Transcript - Newcomer Strategy Approved - 2026-03-09 - Community and Infrastructure Services Committee

Newcomer Strategy Approved - 2026-03-09 - Community and Infrastructure Services Committee

Well, good evening and welcome to the community and infrastructure services meeting. If you're interested in participating in committee meetings, you can email delegation at kitchener.ca or you can register online at kitchener.ca/delegation and use the delegation registration form. For the electronic participation deadline, just refer to the delegation section on the agenda. The written comments that have been received are circulated prior to the meeting and they form part of the public record. Uh the meeting liveream and archive videos are available at kitchener.ca and accessible formats and communication supports are available upon request. Are there any members of the committee who wish to declare any pecuniary interest regarding matters listed on the agenda? I see none. Are there any questions from the committee on the consent items? Okay. May I have a mover for the consent items? Councelor Johnson. Oh, sorry. Question. And and which uh which item would you like to ask a question on? No. 3.1. Sorry. Okay. Uh can we have a a mover or two move this out of into discussion? Okay. All in favor? Go ahead, councelor Chapman. Yeah. Um so I'd like to speak about the um proposed changes to parking along Patricia Street in front Sorry. Pardon me. Oh, hello. Do I have to say all that again? No. Yeah. Okay. Um, do I Yeah. Say it again. Yeah, please. Okay. I'd like to speak to item 3.1 about parking in front of on Patricia Street along in front of GF Carmichael School. So, I've been in touch with um residents in the area and with um members of the parent council in the area and they're concerned with, you know, what's being proposed and what's happened over this past winter. So, I guess I'd like to ask maybe Mr. Kronite, you can speak to this. Um, I'm in the process of organizing a meeting um with bylaw, with somebody from your department and with members of the parent council and and residents in the neighborhood. Um, and I was wondering if this could be deferred, Mr. Cra through the chair. Um, it could certainly be deferred. The one thing that I would note though is that this request came forward through uh the water regional district school board. So they were having challenges with their buses getting to JF Carmichael using Patricia Avenue. Um my understanding of the concerns from both the residents and the parent council is that it's related to uh where where parents can park. Um recognizing that what I would recommend is that council support the report and that what we do is meet with both the parent council and residents outside of this process and find a reasonable solution for them to have an area that's um you know met for pickup and drop off within a reasonable distance to the school. So within that five minute walk distance. So, if we were to do that though, could anything that's decided here today be changed or would it um would it just be mainly looking for other alternative um drop off areas through the chair? Uh what I would say is that parking on Patricia Avenue on in the area where we've indicated here is inappropriate to make sure that we can get buses through that area. We would be looking for other alternatives. Yes. And if I were to go with the deferral until until we meet. Yeah. So through the chair, what I would say is if you do go with the uh with the deferral that you're approved the remainder of the report, we pull out the Patricia Avenue section and we can deal with that at a later date. Okay. I think I'd like to do that just because we're at a stage with the residents that um hopefully we'll have a meeting within the next week or so. We could bring maybe we could bring this back to council if that would work. Um this just this one item. Yeah, just this one item. I understand that what I would say is that we will need more time than um the next council date to be able to adequately address this in terms of the engagement that that's being considered. So, uh we'd be looking at bringing this back prior to the next school year if we don't address it tonight. Okay. But that would work. Um thank you. So yes, I'd like to ask for a deferral just on the Patricia Street um changes. Okay. Councelor Dave, sir, I just need clarification on um what the work is that can't be done between now and then. But sorry, I'm not sure what the the issue is here. Sorry. So through the chair, uh the request by councelor Chapman is to meet with the residents um to discuss their concerns. the residents and the parent council association to discuss their concerns not only with the recommendation about uh no stopping up Patricia but to uh better understand their challenges parking overall in the neighborhood and as it relates to the permanently parking uh around the hospital there in order to um do that communication though we also have to engage with the school board because this issue was brought forward with the school board so there's going to be a number of steps of engagement um if in this process whether or not it's approved tonight. Okay. And I guess just again just saying how to vote on this then. So we're not going to have for the deferral. We're not actually going to have any new information. Sorry was the deferral to council because we're not going to have any new information. Not sure what the purpose of the the def the deferral is. I guess if it's to council to anybody. Yes. Through the chair. It wouldn't be a deferral to council. It would be a a deferral of the item itself to a later date. Uh at which point that date would have to be prior to the next school year. So we'd be looking at the August council meeting. Okay. Sorry, is that Council Travis? Is that your Yeah. No, that would Okay. Sorry, I just wasn't. Thank you. Sorry, that would be the June council meeting. Correction. Okay. So, you're bringing a deferral on