to start.

3:38:56That's our first stop.

3:38:58And to see what we can do,

3:39:00we also have our development advisor

3:39:01who has been meeting with everyone

3:39:03who has a project that is two years or more and older

3:39:06and has not yet been built.

3:39:07So to ask those questions on why they haven't been built,

3:39:11as was alluded to in the presentation,

3:39:13there are a lot of factors that are slowing housing down

3:39:16in the market right now,

3:39:17but we are actively talking with those developments

3:39:20and those property owners to see if they can go forward.

3:39:24Yeah, I appreciate that clarity.

3:39:25Because if I recollect,

3:39:26we're looking at about 6,000, I believe, in Guam.

3:39:29But if I'm wrong,

3:39:30I would certainly like to be corrected on that.

3:39:34I think it's important that we do identify

3:39:36that there are economic factors

3:39:38that are beyond the control of the city

3:39:40that have led to housing slowdowns

3:39:42that we just don't have any control over.

3:39:46If I'm wrong in any of that,

3:39:48I'm quite happy to be corrected.

3:39:50There is another question as well, however,

3:39:52and that's the unallocated water, wastewater capacity.

3:39:56I'm hoping I understand that correctly.

3:40:01So in practical terms, what does this mean?

3:40:04Does it mean that if we have limited capacity

3:40:06in some areas of the city,

3:40:08are we shifting focus to other areas of the city

3:40:11to capitalize on our capacity to actually build elsewhere?

3:40:16And are there ramifications of that,

3:40:19both in budget for infrastructure

3:40:21and also in the potential for approvals in certain areas,

3:40:26not necessarily getting made

3:40:28because we're reaching our threshold of development

3:40:32very quickly.

3:40:36Through the mayor to the councillor,

3:40:37also on the first part of your question, councillor,

3:40:39the city system is built for a certain level of resiliency.

3:40:42And so it's not so much that we focus on one particular zone

3:40:45versus another in terms of the available supply in that way.

3:40:49And so the systems are all interconnected,

3:40:52but there are limitations maybe in certain local areas

3:40:54with respect to pipe sizing, for example,

3:40:56and capacity in that manner.

3:40:58Ultimately, the master plans

3:41:00and the sort of longer term forecast that we have

3:41:02do identify supply up to certain population

3:41:05and employment job type thresholds.

3:41:07And so you see those in those 2031, 2041 type horizons.

3:41:11And then with respect to the sort of unlocking

3:41:14of other areas in the city,

3:41:16you're right in that the capital prioritization framework

3:41:19that the city has as we bring the 10 year capital plans

3:41:22to council each year does put things in an order

3:41:25and that's to sort of balance out the idea

3:41:27that there isn't an unlimited amount of financial resources.

3:41:30And so we do have to go in an order

3:41:32and in that order, we're focusing on things like downtown,

3:41:35for example, as a top priority.

3:41:37And then we're moving into the other areas of the city

3:41:39as the resources and processes allow.

3:41:43And thank you.

3:41:44So, and please again, correct me or inform me of this,

3:41:49is it conceivable that some of these approvals

3:41:52that we have done that are sometimes even 10 years old,

3:41:56could are we in a position where they might have

3:41:59to be rescinded because we have to focus

3:42:01on infrastructure elsewhere?

3:42:05Through the mayor to you, councillor Alton,

3:42:07I think what you're getting at is the sort of new use

3:42:10or lose it policy that was recently approved at council.

3:42:12And certainly the spirit of that is that you cannot hold

3:42:16that water capacity for an indefinite amount of time.

3:42:19And so part of that is to encourage people to move forward,

3:42:22to build it's a housing crisis we want units built.

3:42:25And if not, we can't continue to hold the water capacity

3:42:27for others who may be ready to move forward.

3:42:32And thank you.

3:42:33That was very clear.

3:42:33Finally, I do want to thank everyone who has presented.

3:42:37I think it's quite clear that wealth is moving forward

3:42:42as best we can, despite the impediments that are put

3:42:45in place by such things as changing legislation,

3:42:48which in many respects is actually a consequence

3:42:51of developers wishing it.

3:42:53So thank you to everyone who is present and has presented.

3:43:01Okay, thank you so much.

3:43:04I have no one further.

