Council Highlights - November 25, 2024

Committee of the Whole meetings occur on the second and fourth Monday of each month, and Council meetings occur on the second, third, and fourth Monday of each month (the third Monday of the month is to discuss and consider planning and development matters). If a regular meeting falls on a public or civic holiday, the Council meets at the same hour on the next day that is not a public or civic holiday.

Committee of the Whole consists of all Council members that recommends an item for approval by Council. The item still requires Council's final approval, typically at the next Council meeting held two weeks later. Starting January 1, 2025, Saugeen Shores will no longer have a Committee of Whole. Council will govern under Council Meetings alone

Visit www.SaugeenShores.ca/Meetings to see all meeting dates, agendas, minutes and webcasts.

Members of the public can watch Committee of the Whole and Regular Council Meetings in person or on the Town’s YouTube Channel.

Committee of the Whole

Saugeen Shores Fire Master Plan

The 2025-2035 Saugeen Shores Fire Master Plan (Master Plan) was provided to Council. This Master Plan supports present and future legislative requirements in a fiscally responsible manner by providing exceptional service using a volunteer model supported by a strong administrative staff.

This was recommended for approval.

Public Art Policy

Public Art can be used to develop a sense of place, community pride, and identity through its creation in public spaces. It enhances the attractiveness of a community and promotes cultural tourism. The Public Art Policy provides the framework for how Public Art will be defined, managed, and evaluated for display in and on municipally owned public spaces including parks, trails, and facilities.

This was recommended for approval.

High Street Reconstruction and Cenotaph Upgrade Final Design

Council was presented with the final design of the High Street Reconstruction and Cenotaph Upgrade. The Committee directed that parallel parking be retained from Huron Street to Front Street. The Committee referred the Cenotaph upgrade and directed the Striking Committee to create an ad hoc Committee.

The final design, as amended, was recommended for approval.

2024 Quarter 3 Variance to Budget

The Variance to Budget report provides Council with a forecast of the financial operating results for the Town as of September 2024. The actual net income through the third quarter of the year is $15.3 million and the year-to-date variance to budget is forecasted to have a higher net income of $16.4 million.

This was recommended to be received for information.

Lottery Licence Procedure Update

The Town is granted the ability to oversee and enforce Charitable Gaming Lottery Licences being conducted within the municipality under the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO). The AGCO has an extensive procedure that can be complex to interpret by members of the public looking to obtain a Charitable Gaming Lottery Licence. The Lottery Licence Procedure has been created to assist with navigating the AGCO Lottery Licensing Policy Manual while also indicating the Town’s expectations for licensees.

This was recommended to be received for information.

The Committee of the Whole endorsed the following resolutions:

Bruce County - Municipal Support Resolution for CANDU Reactors
Town of Aurora - Fair Share Resolution
Township of Puslinch - Protection of Agricultural Lands and Sustainable Development in Relation to Provincial Projects and Excess Soil Management Practices Resolution

To learn more, view the Committee of Whole meeting agenda.

Regular Council Meeting

Business Arising from Closed Session

Mayor L. Charbonneau reported that Council received information on the 2024 CAO Performance Review finalization, received information on an expression of interest for the Innovation Park, received information on Practice Ready Ontario, and gave direction on the Ontario Clean Water Agency contract renewal.

Committee Report – Aquatic and Wellness Centre, Proposed Levels of Service, and the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund Update

The Committee of the Whole recommended the following:

That Council receive the draft Aquatic and Wellness Centre Operations and Management Plan report for information.
That Council receive the Introduction to Proposed Levels of Service for Asset Management report for information.
That Council receive the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund (OCIF) Update report for information.

These were carried.

Committee Report - Establishment of an Ontario Rural Road Safety Program

The Committee of the Whole recommended the following:

Whereas official statistics from the Government of Ontario confirm that rural roads are inherently more dangerous than other roads; and

Whereas despite only having 17% of the population, 55% of the road fatalities occur on rural roads; and

Whereas, rural, northern, and remote municipalities are fiscally strained by maintaining extensive road networks on a smaller tax base; and

Whereas preventing crashes reduces the burden on Ontario’s already strained rural health care system; and

Whereas roadway collisions and associated lawsuits are significant factors in runaway municipal insurance premiums. Preventing crashes can have a significant impact in improving municipal risk profiles.