only the Patricia Street portion of this. Okay. Uh all those in favor. Okay. So, that will be uh the Patricia portion will be deferred and then uh because we need to uh we don't have to vote on on the rest. Okay. And for the rest of the report. Okay. And that carries as well. Thank you so much. There uh any further questions. Okay, we're good. Okay, we're going to do you mind just voting on the balance of the consent items? We just want to make sure that the drink and water report has been approved as well. Thank you. Sorry. And council voting on the balance of the consent items. All in favor? Thank you. That carries. and we're going to switch the order of the items up just a little bit. We're going to start with item 5.3, the newcomer strategy. We're going to start with that first and um staff have a uh presentation on okay. Go ahead, Ola. Okay. Hello. Okay. Yes, you can hear me. Thank you for having me. The project to develop the municipal newcomer strategy started in January 2025 and with immense support from community, city leadership, council and staff, we have stayed on track and on path to finalizing in Q1 2026. In terms of the background, the municipal newcomer strategy is being developed in alignment with council strategic priority to foster a caring city. The purpose of the strategy is to improve newcomers access to city services, events, facilities, and support to foster opportunities for economic contribution, cultural inclusion, and active community participation. Our approach prioritized widespread engagement and recognition for the amazing work already been done internally and in community by deeply committed community organizations. Therefore, it was very important to avoid duplication while engaging in research and exploring best practices. Another important element is the reality that newcomers make up 30% of the population of our population in KitchenA and newcomers accounted for 69% of KitchenA's population growth from 2016 to 20 2021 sorry also recognizing that newcomers come with a lot of skills and values to add to community as shown in their interest in small business and capacity to have employment income. according to statistics Canada. Subsequently, we very quickly realized that this strategy also has the potential to significantly impact council's priority to create an economically thriving city. In terms of how we developed the strategy, again, widespread engagement was the backbone of the project. We had well over 60 internal conversations with other project teams and community facing staff. We connected with over 1100 community members across diverse circumstances through 25 plus events and activities. We engaged with more than 25 community organizations largely through community-led events and in spaces where newcomers felt most comfortable. Finally, this work was guided by a dedicated working group made up of newcomers from diverse backgrounds, representatives of newcomer serving organizations and city staff. They helped to work through all the insights and guided the actions recommended as part of the proposed strategy. So all of that work led to the development of five themes. First, boosting awareness of city services with actions such as creating a centralized information hub and deepening newcomer focused engagement. The second theme is small business and employment support under which we have actions such as creating a paid internship program and a full-time staff to drive targeted a targeted small business program in um economic development and other related initiatives. Number three is community belonging and connections which speaks to the city's increased participation in the annual welcoming week and participating on steering committees particularly the ones with immigration partnerships. Um the first theme is targeted support and this speaks to civic engagement and leadership opportunities for newcomer youth and participating in mentorship programs for newcomer women. Finally, equipping tip kitchener is about ensuring the staff have the information and supports that they need to serve our diverse and growing community. And in terms of why this strategy matters for Kitchener, it does matter for KitchenA because it is important to build a community where everyone feels welcomed, supported, and empowered to succeed. Additionally, there's an economic imperative for this. Research shows that newcomers are more likely to start businesses, create jobs, and fuel labor gaps. They I'll say we because I'm a newcomer too. We help to strengthen the workforce, enhance and enhance Kitchener's competitiveness. So, this strategy is a proactive investment that will demonstrate council's forward thinking approach to boosting Kitchener's economy. On this note, we also recommend um that the recommendations listed on the screen for council for council's approval are approved and um I just wanted to mention that for recommendation one we um we submitted a revised table a revised um sorry 16 sorry 16 out of the 19 recommended actions can be advanced through existing funding and staffing and for recommendation three there was a calculation error so we we submitted a revised um financial implications thank Thank you. And thank you. And uh we do have some delegations, committee members. Um and to our delegations, we value a democratic process that encourages participation and dialogue in our council and committee meetings and through written submissions and correspondence. It's important that these interactions are presented respectfully towards other members of public, staff, and council. So, as a delegation, you may not interrupt counselors, staff, or other delegations, make derogatory statements about counselor, staff, or others that are disrespectful or use hate speech or language that's considered harmful or defamatory. Uh, the chair may interject and take necessary actions to maintain a respectful and inclusive environment for everyone, which couldn't include removal from the meeting. As a