Open Letter to the Guelph Community

***This is an email I've sent out to numerous members of the Guelph community in an effort to bolster community confidence that there's still a media source in town dedicated to covering Guelph (even if it is just Guelph Politico). 

Mercury Website May Not Be Saved

In yesterday's news about the imminent closure of the Guelph Mercury, the press release from Metroland carefully explained that it will "cease publishing the print edition" this Friday. That makes it sound like the Mercury will continue on as a digital only presence, but Merc staffers past and present have come out and said that this is not the case. More than that though, there's cause for concern that when the print Mercury ceases to exist on Friday, so will the website.

LIVE BLOG: City Council Meeting for Monday January 25, 2016

Guelph City Council will get back around the horseshoe tonight to handle the business of the City of Guelph. There are two major pieces to tackle in the public meeting, which begins at 7 pm, the major one being an application for provincial money to fix a stretch of York Rd. For the complete blow-by-blow of tonight's council meeting, you can follow me on Twitter, or follow along below via Storify. 

SHOCKER! The Guelph Mercury Will Cease Print Operations on Friday

It began operation the same year as Canada, but sadly the Guelph Mercury will not be around to see its 150th birthday next year. In shocking, but not unsurprising news especially given the last couple of weeks, the Guelph Mercury will print its final edition this Friday, January 29.

This Week in Press Releases - January 18-22, 2016

Every week, the City of Guelph and other groups send out notices to announce new events, imperatives, and information that you need to know. Here is this week in press releases. 

City Council Preview - What's on the Agenda for Next Monday's Meeting?

The full city council will meet for the first time publicly in 2016 next Monday. It looks like there will be nothing nearly as contentious as the annual city budget, but there are still two major pieces of business on the docket including a pending application for provincial funds to improve a section of Guelph road. 

Fair Vote Waterloo Hits the Ground Running on Electoral Reform

Repeated in the Throne Speech last month was the Liberal government's dedication to reforming Canada's electoral system, and ensuring that 2015 is the last election using "First Past the Post." Some are sceptical of the government's intentions, others doubt it's doing to be a done deal by the government's own 18 month deadline, but the grassroots support that made electoral reform an election priority isn't about to let those in government forget that promise.

PRESS RELEASE - Guthrie Gets a Promotion (Sort Of)

Now hold on, you might be saying, Cam Guthrie is the Mayor of Guelph, how can he get promoted any higher than that? How about by being elected to a leadership role in a new consortium of mayors representing cities and towns from across Southwestern Ontario?

VIDEO: Infrastructure and Environment at Top of Mind at New Year's Levee

When everyone got to the Italian Canadian Club Sunday for the annual New Year's Levee with the Member of Parliament and the Member of Provincial Parliament it was pouring down rain, but as they left there was already a substantial amount of snow on the ground. It almost seemed like a metaphor, perhaps a statement about how quickly change can come. As for the levee itself, change was definitely a theme as Lloyd Longfield and Liz Sandals have a lot of work to get done on some pretty big issues if those in attendance have any say.

Crash Stats for 2015 Show Small Improvement, More Concerns

The Guelph Police Service has released it's annual year end report of local collision statistics, and while there's some cause for optimism in the fact that the number of total reported collisions went down as compared to this time last year, in taking a closer look at the statistics, there's still a lot to be concerned about.