Guelph Politico: May 2018

Thursday, May 31, 2018

The Politico Calendar for June 2018

Voting is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of political and cultural events happening in Guelph this June. Here's the monthly calendar of Royal City affairs.

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.

GUELPH POLITICAST #127 - The OGRA Sessions

It was a major conference of municipal leaders, influencers, and business people. Appearing live on stage where politicians from the three major parties, including the interim leader of the Official Opposition, and the Premier of Ontario. Only one person could interview them on the issues that matter, and get straight answers, and somehow, that person was me.

Ferraro Has Regrets and Other Notes from the Three Willows All Candidates Meet

Normally, Tuesdays at Three Willows Church in the summer means a dinner from the bounty of local food trucks, but this Tuesday it was local politics on the menu. The four major party candidates squeezed another event into a busy week of appearances to do a little Q&A with area residents.

LIVE BLOG: City Council Meeting for May 28, 2018

The final Solid Waste Service Review, a vote on the #3 bus, and a very special announcement on regional transit from Mayor Guthrie are on the docket tonight. You can click here for the amended 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 the tweets below.

Nothing like a cold beer on a hot day, especially when you've got frontrunner status in a contentious provincial election race! Ontario New Democrat leader Andrea Horwath rolled up to Brothers Brewery for a lunch time meet and greet following a contentious leaders debate Sunday night, and despite her success so far, Horwath's message was there's still a lot of work to be done.

Schreiner Ahead in a Very Close Guelph Race

They say that every vote counts, but that may be especially true for Guelph voters in this election if one very specific poll is to be believed. Earlier this week, the Toronto Star suggested that Guelph should vote for Mike Schreiner, and it seems that Guelphites might actually be listening.

Committee of the Whole Preview - What's on the Agenda for the June 5 Meeting?

This month's Committee meeting will try and not reach an epic length time while dealing with issues held over from May, along with financial updates, a new customer service strategy, a service review update, and a motion to make Guelph officially bee friendly.

GUELPH POLITICAST #126 - Martin Bauman, Canadian Mental Health Association

Mental health has been one of the most talked about issues of the current election, and it's understandable. Over the last few years, the stigma around mental health issues has been receding, and people have been able to share more openly, which has been a good thing. The problem is that the healthcare system is showing the strain.

RECAP: The Chamber of Commerce Provincial Candidates Debate

A political debate that generated so much interest, they were literally turning people away at the door! In front of a packed house at the Council Chambers of City Hall, the four major party candidates squared off in a debate hosted by Kithio Mwanzia and the Guelph Chamber of Commerce. The blow-by-blow is recounted in full below...

Filmmaker's Idea Diverts Lots of Move Out "Garbage"

On an episode of the Guelph Politicast back in April, filmmaker Kalev Jaason talked about his documentary Diverted, and his attempt to prevent large quantities of reusable items left on the curb by students leaving town from ending up in the landfill. His efforts have not been in vein, as 25 different local organizations have become the beneficiaries of the diversion tactics of Jaason and a team of volunteers.

Mooney Running as Independent After Alliance Ditches Local EDA

Thomas Mooney has found himself embroiled in more party politics, which is kind of the opposite of his message, as he has parted ways from the Alliance Party of Ontario after the provincial party has seemed to cut ties with five of its Electoral District Associations (EDA), including Guelph.

Guelph's provincial candidates will get together again on Tuesday to face-off in another debate. Well, four of them are. The four major party candidates will be grilled before a live audience, and a TV one, and the one doing the grilling is Kithio Mwanzia, the President and CEO of the Guelph Chamber of Commerce. Today though, he's the one being grilled.

City Council Preview - What's on the Agenda for the May 28 Meeting?

Matters of election oversight and the completed Service Review for Solid Waste form much of the agenda for the last council meeting of May.

MANGEZ! Dine Safe Guide for May 1-15, 2018

You know you have a packed house when you actually have to make the house bigger! That's what happened last Thursday at the All Candidates Debate hosted by the Guelph Wellington Coalition for Social Justice. There's been a lot of arm chair quarterbacking from social media pundits, but now it's time for the semi-amateur official community radio pundits to have their say.

Notes From the Guelph Wellington Coalition for Social Justice Debate

Whether they had an appetite for change, or an appetite for politics, over 400 people flooded the Italian Canadian Club for the first Guelph debate of the 2018 Provincial Election. Standing room only gave way to organizers embiggening the room for more seats, as seven of the eight announced candidates sparred on a bunch of issues in a 150-minute set. Here's what we learned...

GUELPH POLITICAST #123 - Canadian Federation of Students Ontario

The provincial election has finally begun! It doesn't feel like it, but the campaign is just now getting underway as we count down to the election on June 7. If you're looking for interviews with the local candidate, those will be heard on Open Sources Guelph starting next week. For the next few weeks on the Guelph Politicast, we're going to talk about the issues!

The Provincial Election Has More or Less Begun

Although we know it's been coming for months (if not years), Premier Kathleen Wynne made the move today to finally drop the writ and let the election for the 42nd Ontario legislature begin.

LIVE BLOG: Committee of the Whole for May 7, 2018

Today, it's all about parking, power and pennies as Corporate Services and Infrastructure, Development and Enterprise have their turn at Committee of the Whole. You can click here for the amended agenda from City Hall, and you can click here for the Politico preview. For the complete blow-by-blow of today's committee meeting, you can follow me on Twitter, or follow the tweets below.

MTO Approves That Daily Bus From and To Owen Sound

If you religiously listen to the Guelph Politicast (and why wouldn't you), then you will recall March's episode on Regional Transit, which included an interview with Chris Hughes, Manager of Contract Services for the City of Owen Sound. Hughes talked about a proposed daily bus to Guelph from Owen Sound sponsored by some start up money from the Ministry of Transportation Ontario. Follow-up: the MTO has approved it.

Mix of Old and New Faces Mark First Week of 2018 Camapign

As the first week of the 2018 Municipal election comes to a close, we already have a very busy race with with a baker's dozen of excited nominees ready to prove they're ready to serve on City Council or the local school board. Some of these names you'll already know, and not just the incumbents.

City Council Preview - What's on the Agenda for the May 14 Meeting?

Special events permits, alternatives for the Commercial Policy review, and a high-rise tower project returning smaller are all part of the agenda for this month's planning meeting.

GUELPH POLITICAST #122 - Smart Cities Challenge

It sounds a bit like a reality show. Infrastructure Canada is challenging municipalities, regional governments and First Nations communities from coast to coast to coast to use innovation, data, and technology to address one of the pressing issues of the 21st century. Guelph chose food, and this is a podcast about it.

Guthrie and 4 New Faces Are the First Ones in the 2018 Race

Mayor Cam Guthrie was the first person this morning to file his election papers, but he wasn't the last as the first day of nominations opened for the 2018 Municipal campaign. Guthrie and four first-time candidates did not let the electoral moss grow under them as at least one of this year's elections has official begun.