delegation, you're permitted to address council for a maximum of five minutes. And to help you keep track, there's a timer displayed on the screens in front of you. When you reach 4 minutes and 30 seconds, you'll hear a bell. Uh that is a reminder for you to conclude your presentation. At the five minute mark, a second tone will sound that marks the end of your allotted time. And the microphones will turn off shortly after the exceeded five minute mark. and committee members may ask questions about what you spoke about in your presentation, but if there are no questions, please know that this is council's time to really listen and reflect on the opinions, thoughts, and ideas that you shared with us. Our first delegation, Tara Bernard and Ernest Oay from the Wateroo Region Immigration Partnership. Welcome. Mayor, my name is Dr. and say and I'm here with Terra on behalf of the Waterloo immigration partnership and the many community partners who collaborate in supporting immigrant across our region. We are here today for a very simple reason to thank council for its leadership and strong support for immigration and newcomers in our community. Your commitment to advancing a city of Kitchener newcomer strategy sends the message locally and beyond that Kitna understands the important role immigration plays in building a strong, prosperious and inclusive community. We also appreciate the recommendation for annual funding for the immigration partnership as part of this strategy. Your investment signals to the many organizations involved in this work that their efforts uh um their effort matters and it helps us to continue leverage leveraging other investments to strengthen our collective impact. Immigration continues to shape the future of KitchenA and Waterloo region. It is not about numbers. It is about opportunities. People building new lives, studying, starting businesses, employee employer finding talent they need and families putting down root and communities becoming stronger. Water across Waterloo region many organizations including the city of Kishna work together to support that journey and for nearly two decades the immigration partnership has helped coordinate that shared effort. Thank you. Good evening, council. Thank you for having us. I'll just add a little bit to what Ernest has said. Um, and our colleagues were here to delegate before you in November. And when they were here, um, they shared our shared regional strategy for immigration uh, for 2025 and beyond uh, which was built on the input of nearly 1,700 immigrants and many community partners. Since then, we have been really pleased to continue sharing data and insights and working closely with the city of Kitchener staff who have been working on the newcomer strategy which is before you tonight for your approval. One of the most encouraging things that we see in the city's plan is how closely it aligns with the regional strategy and the work already underway across our community. Both strategies recognize three things. um that it is important that um services meet the needs of a changing population, that helping employers connect to immigrant talent is important, and that strengthening, welcoming incl and inclusive communities where everyone belongs is a priority. Kitchener strategy builds on the strong foundation of collaboration that already exists in this community. And so we're here tonight to express our support for the strategy before council and to, as Ernest said, say thank you for recognizing the importance of immigration to our community's future, for your leadership in advancing a strategy like this, and for the collaboration and partnership the city of Kiter has consistently shown in this work. The immigration partnership in Waterl region exists to support exactly this kind of leadership, bringing organizations together, sharing knowledge, and aligning efforts across the regional communities. We look forward to continuing to work closely with council and staff and are very excited about what we can accomplish together in the years ahead. Thank you very much. And thank you. And we do have some questions. Council is your question from staff or the delegation. question for the delegation. Uh thank you so much for presenting. I agree with the comments that you made in integration of uh those new to our community is uh very crucially important. Uh it's important I think for just the general growth of our city in a cohesive way. Um, but I think the newcomer strategy, well, my question to you was, do you see the newcomers that approach you, the primarily new immigrants that are very new to Canada in general, or do you see equity seeking groups that uh maybe just new in general, the community coming from, you know, other parts of the GTA or other provinces for employment purposes here? Do you see them accessing your services? Um I didn't quite catch the whole question. I think with the organizations that so the immigration partnership as a team itself we are not doing the work of supporting immigrants. We're working with organizations um to help them build their capacity and so we're working closely with the organizations that are supporting new immigrants in the region. Um they're working closely with like new people who are moving into this community every day. They also do a lot of work to support people who've been here in the region longer term as they continue to have needs that um you know when it comes to helping them get settled and you know as their circumstances changes they need different types of support. So you know there's an evolution of life when you move to a new community and so um for the organizations that are providing the direct services in this community they are working with people who've just arrived here but also people who've been here longer term. Okay. No, that's what I was looking for. I think those that are new to Canada in general do have higher needs, but I think the term newcomer needs to be a broader term and and