Guelph residents speak out against strong mayor powers at council meeting
A long list of people were speaking out in the Royal City during a Tuesday night council meeting.
Delegates lined up to raise their concerns for the strong mayor powers announced by the provincial government.
"Please put everything into effect that you can to protect the democracy of this chamber," one delegate said.
The mayor of Guelph is one of 26 municipal leaders who will be granted the powers as of July 1.
The legislation gives mayors the ability to veto bylaws that conflict with provincial priorities, like building more houses.
"Sadly, some of the more toxic and undemocratic aspects of the strong mayors act still exist," another delegate said. "For example, housing bylaws passing with a minority vote."
Many of the delegates asked that notice be given to the public if and when the power is going to be used.
Strong mayor powers for Toronto and Ottawa took effect back in fall of last year.
Ottawa set up a website for the public to find out more information. Guelph plans to do the same.
Staff say any decision and directives that are issued by the mayor will be made in writing and posted online.
Ward 5 Councillor Leanne Caron noted that they had still not seen the legislation for the strong mayor powers coming into effect.
"We anticipate seeing them hopefully later this week," a staff member said in reply to Coun. Caron. "We know what was publicly announced, so we expect this to look much like it looked in Ottawa, but that's not to say that there won't be some things in the regulation that don't surprise us.
"Be patient with us as we wait to see them and better understand them."
Council also voted on how long delegations can speak during planning matters, which will be maintained at 10 minutes.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Poilievre unrepentant over calling Trudeau 'wacko' as his MPs say Speaker should resign
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says he does not regret calling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau 'wacko,' and now his MPs are renewing calls for the House of Commons Speaker to resign, this time over ordering the Official Opposition leader to leave the chamber.
Is it cold, flu or norovirus? Symptoms explained
The highly contagious norovirus is spreading across Canada, with some symptoms overlapping with other viruses. CTVNews.ca spoke with a health expert to find out how you can tell you have norovirus, the most common form of stomach flu, and what to do if you have it.
Doctors dealing with at least 160 Canadians suffering eye damage possibly linked to looking at the eclipse
Nearly a month after the total solar eclipse, at least 160 cases of eye damage have been reported across the country.
Ontario's police watchdog continues probe of high-speed pursuit involving fatal crash
The investigation continues into a collision that killed two grandparents and their infant grandchild during a high-speed police chase on the wrong way of Highway 401 east of Toronto.
Stranded cruise passengers in Spain race to catch up with their ship
A month after eight Norwegian Cruise Line passengers were stranded in Africa when their ship left without them because they were late getting back, a U.S. couple – ages 84 and 81 – were also left behind by the cruise line in Spain.
Blair says he couldn't sell cabinet on meeting 'magical threshold' of NATO target
Defence Minister Bill Blair says he couldn't convince the Liberal cabinet that Canada's government needed to meet NATO's spending target in its recent defence policy update.
London Drugs expected to give update on store status following 'cybersecurity incident'
Days after dozens of London Drugs locations closed due to a 'cybersecurity incident,' a spokesperson for the company says an update on the stores' status is expected Wednesday morning.
No criminal charges after 4 newborn bodies found in Boston freezer
A prosecutor in Massachusetts won't seek criminal charges against anyone, two years after four newborns were found in a freezer in a South Boston apartment.
Anger can harm your blood vessel function, study shows
Stress and anger can have a negative impact on cardiovascular health, studies have shown. New research points to just how the mechanism may work.