Now therefore be it resolved that the Town of Saugeen Shores requests that the Government of Ontario take action to implement the rural road safety program that Good Roads has committed to lead. It will allow Ontario's rural municipalities to make the critical investments needed to reduce the high number of people being killed and seriously injured on Ontario’s rural roads; and further

That this resolution be circulated to Premier Doug Ford, Minister of Transportation Prabmeet Sarkaria, Minister of Infrastructure Kinga Surma, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness Rob Flack, Minister of Rural Affairs Lisa Thompson, Associate Minister of Emergency Preparedness and Response Trevor Jones, Minister of Health Sylvia Jones, and Good Roads.

This was carried.

Committee Report - Integrated Accessibility Standards Policy Update

The Saugeen Shores Accessibility Advisory Committee recommended that Council adopt the revised Integrated Accessibility Standards Policy.

This was carried.

Motion – Intimate Partner Violence

Whereas more than 4 in 10 Canadian women have experienced some form of intimate partner violence in their lifetime, and 1 in 10 experience it almost daily; and

Whereas while one-third of men have also experienced intimate partner violence, women disproportionately experience the most severe forms. According to the Government of Canada, between 2014 and 2019 there were 497 cases of intimate partner homicide nationally and 80% of the victims were women; and

Whereas rates of intimate partner violence are nationally 75% higher for rural women compared to urban women; and

Whereas although IPV is not a pathogen, it is appropriate to label IPV as an epidemic because it has ripple effects causing future poor health outcomes for affected victims and their families, which negatively affect community health, policing, and social services resources; and

Whereas in Saugeen Shores, police-reported Domestic Violence incidents increased between 2018/04/01 to 2024/04/01 by an average of 55.4%; and

Whereas in Bruce and Grey Counties, domestic violence calls between 2018 and 2020 to police increased by 133%; and

Whereas members of the Saugeen Shores Police have been enrolled in the collaborative Police Action on Intimate Partner Violence course, training which improves their policy and action to keep individuals, families, and communities safe; and

Whereas all programs in the Grey-Bruce Health Unit, especially the clinical ones, have components to identify and report any type of violence, including IPV; and several family-based programs actively and proactively work with individuals and families on early identification and prevention of IPV, as well as the Unit’s collaboration with Bruce Grey Child and Family Services and police services, and

Whereas On January 8, 2024, Saugeen Shores Council supported the Town of Goderich’s resolution to Declare Intimate Partner Violence as an Epidemic, and

Whereas it is critical for victims, family members, survivors, and others in our community to see Saugeen Shores’ commitment to solving the problem of IPV by, among other actions, recognizing its severity.

Now be it resolved that the Town of Saugeen Shores recognizes the issues of intimate partner violence in rural communities as serious to the health and wellness of local families, and further

That the Town of Saugeen Shores is committed to engaging with community partners to educate and support our residents about the seriousness of intimate partner violence in our community; and further

That the Town of Saugeen Shores calls on the Standing Committee of Justice to hold hearings in the fall of 2024 on Bill 173, The Intimate Partner Violence Epidemic Act; and further

That the Town of Saugeen Shores calls on the Province of Ontario to pass and implement Bill 173, The Intimate Partner Violence Epidemic Act; and further

That this resolution be circulated the Standing Committee on Justice-Clerk, Thushitha Kobikrishna; Chair Lorne Coe, Standing Committee on Justice, Premier Doug Ford, Minister of Health Sylvia Jones, Attorney General Doug Downey, Minister of Rural Affairs Lisa Thompson, Grey Bruce Medical Officer Dr. Arra, the Saugeen Shores Police Services, the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, and to all municipalities in Ontario.

This was carried.

To learn more, view the Council meeting agenda.