I'm glad to hear it could be someone that uh could be Canadian Canadian born, but new to Kitchener in general or the region and they just want a better idea of how to how to fit in or how to how to seek out the services that the municipalities offer as well. So, thank you. That's great. Yeah. Thank you, Council Ch. Yeah. Thank you. and thank you for coming and for Can you hear me? Yes. Okay. Because sometimes it it's not very clear over there. Okay. Anyway, sorry. Um I just wondered you mentioned that um you know the work that's being done we have to take into consideration the changes and the changes in the the population and I just wonder if you could speak to that a bit like what changes have you seen? How are they being addressed? Um where are the shortfalls etc.? Good. Okay. um through the chair. Okay, that's a very complex question. I'll try to give a simple answer. Um and I think you know it shows a lot in the research and data that has been presented in the development of the newcomer strategy that is before council tonight. Um lots of change in terms of the demographics of the population, the countries that people are coming in to Canada from, the racial profile of the population as people come from different countries. Um the the religious makeup of the region is changing like many many things um demographically are different in the community than they were 10 years ago. And so there's a lot of work that has happened by organizations across the region to really understand what that change is to hear from people. Um, one of the big things that we do as an immigration partnership is a is an immigrant survey every two years where we hear from thousands of im new immigrants who've come into the region and people who've been here longer term about what their needs are so that we're not guessing at what what the service needs are. And so we're seeing organizations making changes to their services so that they're more co um culturally appropriate, that they have linguistic capacity to serve people who are coming into the community, that they have inclusive spaces um in terms of, you know, being a welcoming space regardless of your faith or other things. Um and these are things that the city of Kitchener has been doing and will continue to build on hopefully um through this strategy before you tonight. Okay. Thank you. and Mayor Van Revan, sorry. It's all good. Thanks uh thanks a lot uh Chair Schneider and thank you to both of you for uh for for coming in and uh the the great work that you do with the immigration partnership but uh but I know also the great work that you do in the community beyond including uh for many years uh doc with uh the cinema chip neighborhood uh association and and other things. Um, you know, one of the things that, um, always intrigues me and wondering if you can speak to it a little bit. We know that that Kitchener and Water region are a popular place for primary immigration, but even more popular because primary office go to the Toronto, Montreal, Vancouvers of the world. But when it comes to secondary migr immigration, um once folks settle there and decide, hey, there's a better place in Canada to go to, many of them come to to this community. I wonder if you can talk a little bit about why that is um and how this strategy um is is really important to to continue building on that. Okay. Um that's a great question uh through the chair. So secondary migration in this region is quite significant. Um when we look at um the data that we're able to gather through Stats Canada and through the census um what we have found is historically um we're a net receiver by about 40% of people who land first in other places in Canada and come here compared to those who come here first and leave. So people move in many directions but if 10,000 people um land directly in Waterl region in a year we have an additional 40% coming from other communities where they have uh other otherwise landed and so um partially I think you know that comes because of our proximity to Toronto which is one of the major gateways for um arrivals and first landings in Canada. Um but we also know that people move for employment opportunities, they move for educational opportunities. Um and and this regional community in the city of Kitchener provide exceptional opportunities for people who are looking to uh find better conditions for themselves and their families. And so it is it is that mixture of um we already have strong immigration into this region. Um there's many conditions that make this region attractive to people. um who have moved to other parts of the country. Um and so you know we're trying to find the right mix of programs, services, supports and you know kind of placemaking stuff in the community that so that we continue to be that place that is attractive um as a destination for newcomers no matter where they live in Canada. Um so that they will come uh start their families here and contribute back you know to the rest of the community. Okay. Thank you uh for that. Um I guess the other question um actually I'll move for now. Thanks. Okay, there's no further questions. So thank you Tara. Thank you Ernest. Thank you. Thank you. Appreciate it. Our next delegation is Katarina Harrari. Welcome. And Katarina has an interpreter just in case. But uh just relax and welcome. of council. Is my voice clear? Okay. Thank you for giving me this opportunity to speak today. My name is Katarina Al-Hari and I am a member of the municipal newcomer strategy working group. I am also a newcomer to Canada. I was born in Spain, raised in Syria, lived in Jordan for many years, and today I proudly call Kitchener my home. Today I would like to share a small part of my story as a human being and as a woman because behind every newcomer there is a story that is often unseen. Sometimes a story of hope and sometimes a story of struggle. I am one of those people who had to watch her dreams die before they even had the chance to begin. I had to