Accessibility Advisory Committee

0:02Well, March 17th, Happy St. Patrick's Day.

0:05That's three people to count.

0:09I want to do the landing on it in person by name.

0:13As we gather, let us take time to reflect on our privilege to live and work in Guelph,

0:18a city built over rich indigenous histories.

0:21We are guests here, and we should reflect on the responsibility to dance in this land

0:26with people who live here today and we generally trust the call.

0:30The path where our directions today can move us towards reconciliation.

0:35We should take pause and make those decisions with intention and gratitude.

0:39This place we call Guelph has served as a traditional land and a place of refuge for many people all the time.

0:46And March 17th, we have a long way around the island of Choney.

0:53This land is held as the treaty lands and territory within the Mississaugas of the First Nation.

1:01While it flies directly adjacent to the Hulbun Tract, it's part of a long established traditional hunting ground

1:07for the sex nations of the Grand River.

1:10Many First Nations anyone can meet same people who have come from across the Terral Island called Balthamina Fri.

1:19So, do we have any, whatever that word is?

1:27Interest?

1:28Pekingary.

1:29Yes.

1:30Can we have any?

1:31You're in your interest?

1:33I don't know if I can say no, because I don't remember how long so.

1:38Hearing none, seeing none.

1:40I think we're good.

1:42Can I say a reminder?

1:44Yeah, so if we can get the approval of the minutes from February the 17th meeting,

1:52would anyone like to move to approve the minutes from that date?

1:56I'll move to approve them.

1:58Jackie was first, and then Dean Green with Second opinion.

2:02Oh, I guess so.

2:04And Olin Fever or is anyone against?

2:08Seeing and or hearing no one, it's been approved.

2:14Okay, so then we have to, oh, yeah.

2:18So, today, if we do have a busy agenda, which we would like to.

2:23We have.

2:28Okay, we have five things on our agenda to go over today.

2:32Very five items for our constant agenda and they are

2:36I can read them.

2:38So we have a playground, sorry, a playground with a lifestyle

2:40like a project for the Alconor Lake.

2:44Actually there's three parks that they're looking at doing

2:50that we also have the Gordon Street and Claire

2:53Blair Road Environmental Assessment.

2:57The Traff Priority Resonator.

2:59We have the risk areas for both community safety and

3:03well-being plan update and we got a path to remembering

3:09it's going to be on York Road, sorry, in the York Road Park

3:15and then the last one is temporary accessible parking on

3:20lovely Wyndham Street North.

3:25Most of our audience are comments from our members.

3:28I read Wyndham County's incentive and I was getting a mover and a seconder

3:32to move these and try to do this. Wait, emotions, right?

3:35That's right.

3:36Did I say that wrong? I said that wrong thing didn't I?

3:38Yes, these are just regular items often so if you'd like we can begin with the

3:43first one too long and there's a stop.

3:45I'm just brand it off, can't I?

3:47So everything that I just said please ignore but our first committee item

3:57is for staff, which is 2.3.

4:00That's another one.

4:01I said staff and unlisted.

4:02Okay regarding 2025-2026, quite a life cycle project.

4:10Go ahead, staff.

4:12Can everyone hear me?

4:16Thank you.

4:17Okay, so good afternoon everybody, members of the AAC.

4:27Firstly, thank you for having me here today to talk about the annual play

4:29equipment life cycle project.

4:32For those of you who do not know me, my name is Stefan.

4:34I'm a project manager in park and trail development.

4:38So in the report I shared with you, I noted that play spaces will be redeveloped at three

4:44park locations later this year.

4:46They include O'Connor Lane Park, Severn Drive Park, Woodland Glam Park.

4:51While each of these play space designs offer different features from an accessibility

4:59and inclusive standpoint, all designs fully comply with AODA, FADM, and NXH of the CSA.

5:09However, over the last year, so park and trail development have been working hard and

5:15we're committed to designing play spaces in parks that go beyond the current

5:20regulatory requirements and standards.

5:24In doing so, we have included the following notable improvements and features in the design.

5:30So I just want to go over a couple of the main highlights,

5:34because there's a lot of information that I hope you were able to go through the report in detail.

5:42So the main highlights are the first one.

5:46We've included an additional minimum of two to three play components that are located along

5:52the accessible routes at each park. This improving access to play features and promoting inclusion.

6:02We've also made sure that there will be multiple seating areas

6:06located along these accessible routes in each park.

6:09This will provide more rest opportunities around the surrounding play areas.

6:16At O'Connor Lane Park specifically, we've designed a direct connection from the pathway

6:24to the playground by including a wheelchair accessible ramp.

6:28This improving access to play features and promoting inclusion.

6:35At Woodland Glam Park, we've included rubber safety surfacing throughout the entirety of

6:40both play areas. Again, improving access to play features and promoting inclusivity.

6:47And the last point, we've made sure that there is an appropriate amount of shade

6:53throughout the playground designs at all sites. This is creating safer, more comfortable environment

6:59during play. So this really concludes the highlights of the report.

7:07What I wanted to discuss with you here today this afternoon.

7:11So I'm going to thank you for your time today and for your interest in the project.

7:14I hope you'll support the project. And now I'd like to turn it over to you to receive any feedback

7:20and or questions you may have. Thank you.

7:23Will there be fountains that people can drink at in your park?

7:43Sorry, did you mention fountains? I didn't quite hear you.

7:46Drinking fountains definitely. Yeah.

7:50Unfortunately, yeah, unfortunately, we won't be able to provide drinking fountains at these locations.

7:57The project is an asset management project. We're really only tied to replacing

8:10assets that currently exist regarding playgrounds. So each of the locations

8:15have playgrounds currently. They're outdated or they are in bad condition and they don't meet any

8:23of the current CSA regulations. They need to be updated. That's really the extent of the scope

8:30that we're trying to achieve with this project. And unfortunately, it doesn't leave us much room to

8:37add additional features in parks like shade structures or drinking fountains, things like that,

8:43that of course would be welcome. But not part of the scope of work in this project.

8:55You mentioned that there was one of the parks. I think it was the Woodland Glen Park.

9:00And it was going to have the rubber matting or the rubber flooring. Are all three going to be

9:07on or is just the one? So this year, we're just doing it at Woodland Glen Park.

9:16There's two play areas in Woodland Glen Park. Both of them are receiving

9:21rubber tile safety surfacing. The other two, O'Connor Severn, they're receiving a cedar weave

9:30engineered wood fiber surfacing. I don't know if you noticed, but Jordan has shared the slides

9:40for Steppen's presentation. And so you're saying that all three of the park

9:47round, our playground, sorry, are outdated? Yes. Well, they may, so they might not all be outdated.

9:58And when I say outdated, I'm referring to CSA compliance wise, because some of them were

10:04installed over 20 years ago. But it's mainly condition and safety that we're really trying

10:11to focus here. Like, you know, the play agreements have reached their useful life.

10:15And we need to replace them, lifecycle them to avoid major safety concerns.

10:22That's the biggest point for the project. I think there's also like the topography.

10:34I know Jackie would mention something about it, but are all of them at a reasonable grade?

10:42Like, what if it looks like it is the black surrounding? Is that just like the border of

10:48the playground? Or is that actually like a walking path? Yeah, so around each of the

10:55playgrounds, we're providing an accessible route. And we're looking at a maximum of 4% slope

11:04along that accessible route. Now, we, in this particular location, the slide that's up before

11:11you hear O'Connor Lane Park, that has an asphalt walkway that goes all the way around the perimeter

11:16of the playground. Severn Drive also has that. Woodland Glen's a little bit different just because

11:23of the nature of the park. But again, each site does have an accessible route to the existing

11:33playgrounds or to the new playgrounds, I should say. Cheryl, is there any of your hand up?

11:44Hi, yes. I just wanted to clarify. It says it makes mention to an accessible swing, but it

11:50doesn't really define or give a lot of details about that. Could you please provide some,

11:56you know, context or clarification on the design of the swing? Sure. So,

12:04the, basically, the accessible swing is designed in a way that it, A, is easy to get into. So,

12:14if you're transferring from a mobility device into the swing, it's something that is achievable.

12:20It also has a harness. And these are designed to meet annex H of the CSA. So, from that standpoint,

12:36I can't give you much detail on the actual design of these types of swings, but they are

12:41fully compliant from an accessibility standpoint. Great. Thank you.

12:51Gary, do you have any more stuff I'm looking at? The slides that you've presented,

12:55is there at least one, if not more, inclusion of swing sets in all three playgrounds?

13:05Yes. So, currently, none of the existing playgrounds have that swing in it. So, we're

13:12mandated to at least provide one of those swings. Now, you know, we can add more swings,

13:22but we have to make sure that we're providing for all of the age groups, the two to fives,

13:27and then the five to twelves, and then the inclusivity portion as well. So, we decided at

13:35this site in particular, we would provide a fifth swing. So, we'd have two belt seats,

13:40two tot seats, one accessible seat. And at the other sites, we had two belts, one tot,

13:47one accessible seat. Space requirements being the big challenge at the other two sites.

13:58And now I also see that someone else has her hand up.

14:01I can't see them. It's Jen. Oh, Jen. Go ahead. Sorry.

14:06Okay, class.

14:07Yes. Thank you so much. Just a quick question. I think it's probably fine.

14:15Of the benches that will be there, will at least one per park also have them so they have

14:23higher arms on them so that people can use them to get out of the bench later, or stand from the bench?

14:36Are you referring to benches that have the center arm?

14:40Not even a center arm. At least some kind of arm. It doesn't have to, it helps if it has center,

14:45but does it also have them on the, I'll just call it the left and right sides as well?

14:51Yes. Okay. Perfect. Thank you.

14:53So, all benches will have this.

14:56Okay. We were seeing with another build for something else. The seating was going to be

15:00different. So, I appreciate that. Thank you.

15:07And then, Stephanie, what you're looking at, are you looking at getting this thing?

15:11Is it going to start all three? Going to start this year?

15:17Yes. All three will be constructed later this summer fall.

15:26Does anyone have any questions or comments or concerns for from Stockholm?

15:39Shouldn't it be ideal? Emotional? Emotional would be ideal.

15:42I mean, you didn't provide one.

15:48Yeah, you didn't provide one. So, where did you go? Three yard.

15:54What do you want from us tonight?

15:56Yeah. So, it's up to the members. The recommended motion was just the

16:04the, oh, this is the other side.

16:06Oh, you're doing weights? Yeah. Sorry.

16:07It's in the ring of words.

16:08Yeah. So, basically, we're going to put these up, us, the AAC.

16:12The support that proposed new place places at the O'Connor Lane Park,

16:18Severn Drive Park, and the Woodland Glen Park has presented.

16:25Someone come, Jen, do you still have your head up? Where's that from before?

16:29It's a new question. And my apologies to interrupt.

16:34It's not about the layout. It's, I'm going to make an assumption that there'll be signage

16:40at each of the parks. Talking about the different features and what have you.

16:46Our neighborhoods, we, our local park recently had the signs put up.

16:52One, I'd love, I can talk about it perhaps one on one later, but I was noticing one of the signs,

16:59the symbols that was showing or an icon. I wouldn't have recommended to use

17:05these things because it talks about wearing a mask. And it was showing that a mask,

17:11and the word underneath it was sick. But that's actually, I wouldn't associate those two.

