Thread by @LoveWilmot

This evening's council meeting begins at 7pm. Get the full agenda at calendar.wilmot.ca//townshipcalen…, watch live at youtube.com/channel/UCcA8f…, or follow along here 👇

Mayor Armstrong will not be participating in this meeting due to illness, so it will be chaired by Coun Gerber. There's a rota for which councillor will "sit" in the mayor's seat if he is incapacitated for any reason, and this month it happens to be Coun Gerber's turn.

Coun Gerber asks for a moment of silence for Pride Month ❤🧡💛💚💙💜

Coun Gerber also reads the land acknowledgement.

First item on the agenda is a public meeting about the Draft Procedural By-law Amendments. Dawn Mittelholtz (Director of Clerk's Services/Director of Information and Legislative Services) is presenting her report. There have been no public comments, nor delegations registered.

Coun Hallman asks if residents who have contacted her can send their comments to the clerk; she says they can.

Ms Mittelholtz is discussing some of the main proposed updates to the procedural bylaw, including the inaugural meeting. These changes came from councillors' suggestions.

The full report and the updates are in the agenda package on page 36.

From the report: "The deadline for feedback that will be incorporated into the final proposed Procedural By-law is end of the business day, 4:30 pm, on June 21, 2021."

Sandy Jackson (Acting CAO) is talking about proposed time limits for delegations, from 10 minutes to five. Speakers will also not be allowed to come back later in the discussion after their allotted time has elapsed.

Ms Jackson thanks Ms Mittelholtz for her work in bringing all of the feedback together into a coherent document. The Township's solicitor is on hand to answer questions, if needed.

Coun Gordijk asks Ms Jackson about delegations who wish to speak about topics that aren't on the agenda, such as "quick turnaround" topics. Ms Jackson says that councillors can request a point of order and ask for speakers to be allowed. Ms Mittelholtz adds clarification.

Coun Fisher asks about retention of council meeting videos; how long are they retained for? Ms Mittelholtz says that the Township's bylaw in this area "is embarrassingly old" and might not even mention video. She says it will be updated.

Coun Fisher asks about committee reports, which are moving from annual to biannual. Ms Mittelholtz says this is open to council to change if it feels annual is more appropriate.

Coun Hallman asks for clarity about the definition of staff roles, such as clerk and treasurer. Ms Mittelholtz says she hasn't seen other municipalities describe other mandatory roles in council meetings.

Ms Jackson asks Mr Davis, the solicitor, for his opinion. He says some municipalities refer to the CAO, treasurer and clerk, perhaps they are specifically referred in the province's Municipal Act.

Coun Hallman asks if agendas can be provided for council and the public on the day they're expected. Additions can be provided separately, "under cover".

Chair Gerber mentions the references to religious components in Township meetings, and he mentions a motion that condemned Quebec's 2019 bill that forbids items related to people's religions. (I'm guessing this means, say, turbans and crucifixes.)

Chair Gerber wants to ensure that people can dress in a way that allows them to express their faith. Mr Davis says that he doesn't see there being any problem with council's proposal.

Coun Hallman mentions that the previous inaugural meeting included Christian components, which would have excluded any Muslim participants, who cannot take part in a ceremony for another faith.

Coun Pfenning asks for clarification about how special council meetings can be called. She thinks the wording implies that the mayor has authority that supersedes the will of the majority of council.

Mr Davis offers his legal opinion about the inclusion of religious or spiritual activities during committee and council meetings. This is in response to Coun Gordijk's earlier reference to smudging.

(As an aside, I think this is the first time that the Township has sought legal input for its procedural bylaws, which is at the behest of the most recent members of council.)

Mr Davis says that the proposed bylaw changes seem to allow for either the mayor or the majority of council calling a special council meeting. (I'm assuming this means that the mayor *does not* have authority over a council majority.)

Coun Pfenning suggests rewording the bylaw to make this explicitly clear.

Discussing the reading of a land acknowledgement, Coun Pfenning says that this was discussed at the last meeting with the First Peoples Group. They advised that the reader should be speaking from the heart.

The report has been received for information.

Next is a presentation about the proposed New Hamburg waterwheel upgrade. Harold O'Krafka (Director of Development Services) is presenting his report, which is on p75 of the agenda. He introduces Lyle Cressman and Joe Figliomeni from the New Hamburg Board of Trade.

Mr Figliomeni begins the presentation. He says that this hasn't been voted on by the NHBoT itself yet, but he says that generally there has been a positive response so far.

Coun Hallman asks if the BoT will be working with other areas of Wilmot which also had mills many years ago. Mr Figliomeni says that this will be the case, and it will be *Wilmot's* waterwheel.

She asks about the opportunity to light the new wheel, with changing colours to show solidarity for different national events. Mr Figliomeni agrees and repeats Mr Cressman's comment that this will be "Wilmot's CN Tower".

Mr Figliomeni says that the waterwheel could be the focus of a marketing plan for the area. (The NHBoT's logo, which I designed 15 years ago, includes the current waterwheel).

Coun Fisher suggests that Patrick Kelly (Director of Finance) could help with sourcing grants so that the Township can offer the NHBoT its support. He suggests including it in the next budget deliberations.