fight constantly for rights that should have been mine from the moment I was born. rights that were taken away by crew rules and traditions that often place unfair limitations to on women. Despite that, I kept trying to move forward. At one point in my life, I was preparing to pursue a master degree. It was a dream I worked hard for. But I lost that opportunity twice. Once because of traditions and the second time because of war. War has the the power to interrupt lives, education, and entire future. Yet, I never stopped believing that it was possible to rebuild my path. Today, after 19 years of my bachelor degree in fine arts from Damascus University here in Canada, I am once again preparing to pursue a master degree in counseling, psychology, art therapy. This is not only academic step for me but also a continuation of long journey of resilience and persistence. In front of you are cards of my artwork from my latest art show at the Button Factory. Canada became the place where I could finally express my thoughts and emotions freely through my art without fear. For many newcomers, rebuilding life isn't only about finding a job or learning a new system. It's also about healing, discovering identity, and finding the courage to dream again. This is why initiatives like the municipal newcomer strategy are so important. They recognize that newcomers aren't only people who need support, but also people with skills, ideas, and the desire to contribute meaningfully to their communities. Being part of the new newcomer strategy working group was a meaningful experience for me. I saw genuine effort from the city of Kitchener to listen, to learn, and to build a strategy that responds to the experiences of newcomers. to the to the real experiences of newcomers in our community. When city when cities create space of for newcomers to be heard, they create stronger and more connected commu communities. Kitchener has already shown leadership in creating a welcoming environment for newcomers. The strategy is an important step in strengthening the comm community, the commitment. For many people like me, arriving in Canada represents more than immigration. It represents the possibility to begin again, to study, to work, to contribute, to find belonging, and to live with with dignity. I am grateful to be part of this process and I truly believe that this strategy will help many newcomers feel seen, supported and empowered in this city. Thank you for your time, your support, and for commitment to building an inclusive community for newcomers. Thank you, Katherine. We do have some questions for you, but I want to thank you very much for your strength and vulnerability and sharing your story and you've communicated very beautifully exactly why this strategy is so important. So, thank you. Councelor S, you're first. Yeah. U Mr. Chair, you beat me too. I was going to tease you and ask you if you were the interpreter because you spoke very well. Um far better than some of us here on this horseshoe. Um but thank you so much for presenting and sharing your story and sometimes uh sharing a personal experience uh when especially when it's challenging uh or even in some cases traumatic can be a struggle and sharing that but also making a part of yourself as your growth in a new space. So I want to congratulate you on that and thank you for sharing your art. It's phenomenal. Um I the newcomer strategy is a very important step forward but one thing we always have to do is look reflect inward and seeing if we're doing it right or are there other things we need to do better as well. Would you be able to share anything any major struggles you felt upon arriving more not necessarily Canada itself but perhaps your experience in this community? It's an open space for you to be able to share and express and for us to be able to learn from that experience also. if you have any anecdotal experience. If not, then that's okay, too. But thank you for sharing your story today. Uh I've been here for like uh to Canada around like two years and a half and since I arrived here, I I struggled to find the the right place uh based on my experience. Um like it's fine to uh to try something new, but at least related to my experience. So I can give the community and and participate like in in a in a better way instead of like uh starting from the zero and and starting something new like uh and also the the language is is really um very challenging at this point. Um yeah, so uh going from a place to place uh it was really hard because it took uh it took a lot of time and effort uh and still didn't find the right way until I volunteered with this beautiful program and we were discussing all these kind of things and and we we put a plan where where the city of Kitchener could lead the newcomers in the perfect way to save time on like the newcomers and also for the city also save uh money. Yeah. So I hope I I give you the the right answer. Yeah. Councelor Johnson. Thank you Chair Schneider. Katarina, thank you so much for your presentation. and it was very powerful and very heartfelt. Thank you so much for your volunteer work on the on the committee because your voice really matters. You are the voice of experience. You're the voice of knowing where we need to go with this and I really wanted to thank you so much for um just sharing your uh your thoughts uh with the committee but also with us. That's really important. So um we appreciate you and thank you for calling Kitchener your home. like there's it's it's wonderful that you you've been to other places and um we want to be here and we're really happy to have you. Thank you so much. That's so kind of you. Thank you. Thank you. Uh Mayor Herman, thanks Chair Schneider and thanks Katarina for for coming in this evening for uh sharing your story in such a in such a wonderful way. um but more importantly for also stepping up and getting involved with helping create um the strategy. Um you know, it's it's interesting because as