17:17Because I think little kids will then think masks equals being sick or people are sick

17:23versus trying to protect one another. My apologies. I was thinking about the language that was on

17:28the signage. So probably the wrong form to bring it up, but would perhaps personally like to

17:36recommend looking at an alternate image for these upcoming parks. Thank you. I think we can,

17:44we can try and look for an alternate image for this. Thank you. I think it's, it's creating stigma

17:50negatively around masks, especially for kids that are just trying to understand the concepts of

17:55these things. Okay, thank you. Thanks, Jen. Jen, regarding what you just spoke about, would you

18:09like that to be a motion put on the, Jen? Would you like that to be a motion, Auguste? Open a group

18:22feedback. Happy to, if we feel, to me, it is about accessibility and the communication element of the

18:30park. Just to advise on creating a new sign for that one icon for sick. If it's something that I'm

18:41just sharing as, you know, Jen with the department and we can trust that it'll happen. Again, open a

18:49conversation. It is something very easy for us to remove and replace. Okay. To that end, yeah, then

18:59happy to chat about it offline because I'd love to even then get a different sticker or something

19:03for the park in my area. But that, I wouldn't say that we need to have it necessarily as a motion

19:09then for the AAC today. Perfect. Thanks, Jen. So then, if we don't have any, besides the recommendation

19:24I haven't had any recommendations because it's really good. Can I get someone to approve the

19:31recommendations of Stefan's park implement? Okay. You could run the search.

19:41Oh, so you'd set the number. I get someone to move the recommendation of Stefan's

19:51presentation as well as the seconder. Checkie. Can I get a seconder? Jen? Perfect.

20:09Is anyone against motion? Hearing nothing or no one, the motion will be carried.

20:16Okay. Thank you so much for the presentation and hopefully the parks will be lovely to

20:23have the kids hang out in. Thank you very much, everyone. It was a great meeting you all today.

20:29Thank you. Next on our agenda is the Garden Street and Claire Laird Road Environmental

20:39Assessment. And it looks like we have Colby as the presenter. Good afternoon.

20:49Nice. Am I good to get going? Yeah, you're good. Awesome. Thank you.

20:54All in turn, can I see your hand raised? Oh, you're limited. Sorry, I think I did that by accident.

21:06I didn't watch them in the process. We're good.

21:11All good. Okay. Hi, everyone. My name is Colleen Gamme. I am the manager of capital planning and

21:17growth and I'm here today to talk to you about an environmental assessment study that we are doing.

21:25I'm not sure if the presentation attachment can be shared on your end or if I should pull that

21:31up as well just to facilitate some visuals as we're walking through the conversation.

21:37Colleen, I'm happy to share a few. I might be sufficient for you to share, but I'm happy to

21:41do it if you'd like. Okay. I'm also happy to share. It's just the three slides, so it's not a

21:47huge amount here, but why don't I share my screen? Okay. The engineering and transportation

21:58services group at the city of Guelph is conducting a study for the corridors that are shown here in

22:05the red outline, which includes Laird Road from approximately Highway 6 or the Hamlin to where

22:13it transitions to Clare Road West and then along Clare Road all the way to Victoria,

22:19as well as Gordon Street from Clare Road down to Maltby. So this is in the very south end of Guelph

22:25and we're looking at improvements to these road corridors. For those that aren't familiar, we're

22:31completing a Schedule C Class Environmental Assessment, which is how the city remains compliant

22:36with the Environmental Assessment Act. Initial plans for these corridors were studied through

22:43the Clare-Maltby Secondary Plan and associated engineering work that happened between 2015

22:49and around 2023. And now we're kind of advancing the study to a further level of detail to support

22:56the preliminary recommendation of widening these road corridors from two lanes of travel to four

23:02lanes of travel and implementing improvements to the cross-section for alternative mobility

23:10other than cars. So that's the study area. I'll go to the next slide. There's a lot to fit into

23:20three slides, so sorry if there's a lot of information here, but we have been working on this study

23:26since the beginning of last year, collecting information about the existing environments

23:32in the area and that includes the natural environment, the current transportation patterns,

23:38the cultural heritage features, and the technical environment that we're working within. And we've

23:44come up with a bunch of alternative options to change the cross-section of the streets in this

23:49area to meet the requirements that have been set out by previous phases of the study, by the secondary

23:55plan, by the official plan, and also by our transportation master plan. We have now selected

24:01our preliminary preferred options for how we implement this road cross-section, and we have

24:07presented these to the public at an open house last week. And so now we're going around to various

24:14advisory committees of council and also seeking input on our preliminary preferred alternatives

24:19kind of within the same timeframe. So that's why we're here meeting with you folks today.

24:25So a little bit about the preliminary preferred alternatives. I believe this group was

24:31part of maybe two years ago now, conversations about the complete streets design guideline,

24:37which strives to implement the policies of the transportation master plan. And the recommendations

24:43that we're putting forward really tries to adhere to those cross-sections. So we're talking about

24:48attempting to have a really complete cross-section that supports pedestrian active transportation,

24:54trees and furnishings, the required number of vehicular travel lanes, turning lanes where necessary,

25:03and utilities under the ground as well. We are moving forward with a preferred alternative of

25:09implementing the complete streets design guideline cross-section for all of the corridors in the

25:16study area, except for certain instances where we will have to reduce certain features where we cross

25:22really hard constraints. And an example of this is we're going to be crossing through a wetland area.

25:29We will still have all of the features in the right of way. There won't be a turning lane and

25:34the boulevard may be reduced in that area in between the travel lanes and the cycling lane as well.

25:40But the sidewalk and the cycle track will be continuous throughout on Gordon Street and on

25:46Claire Road and on Laird Road. We will be having a multi-use pass. Other things that we are doing

25:52as part of this study are helping with transit stop improvements and optimizing the locations of

25:58future transit stops along Gordon to support the policy of having a transit stop within 400 meters

26:05of every future household in the Claire Malby secondary plan area. And we're also looking at

26:11things that can help transit move faster like queue jump lanes, transit signal priority measures,

26:19all of the stuff that would be implemented in the far future. But we're kind of thinking about

26:23how much land do we need for those types of things now at the time of the study.

26:28So that's the road cross section. It will look a little bit different depending on the road you're

26:33on. But this is approximately the features that would be present within the road corridor.

26:39Another thing that we looked at is the intersections in the area. So specifically at the Gordon and

26:46Malby Road intersection, we looked at a signalized intersection with upgrades to support four lanes

26:53of traffic plus turning movements, plus reduced widths for pedestrian crossing. And then the

27:01other thing that we looked at is a roundabout. The roundabout is what's shown on the left in this

27:07image. And this is coming out as the preliminary preferred alternative. It's really supportive

27:13of the kind of rural to urban transition that we're going to be seeing here between the county of

27:17Wellington's rural land uses and our future urban land uses, as well as the flow of traffic.

27:24And there's crossings for pedestrians as well. In addition to this new intersection, we will also

27:31be making improvements to all of the intersections that are present within the corridor study areas.

27:37So the image on the right hand side of the screen shows a picture of a protected intersection

27:44from the Complete Streets design guideline, where we're really trying to reduce the width

27:49where pedestrians and mobility device users need to travel to cross the road. So that's the goal

27:58of kind of having the curbs bumped out a bit more. There's tighter radii for turning movements with a

28:03desire to slow people down and in order to try to make the crossing distance as short as possible.

28:10So you'll see in the study recommendations, all of the intersections in the whole study area will be

28:16reflective of this type of intersection as well. The last thing that we studied, which I didn't have

28:22a slide for, was the potential for a multi-use crossing towards Malpy Street on Gordon. This

28:30would be something that we would look at. Can we have wildlife and people crossing Gordon Street

28:36at the same time in an overpass, in an underpass, at grade? What would that look like? Part of the

28:43policy requirements from the official plan required us to look at the feasibility of that.

28:50And after some analysis, after looking at topography, after looking at some of the lighting

28:55requirements to make a space safe for both animals and people, the recommendation is that we do not

29:02have a multi-use crossing. It's a separate crossing for wildlife under the road. We'll be looking at

29:08accommodating larger mammals as part of the sizing of that crossing and then having a signalized

29:14at grade pedestrian crossing at the same location, which will connect to the future trail network.

29:20So those are the three main things that we've looked at, the road cross sections, the intersection,

29:25and this wildlife pedestrian crossing of Gordon Street. And those are the preliminary recommendations.

29:31And I would be happy to hear feedback. I think in the report, I believe the two asks were that

29:40this committee receives information about this. And I'm also here to collect any input, which I

29:46could include in our project file. And just for your information, for next steps, all of the work

29:53that we've done will be documented in what we call an environmental study report, which gets shared

29:58with the community, as well as the Ministry of Environment Conservation and Parks. And then from

30:04there, we'll be able to move on to detailed design and construction of these corridors,

30:09which will take place over many, many years. There's a lot of corridor work to be done, and

30:14we will do that in sort of a segmented and logical sequence. So maybe I'll stop sharing now, and I'm

30:22happy to receive any questions or input, thoughts and ideas about the recommendations.

30:33That's different.

30:35It was one section, Colleen. You can ask Jackie. Jackie has a question, Colleen.

30:41I meant Colleen. Why? All right. I'm with the animals 100% people yet, animals yet.

30:55Okay. Why are you widening the roads? Okay. Because like Leanne and I were talking about this

31:05yesterday, we are, you know, we're invading the coyotes' face. Okay. The coyotes were here first.

31:17We're getting bigger and bigger and bigger and we're moving out the coyotes. Okay.

31:24Am I making any sense? You are, and this is what you talked about yesterday. You're doing great.

31:29You're going, yep. You know, it's like, oh, I'm getting emotional. You know, they have a right to live.

31:44We as people should not intrude on the wildlife, like the coyotes and the deer and the turtles.

31:56Okay. What are you doing to prevent, you know, the intrusion?

32:07Yeah. So I can, I'll start by the why are we widening the road and then I can talk about some of the

32:12mitigation measures that we have planned for at this kind of conceptual stage that will only be

32:17detailed further as we move into detailed design. So why are we widening the roads? We have a two-lane

32:25rural cross-section through this area and through official plan amendment 79, which was the Claire

32:32Multi-Secondary Plan Council approved a lot of changes to the lands in this area from mostly

32:39rural, agricultural to a mixture of low, medium, high and mixed use density. There's going to be

32:50a thing, the target population is around 16,000 people in this area. So that's something that's

32:56been approved by council back in 2022. And the current infrastructure in this area is not sufficient

33:04to support the type of growth happening. The widening of these corridors is also recognized

33:12in the Transportation Master Plan, which went to council for approval in 2021 or 2022,

33:20identifying the need for additional travel lanes to support movement of people,

33:25and additional improvements to the cross-section to support movement of people not in cars through

33:30this area. So you raised a really good point though. This is, we have to be cognizant of the

33:39impacts to the environment around us and that's one of the whole reasons why we do environmental

33:45assessments. So the natural environment and wildlife as part of the studies that we are doing

33:51for this project and that we did to support the secondary plan a few years ago, we've documented

33:57where wildlife are crossing the road and where they may cross the road by looking at our natural

34:04heritage system mapping and by taking inventories throughout the study area. And we have several

34:11wildlife crossings planned. I know I only talked about the one which was kind of the special

34:15multi-use crossing, but we have a handful of other wildlife crossings planned along Clairroad

34:21and along Gordon Street that are strategically located where there have been observed animals.

34:29And the bigger multi-use crossing is actually located at our ecological linkage in the natural

34:37heritage system. So there's natural heritage elements on either side of Gordon Street,

34:41there's a linkage across Gordon Street and so by creating this separate wildlife tunnel

34:46that can accommodate bigger mammals, that's how we're enabling a safe crossing of wildlife between

34:53the habitats. Will there be signage like go slow turtles crossing or you know coyotes nearby?