3:43:05I know councillor Boussatou is willing to move receipt

3:43:08and downer is willing to second receipt of this as well.

3:43:12We can at least get that out of the way.

3:43:14I'm not sure where councillor Keran is trying to go

3:43:18with if there is another matter there,

3:43:19but let's at least call the vote then on the receive.

3:43:23I'll do that now.

3:43:25Is there anyone against that?

3:43:28Okay, so that's unanimous as well.

3:43:31Now, councillor Keran, you mentioned you might want to try

3:43:34to bring something forward, but I'm not sure based on

3:43:38the answers from our intergovernmental staff

3:43:40or approved advocacy policy and direction that we have,

3:43:45are you wanting to still try to do something

3:43:47or do you want your statements just to stand?

3:43:51Or I just, I want to leave it up to you.

3:43:53I'll give you the floor.

3:44:02We're gonna have to find the mute button.

3:44:04I did hear the answer from the intergovernmental

3:44:06that more advocacy is always appreciated,

3:44:09especially at the political level.

3:44:11And I compliment Miss Sales like,

3:44:13we are doing the advocacy at the staff level through AMO.

3:44:17We, but we've never made a statement as a council.

3:44:20And I think I've sent a potential motion to the clerks.

3:44:25I anticipate that there may be changes coming

3:44:28to the planning act and I think it would be beneficial

3:44:31to go on record as educating the minister and the premier

3:44:39that when these regulatory changes happen,

3:44:43it affects our ability to do good land use planning

3:44:49because we're strained for resources staffing

3:44:52and it affects our ability to respond to change.

3:44:55So I do think that a letter would be timely

3:45:00as the new session opens and that our position

3:45:04on the stresses that we're under

3:45:06should be communicated to the province

3:45:10on behalf of the city.

3:45:13So I would move that if I have a seconder.

3:45:16It looks like Councillor Alta, you question or seconding?

3:45:22Both.

3:45:25I'll second that.

3:45:26I have a comment.

3:45:29Okay, go ahead.

3:45:30You have a comment.

3:45:32I'm quite happy to support this

3:45:34because I think it does point out

3:45:36that there have been massive changes that have occurred

3:45:39that for all intents and purposes have meant

3:45:42that we're not able to stand in place

3:45:44and address issues effectively

3:45:47when changes coming at us at infinitum.

3:45:51And I will support it despite the fact

3:45:53that there is one concern that I have

3:45:55that there may be legislative changes

3:45:58that we might wish to have.

3:46:00I think the intent is precisely what Councillor Caron has said

3:46:03is to give us the consistency that we need

3:46:06to put the buildings in the ground.

3:46:10Yeah, thank you, Councillor Alta.

3:46:12And I know that Miss Sales wants to jump in

3:46:17from an intergovernmental advocacy lens

3:46:19and then I'll come back to us.

3:46:22Go ahead, Jody.

3:46:23Through the mayor, just an administrative point

3:46:25on the draft motion.

3:46:27Our past practice has not been to send a copy of the motion

3:46:31when it's sent to AMO.

3:46:32We don't often copy all of the member municipalities

3:46:35that can be administratively burdensome

3:46:37for our clerk's department.

3:46:39And so AMO shares it with this board

3:46:41and escalates it as appropriate

3:46:44or connects with our intergovernmental staff

3:46:45for more information about the specific item.

3:46:48So there may be a friendly amendment there for housekeeping.

3:46:55Okay, we can circle back to that.

3:46:58So any more questions before comments at least

3:47:00before we maybe correct that?

3:47:03Oh, okay, Councillor Downer.

3:47:05Yes, I'd love to support something like this,

3:47:09but I do have that concern that there's advocacy going on

3:47:18that could impact changes in legislation

3:47:22to the Planning Act.

3:47:24And it's not just going on in Guelph,

3:47:26it's going on across the province.

3:47:28And some of these, if he's listening,

3:47:33his polls aren't quite as good as they used to be,

3:47:36this may, there may be an influence.

3:47:40And if we do something like this,

3:47:41we could be shooting ourselves in the foot.

3:47:44So I would rather Councillor Kerron take this motion away

3:47:51and maybe finesse it a bit more onto the moratorium

3:47:56on changes that could impact such and such

3:48:00and such and such is what I would prefer.