I reflect on our council, members of council that sit around here, um three of us were our first generation Canadians. Uh the most recent was about nine years ago and uh the longest was a little more than 55 years ago. um in terms of arriving in in Canada and I can tell you well mind you like in my own case I was two and a half so I probably would have stocked up at that age but it obviously you know took a lot of initiative to uh to get involved. So I'm wondering if you could tell us a little bit about what encouraged you to to get involved in in in the process and and maybe some of the other things in the community that you're involved with. Yeah, I I wanted to do uh to give this country back. So I volunteer with different kind of things. So I I found this opportunity and I just took it. So uh and volunteering in in this program like let me uh like like a link I I am a link between the newcomers and and the city of Kitchener. So I I can you know hear them in their mother language uh from from you know cultures I already know about and experience. Um so it was easier for them uh to to talk about their needs and the challenges they face and I put that uh in this strategy like my my role was a link and to serve also the the city. I love I love guitar. Well, that's that's wonderful. We love you to it that that you love it. When you look at the the recommendations, the report that's in front of us, what is the piece that um you care about the most or that you're most proud of in terms of the the things in the report? What do you like? Uh you mean which part of the of of the strategy? Yeah. Uh well actually all of them are very important like I can't choose one because they all you know as a that's a great future politician is anything anything could like serve the city is welcome. So yeah, wonderful. Well, listen, I I just want to thank you again for uh for stepping up, being part of the process, but also offering to come in and share a little bit of your story with us this evening. Thanks. Thank you so much. Okay, next we have Councelor Misha. Thank you, Katarina. What a what a model you are, a real champion. Um I'm I'm just so delighted that you're here tonight. I I do have a question for you. Um, what was the biggest challenge that you had coming here before I come or or when you got here? Like what was it? What was your biggest challenge? Um, the biggest challenge in Canada. Um, well, first was the the language, right? So, yeah, it's it's really important like the newcomers learn the language very well. So they can um they can express their their what they want what they need. Uh yeah and contribute in in in the you know society. Uh otherwise like it's going to be hard for the organizations to understand their needs. Um yeah so yeah mainly language. Yeah, I understand that. I I also had um two young young women come from the Ukraine and stay with me for a year and the language was the biggest barrier initially, but you know that the tenacity and the hard work and the dedication that they put in and that you obviously have as well. Um it's just it's just wonderful. You're you're a real ambassador and a real champion and I'm glad you came tonight and shared your story. Thank you. Thank you so much. Thanks. Okay, Catar, thank you so much. That's all the questions we have for you. Okay. So, are there questions of staff? Councelor S. Yeah. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Um, like I think a needs and understanding about the newcomer strategy has changed over the years. Um, and I think it's been a continual improvement of what the this report is. it seems to be uh pretty broad and in in addressing where the shortfalls lie uh how we can help uh with that integration and feel uh for those you know that that that are seeking that extra support feeling of acceptance. Um the report outlines that. So I want to congratulate staff with that regard. Um my question was more broader which I asked the first delegate is that as the mayor outlined immigration isn't always just directly to to Kitchener or this region itself in many cases it could be secondary or you know triple migration where someone may have been born or raised somewhere else but they immigrated to Canada and they they're making sure their new home or in some cases it could be newcomers in a broader term in the sense of it's just someone new to the community irrespective of uh where they were born. Is the strategy broad enough that addresses that type of inclusivity so that we help to integrate uh the newcomers into Kitchener as quickly as possible and to staff as you delegated. You delegated really well and and I was impressed with uh the overall points of the strategy uh that it uh addressed what I had wanted to see first when we uh when kind of council gave this direction of having a having a newcomer strategy in itself. So anyways um to my question of acceptance of a broader a broader term of newcomers through the chair. Um thank you. That's a wonderful question and a wonderful observation. Um it shows that you're in tune with community because that that sentiment actually came out in community when we started out with the strategy. We the interesting thing is we're at the beginning of the project we're in a very tight position and I'll tell you why because Kitchener is so ahead this is not me patronizing council or anybody it's the truth Kitchener is so ahead in terms of um equity diversity and inclusion and as you know newcomers are listed as one of the equity deserving groups so for any project that has like equity considerations newcomers already cannot be considered So um we realized that the the people with the biggest needs at this point at the point of starting the strategy were people who are actually new in in Canada right because so much work is already been done with um so many other groups of people people who are just you know coming from other cities and then the other thing is we came to council in March 2025 to actually seek