35:07You know, will there be signage? I'm sure there will be, that's definitely something that we will

35:17be looking at quite a bit further down the road, but I believe with our wildlife crossing guidelines

35:22that were recently developed at the city there are some signage requirements associated as well.

35:27So I think the short answer to your question is yes. Thank you.

35:32I think Colleen and I see another Colleen, a new Colleen, another one.

35:36Debra Hanna? Yes, my question is about statistics. Roundabout to just the four-way

35:47traffic light for crossing for pedestrians. What is the, oh I hope you know what I'm trying to say,

35:58the safety factor for pedestrian crossing? I don't know the answer to that question

36:10off the top of my head, but I would be happy to relay that question to our consultants and report

36:15back to, I'm not sure exactly how I would do that, but share that information back to you.

36:22Colleen, not you Colleen, the other Colleen, the member Colleen, when you say safety are you

36:27meaning home? What I'm talking about is people crossing the street, are there people getting hit?

36:37Are there people with close misses? Like is it safer for pedestrians to cross at a light

36:43as opposed to a roundabout? Does that make more sense? Yeah, that's a great reframe of the question.

36:50I appreciate that and so I will have to do a follow-up request from the consultant about that.

36:57I don't have the answer to that off the top of my head, but I'm certainly happy to report back

37:01with the answer. Thank you. Thank you Colleen. I think you went into this Colleen, but along

37:12Jack's point, did you say there was going to be more than one wildlife tunnel in the area?

37:21I did and I'm just looking at another document here to get the number. So there will be many

37:30wildlife crossings. Some of them are, many of them are going to be to accommodate the smaller

37:37mammals and reptiles and those are mostly situated around where we have a water-based

37:42natural heritage feature that interacts with the roadway. So currently we're looking at two along

37:48Claire Road East. There are some wetlands and some connectivity across the street between the south

37:55and north in that area and then two more on Gordon Street. There's also some wetland ponds and little

38:01kettle ponds they're called that exist on either side of the corridor. That is one area where our

38:07road cross section has really been narrowed because we're trying to minimize impact. So those four

38:13that I mentioned will really focus on keeping connectivity for the smaller mammals and reptiles,

38:20amphibians. I might be using the wrong animal terms here. I don't have my environmental planner

38:24with me and then it's the further south one that I mentioned along Gordon Street a little bit closer

38:29to Maltby Road that will be a bit bigger to facilitate crossing across the road between the

38:36ecological linkage designated area from the natural heritage system. That one will be kind of a

38:42unique, a slightly more unique crossing. But there will be many. There will be lots.

38:53Will the animals know where to cross? That's one of the features that comes along with

39:02designing. So again, we're really at the conceptual stage as we get into detailed design. There's

39:06things like guiding fences. How do we integrate those into the natural area? There will be barriers

39:14as we convert from a rural to an urban cross section. Maybe now they could just walk across,

39:21but they're going to run into a curb. And so maybe they need to, they'll be guided along that

39:26to the location of the safe crossing. So yes, there will be helping mechanisms to help them cross

39:31at a safe location. Can you guys see that you have your hand up? Yes, really appreciate the

39:39conversation for all of this. So I'm looking at Claire Road east and west. There are a number

39:50of elementary schools just north of Claire Road east and west. And we also have Bishop Mack

39:57on Claire Road east. I'm wondering about for active transportation and accessible transportation

40:05from the complete streets design. Will that be like a wider path for walking or will it just be

40:14building on the current sidewalk blocks that are there? Just because like there are a lot of high

40:21school students that would I think benefit from me feeling that they can bike safely to Bishop

40:27Mack, for example, let alone all those that work in the industrial park just around the corner on

40:32by the water tower. Yeah, great question. So even I guess the short answer is yes. So all of the

40:41corridors, all the various corridor components will have an opportunity for pedestrians and

40:48cyclists to move across the whole corridor easier. There will be a transition point between Claire

40:56Road west and Laird Road where it goes from a separated sidewalk and cycling track to a multi-use

41:02path. And that's just based on the nature of Laird Road as a corridor in the industrial area.

41:10But what we are aiming for per the complete streets design guideline is a 1.8 meter sidewalk width

41:16and a 2 meter cycling track to facilitate a comfortable experience throughout the corridor.

41:25Okay, does that answer your question? It helps, yes, because I actually don't live far from there.

41:32And I know the bike path going south on Victoria to then go left on Claire is quite cumbersome

41:39because you're on the road and then you have to go up on a sidewalk then back down and it's easy to

41:43lose your balance or if the sidewalk isn't plowed, you know, it's hard to use all year round.

41:49So it'd be interesting to see if there are further improvements, even though that was only put in,

41:55I think, 2024, to make that a smoother ride so that people can reliably take that for active

42:05transportation throughout the year. And that way we also do have some folks here in near that area

42:15who I see often using power wheelchairs, etc. as their mean mode of transportation going along Claire,

42:22and I know it can get bumpy for them at times. So I'm just, I like the idea of a flatter or

42:29wider path that folks could use. And when I say flatter, I'm not trying to change the topography

42:38as much as sidewalks are bumpy, they're hard to go over all the time, it can hurt your back.

42:47I'm calling, is he ever hand up? Yes, my question is because there's schools in the area, there's

42:55going to be the speed limit reduction, correct? We are not quite at the stage yet of setting the

43:06speed. So I think that will come at detailed design, but certainly proximity of schools and our

43:12kind of vision zero targets that we're working towards will be inputs as we look to set the

43:16speeds for the roads. Does anyone else have any other questions you're calling?

43:27Yeah, I just have one actually, I live on Westwood Road, and our speed limit is 40, and then when

43:37you get to the bend, it goes down to 30. And people drive like maniacs down here. And I'm just

43:44wondering is there's a preventative way to make sure that people don't do that by putting in the

43:50large speed bumps? If that's a possibility down the road when you're looking at design and everything

43:57if you could put things in like that just to prevent people driving like idiots and hurting people.

44:06Yeah, I think our traffic calming policy is has either come to this group already or it will

44:12be coming soon. So those types of measures are definitely up for consideration across the city.

44:18It's a little bit outside my area of expertise, but I believe that the speed cushions are not

44:24permitted measure on arterial roads. I'd be happy to be corrected if I'm wrong, but

44:29certainly we are looking at the design speed of the road and like what they what people could

44:35travel and all of the complete streets design guideline measures are trying to help achieve

44:42the desired design speed. So we have slightly narrower lanes, we have trees, we have medians

44:48with trees, all things that we can try to use within our roadway cross section to get people

44:55to drive a little bit slower. So it's definitely top of our mind as well we hear you. We want people

45:00to be driving the safe limit and we want everybody to be safe. So all I'm being said, I guess what

45:10you're looking from the AAC then, I'll call in was that we received the admiration we did and

45:17that we did provide feedback and any preferred alternatives. Can I get someone to move

45:29and second the motions that were on the agenda? Right there. Yeah.

45:36Pretty chair. I could advise. You may wish to separate these. So we could first vote on receiving

45:44it and then we could workshop any feedback. Oh yeah, my lovely friend Jordan here told me

45:51it's probably better to break out the two points. So can I get someone to move and second

45:59that we've received the information for calling environmental assessment?

46:07Yeah, I can always be going on and on and on. And then someone to second that please.

46:13Cheryl, sorry. Perfect. Bob, Cheryl, thank you. And then the second point.

46:20Oh right, sorry guys. Could anyone against it?

46:25Your hand or seeing none? The motion will be carried for the first. And then the second

46:34point is provided feedback, which I think we've done significantly. Yes, through you chair. I have

46:44attempted to capture all of the suggestions that were brought up. If I have missed one or if you

46:50would like one removed, please let us know. But here are some of the comments captured.

46:57Yeah, I mean you sure? I can read them. No, no, during the talk, I'm fine. Okay.

47:04That the Accessibility Advisory Committee provides feedback on the preliminary preferred

47:09alternatives, first being that roads remain the same width so as not to intrude on wildlife,

47:15that signage be posted on roads to note animal crossings, that staff gather data on pedestrian

47:23safety at roundabouts and traditional crossings, that there be flatter and wider pedestrian and

47:29cycling pathways on corridors close to schools. And lastly, that there be speed limit reductions

47:37close to schools and preventative measures to slow vehicles. And again, if there is anything

47:42missing or something you would like removed, please let us know and I'll hand it back to you, chair.

47:47Thanks for everything. I see that, Jim. That's random. Yeah.

47:50Yeah. The second last point, I think I'd like to clarify for flatter because there are some,

48:00I'd say, undulating hills in the area there. What I meant by it is the pavement type.

48:10I don't, I defer to our colleagues here who use wheelchairs. I'm coming in as an ally on this.

48:19If the man help me with the wording. Sidewalk blocks can be bumpy. That's all. I know even

48:29worse than that are pavers, like the little bricks that people throw down. So I'm not saying, when I

48:37say flatter, what I mean is the material used be less bumpy. How do we make that sound more

48:46smooth or are you, or you could even specify asphalt if you like. So I will say the sidewalks

48:53will be the traditional. Oh, sorry. No, no, that's fine. And I understand the idea of sidewalks because

49:00they don't crack the same way that pavement would with freezing and snow and ice and what have you.

49:06And they don't tend to buckle with differences throughout the year. Again, I defer to colleagues

49:14here with the committee, which is easier for you? Which is your preference?

49:20So you need to be token personally in a wheelchair here. It's, it is better like, like Jenna's saying,

49:29when you're going along the sidewalk, it's bump, bump, bump, bump. Yeah. Where the bike lanes,

49:35you know, the side holes in the concrete or gash galt, it does make it a little more dangerous,

49:41but definitely having something to the effect of what's on the woodline road between Enbro and

49:50Almyra. Sure. Like that northern part of woodline, like having a wider, flatter paved,

50:01a little flatter surface. Like Jordan had the right word, but less, less bumpy surface.

50:07And that perhaps is more specific. I'm just thinking of somebody reading this later,

50:12so it's not misinterpreted.

50:20Yeah. Okay. So, Jen, I don't know if you can see the second last point, Jordan has amended.

50:29Yes. Smoother materials. Yeah, that works. That personally, I think that's going with

50:35feedback. I've heard from colleagues, but also friends who use wheelchairs. It's just a more

50:42comfortable ride because that stretch of clear road, if you're going from Victoria over by Bishop

50:46Mack, that's a couple of kilometers and that's a lot of bumping. Okay. And it hurts after a while too.

50:53So, yeah, exactly. Thank you for being an ally, Jen. No, I hate because why we're here, right?

50:59But you're this me and that's why I defer. I do have a question and I like this for conversation.

51:10How much of a conflict is it, that's where to phrase it, to speak of the road remaining the

51:18same width so as to not intrude on wildlife if the city is asking for a wider road overall?

51:32I'm trying to balance animals and people in community. I'm not sure if that question is

51:44directed at me or the other committee members. No, no, it's for the other committee members.

51:49Like I'm having a bit of a struggle because you know how we have any opposed that one element.

51:55I'm struggling with a little bit. I would also just like to add if it is appropriate for me to

52:04do so is that like we have already sort of had council direction and Ministry of Environment

52:13sign off on the recommendations with the secondary plan and the transportation master plan,

52:20which do include the four lanes of vehicular travel. So our study is not really looking at

52:27the question of do we widen to four lanes? It's how do we do that while minimizing the impact?

52:35So perhaps a great way to tie it back into the same concept of care for wildlife would be that

52:42appropriate wildlife crossings are considered as part of the design.

