Below is a summary of key items discussed at the Municipality of Port Hope Council and Committee of the Whole Meetings held on Tuesday, April 20, 2021. The agendas and staff reports are available on the Council Portal. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this meeting was held electronically via video conference.
Phasing Out of Ontario's Gas-Fired Electricity Generation
Council supported a resolution to request the Government of Ontario to place an interim cap of 2.5 megatonnes per year on the greenhouse gas pollution from Ontario’s gas-fired power plants. Additionally, the resolution requests that Ontario develop and implement a plan to phase-out all gas-fired electricity generated by 2030. This plan will help the Municipality of Port Hope, the Province of Ontario, and the Government of Canada meet their climate targets.
Council received a delegation from the Ontario Clean Air Alliance at the last Committee of the Whole meeting on April 6, 2021. This provided information on feasible, cost effective alternatives to increasing gas-fired electricity generation without increasing greenhouse gas pollution.
Farley Mowat Park
Council authorized the re-naming of the east side of Rotary Park to Farley Mowat Park. This area of the park is located east of the Ganaraska River, where the boat roofed house is located.
Farley Mowat (May 12, 1921- May 6, 2014) was born in Belleville Ontario but lived in the Municipality of Port Hope in his later years until his death in 2014. He is recognized as one of Canada's literary icons and a champion of environmental issues.
The Farley Mowat Boat Roofed house was relocated to this Municipal property from private property in 2016.
The park re-naming will take place during Farley Mowat Week, May 10 to 16, 2021 and a special dedication ceremony will be scheduled at a future date when gathering restrictions are no longer in place.
Under the Marquee Event – Capitol Theatre
Council authorized an event for the Capitol Theatre’s Under the Marquee performance series on Tuesday evenings from June 1 until August 31, 2021 in principle, pending any change to the public health framework.
The Under the Marquee event is a weekly, outdoor, live performance series proposed to run on Tuesday evenings throughout the summer from June 1, 2021 until August 31, 2021 from 6:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m. inclusive of the road closure from 5:00 p.m. until 11:00 p.m.
The Capitol Theatre will communicate details about the Under the Marquee Series to their database through their newsletter, local radio, and social media channels. Currently, there is no preliminary promotional plan to share, but the development of the plan will include messaging and consideration for COVID-19 protocols.
Procedural By-Law Amendment
Council authorized administrative amendments to the Procedural By-law. Amendments to the By-law include:
- Updating definitions to formally reflect current staff titles
- Updating definitions to formally reflect current standing committee titles
- Revising the order of business for Committee of the Whole to reflect current practices and provide for a more efficient meeting structure
- Reordering and removing redundant headings from the standing business items identified for Standing Committees to provide for a more efficient meeting structure
- Removing identification of specific boards, advisory committees, and workgroup as this has been replaced by the recently adopted Committee By-law.
Committee of the Whole
The following are highlights from the Committee of the Whole Meeting:
Delegation: MPP David Piccini
MPP David Piccini made a delegation to Council with information about Ontario’s 2021 Budget.
PHAI: Project Update with Municipal Lens
Staff provided a presentation to Council on the current status of the PHAI project from a municipal perspective. This included progress to date, scope of work remaining and the potential of a proposed change to the clean up criteria.
Charging Station Agreement
Staff provided a report regarding the Zero-Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program. This report recommends the installation of two Electronic Vehicle (EV) stations at Elias Street and the Jack Burger Sports Complex.
The agreement is with the Ontario Charging Network LP (IVY) over a 10-year period. IVY will own, operate and maintain the EV stations. The anticipated annual cost for the project is $7,977.98. This electrical cost to operate the charger is paid for by the Municipality, but all revenue is sent back to the Municipality from IVY.
Minutes and video recordings
Meeting minutes will be available pending approval at the next Council meeting on Tuesday, May 4, 2021, at which point they will become the official record of the meeting.
Recordings of the April 20, 2021 Council and Committee of the Whole meetings are available on the Council page.
2021-04-22
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