3:48:03So I can't support it in this current wording

3:48:06and it's come to me rather suddenly too.

3:48:09So but I would, if something was more finessed around

3:48:15that it was to do with some of the negative impacts,

3:48:17but I am concerned because we do,

3:48:20we could be finger pointing at us for,

3:48:23if some of the advocacy that's going on

3:48:28is helpful to municipalities.

3:48:33Okay, thank you.

3:48:36If you don't mind, Councillor Kerron,

3:48:38can I just jump in with my comments

3:48:39because then you can wrap them up

3:48:40whether you agree or disagree with them

3:48:42and then you can have the final say, okay, perfect.

3:48:44Or you can correct some of that little administrative thing

3:48:46as well that Jodi brought up.

3:48:49Yeah, this is, I totally understand.

3:48:53In fact, I've said it a million times

3:48:55about how these drips and drabs of changes

3:48:58that come all the time.

3:48:59I mean, we're all united on that.

3:49:02So I'll stop there on that part.

3:49:04The problem is exactly what Councillor Allt said.

3:49:10So there is the potential to have legislation come

3:49:14this month that could look to set up publicly owned

3:49:18and publicly run utilities to help lower development charges

3:49:25across the entire province for housing

3:49:28for water and wastewater infrastructure.

3:49:31So like why would we, why would we want to pass a motion here

3:49:36that stops potentially something that might be good?

3:49:40So I think we have to be very careful

3:49:44on sort of the broad based wording,

3:49:47which is where Councillor Downer I think is right

3:49:49to bring up that issue.

3:49:51The net has been cast so wide here

3:49:55that it to a fault, it may touch on actual policy

3:50:01or legislation that actually might be good.

3:50:05And we yet don't even really know it's coming.

3:50:08And of course we have our normal process with staff

3:50:10that identify through the register, you know,

3:50:14every single bill that comes forward and whatnot.

3:50:17The other thing that I would just say is

3:50:21the flip side to what Councillor Caron is asking for

3:50:25is something that actually many municipalities

3:50:29and organizations and developers

3:50:31and whatnot has been looking for.

3:50:32And what I mean by that is instead of drips

3:50:34and drabs coming out, just make 30 changes

3:50:40and get it all done at one time

3:50:42so that certainty is done for the future.

3:50:46So this thing could go either way,

3:50:50but I can just tell you right now by, you know,

3:50:52we've had legislation, I'll give you an example.

3:50:55We've had legislation, I would say in the most part

3:50:57that has really tied up our staff 100%.

3:51:00That's not even questionable, 100%.

3:51:02But there has been some where it's been good legislation.

3:51:06Like for instance, between Minister Clark

3:51:10and Minister Calandra for housing,

3:51:13they reinstated the ability for us to collect

3:51:17development charges to go towards capital

3:51:20master plan studies.

3:51:22They reversed that.

3:51:23That was a legislation that was reversed.

3:51:25So to just say that we want a moratorium for two years

3:51:28and I don't know why two years was picked,

3:51:30why not one or why not five?

3:51:33It just seems like this is on the fly.

3:51:35It's not scoped properly.

3:51:40And I'll just tell you right now,

3:51:41I find it difficult to do advocacy work

3:51:45and these types of things do not bode well

3:51:49when the advocacy work that we're actually trying

3:51:52to focus on is being done.

3:51:55So my preference to the mover,

3:51:56because again, she's not,

3:51:58Leigh Ann, I'm sorry, Councillor Caron's not really,

3:52:01she's speaking in the right way.

3:52:04Like don't get me wrong.

3:52:05Like she's speaking in the right way.

3:52:07But this is too much on the fly.

3:52:11It's not encapsulating the context of what we're in

3:52:14and what we're about to probably get.

3:52:17And so I would rather it be removed

3:52:19and brought back at another time

3:52:22where it's scoped more properly.

3:52:23Because I cannot, we shouldn't be doing this today.

3:52:27I'll be blunt.

3:52:28I don't think we should be doing it today

3:52:30the way it's been tabled.

3:52:32That's my opinion.

3:52:33I'll turn it right back to the mover

3:52:35and then we can determine whether or not

3:52:38want to move ahead with this,

3:52:39with the changes or not.