52:49If I don't want to put words in anyone's mouth, but I think that that kind of achieves the sentiment

52:53that we're hoping to capture with that first bullet. Can we always hold your hand up?

53:01Yeah, sorry. With the motion, just there's one word there that might change because it would

53:07make more sense if you can put it back up. The fourth point, the last three words. So

53:19facilitate accessible. Instead of transportation, can you say travel? Transportation would be like

53:27in a car. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So let's do this. So this is the second part of our

53:37recommend the oral feedback. Sorry. And I think the only thing that we've had it differently

53:43that Jordan came up with was the wider pedestrian recycling pathways on border as close to schools

53:51and the pathways be constructed from stupid materials to facilitate accessible travel.

53:57So those those five

54:03feedbacks, can I get a mover and a seconder to wait? I'm sorry. Cheryl, do you have your hand up?

54:13Yes. I'm so sorry. I just wanted to ask the question actually in one of the points where

54:21it talks about, you know, that staff gather data on pedestrian safety around about and

54:27traditional crossing. I one of the questions I had, I didn't know if this was the right form to

54:34bring it up because we were talking more about environmental assessment and impacts. But could

54:41we just add in a word to say pedestrian safety and acceptability at random. That's because I get,

54:47you know, get adding on to what everyone else was saying. One element that, you know,

54:55that they may want to look at is, for example, you know, the amount of time that people can

55:02cross the roads because especially for accessibility issues, if you're widening the road,

55:07then people will need additional time to cross that road safely. So, you know, making sure that

55:13that's accounted for as well. So but I didn't raise my hand before because I didn't know if this was,

55:19you know, the right form for bringing this comment up. So that's why, you know, if we could add

55:27accessibility in and that's kind of like a capture all. Well, the fact that not yet,

55:33the fact that this is the accessibility advisor, demanding to probably show you that in the first

55:39place. So thank you for that, Cheryl. I like adding about those simple little two words.

55:47I think that would make it easier. Yeah. Yeah. Thank you for speaking up about that, Cheryl.

55:53I think it's important that if you have something that you think should be mentioned during any of

55:59the presentations to go ahead and mention them because it may be something that somebody else

56:04is also wondering about as well. And this is the time for things to go up into motions,

56:12up on the screen. And there is a possibility that in staff reports, the only part of this

56:19meeting that may go to council without council actually watching the meeting is the motion.

56:25So if your motions are complete, then your thoughts may be lost. So just wanted to mention that.

56:32So I just to reiterate, just to piggyback off all the answers, always raise your hand,

56:39always mention don't be second-messing. Yeah. Now, apparently, Jeff, yes, our hand up. Yes, Jeff.

56:45Okay. Why were we not insulted about why we were on the road? Okay. I mean, like,

56:56you people are shudder, are infringing on the animals on the land. Okay. It's like, why can we not live

57:10in harmony? We were not consulted about why we were on the road. Why is the road being widened?

57:21I don't think Colleen can answer that. I didn't want to answer that for you, Colleen. Sorry.

57:32I mean, are you specifically asking about not being consulted for the other kind of guiding

57:39plans and policies that set the widening recommendation in the first place?

57:47I think that's what you're asking, because that's the process of what happens,

57:51is that there are recommendations made to manage traffic in this case in a certain way,

57:59and then that's brought to council, and council make those decisions, and then the details come

58:04to groups like us. Yeah, but you see they're widening the road, so they're just shilling the

58:13wildlife aside, and that's not fair. Someone's got to stick up for the wildlife. Be silly.

58:28No, if you want to add to the motion as a recommendation, you can start getting to that,

58:36so you feel your voice is being heard. Yeah. Yeah. I want that work. So how would you like that to be

58:44worded? Like just plain language. Don't worry about being using the right terminology or anything,

58:51just whatever language you want. The road shouldn't be widened because you will be infringing on the

59:02animals. That's good. So why don't we do this? So we have, in this particular case,

59:11certainly I'm just going to move off the main three, okay?

59:17Sorry, Chair. That's okay. It's technology. Don't worry. No, it's...

59:24So that being said, what we're going to do is, because we almost have not opposing opinions,

59:32but opposing the impacts, and I don't want anyone to not have their thoughts not placed.

59:42It's out of better my head when I said that, but would everyone be okay with these

59:52motions for the recommendation of the Environmental Assessment?

59:57Thank you, Chair. If it's okay, I'll just read them out loud so that everyone can hear that.

1:00:08So the first one is that roads remain the same width, so as not to infringe on wildlife.

1:00:16The other one is that appropriate wildlife crossings be considered, and the next one is that

1:00:22signage be posted on roads to no animal crossings. Again, through Chair, I'll note that the first

1:00:29two are somewhat at odds with one another. The members, if you feel that they both work together,

1:00:40we can pass them together. If you want to vote on the individual ones, we can. I'll turn it back

1:00:45over to you, Chair, if you can determine what from which is best. So what does the committee think

1:00:53of what Jordan just said? Keeping in mind that I don't want anyone's thoughts to be

1:01:02unnoted? Yes. And, Jen, I see you here, Handa. Yeah, and again, I completely see

1:01:12the rationale behind it. I guess my question at the moment is,

1:01:18is this in scope for our accessibility advisory committee? For talking about

1:01:28the support for wildlife versus the accessible experience of those in and around and traveling

1:01:37through Guelph? I think that's actually what I'm thinking most about, if this is really in scope.

1:01:45That's all. I think you're right in the way of the wider lanes for

1:01:59traveling or pedestrians or people who are people who use wheelchairs and the like. When it comes to

1:02:09the first one or the second one, maybe Jen's right. Maybe it is

1:02:15not necessarily the accessibility advisory committee to have a, let's say,

1:02:27because the one anyone's thoughts do not be put on record.

1:02:32Oh, 100%. And sorry to jump in. To me, accessibility would include signage because that's about

1:02:38communication. So, yeah, that's advocating for people to take an action. I'm still just noodling.

1:02:54You can throw it in. It's about the roads remaining the same, and I understand the advocacy for it.

1:03:01I'm just wondering if that with its current rationale is within the scope of what the AAC

1:03:10is meant to advise on. That's all. I am not trying to take away from that.

1:03:16Okay. Instead of widening the roads to four lanes, why don't we optimize and make wider sidewalks?

1:03:35Well, if I may call you, I think because of the fact that you're thinking 16,000 people

1:03:41would be moving into the south end in the next little while. I think Colleen mentioned that this

1:03:46has already passed with multiple agencies. And council. And sorry, and council as well.

1:03:54So, did you say that there was the highway traffic? Like everyone, yeah, I understand.

1:04:02It's just going to be a lot more population down there. The animals are better than the people.

1:04:14So, as my clerk's staff person, what are your thoughts on how we should

1:04:22launch? I know you can't answer. Can you guide me on what I should say?

1:04:26Sure, I'm happy to provide a bit of guidance. So,

1:04:36when we've reached an impulse where we have perhaps different views on whether a specific item

1:04:43should be included in the motion, we can one vote on it as is with everything and see if it passes,

1:04:50or we could extract this one specific point that roads remain the same with, so as not to

1:04:56infringe on wildlife. We could extract that one and vote on that first, and then we could vote on

1:05:01the motion. So, whatever you feel is best in the situation, that's how we can handle this.

1:05:10And for both of those, we would need a mover and a seconder. So, if you'd like to vote on it now,

1:05:14mover and seconder, and if you'd like to pull that one specific one, mover and seconder.

1:05:25So, what Jordan said, does everyone understand?

1:05:30Can I ask one question here? Is this about the winding of the roads and its impact is not just

1:05:37not going to be part of the environmental assessment? And if it's in the feedback from

1:05:44environmental assessment, we'll determine whether it will infringe on wildlife in a negative way.

1:05:50Or it will say yes, it will infringe on wildlife in a negative way, and then it should go from there.

1:05:58If this is all part of an environmental assessment, we can make a recommendation that

1:06:08wrote with the be kept to minimum infringement on wildlife.

1:06:17So, just seems the wording of it?

1:06:19Yeah.

1:06:19And so, do the same one across?

1:06:23That's what I'm thinking, because this isn't done and done. This is an environmental assessment.

1:06:31So, we can put in there that we would recommend minimum infringement on wildlife by

1:06:40regarding the road. Just like you're writing in there type of thing.

1:06:44And also, what if we reword the second and the third to put that appropriate while

1:06:50I'm crossing and signage be posted in considered?

1:06:58If we can do that.

1:07:02If I could just respond to Dean's question, because I think that that might be important for folks to

1:07:06understand as well. It's like, yes, that is the whole point of an environmental assessment,

1:07:11as we look at a plan and we look at its impact on the environment. And then we have a duty to

1:07:18report on that impact and also recommend mitigation measures. So, something like a wildlife crossing

1:07:24would certainly be a mitigation measure of increasing the travel distance that wildlife has

1:07:30to cross the road. And I did also just would like, I would also like to share that we have

1:07:35brought our plans, the same plans to the planning environment and water advisory committee to

1:07:42council where wildlife crossings were also a topic of conversations.

1:07:47So, it's not like it's not not it's not not being noticed.

1:07:53It's not being not noticed. Yes, and we have an environmental planner on staff. We have an

1:07:58environmental consulting team. This is protecting the environment to the maximum extent possible

1:08:03is definitely one of the main visions of the clear multi-secondary plan. And that's not lost

1:08:08as we work through this assignment as well. In this way, it shows that the accessibility committee

1:08:13is also acknowledging our concern regarding that. Even though technically it does not fall

1:08:19under accessibility committee, it is a concern we have. Does that make sense? I think so, yeah.

1:08:30It just shows that we're in agreement that with with other committees that the wildlife needs to

1:08:35be a concern. Does that make sense, Jackie?

1:08:41Say the name, farming, please, sorry.

1:08:45So, we're rewriting it that we share that our concern regarding the wildlife and the impact

1:08:53why the road will have. Because accessibility committee really

1:08:59is about AODA and that type of thing. But we want to

1:09:07reemphasize our concern regarding the wildlife and the impact this will have also, right?

1:09:13And show our support to the other committees that are really delving into the environmental issues

1:09:21on this.

1:09:22And I think we should throw that quick the word, but Jen mentioned about like the scope of

1:09:29the accessibility to the new hyzer committee. It's really not our

1:09:33normal jam. But why support to other committees? Right, right. But we are going to, we do,

1:09:43yeah, we are helping out with other committees. I'd agree with what they're saying and they're

1:09:49mentioning. Okay, so we're crossing with the person. I hope that line is through.

1:09:57Through you, chair. To clarify, member in, would you like this new one that road with

1:10:05be kept to a minimum to have a minimal infringement on wildlife? Is that to replace

1:10:10that roads remain the same with so as not to infringe on wildlife?

1:10:13I think because we don't have really a say in that from the AAC side. I think that

1:10:23wording better just because it shows that we are concerned about it and that we support

1:10:29other committees that are actually studying like looking into the environmental side. So

1:10:36I think that wording better just for those reasons.

1:10:41And then the second, go ahead, Jordan.

1:10:43With that, because this is replacing the Jackie

1:10:46Brown, I would just say for the third time.

1:10:49Jackie, are you okay with what Jordan and Dean just mentioned in the?

1:10:54Yeah, but why does it have to be replaced? Why can't it not be, you know,

1:11:02I can't read it. I can't see it like the first line and then underneath like comma,

1:11:10underneath what Dean has reported.

1:11:15So you want to know what the difference is between the two?

1:11:19Well, why can't you put both down?

1:11:21I think through you, chair, we can have both comments there.

