Guelph Politico: November 2017

Thursday, November 30, 2017

MANGEZ! Dine Safe Guide for November 16-30, 2017

Twice-monthly, Guelph Politico posts the latest inspection results from the Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health Unit inspection of local restaurants, hotels, cafes, grocery stores and other businesses that handle food. We call it "Mangez!", and this column highlights the latest inspections done by WDGPH, and the results they've posted.

December is here, and that means Christmas is right around the corner. Obviously, there's lots of holiday-related stuff in this month's calendar, but there's still some political stuff to take care of before year's end. Shall we go over the month's events?

GUELPH POLITICAST #104 - Brendan Johnson, Guelph Neighbourhood Support Coalition

There were 21 speakers on public delegation night for the 2018 Tax-Supported Operating Budget, and over half of them were there to support the Guelph Neighbourhood Support Coalition. That's 11 people, who all showed up to speak with the backing of a room full of supporters, either representing themselves, the coalition, or partner agencies that work with the coalition like the Guelph Police Service, and Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health. What kind of organization drives such passion?

Greyhound Cancelling Trips Between Guelph and Kitchener

Bad news for local commuters travelling between K-W and Guelph, especially if you take the Greyhound. Starting on December 10, the bus line will be running fewer trips between the Royal City and Kitchener, merging mid-day and night schedules due to low ridership.

In a surprise move, it seems that Guelph has been called off the waiting list and is getting its own legal cannabis store when legalization goes into effect next summer. Smoke 'em if you got 'em. Or rather, smoke 'em when you can get them in July.

LIVE BLOG: City Council Meeting for November 27, 2017

Budget matters past and present, plus the passage of items from this month's Committee-of-the-Whole is on the agenda for tonight. You can click here for the agenda from City Hall, and you can click here for the Politico preview. For the complete blow-by-blow of tonight's council meeting, you can follow me on Twitter, or follow along below via Storify.

The 41 Conundrum: The University Express Only Runs Uninterrupted One-Third of the Time

To the credit of Guelph Transit, they have gotten better at letting riders know about service interruptions via social media since September. If you've observed that feed carefully though, you will have noticed a definite trend, and it concerns one of the new high-frequency routes meant to service the university corridor along Gordon and help the congestion. The #41 Downtown-University Express, during a one-month period, only ran without service interruptions every one out of three days.

City Council Preview - What's on the Agenda for the December 5 Meeting?

Decisions will be made! It's been a fairly smooth budget process so far, but now council must decide the big piece of the budget, which is the Tax-Supported Operating Budget. What will the final numbers be? What will the rate increase for next year be? Stay tuned...

Committee of the Whole Preview - What's on the Agenda for the December 4 Meeting?

Governance, Corporate Services, and Infrastructure, Development and Enterprise are on the agenda for this, the final committee meeting of 2017.

New Transit Contract Ratified, Both Sides Have Eye on the Future

After being ratified at City Council last week, members of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1189 did their share and ratified the new collective agreement on their end, and thus securing labour piece between the City of Guelph and its transit employees. Now's the part where we learn the details.

LIVE BLOG: City Council Meeting for November 22, 2017

Members of the general public will be able to have their say on the 2018 Tax-Supported Budget at this week's meeting. You can click here for the agenda from City Hall, and you can click here for the Politico preview. For the complete blow-by-blow of tonight's council meeting, you can follow me on Twitter, or follow along below via Storify.

"Gone Guelph." The very name sounds almost self-defeating. But what began as a kind of memorial to beloved Royal City institutions that are no longer with us, has become a one of a kind collectable that's brought joy to more than a few Guelphites over the last year. Gone Guelph t-shirts are the toast of the town, and Jenny Mitchell is back, just in time for Christmas, with this year's new line-up.

Never Mind the Smell, the Air is Fine

If you live in the south end of the city, and the air smells vaguely like "dill pickles and burnt plastic" (as one person on Facebook describe it), the good news is that you're in no danger. The bad news is you might have to live with aroma for a couple of days.