3:52:40Up to you.

3:52:41Go ahead, Leigh Ann.

3:52:42I'm the Councillor Caron.

3:52:43Thanks, Mark Guthrie.

3:52:44And I always appreciate the input of my colleagues.

3:52:47It was on the fly because the slide related to advocacy

3:52:51that our staff presented talked about

3:52:54the progress that was being made

3:52:55and how there were other opportunities

3:52:58for advocacy moving forward.

3:53:00So it was in response to that.

3:53:02And as you said, the focus of this motion

3:53:07was specifically related to the impact

3:53:10it's having on our staffing,

3:53:12the competition for resources

3:53:15and how responsiveness to change

3:53:17is actually slowing down housing.

3:53:20But I would agree with the commentary that's been made

3:53:22that the way it's phrased and the scope

3:53:25maybe isn't clear enough for us to be able

3:53:27to compose a letter at this time.

3:53:29And I will withdraw the motion

3:53:33and I'll come back at a later time

3:53:34with a more defined scope

3:53:36so that our wealth's voice is being heard.

3:53:40But specifically our voice is being heard on matters

3:53:43that are relating to our ability

3:53:45to get shovels in the ground in this community.

3:53:48Great.

3:53:49Thank you.

3:53:50And there's just so you,

3:53:51because you're not in the room,

3:53:52like people are saying, including me,

3:53:54yep, yep, great, great.

3:53:55So there's heads nodding.

3:53:57There's very positive feedback in the room

3:53:59as you're speaking on that.

3:54:01Let's try to work together on that with you

3:54:04and get a unanimous vote on something that can come forward

3:54:07whenever the right timing is there, okay?

3:54:11Perfect.

3:54:12So if there's nothing more than this item

3:54:15as the presentation is done, am I good everybody?

3:54:18Yeah, okay.

3:54:20Thank you again to staff.

3:54:22That's great.

3:54:23We are at our bylaws.

3:54:25And so Councillor Booth,

3:54:29oh, I thought we would do bylaws and then,

3:54:31and then we can,

3:54:33because there's nothing in closed

3:54:34that will impact the bylaws.

3:54:36So I'm okay to do the bylaws, right?

3:54:37Yep, okay, good.

3:54:38So Councillor Boussatile will do the bylaws

3:54:40and then we'll head back into a closed session quickly, okay?

3:54:44Councillor Boussatile, please.

3:54:45Thank you.

3:54:46And through the mayor, that bylaws 202621213,

3:54:5021219, 21221, 21222, 21224,

3:54:56be approved subject to subsection 284,

3:55:00subsection 11, four of the municipal act.

3:55:09Okay, thank you.

3:55:10And just one more,

3:55:11just one second here if you don't mind.

3:55:13I think clerks, do you have another motion?

3:55:16I'm sorry, that was tabled.

3:55:20Not tabled, sorry.

3:55:21That was ready to go about Brownfield.

3:55:26You didn't get that?

3:55:28Okay.

3:55:31Councillor Goller,

3:55:32because I remember you indicating

3:55:33that you wanted to move that.

3:55:35Can I, I'm very sorry.

3:55:36I forgot to, there was an email that was sent out

3:55:40a week and a bit ago.

3:55:41Maybe a week ago in regards to directing staff

3:55:46to consider to look into the Brown,

3:55:47to the reconstituting and reestablishing

3:55:51and looking at the Brownfield grants.

3:55:53I had sent that to all of council.

3:55:57Councillor Goller, I believe you did mention to me

3:55:59that you would be willing to move it

3:56:02and Councillor Keran would be willing to second it, I think.

3:56:06If I recall, sorry, I'm going on the fly.

3:56:08I know we've just done the bylaws.

3:56:10Do I have permission here to just tie this motion

3:56:14for us back to the presentation that was just done?

3:56:18Because that's where it was good to land.

3:56:20Do I have, does anyone go to challenge me on that?

3:56:25No, okay.

3:56:26So do we have the motion that's ready to go?

3:56:28I'm sorry, I forgot about that.

3:56:30Yeah, okay, just give us a moment, okay, everybody?

3:56:43Just over to, through to the clerks.

3:56:47I just flipped you a copy.