1:11:33And if that's what the committee would like, then we can have a mover and a seconder on this.

1:11:40Alternatively, if there is no mover and seconder, or if this does not carry,

1:11:44then we can have a second vote to workshop this further.

1:11:48But we can have both on the recommendation.

1:11:52It's ultimately up to the committee. I'm just here to capture whatever you all would like.

1:12:05So that being said, would

1:12:12to have both on there, on our on our feedbacks,

1:12:16can I get a seconder and a mover for the three that we have mentioned,

1:12:22or just the one before the fall thing?

1:12:25Sorry for the one, two, three, four, four, the six

1:12:29feedbacks that we've mentioned today.

1:12:30Can I get a mover and a seconder?

1:12:33Becky, and a seconder, if possible, please.

1:12:37Come on, Dean.

1:12:39Raise your hand, Dean.

1:12:42Okay, no pressure.

1:12:42Oh, yeah, I don't do that.

1:12:45If we can do it, I think you can do it.

1:12:47Okay, so seeing no seconder.

1:12:53I'll be a seconder.

1:12:56Perfect. Thank you, Colleen.

1:12:58Does anyone opposed to the motion?

1:13:05Hearing and seeing none.

1:13:07I think the six that we've mentioned has been carried.

1:13:13Colleen, thank you so much for everything that you did today for us.

1:13:17I hope the assessment will go well for the rest of the

1:13:24any efforts for now.

1:13:28Thank you for having me, and I'm actually going to be coming back to talk about

1:13:33the next next item on the agenda in place of my colleagues, Mark and Maxine, so I will stick around.

1:13:39So do I still introduce you again?

1:13:41No, you're good.

1:13:43Okay, so I put my glasses on.

1:13:46Okay.

1:13:47Apparently there's a batting change.

1:13:50Nobody knows who you're going to be.

1:13:51Oh, you're not next.

1:13:55So thank you, Colleen.

1:13:56I'll see you in 0.1 of a second.

1:14:01So now we have the priority risk area for boss community safety

1:14:05in well-being plan update with seven.

1:14:10And seven's here again in the house.

1:14:13So, Kevin, please take a minute.

1:14:17So I'll share my screen and then Jody, you feel like kicking off and then I can take over from there.

1:14:24Sure.

1:14:24Thanks so much, Stefan, and thank you to the chair and the committee for giving us some time this afternoon.

1:14:29I know you have a busy agenda, so we'll do our best to move through it quickly.

1:14:34Today we're here to share some information with you and hear your feedback on the draft priority

1:14:39risk areas for Guelph's community safety and well-being plan update.

1:14:43What I share with you and Stefan, what we share with you today will help shape a plan that truly

1:14:48reflects Guelph's realities and the experiences of people in our community.

1:14:52Under the community safety and policing act, the city must update its community safety and

1:14:57well-being plan every four years, and that is this year.

1:15:02The city's role in this update is to facilitate the update by working with community organizations,

1:15:08identifying the key risks facing our community, and helping set a shared direction for continuing

1:15:13community action. We have a community advisory table. I am one of the co-chairs along with a

1:15:18member of the Guelph police service for this update. And we understand that the community

1:15:24safety and well-being plan is a community document. It represents the risks and that community action

1:15:31is needed to advance change. None of the risks that we're going to talk to you about today can

1:15:36be addressed by any one single agency or organization. They are complex. They are connected

1:15:43issues that require all of us, service providers, organizations, and community groups to work

1:15:49together. We know the city can't do this alone. And so with that, I'll pass it over to Stefan Schmid.

1:15:56Thank you, Jody. So I'll jump in and kind of talk a little bit about how we're updating

1:16:06the community safety and well-being plan. And then we'll get into a little bit regarding

1:16:12what we're doing at least right now, personally with the project, get into the draft priority risk

1:16:16areas, and then sort of jump into what we're hoping to work with the advisory, the Assistant

1:16:22Advisory Committee. So really the Guelph's community safety and well-being plan focuses on

1:16:27identifying those big community risks and highlighting what we're doing at a community

1:16:34level in terms of actions and trying to focus on reducing that harm and supporting community

1:16:40safety and well-being. And essentially this document really is a shared agenda and its purpose

1:16:46is to strengthen collaboration with our community organizations and really highlight what's already

1:16:51happening in Guelph. One of the things that's really important and one of the things that I take a

1:16:56lot of pride in as I'm doing this research and work is recognizing and seeing how many

1:17:01community organizations are in so many of these different spaces and how they're working to help

1:17:06advance and address what's going on as well. So we're very fortunate in that respect.

1:17:11And I like to think because when we say the term like priority risk area, what does that mean and

1:17:17how does that relate to what we're trying to accomplish? I'll try to provide an a little bit

1:17:22of an analogy. We're hoping really with this document that each priority or each big community

1:17:29risk is essentially a lighthouse and we're hoping to highlight what's happening in that space and use

1:17:35that to sort of rally and get community organizations groups aware of what's going on already because

1:17:43there's so much that's going on and really our hope is to try to set that agenda so it's easier for

1:17:49community organizations, crews, people to participate and know what's going on in our in our community

1:17:56as well. So I'll go through a little bit of what we're doing at a high level. So the first step in

1:18:03the process that we've done is identified the risks. So we've looked at community organizations,

1:18:08community services programs, we looked at what community organizations are collaborating on,

1:18:14and then we looked at the risks and from that we established a bit of a baseline

1:18:18that helped us to start prioritizing what those big risks are. So that's what we're doing here today

1:18:25is to talk about these big priority risk areas and then hopefully start to identify in terms of

1:18:32accessibility, things like that, what do we need to be aware of because then the next step is the

1:18:38actual planning, working with community organizations to identify what those big actions are, how do we

1:18:44measure those things and sort of build out the plan as it relates to the risks that we're seeing in

1:18:50the community. And as Jodi had mentioned, one of the things that we're doing is facilitating the

1:18:56update of that process. This plan, while we're responsible through the Community Safety and

1:19:02Mom Policing Act, the document really isn't just a city document, we're trying to reflect all community

1:19:08organizations, partners, things like that to highlight what needs to happen over the next four years.

1:19:13That's your community safety and mom being plan. So our goals for the plan update as of right now

1:19:24so we're working with the Accessibility Advisory Committee or Transportation Advisory Committee,

1:19:30we're working with community organizations across the board to confirm, to validate, to make sure

1:19:36that we've identified the right priority risk areas that we haven't missed anything.

1:19:42The other thing that we're doing is identifying local service providers, community agencies,

1:19:46making sure that we have a holistic view of what's going on.

1:19:50And then more kind of focused on today is we're hoping to explore those accessibility and equity

1:19:56considerations surrounding these risks so that we can reflect your feedback into how these risks

1:20:02are impacting those that do have challenges within the community as well. Because as much as we're

1:20:09able to do the research and identify all of these big risks, we need support and guidance on sort of

1:20:16bringing it down and gathering more lived experience and understanding so that we can develop a holistic plan.

1:20:25So I'll kind of focus on the the priority risk areas at a high level. And if it's okay,

1:20:33I'll open the floor up to any questions in terms of providing clarity or information

1:20:39just so that we have time to discuss the issues. So what we've done is as we're

1:20:45identified the priority risk areas, we did research, we went and engaged and worked with our

1:20:51number of different community organizations that relate to our advisory table. We looked at tons

1:20:57of reports available data, everything that we could to sort of articulate this. So when we go

1:21:02through and identify these risks, they are very, they're significant, they're identified, they're

1:21:09talked about in the community. And so we get into things like built environment, which an example

1:21:17of this would be around our road related injuries, you know, climate changing impacts, things like

1:21:23that. If I remember or recall correctly, you received the Vision Zero committee team that

1:21:30was working in that space. So built environment really looks at, you know, the human made

1:21:36surroundings, what we build up and making sure that what we as we create this environment around us,

1:21:44we're making sure that people can access the services they need. There aren't any barriers

1:21:49in terms of movement, things like that, which I believe is very much the mandate of the AAC.

1:21:55We're looking at things like discrimination, systemic inequity and hate. When we looked at

1:22:00things like the data, when we looked at the data, we're seeing that hate reporter crimes are going

1:22:06up. We're also identifying that people are underreporting that because they don't feel secure enough

1:22:12that there's not trust in the institution. So we're seeing discrimination, systemic inequity and

1:22:16hate as a priority risk area that's come up. We're looking at things like early adversity. So originally,

1:22:22this was adverse childhood experiences, but we shifted it to sort of look at the broader spectrum

1:22:29and what this means is things that are impacting development for people that are sort of children,

1:22:40adolescents, things like that as they grow. We're looking at things like income and security,

1:22:45poverty, homelessness, all of those things that impact them emotionally that end up actually

1:22:52impacting their longer term growth and development. The very interesting piece that we picked up on

1:22:59the research, the county did their point in time counts serving a homeless population and what they

1:23:07identified in an example of early adversity is about one in four people living in foster care

1:23:15or in a youth group home. So they're seeing that already early adversity impacting what we're seeing

1:23:23in terms of homelessness and affordable housing. And as I get into that, all of this is very

1:23:28interconnected. So as we bucket all of these different themes, just know that they are so

1:23:34interconnected. One impacts the other and vice versa that we had to try to simplify things so

1:23:39that we're able to talk about them, but we read we recognize how complex these things are.

1:23:44We looked at gender based violence was another one in exploitation. So this is looking at things

1:23:49like human trafficking. It's looking at intimate partner violence. Back in 2024,

1:23:56Well Hopefully Services investigated 1644 reports of intimate partner violence.

1:24:03Local support services supported 1188 women, 69 children and responded to 2447

1:24:13crisis line calls. So the risk is very present in the community. Another focus as well as on

1:24:22homelessness and affordable housing. In 2023, emergency shelter use road sharply

1:24:27with 726 people using shelters for nearly 41,000, sorry, 41,000 cumulative nights,

1:24:37which is a 40% increase over last year. So the need for shelter has gone up. And that was again,

1:24:46based on data that we had back in 2023. Another piece that we identify these income and security.

1:24:54So we see that with rising living costs, housing costs, things like that, more and more these costs

1:25:01are pushing out our ability to purchase and maintain basic needs, things like that. So

1:25:10how we identify this one of the underlying pieces, food insecurity in the Gulf Dufferin,

1:25:17Wellington area doubled from 12% in 2019 to 25% in 2024, reaching sort of a record high level

1:25:25as it was reported. So again, we see a huge issue there for the community. Then we see mental

1:25:34health and substance use, which again, same thing, high service rates, high demand in that space as

1:25:40well. From Gulf police services in the report, they identified as mental health related issues

1:25:47being the fifth highest call type with 1,990 calls in 2024. So really, we see the numbers,

1:25:55everything is really highlighting that need there. Apologize or realize the numbering off

1:26:02in the piece there. But essentially now what we're hoping to today, talk with the AAC on is,

1:26:08as it relates to these community risks on the screen, how do these barriers that people with

1:26:16different abilities face affect how they're able to get the help they need? So when we look at things

1:26:22like getting around, accessing services, feeling included and safe, how does what the community

1:26:27is seeing here and what they're hearing in the community, how does that reflect in what we have

1:26:32on the screen today and sort of open the floor? Is anyone on the menu? Sorry, I didn't raise my hand.

1:26:43My apologies. It's Jen. It's probably doing a little box around my initials there. Is there any way

1:26:52in whether it be in stats or in your bullet points to separate out mental health and substance abuse?