City Council Preview - What's on the Agenda for the November 27 Meeting?

This week, we take a break from the budget in order to talk about... the budget. Although this regular council meeting is not necessarily about the 2018 Guelph Budget, it turns out that there's both current and future budget stuff to go over anyway.

LIVE BLOG: City Council Meeting for November 15, 2017

This afternoon, the final piece of the budget puzzle for 2018 will be moved into place with the local boards and shared services budget. You can click here for the agenda from City Hall, and you can click here for the Politico preview. For the complete blow-by-blow of tonight's council meeting, you can follow me on Twitter, or follow along below via Storify.

LIVE BLOG: City Council Meeting for November 13, 2017

Two straightforward items make up the demands on council for this month's planning meeting. You can click here for the agenda from City Hall, and you can click here for the Politico preview. For the complete blow-by-blow of tonight's council meeting, you can follow me on Twitter, or follow along below via Storify.

City Council Preview - What's on the Agenda for the November 22 Meeting?

If you've been dying to have your say on the 2018 Tax-Supported Operating Budget, your chance is coming up. Wednesday November 22 at 6 pm is the day and time for the public delegations portion of the 2018 Guelph Budget deliberations. Details on who and how to take are below.

LIVE BLOG: City Council Meeting for November 8, 2017

Council hears the presentation of the 2018 Tax-Supported Operating Budget. You can click here for the agenda from City Hall, and you can click here for the Politico preview. For the complete blow-by-blow of tonight's council meeting, you can follow me on Twitter, or follow along below via Storify.

The 2018 Operating Budget in More Detail

Previously on Guelph Politico, we previewed the 2018 Tax-Supported Operating Budget in a very general way. Overall, the proposed budget suggests a 2.19 per cent, or $232,907,226, increase over the 2017 budget, and then there's potential for spending 1.4 per cent more, or $3,194,028, in expansion packages. So what new spending is there in the 2018 budget? What new savings? What are the details behind those numbers?

LIVE BLOG: Committee of the Whole for November 6, 2017

Corporate Services, Public Services, and the Audit Committee all have their say, as well as a redux of the Speedvale Bridge Underpass Trail debate, are all up for discussion at this month's Committee-of-the-Whole. You can click here for the amended agenda from City Hall, and you can click here to read Politico's preview of today's meeting. For the complete blow-by-blow of today's committee meeting, you can follow me on Twitter, or follow along below via Storify.

City Council Preview - What's on the Agenda for the November 15 Meeting?

It's the final piece of the budget puzzle for 2018: the budget for Guelph's subsidiary boards and shared services.The library, public health, the police, and county services are all up for presentation and discussion in the final council meeting before we hear from the general public.

Upcoming Councillor Town Halls on Budget and Other Things

Anxious to give your feedback on city matters? Engaging with you representatives virtually (or digitally) not enough? Well there are several opportunities coming up to meet face-to-face with your elected representatives, and here they are presented in one, convenient, chronological list.

City Council Preview - What's on the Agenda for the November 13 Meeting?

Sandwiched between big budget meetings, the regular monthly planning meeting for this month will be relatively light with one new manual for council's consideration and one rezoning bylaw to review.

LIVE BLOG: City Council Meeting for November 2, 2017

Decisions will be made! Two important portions of the 2018 Budget will be voted on today. You can click here for the agenda from City Hall, and you can click here for the Politico preview. For the complete blow-by-blow of tonight's council meeting, you can follow me on Twitter, or follow along below via Storify.

GUELPH POLITICAST #102 - Emma Rogers, United Way Guelph-Wellington-Dufferin

Now that Halloween is finally out of the way, we can focus on the holiday that really matters: Black Friday! Kidding aside, retailers across town are eager to begin the busy Christmas shopping period, but the holiday season is supposed to be about more than just spending, it's also supposed to be about giving. To that end, efforts are already underway at the United Way.