Council Brief – September 2023

by | Sep 26, 2023 | Region Updates

Last week was Council week where we ratified Council business conducted at our September Standing Committee meetings. Looking for our meeting materials or videos?

Here’s a quick summary of three things passed by Council at our meeting:

  1. Planning and Economic Development Committee received a presentation giving an overview on marine ports in Niagara, including information on the Hamilton-Oshawa Port Authority and the Thorold Multimodal Hub. HOPA’s mandate is to facilitate trade and support Canadian industry by providing appropriate space required by industry and also connections to transportation corridors such as the Welland Canal (for marine access), highway linkages and also rail. These sites are important to expanding capacity in Niagara for industrial and industry needs including for our agricultural sector. Coincidentally, we also received a presentation on Niagara’s agricultural profile which highlighted how the agriculture sector has scaled back in terms of the number of farms, but the size of farms and their economic impact has actually increased. Traditionally farms in Niagara that grow crops used for inputs into other products (such as corn or wheat) are transported to Hamilton or other areas to be exported. Development of a local transportation corridor, including marine access, allows our farms to export locally, saving the costs of transportation to other sites that are further away. Lot’s of really exciting development and industry support is taking place that will help empower the diversity of Niagara’s economic model.
  1. Council passed a motion put forward by Councillor Ip declaring intimate partner violence an epidemic. We heard delegations from five members of the community, some representing organizations such as Brock University, Muslim Senior Circle, Birchway of Niagara, Gillian’s Place, and the Niagara Coalition to End Violence against women. The declaration followed the conclusion of the Culleton, Kuzyk and Warmerdam Inquest into the deaths of three women killed on Sept. 22, 2015 and made 86 recommendations to the Ontario Government. In passing the motion, the Region joins more than 47 municipalities and townships making a declaration. News coverage can be found at:https://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/news/council/they-live-in-constant-fear-niagara-region-council-declares-intimate-partner-violence-an-epidemic/article_f0837d39-c895-5c49-a542-03fd66c3484b.html
  2. Corporate Services passed a motion from Mayor Redekop that sought to inform the development of a citizen’s code of conduct. There was lots of discussion on this issue speaking to the prevalence of bullying, intimidation and harassment towards elected officials and public committee members. It is having impact on the community’s ability to retain and attract good candidates to run for political office, but also members of the public who are volunteering their time on committees. Part of the motion affirmed a commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion values but also asked the police to consider updating their protocols in dealing with complaints. Next steps is for staff to put together information on what a potential code of conduct could look like as a policy for a future meeting.News coverage can be found at:https://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/news/council/it-s-appalling-niagara-region-councillors-want-staff-to-investigate-creation-of-citizens-code-of/article_2635ef9d-07e9-5617-b9e6-2f4d38988cde.html

Other notable items:

Questions? Always happy to connect with my constituents on regional issues. The next Regional Council meeting will be held on Oct. 19th, 2023.