1:27:00And I'm specific about that because mental health, not everyone who has a mental health concern

1:27:05has substance abuse. And I think the linkage is important for us for messaging. My son, for example,

1:27:13has four non-apparent disabilities, hasn't even tried coffee and never even a Coca-Cola. But

1:27:20in interacting with him, I would have concerns because of his autism. I would be looking, for

1:27:27example, personally in making sure or advocating that Guelph police services have strong familiarity

1:27:36and comfort with the cards for those who have, who might drive and have autism to say, you know,

1:27:46here's how I communicate and have a flexibility and approach in the communication. So I understand

1:27:54the groupings, but I'd really, really prefer if there is a way to separate those because mental

1:28:00health isn't actually a negative. We all have it the same way we have physical health as food for

1:28:07thought because I would try to take away the stigma around that, especially for our disability

1:28:14community. From stats that I've heard in the U.S. and in some parts of Canada, we talk about

1:28:22discrimination against racialized communities. And then we actually hear it's higher for disabled

1:28:30communities than it is for racialized communities. So in this instance, to me, mental health

1:28:38isn't a problem to be fixed necessarily because, again, we all have it. But I'd like to work on

1:28:44taking away the stigma from it. I think that's very helpful feedback. Thanks, Jen. We will make that

1:28:52note. Thank you. So these are identifying, like there are a lot of ways that you can take this.

1:29:06And forgive me again, I'm speaking without raising my hand. So my apologies to all, if there is

1:29:13another hand raised. You're coming to us to look at the priority risk areas or is that the main

1:29:22focus at the moment? Or is it also to say what would us as members, advocates, allies from our

1:29:30accessibility and advisory role want to bring to the table for our Guelph police services and community services?

1:29:41So what we're asking from the committee is on how the equity and accessibility consideration or

1:29:50what we need to be aware of as we're working with our community partners to start to expand and add

1:29:56community action, things like that. So if you're able to articulate experiences or what you're

1:30:03seeing in the community or things like that that we need to be aware of, as we work towards expanding

1:30:09and building these out, it would be very, very helpful. So some of the feedback around mental

1:30:15health and substance use, which previously was identified in our community safety law being

1:30:20planned, I think the bigger focus was around substance use with mental health being sort of

1:30:25attached to it. But we're essentially looking for more lived experience within this space,

1:30:32if that helps to answer the question or if there's anything I can kind of clarify on.

1:30:37So then I would put in an extra bullet that it's substance use. And because if the trigger is mental

1:30:45health, that's different. But then mental health is often can be a trigger on its own or the interaction

1:30:52model between the officers who are working with somebody who's in a personal crisis. How do we

1:30:58make sure that that is more positive to de-escalate from a risk area to a support area? Absolutely.

1:31:08Yeah, absolutely. I think that's a very valid distinction that we can definitely reflect in

1:31:12the plan as we communicate that. And again, it's challenging because we have presented here,

1:31:17the themes are very broad, and there's still tons of work that we need to do with our community

1:31:22partners to really articulate and express this in a way that resonates. But this is very helpful.

1:31:27Thank you. I would frankly put in the interaction model with people of different disabilities.

1:31:37Someone has an intellectual disability, that communication strategy, the level of eye contact,

1:31:43how close or far away you get from someone. I'm also a sign language interpreter,

1:31:47not putting the handcuffs on someone who uses sign and then asking them to say something when

1:31:52their hands are behind their back. There's there are a lot of elements in that interaction model

1:31:58that become risks in the moment to possibly escalate a situation. Said respectfully and

1:32:05totally understand like I've been on ride-alongs. It's a tough gig. And I mean that again,

1:32:11respectfully. Okay. Thank you. I'll just add and clarify. Thanks. This feedback has been very helpful.

1:32:19While the community safety and wellbeing plan comes to us through the Community Safety and

1:32:23Policing Act, how every individual organization, including Guelph Police, act from the feedback

1:32:31that the community compiles will be kind of up to them in their implementation plans.

1:32:38So it's maybe an important opportunity for follow-up with them as well.

1:32:45Holly, this game to your handle? Yeah, I'd have to agree with Jen. Number six has got to be

1:32:52separated. I have mental health issues, but that doesn't mean I abuse substances.

1:32:58And that can be very off-putting when it's put together. Because then you feel like you have

1:33:07to defend yourself that no, I don't abuse substances. Do you know what I mean? Like it just,

1:33:18I feel like when I see that, I feel like I need to defend and bring proof that I don't

1:33:25do anything that's illegal or legal. I don't do any of it. I don't even drink for crack.

1:33:35But I feel like I have to defend myself with the wording like that.

1:33:40Absolutely, Colleen. And thank you. And that's not our intention with any of this as well. So we

1:33:45can definitely take that away and share it with our Community Advisory Table as well. Because

1:33:50this is the feedback that we're hoping to hear as we develop this document.

1:33:55Thank you. And I don't think we'd use that. I don't think it was not on purpose.

1:34:00It was, you know, the two get long, two not long, but they two get put it together, right?

1:34:05But like Jen said, and like Colleen said, you can have one without the other.

1:34:12Oh, yeah, you can have one without the other, right? I saw Carol, do you have to end up?

1:34:18Yes, hi. Just, you know, expanding on what Jen pointed to, one thing I wanted to ask,

1:34:27like looking at these risk areas that were identified, what about systemic barriers? Because

1:34:34there's a lot going to the built environment. I mean, there is this systemic inequity and hate

1:34:40with discrimination. But what about, you know, looking at lack of awareness, education, training,

1:34:50looking at those gaps, because that can also present risks, you know, kind of, again,

1:34:59thinking to what was raised. But I don't know if there's a way to kind of incorporate that in

1:35:09some of our feedback as well, that systemic barriers, you know, lack of awareness, education,

1:35:15training, you know, to help deescalate situations can really make an impact. So

1:35:24thanks. That's great feedback. And yeah, we're happy to include that.

1:35:28Yeah, I think just the wording again, the way that these bullet points are like, so I don't

1:35:32know if that would be a separate point, but discrimination, systemic inequity and hate.

1:35:40Again, you know, there's discrimination, hate, systemic inequity, but also, you know, just

1:35:49things that are less overt, right? You know, policy gaps, training, like all the things that I kind

1:35:57of touched on, which I don't know that I would necessarily lump that in with that

1:36:02bullet point. If that makes sense. Yeah. And I think Stefan talked about how we

1:36:09struggle because these are not silos, and they are very much interconnected. And you gave some

1:36:14great examples of how the built environment can have its own barriers that are created by,

1:36:21you know, the way that we do engagement or education or training and awareness of those

1:36:25things. And so we will do our best to knit that story together. Thanks, Shani.

1:36:31Sharon, I see that you have your hand up. Yeah, just really quickly, building on what Cheryl was

1:36:37saying, absolutely agree. I think when we're looking at discrimination, it might be worth,

1:36:43if it's not on the slide, but for your own development as you build out the plan, calling

1:36:50out the type of discrimination against disability, which is ableism. So ableism in how it is

1:36:59for design in training in, again, comms, buildings, what have you, that the lack of bringing in

1:37:09accessible and inclusive materials with a sensitivity to what can be a largely discriminated

1:37:16against group would be worth noting. So, Cheryl, let me know if I've said something offline with

1:37:23that. But to me, I think it is distinctly, we usually have like three ideas in mind when we

1:37:31think about discrimination, when we want to add ableism, at least in conversation, if not on every

1:37:36PowerPoint. Thank you, Sharon. That's incredibly, incredibly relevant. And it's actually, we

1:37:45engaged our Guelph Youth Council a few weeks back, and they also noted discrimination in terms of

1:37:52their addressing or bringing up serious issues to adults and things like that. It's something that

1:37:5910, 20 years ago, I'd be in the shoes, and it's incredibly relevant. Thank you.

1:38:12The child's priority risk areas, they're hit by no means in any order. Right? Just alpha,

1:38:19yeah. Is there any questions for Stephen and Joby, feedback?

1:38:34I say something. I don't know if this is relevant, but the homelessness and affordable housing,

1:38:43okay, this has been true. But we've got, you know, affordable housing, what is yesterday,

1:39:00and I don't know how to say it. Like, okay, if you are disability pension, you get

1:39:11the $1,200 a month, okay? That's all you get for a single person. Now, affordable housing,

1:39:23it would have to be like $500 a month, or something around that, that you tell them number,

1:39:32you know, in order to pay for everything else. I'm not saying you aren't describing it.

1:39:41And then you also talked yesterday about the difference of what a real rent, like what rent

1:39:47really would be. Yeah, like a real rent is like for a bachelor's apartment, we're talking over $2,000

1:39:57a month. That is so unrealistic. Like, you know, like number four, homelessness and affordable

1:40:09housing, you people don't know what affordable housing means. Okay, it means affordable housing means

1:40:19$500 or in that area, you know, for a single person on disability getting, you know, $1,200 a month.

1:40:35Do you understand what I'm trying to say? It doesn't make sense. Am I saying it properly?

1:40:43You're saying it like what you said yesterday, yeah. Yeah, and that's very helpful feedback.

1:40:48And one of the members of our advisory committee is from the county of Wellington who administers

1:40:54assistance like ODSP. And so we've talked a lot about those rates not keeping up with the reality

1:40:59of the costs, whether that be food insecurity, income insecurity, that is part of housing.

1:41:05And so certainly the table has been very thoughtful about the way that some of those programs are

1:41:12connected and that income insecurity impacts a lot of things, including housing here, mental health,

1:41:21and many of the other pillars. Like, you know, it's like, Ford, I'd like to see him live on $1,200 a

1:41:31month. You can't. It is so unrealistic. You know, like, I'm just, I'm sorry if I was staring at you.

1:41:45I didn't know who to direct my concerns to.

1:41:50It's alright, Jackie. Thank you. As Chodi mentioned, like this is this is the feedback that wanting

1:41:55to hear so that we can reflect it very accurately in the plan as well. And as we work with our other

1:42:00community partners as well as the county, we want to try to again, really develop this in a way that

1:42:06it reflects what's going on in our community. And that is a reality. Because you can't go to

1:42:13housing because the housing waiting list is like, like so long, like years and years and years.

1:42:23So what does a person do in the meantime? You know, like, and I don't know if that's a rhetorical

1:42:33question or not. But it's like, you know, it's like so unrealistic.

1:42:40Um, Jean, to your hand up.

1:42:51That'll make a difference. I think part of the problem is affordable housing is such a generic

1:42:57term. As Jackie pointed out, you know, affordable housing for for one time, one income bracket is

1:43:07not the same as another. And I think where the issue lies is everybody assumes affordable housing

1:43:12refers to geared income housing, which is what actually affordable housing has been the term

1:43:18for decades to affordable housing as per the city of wealth is based on the average income of the

1:43:26city of a household in the city being $119,000, which is not the case. So I think I think there

1:43:35needs to be a break up between affordable housing on this type of thing and geared income housing.

1:43:42Yeah, absolutely. We will note the broad definition of affordable housing in and and the complexities

1:43:49of that. And that that's what's causing a lot of the confusion as to what needs to be focused on.

1:43:58And next thing, can you say your hand up?

1:44:01Yes, I live in Repairman building and there are several families I could count 10 at least

1:44:11that have four children, two adults living in a one bedroom apartment.

1:44:19And that just doesn't seem right. We're the they're working to try to afford even the one

1:44:30bedroom because again, it's almost 2000 a month. It's just it's ridiculous.

1:44:41Yeah, thank you. I expect we'll hear that through our engagement.