3:57:04And so just as the clerks was looking to bring that up,

3:57:07this was something that we were looking to see

3:57:12if there would be council support

3:57:13to move forward on with staff.

3:57:16Because we're talking about housing,

3:57:18we're talking about incentives for housing,

3:57:20we're talking about removing barriers for housing.

3:57:24We have had successful programs in that realm in the past.

3:57:29One of them that we can maybe look at

3:57:33is in regards to Brownfield grants

3:57:36that have been used in the past

3:57:38to help accelerate and build housing.

3:57:42So with it being tied to the Housing and Guelph

3:57:462025 annual report, we felt it was important

3:57:49to bring that forward at this time.

3:57:51So clerks is ready.

3:57:54Is it okay to put up on the screen, Councillor Gowar?

3:57:57Okay, and then Councillor Gowar,

3:57:59if you don't mind reading it out for us.

3:58:02Thank you, your worship, for bringing this idea forward.

3:58:04I'd like to move that staff be directed

3:58:06to explore next steps to reestablish

3:58:08the Brownfield Community Improvement Plan

3:58:12and to report back to council in early 2027.

3:58:16Great, thank you.

3:58:17And I think I tried to do it justice in my preamble there.

3:58:21Is there anything staff want to add to that?

3:58:23It's been moved by Gowar and Koran.

3:58:28Anything to add before I call the vote?

3:58:30Terry?

3:58:31To your manager, we've got three just that staff

3:58:33are in support of the idea here.

3:58:34We can certainly get this work done

3:58:36within the timeframe that council has identified.

3:58:39And we do also have past success with this program

3:58:42in terms of unlocking housing.

3:58:43So it's definitely something worth looking into

3:58:46from our perspective.

3:58:48Great, thank you.

3:58:49Okay, is it okay if I call the vote on that then, everybody?

3:58:52Okay, I'll do that now.

3:58:53Is anyone against that direction?

3:58:58Nobody?

3:58:58Okay, that's unanimous as well.

3:59:00Nothing but unanimous here today, it's good.

3:59:02Okay, so I'm very sorry about that little mix up there

3:59:05and thanks for letting us go back

3:59:06to make sure that was captured under that item.

3:59:09And the bylaws are now done.

3:59:11So we do need a motion now to go back into,

3:59:17oh, so we didn't even do the bylaws yet.

3:59:19Oh, good, so actually I did it right

3:59:20before we did the bylaws.

3:59:22Good, so moved by yourself, seconded by councillor Downer

3:59:25for the bylaws.

3:59:26Anything on the bylaws, anybody?

3:59:29Nothing, I'll call the vote then

3:59:30as anyone against the bylaws.

3:59:33And that's nobody, so that is unanimous as well.

3:59:36All right, now for real this time,

3:59:38I do need a motion to move back into closed session.

3:59:41I do have to read it all out one more time.

3:59:44So it's under land use planning and legal considerations

3:59:48as per section 239, 3.11 of the municipal act

3:59:52regarding a meeting held for the purpose of educating

3:59:54or training the members.

3:59:56How's there's gonna move that for us?

3:59:58Clausson is gonna second it for us if that's okay.

4:00:02And I will call the vote, which is anyone against

4:00:05moving back into closed session

4:00:07for that educational purpose.

4:00:09There is nobody against that, that is unanimous.

4:00:12We will meet very quickly in closed session, everybody.

4:00:15Thank you very much.

4:22:21All right, thanks everybody.

4:22:22I'm gonna call the meeting back to order.

4:22:24We did just come out of closed session

4:22:26that we went into earlier.

4:22:27It was only under the one item titled land use planning

4:22:31and legal considerations for a council education session.

4:22:36As I already stated earlier,

4:22:38nothing has changed in regards to my summary.

4:22:40We did get educated on these issues.

4:22:44There was no directions, no decisions being made.

4:22:47We just received information

4:22:49from that perspective of education.

4:22:52And with that, that is my summary.

4:22:54And so now I'm looking for a motion to adjourn

4:22:59and Boussatil and Hauser are gonna do that for us.

4:23:03And I'll call the vote is anyone against?

4:23:07Nobody.

4:23:08Okay, thanks everyone

4:23:09and have a great rest of the day.

4:23:11Bye-bye.