Mr Kelly says he will keep an eye out for grant opportunities to see if there's one that fits.

Mr Cressman will be having a community fundraising campaign, but they will need some help.

Coun Gordijk asks for clarification about the budget range. Mr Figliomeni says that COVID has created a lot of uncertainty with construction costs.

The next discussion is about Transform WR 80x50 Plan. Ashton Romany (Manager of Finance/Deputy Treasurer) presents the staff report, followed by a presentation by Mary Jane Patterson (ED, Reep Green Solutions) and Tova Davidson (ED, Sustainable Waterloo Region).

"Climate change affects so many facets of our lives."

The full report etc is on p158.

Lyndsay Dajka and Betsey Daub, Nith Valley Ecoboosters are up next as delegations to speak on this topic.

Marie Pavey from Let's Tree Wilmot is speaking about the work of the volunteer group that she represents.

Coun Pfenning asks if Let's Tree Wilmot has a report it can send to council. Ms Pavey said she'll send it to the clerk for distribution.

Lisa Clifford from the Wilmot Horticultural Society is the next delegation, and she's talking about how climate change has affected pollinators and invasive species.

Coun Gordijk says that Ms Clifford is "speaking to me". She says she got rid of her (our!) lawn and replaced it with a perennial garden. She asks about a drain system she saw recently in Bayfield. (This is a photo of the sign she refers to.)

Stephanie Goertz is speaking next, on behalf of Food System Roundtable of Waterloo Region. Her begins by talking about food sustainability and insecurity.

Ms Goertz touches on the increasing loss of farm land.

Coun Pfenning asks if any of the other Townships have adapted a food charter. Ms Goertz says it's been adapted at the Regional level, but she's not aware of any rural Township adoption.

Andreas Fuentes is next, speaking about 50 by 30.

Becky Voll from Faith Climate Justice is the next delegation this evening.

The final delegation on this topic is Alicia McClurg.

She asks council to show leadership by committing to the 50By30 initiative.

Coun Gordijk asks if the Urban Harvester group has reached out to Wilmot's adult lifestyle communities, such as Foxboro Green and Morningside. Ms McClurg says they'd be happy to share what they learned.

This is the motion on the floor, with a friendly amendment.

The motion has passed unanimously.

Ms Davidson is now giving a presentation about the Sustainable Waterloo Region Annual Report. The full report is on p285 of the meeting agenda.

Ms Davidson says that if people are going to screengrab anything from her presentation, it should be this. So...

Coun Fisher says he's proud and the Township is blessed to have Mr Romany and Mr Kelly on the Sustainability Work Group. Ms Davidson echoes his comments. Ms Jackson says that Mr Romany has worked very hard on this project.

The Consent Agenda is next; no items have been removed. All items have been approved.

Next is a Artificial Turf Field (at W-O) License Agreement report, which is presented by Ms Jackson in her role as Director of Facilities & Recreation Services. She praises Coun Gerber for his advocacy. This is for a 10 year agreement between the Township and WRDSB.

Coun Hallman asks if residents can use the field. Ms Jackson says not for the foreseeable future. Usage is by booking only, which is partly to protect the field.

The recommendation to accept the agreement has been passed.

Jeff Molenhuis (Director of Public Works) is summarizing his report about the Wilmot-Kitchener Boundary Road Maintenance Agreement.

RECOMMENDATION: THAT Council approve and enter into an agreement with the City of Kitchener for the maintenance and repair services for two segments of road; a portion of Trussler Road and the entire segment of Waldau Crescent.

Approved.

Next: a Integrity Commissioner Report has been received for information.

Announcements - Coun Gordijk: "I'd like to thank Kitchener's Mayor Berry Vrbanovic for being such a good sport. He agreed to a friendly wager on yesterday's European Championship soccer game between England and Croatia."

"If Croatia won, we would have donated $50 to the Kitchener Terry Fox Run, but I'm happy to say that after yesterday's result, the @WilmotTerryFox is up fifty bucks!"

Coun Fisher congratulates Coun Gerber on the end of his successful career as a teacher at W-O. He wishes Mayor Armstrong a speedy recovery. Coun Fisher warns Coun Gerber that he's going to be busier in retirement.

Coun Pfenning's announcement: "I am wearing my PFD tonight to bring awareness to water safety. Last week, June 6-12, was the Red Cross Water Safety week."

"In Canada there are nearly 600 deaths due to drowning every year. The unthinkable becomes reality all too quickly as the tragic death in Conestogo Lake yesterday underscored yet again."

"I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to the Underwater Search and Rescue Unit for the incredibly difficult work that they do in these situations. I offer my condolences to the family, friends, and community."

"The details vary, but most drowning deaths are completely preventable. There are lots of information and training resources available through the Ontario Lifesaving Society and the Red Cross."

"And finally, reach out to our wonderful Wilmot staff to connect you with swimming lessons and lifesaving courses, and improve your water safety awareness!"

Coun Hallman congratulates Coun Gerber on a successful teaching career. She mentions the Habs, which I assume is a hockey team.

We're adjourned at 10:56pm.