1:44:47When he has the

1:44:49Can I add just one as a tail end to that? When we're looking at affordable housing or

1:44:55geared to income housing for this community, I would also add in the word accessible.

1:45:01Because if you were to see 100 available listings, there might be three or four that are

1:45:10actually accessible, they do vary certainly. But there's something called a disability tax,

1:45:15where your day to day expenses are higher because you for your needs may need an accessible washroom

1:45:25or a wider entrance. Plus all of the added gear of could be a wheelchair scooter,

1:45:32cane, what had different alarm system. Life is already more expensive. The number of accessible

1:45:41and affordable units gets very, very small, very, very quickly. So I would put that as

1:45:47another risk area for this diverse community.

1:46:00Can you one second guys?

1:46:02Okay. Does anyone else have anything else to

1:46:07you? Has Jody hands seven? I think we covered a lot there.

1:46:15With you on your screen or your screen that had the recommendations.

1:46:19Yes, I'm getting one of those recommendations.

1:46:27And Tony are joining you. Do you mind reading them up to I'm happy to share.

1:46:32The first recommendation is that the Accessibility Advisory Committee receive the

1:46:38information on the draft priority risk areas of Guelph's Community Safety and Well-being

1:46:44Plan update dated March 17th, 2026. The next recommendation is that the Accessibility Advisory

1:46:56Committee recommends staff consider the following feedback in the update of the Community Safety

1:47:04and Well-being Plans draft priority risk areas. Sorry about that. There's a bit of a

1:47:08typo there. I'll clear that up. So what follows is I have attempted to capture all of your

1:47:15comments. If something's missing or needs workshopping, please let me know. But starting with

1:47:20separate mental health and substance use into two distinct draft priority risk areas to reduce

1:47:26stigma around mental health. That staff note the different communications that different

1:47:32communication strategies are required for different types of disabilities. Examine systemic

1:47:38barriers, inequality and hate, lack of awareness, education and training, specifically call out

1:47:45ableism, lack of materials design, etc. Identifying homelessness, lack of affordable housing and

1:47:53changes related and challenges related to living on a fixed income as respectors. And Dean,

1:48:00this was your last point. I'm sorry I didn't quite capture it. Addressing the varying definitions

1:48:05of affordable housing. I know you were you were speaking to your team and you mentioned the

1:48:10median Guelph income. If you could briefphrase that, I'm happy to capture it.

1:48:18No, I think you captured where just address the variable. The address the varying definitions

1:48:24of affordable housing and in regards to income brackets.

1:48:32Throughout Wolf. Actually,

1:48:39I can't remember.

1:48:42And including your income housing.

1:48:47To the clerk, I also noted that there was feedback about including affordable accessible housing.

1:48:53Yes.

1:49:03Yes, hi. Yeah, that was one of my comments just to capture what Jen was saying at the bottom,

1:49:09but it looks like someone did speak to that about the affordable accessible housing.

1:49:15But I wanted to just ask in the bullet point that says examine systemic barriers.

1:49:23I guess I'll put this out to the many. Do we want to include inequity and hate and brackets?

1:49:29I'm questioning keeping that in the brackets and maybe just saying examine systemic barriers,

1:49:39lack of awareness, education and training. But I put that out to the group.

1:49:48Getting rid of the brackets.

1:49:49Okay, so let's do this.

1:49:59Can I go back to the first slide? Sure, please.

1:50:09Can I get a mover or a shaker for a seconder?

1:50:14We're going to bring it down to recommendations. The first one's nice and easy.

1:50:22We've resumed the arrangement. So, the accessibility advisory committee

1:50:25resumed the information on the draft priority risk areas,

1:50:29and close community safety and wellbeing plan update, date of March 17th, 2026.

1:50:35Can I get a mover and a seconder to approve it? I think I've got to move.

1:50:44Can I get a seconder? Cheryl? Thank you. I should have asked, but I still can.

1:50:50Does anyone oppose against the motion?

1:50:56If you're reading, you can't see none. The motion has been buried.

1:51:01And then the one that's really hard to read is the way up there.

1:51:07Jerry can bring it down.

1:51:08All right, Charlie can bring it down.

1:51:10You can do it. There you go.

1:51:11Okay.

1:51:12We're going to make it bigger.

1:51:14So, the recommendations provided to staff are separate mental health and substance use into

1:51:21two distinct draft priority risk areas to reduce stigma around mental health.

1:51:27That staff note that different communication strategies are required for different types

1:51:33of disabilities, examine systemic barriers, lack of awareness, education, and training,

1:51:40specifically call out ableism, lack of inclusive materials designed, etc.

1:51:46Identify homelessness, lack of affordable housing, and challenges related to living on a fixed

1:51:52income as risk factors. Address the varying definitions of affordable housing in regards

1:51:58to income brackets throughout Guelph, including geared to income housing.

1:52:02Finally, that staff consider both affordable and accessible housing.

1:52:11With anyone like, is everyone good with, except for the bold, is everyone good with what Charlie

1:52:18just read? Did no changes or anything? If that's the case, can I get a mover and a seconder for

1:52:25this really long recommendation? Wait, hold on.

1:52:31Sorry, there's so many people. Jen, I didn't see you with Hannah first.

1:52:36I called you.

1:52:36All right, Colleen. Colleen, you're first.

1:52:39Jen, can you still want to second it?

1:52:44Yes. Second it? Jen did it.

1:52:48So, has anyone against or opposed the motion?

1:52:54Hearing and seeing none, the motion has been carried.

1:52:58Stepan and Joanie, thank you so much for this.

1:53:02Hopefully you hear about it when it comes to the new page.

1:53:05Absolutely. Thank you.

1:53:06Thank you.

1:53:08Okay, moving on. We have Colleen and I think we have a different bulk headline to talk about

1:53:20the pathways to remember the work road.

1:53:25Actually, that one's mine. Matthew Elaine Park Planner with Park and Trail Development.

1:53:31And Colleen?

1:53:33Colleen's the one having been.

1:53:34Oh, sorry.

1:53:35Sorry, I didn't hear.

1:53:37Oh, no problem.

1:53:38You have a lot on him.

1:53:40Matthew?

1:53:42I just wanted to clarify. Should I be sharing the slides or is there someone there that's able

1:53:50to do that?

1:53:53If you would prefer, Clark Staff, we can share the slides for you.

1:53:57Yeah.

1:53:57Whatever works best.

1:53:59Yeah, that would be great. That way I won't accidentally mess anything up.

1:54:02I always struggle with sharing the screen function.

1:54:08Okay, not a problem. We'll share that for you.

1:54:11Okay.

1:54:12So, as Jordan, you should just talk for yourself. Like, you don't have to be far.

1:54:25So, as Bert mentioned, we are getting close to our two-hour or five-o-clock hour,

1:54:32and in which hour, does anyone have to be gone for five o'clock or are we good to go a little bit

1:54:40after?

1:54:44But also the reason why is if we do lose one or two people, we will lose Quorum then.

1:54:52So, Jordan was just watching out for us.

1:54:56You can only lose me soon.

1:54:58Yeah.

1:55:03So, can I come back?

1:55:05Well, yeah.

1:55:07I'm going to bring you on over one second.

1:55:09I don't have any old music though, okay?

1:55:10So, what do we do?

1:55:13I'm going to just let you know.

1:55:14We'll share some slides.

1:55:14Sorry.

1:55:15It's okay.

1:55:16Okay.

1:55:16I'm sorry.

1:55:19I'm so sorry.

1:55:20I don't think we lose one or two people.

1:55:22We're going to lose Quorum.

1:55:24So, I just need to keep you on the phone.

1:55:26Okay.

1:55:27Okay.

1:55:30Jackie, sorry.

1:55:30What time are you leaving?

1:55:32What time are you leaving?

1:55:34I had to leave quarter after.

1:55:37Okay.

1:55:38Okay.

1:55:38Okay.

1:55:38Yeah.

1:55:39Maybe just a minute.

1:55:40Maybe just a minute.

1:55:40Let's not talk about that.

1:55:42Yeah.

1:55:42So, yeah.

1:55:42I did my feet.

1:55:44They find out.

1:55:45Yes.

1:55:45Okay.

1:55:46Okay.

1:55:51Sorry about that.

1:55:52Thanks for holding.

1:55:54So, when one of our members leaves at 10 after five,

1:56:01we're going to lose Quorum.

1:56:03So, there might be a little bit of a rush,

1:56:07but a little bit of a rush to make your proposal.

1:56:12But if you can take your time to do it, that'd be great.

1:56:16Okay.

1:56:18No problem.

1:56:18I'll do my best.

1:56:21So, I am presenting Pathways to Remembering Memorial Project.

1:56:26It's a community-led project that will be constructed in a municipal park.

1:56:31I'm going to attempt to briefly provide background on the project

1:56:35and acknowledge the significant amount of work that has been,

1:56:39that has gone into the project prior to my involvement.

1:56:42And I'm involved as the project manager assisting with detail design

1:56:46and also coordinating construction.

1:56:51I also want to recognize the value of this contribution to the city

1:56:55that the project represents.

1:56:57So, as a background in 2021, a working group was formed to undertake

1:57:01a fundraising campaign to create a memorial that demonstrates public support,

1:57:06acknowledgement, and compassion for community members

1:57:09whose lives have been impacted by accident.

1:57:12Accidental drug poisoning.

1:57:17The intent of the memorial is to create a public space

1:57:19that recognizes the value of lies lost to drug poisoning,

1:57:22offers a place for quiet reflection,

1:57:25provides a meaningful structure that enhances the park experience

1:57:29for all community members, including those not directly affected by the crisis.

1:57:34And in 2023, Guelph saw the highest number of fatalities from drug poisoning on record,

1:57:40underscoring the importance of creating a space that acknowledges the profound impact

1:57:45of this ongoing public health emergency.

1:57:48Excuse me.

1:57:50So, it's intended to serve both as an aesthetic feature and a place-making element within the park.

1:57:57And a number of organizations and community members

1:58:02who have personal experience with substance-related loss

1:58:05were involved in developing the concept plan for the memorial,

1:58:09and also the multi-year fundraising campaign.

1:58:12Some of the current community partners include Guelph Community Health Center,

1:58:17Wellington Guelph Drug Strategy, Guelph Wellington Women in Crisis,

1:58:21Holmwind Health Center, Windom House, Stonehenge Therapeutic Community,

1:58:27and Nightingale Center for Grieving Families and Children.

1:58:31In 2025, the group met their fundraising goals and they partnered with the City of Guelph

1:58:38to design the new memorial.

1:58:41So, through consultation with the group and with City staff, we selected York Road Park

1:58:47as the preferred location, which you can see here on the site plan drawing.

1:58:56At the time this report was prepared, we were scheduled to start construction in April,

1:59:02but we've run into some delays.

1:59:04So, we don't have a construction start date.

1:59:07However, we're still planning to complete construction by August 2026,

1:59:12and with some additional planting in the fall.

1:59:15This project includes installation of a three-meter-wide stone memorial, construction of

1:59:21approximately nine litre meters of limestone screening trails, and approximately 500 square

1:59:27meters of naturalized planting, including native trees, shrubs, and perennial species.

1:59:33So, that's all I have for my presentation. Happy to answer questions.

1:59:40I just think I can…

1:59:45Yeah, no.

1:59:49So, Matthew, I think on the corner of Windom and Wellington, I go down that ramp quite often.

1:59:56How far is the ramp from the bridge going to be from the monument?

2:00:03Yeah, that's a good question. The monument itself is the circle that shaded dark gray,

2:00:12so it's set back and it will be surrounded on three sides by existing and new naturalized vegetation.

