The Council Round-Up (Dec/2023-Jan/2024)
A snapshot of what's happening in council chambers around Waterloo Region
Region of Waterloo:
The Region approved its 2024 budget which totals $2.1 billion “to maintain and expand vital services necessary for the community to grow to a million people in the coming years.” Of the $1.5 billion in the operating budget expenditure, the three largest items are: ‘provincially cost-shared programs’ ($384.5 million), the police budget ($252.4 million), and public transit ($221.2 million). The tax rate impact is 6.9% which amounts to an annual increase of $165 for the average property. Learn more here.
Speaking of property taxes, it can feel confusing when we have regional and municipal property taxes. When we hear that the region’s increase is almost 7% and then Kitchener residents also have a 3.9% increase, we may be tempted to think we are facing a tax increase of 11% but it’s important to remember these are not cumulative but rather two parts of our total tax bill. Kitchener Councillor Scott Davey tweeted a simple explanation of how it works.
In transit news, Regional Council has approved the Ainslie Terminal as the south terminal location for the next phase of the ION.
The Region is also considering options for the intersection of Franklin Boulevard/Saginaw Parkway/Elgin Street in Cambridge. One option includes a walkway tunnel under a raised roundabout. That option is preferred by Cambridge Regional Councillors Doug Craig and Pam Wolf, with Councillor Wolf stating, “This is one of the busiest intersections for both vehicles and pedestrians in the region, so we needed to make sure what we are doing will be safe and efficient for both.”
Cambridge City Councillor, Nicholas Ermeta, prefers traffic lights with a wider median so pedestrians could cross half of the (up to) nine lanes of traffic (Yikes!). Ermeta worries that there are too many roundabouts and has concerns that the pedestrian tunnel “will become a drug haven filled with feces at certain times of day.”
Kitchener:
Kitchener firefighters have a new four-year contract which will see the union’s ~240 members receive wage increases of 2.95% for each of the contract’s first two years, 2.85% for the third, and 2.75% for the fourth.
Keeping with the theme of emergency services, a town hall forum was held earlier this month where hospital officials spoke about their plans to expand and merge operations in Kitchener. The WR Record states, “For months a five-member panel has worked quietly behind the scenes and has identified three locations for a new hospital. The panel is now going through a detailed evaluation of each of the three sites.” Here is a helpful Twitter thread on the information shared at the town hall.
Waterloo:
The Albert McCormick Community Centre and WPL McCormick Branch will undergo renovations and expansion thanks to a recent council decision to provide $1.5 million in funding for this project. “The goal of the project is to reconfigure and expand the facility to meet the present and future needs of the local community.” The project will also receive $2.4 million from the Green and Inclusive Community Buildings Program grant (Infrastructure Canada) which will fund energy efficiency measures, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and enhance accessibility at the facility.
Wilmot:
The rare Waterloo Wellington Land Trust could be the recipient of one of the largest donations of conservation lands in this region unless parking concerns get in the way. The Schneider family hopes to donate 95 hectares of land to rare to be conserved. However, according to a Wilmot report, staff have concerns about (lack of) parking and are requesting that a small parcel of the donated land be used to create a parking lot for 12 vehicles (for those who access the trails for walking and skiing). According to this WR Record article though, “the idea of a parking lot on even a small portion of the property goes against the family's conservation principles.” The Schneider family recently shared an open letter on this issue urging residents to contact Wilmot council on this issue. Read the letter, and learn how to take action, here.
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