2:00:23And so, that section that's sort of speckled is the new three-meter-wide limestone trail.

2:00:30So, I would guess the new trail starts maybe 30, 40 feet from the ramp. I can get the exact

2:00:38measurement if that's helpful.

2:00:40No, no, I just think that's… You know, come down that ramp pretty quickly.

2:00:44Yes, no, it's set back.

2:00:47And the border and that. And then the crossings between the monument and the river. That's all the…

2:00:57I think you said 500 linear feet of natural stuff.

2:01:03Yeah, that hatched area, yeah.

2:01:06It's a gray hatch. That's where… Yeah, okay.

2:01:08Yeah, I mean, that's…

2:01:11An area that already has vegetation, but the plan is to enhance it quite a bit to be more

2:01:17similar to what was done on the west side of the Speed River on the other side of the covered bridge,

2:01:25where a lot of work has gone into cleaning up that area and making sure that it's

2:01:30native species that are populating it rather than a mix of things.

2:01:38Just the other thing, where that star is in the parking lot,

2:01:42are there going to be any changes to that?

2:01:46Not part of this project, but I actually was talking to Leanne about it, and I think there

2:01:53will be changes in the future, but I don't have any of those details.

2:01:58I don't think it's exciting. There's no conceptual parking, and it's all grassy,

2:02:02grassy walls.

2:02:05But I think it's… I'm not mistaken. I think there is a monument memorial on the

2:02:12opposite side of the trail. I remember that tree.

2:02:17That's right. It's right beside the white tree.

2:02:20So I think it's fantastic that this will make a lookbrain. It'll be…

2:02:26Oh, it didn't mention the 99 or 90 trail. What's the trail composed of again?

2:02:34Yeah. So the existing trail, four-meter-wide limestone, forms part of the royal recreational

2:02:43trail. And the one we're adding is three meters wide, so it's a little bit narrow,

2:02:47but there'll be the same material. And it's actually…

2:02:51We're actually going to be using the parks department's

2:02:55stone dust or limestone screenings that they use to maintain the trail to build this new one.

2:03:00So it'll be kind of a seamless surface.

2:03:04Nice.

2:03:07That was a presentation. That's a pretty good presentation. Does anyone have any questions

2:03:12regarding Matthew's presentation? Is he ever handed them?

2:03:24Just wanted to say thank you. This looks awesome. And you're doing it in an accessible way.

2:03:30It looks like it's just building on what's already there. So thank you very much. And I

2:03:36appreciate your expediency with which you shared the presentation with us. I appreciate it.

2:03:41Thank you. All of it. It's been great.

2:03:43Thanks, Chen. Can you bring up…

2:03:49Oh, he's doing so fast. Okay. I'm fast, at least.

2:03:52So basically, the only recognition… Well, not the only recognition, but the only recognition

2:04:02when it's looking from us is to support the proposed new path. And what Chen said,

2:04:10it's at the right location. It's completely accessible. It's the light. It's going to be

2:04:14at the York Road to Park to be constructed. So in the next couple of months, hopefully,

2:04:20it's going to start to arrive. Does anyone… Can I get a mover and a seconder to…

2:04:29Sorry. Does anyone want to add anything to this motion?

2:04:33I don't know why my voice raised up like that. Sorry.

2:04:36Can I make a comment? I'm not sure if it's necessary, but when I had drafted this,

2:04:45the intent was to start Spring 2026. I can't say for certain whether or not

2:04:51that's still correct. It might be better just if it says constructed in 2026.

2:04:56Let's get rid of the word spring. That way, you got like nine months instead of three.

2:05:03But yeah, no, I think if we get rid of the spring part, we'll be good there.

2:05:07Appreciate that. Thank you.

2:05:10Can I get a motion to get a motion and a seconder? I see colleagues hand up for the motion.

2:05:23Can I get a seconder and, Jen, I see you as a cheat to the track.

2:05:27I think, Jen, thank you so much. Was anyone opposed to… I would hope not.

2:05:34Opposed to the motion? Hearing and seeing none. The motion that's on our board is carried.

2:05:44Matthew, thank you so much for everything that you've done. Like Jen said,

2:05:48it is a great tribute to those of the ones that we've lost. So good luck creating it.

2:05:56Thank you very much. I appreciate the support and the opportunity to speak to you.

2:05:59Perfect. Come again the rest of your day, okay?

2:06:01Thank you.

2:06:02You too. Thank you.

2:06:03So now that we're getting closer to our time, and now we have… There's Colleen's here.

2:06:12Told you Colleen would be there. Now that we have Colleen back for round two,

2:06:18do you believe at quarter after, right?

2:06:22Seven minutes. Maybe if you could go on something.

2:06:28Colleen, are you okay to go as fast as you can with your little…

2:06:34I can certainly get as far as I can. I only have a couple of slides, so I'm sure the

2:06:41discussion would be the same that takes it over, but I'm happy to start the presentation.

2:06:44Okay, cool. So if that's the case, let's… So we have Colleen back for the Windows Street North,

2:06:50the temporary accessible parking for all of the construction that's going down the town.

2:06:56So Colleen, you have the floor.

2:06:59Thank you very much. I'll try to be fast. So I think this group was…

2:07:05My colleague Andrew Miller, who is off on leave right now, he came to this group back in April of

2:07:11last year, I believe, to share the sort of design for Windham Street as it's being reconstructed to

2:07:18revitalize infrastructure downtown, to revitalize the cross section, etc.

2:07:23We are starting said construction on Windham Street on March 30th. We will be closing portions of the

2:07:29road. There are impacts to the existing accessible parking stalls that are marked on Windham Street,

2:07:37as those are becoming part of the construction area. There are four parking spots that are

2:07:43impacted as part of our road closure. We are giving the contractor control of Windham Street.

2:07:48We will be maintaining a pathway around the site for access to businesses that's 2.5 meters wide,

2:07:55but the road itself, kind of where the cars are now parked and moving, will be totally closed down

2:08:02in phases for the contractor to do a lot of really necessary work. So what we're proposing is to have

2:08:09five accessible parking stalls that are located outside of the construction area, but as close as

2:08:15possible to Windham Street to try to offset the impacts of losing those stalls on Windham Street

2:08:21throughout the construction. And if you wouldn't mind just going to the next slide. We have two

2:08:28of those five proposed on Macdonnell Street on the east side of Windham, on the north side of the

2:08:35road, kind of outside of the western hotel, best western hotel. We have two of those five proposed

2:08:43on Macdonnell on the west side of Windham Street, sort of in front of, and just a little bit to the

2:08:51west of La Reina. And then we have one on Cardin Street. And these would be in addition to stalls

2:08:58that are already on these streets. These are meant to replace the ones on Windham. So really,

2:09:04this is just to inform this group and seek feedback on the locations. We have tried to

2:09:08locate them as close as possible while keeping them out of the construction area to the existing

2:09:14locations. That's the whole presentation. So happy to hear feedback.

2:09:25So Colleen, so the one that's on across Lucidie Hall-ish,

2:09:30is there going to be another accessible parking spot there then? Because there's one right there,

2:09:35there's one there right now. So the intention with this would be in addition to any that already

2:09:42exists. Like we're trying to offset the ones we're removing. We're not trying to replace the ones

2:09:46that already exist on the sort of side streets. Gotcha. And then on the ones that are on the east

2:09:52north side of Macdonnell or Windham, there's no accessible parking there currently, correct?

2:10:00I'm not sure of the answer to that question. I don't think there is. Like in front of the

2:10:03western desert ism. But in front of the, I'm going to swear, that past there's Burrito,

2:10:09there are two I think. So probably extending those. And when you say stalls, like how big

2:10:18are we talking? Sorry, I'm using the word stall just to mean a parking space. So it would be the

2:10:24standard dimensions required for an accessible space. Okay. Parking space.

2:10:32Pretty, how long is, how long is going to be

2:10:39not constructed for? So the whole entire road, which goes from Wellington all the way up to

2:10:45Woolwich is going to take us until sort of towards the end of 2028. But that doesn't mean the whole

2:10:52road will be closed the whole time. So that's a little bit of a longer answer to get into which

2:10:57chunks are going to be closed when. But we will, downtown will feel the impacts of this.

2:11:03These will be in place for a couple of construction seasons. Does anyone have any

2:11:10questions or comments? Or Colleen, Jen, I see you're kind of. I'm asking a lot of questions

2:11:19today. I know. I know we're on limited time. For the parking spaces, are there a variety of

2:11:26styles of parking spaces or are they fully accessible? So if somebody's ramp opens to the

2:11:32left or to the back, will they know there is an accessible parking space for their vehicle?

2:11:44Does that make sense? And I don't know the answer to that question. Our traffic folks would be the

2:11:49ones that would go out and actually mark these. So I think they have best practices in mind. They

2:11:55would have been the ones that would have marked these pavement widths for others. So hopefully,

2:12:02I will certainly raise that point to them when they're going out to mark these.

2:12:08And second question and forgive me because I don't use accessible parking myself. Is there

2:12:15a spot that will be on like the city of Guelph website to let people know before they drive

2:12:21downtown to know where those spots are? Again, I don't know if that's planned, but I can certainly

2:12:28take that feedback so that we can look at adding that to our. We have a Have Your Say page called

2:12:33Digible Down Low for all things downtown. And I can certainly look at adding something to that

2:12:40effect to that page as well. Okay, thanks, Jen. Because of the time, I was just wondering if we

2:12:47can do a motion to have Colleen come back to our next meeting. So I don't think this is going to

2:12:53be timely. It's 2020, it's not a timely thing. But because we're going to lose quorum, I know I

2:12:59got my new writing. But is it possible maybe to have Colleen come back to a future committee meeting?

2:13:10Can I just clarify, the 2028 would be the completion of this work? Like we will be,

2:13:16there will be people, contractors out on the road on March 30th of this year. So I'm happy to come

2:13:22back, but the changes, we will start to see the changes very soon. Okay. Could we saw you back

2:13:28though? I'm happy to come back for sure. If you feel like there's more to discuss.

2:13:39Can I get a motion to have the deferment, I think that's a word, for Colleen's topic

2:13:45till next meeting. Jackie, who's the handman either, I think it's not Colleen's hand, of course. So

2:13:52Colleen is the seconder. Thanks Colleen for the non-membered Colleen for staying around and

2:14:00helping us out with this. Oh, sorry. Is there anyone opposed to not having Colleen come back again?

2:14:09Hearing and seeing none, we have to let Jackie go. The motion is carried. I think we are good to go.

2:14:17So our next meeting is going to be in April and we have to vote who? April 21st of this

2:14:24time. Yep. Sorry, April 21st, Pat, 3pm. And if that's the case, I'm going to, I don't think we have

2:14:31any announcements. Nope. So we don't have any announcements. Okay. And we have a motion to adjourn

2:14:37this meeting. Jackie again. Can I get someone to second it?

2:14:44Cheryl? In fact, thank you.

2:14:49Yeah. Is anyone opposed to not leaving the meeting? Sorry, Dean has a statement.

2:14:56I will write it down. Thanks, Dean. Wait, Dean, is that for a question or is that for a vote?

2:15:03You're muted. Sorry, Dean. I think you sounded over. That was for a vote.

2:15:07So, Dean, motion then, can I get a seconder for that?

2:15:11You got Cheryl. Oh, Cheryl. Sorry. Yes. Thank you, Cheryl. Sorry guys. And hearing no

2:15:15opposition, have a great rest of your night and thank you everyone for speaking around a little

2:15:19later. Thank you. Have a good night. Thank you everyone. Have a good night.