council's approval to define newcomers as people who have been here for 10 years or less rather than the traditional 3 to 5 years. So normally newcomers are defined as people with immigration, refugees, citizen and citizenship Canada IRCC. They'll define newcomers as usually 3 to 5 years. But because we recognize what you just mentioned, we stretch that definition to 3 to 10 years. And we based on conversations also with community leaders, organizations, we realized that that's the group that truly has the biggest need at this at that point in time also at this point in time. And that's why we focused more on people who have been here for 10 years or less. But that's still a stretch compared to the regular definition for the timeline for newcomers. So, and that's good. I'm glad you're addressing that and I think that will make it easier because again there's a lot of other services through the city kitchen region of water uh other agencies at the federal government or provincial government that that kind of specifically helps brand new entrance to Canada or Ontario or kitchen or wherever they they might be landing and having that broad term helps to make it more encompassing. I'm glad at that. Um and one of the barriers of that acceptance absorption is giving opportunities for voices as well. Um and like what are the strategy itself and the funding that's being requested? What bigger step will be taken that we have more acceptance of buyin from those uh those those those seeking to to have their voices included through the chair. Um, one piece of this strategy with an action on this um, strategy is the full implementation of the access without fear policy which the city already has. Like I said, the city is very ahead. This strategy and this policy was um, I think approved two or three years before we started working on the strategy and the policy talks about how anybody services at the city. So that's a wonderful spot to be in regarding wherever you are from even if you came here 15 years ago which you know is and and in terms of service delivery for the actions and the strategy we're not going to be saying for us to be able to serve you you have to you have to show us proof that you've been here for less than 10 years. No, it was just for the purpose of engagement and interacting with community. So many of the all of the elements on this strategy would definitely support you know people even people who have been here for more than 10 years to be honest because the city has an access policy. We don't ask questions before you we serve you just come access the services and we're just happy to serve. Thank you councelor Johnston. Thank you chair Snider and through you. Um, I' I'd like to start by first of all saying that this is amazing and thank you. You've done a really really good job on this. I appreciate the uh the five themes that you've uh uh that you've chosen to focus on. There's so many things to focus on. So, it's really great that you kind of condensed it into these themes and then with the different uh actions that go along with it. And um I also want to thank you for reaching out to council and having these conversations with us about uh what we saw as needs in the community. And I always say to people when they ask what a counselor does, I say my job in the community is to help set our residents up for success. And this is exactly what what you're doing here. So thank you. I think it's I think it's really great work. Um, one of the things I was uh wondering about is uh and it's probably under the targeted supports for newcomers perhaps, but one of the things that I had mentioned uh that I thought would be really important for residents is how we connect in with regional services, things like public health. Um I know that in different areas of my board as I had mentioned that you know at one point we had the highest rates of COVID in Canada in uh one area for a couple of weeks in 2022 and how do we get out um information around health care and that or how how are we syncing those services with public health and other you know uh uh the region home um housing strategies etc. How how are we doing that and where does that fit in through the chair? At the risk of sounding like I'm pat but patronizing you. That's a wonderful observation and question. Thank you. Um while we I know we had this conversation we talked about the jurisdictional limitations that the city as a lower municipality has. However, one of the key ways we can address this is by ensuring that this is clearly communicated in that providing a centralized point for information piece which is the first piece of the first theme boosting awareness of city services because these services are available. The only challenge is many people don't know about them. That came up a lot during engagement, right? So just ensuring that people have access to information in one place that they can that they can understand in a way that you know that appeals to them is a key piece. The other piece I think that can help with this is deepening newcomer engagement through trusted channels. So these would be um cultural groups, faith faith-based groups, you know, and places where newcomers traditionally will go for information. The third thing here is it's it's even if I do say so to myself, I think it's great that we're working closely with immigration partnerships. If you go on their website, they have all of this information listed there. I as a newcomer in 2020, I used the immigration partnerships website even before arriving in Canada to find a lot of information about about the region of Wateroo. So um that's one of the things we we talked about in terms of not trying to reinvent the wheel but trying to really leverage the work that's already happening in community to really serve newcomers. Does that answer your question? Yeah. No, I think that that's that that's really smart uh that you're not trying to recreate things that are already there. That's uh that's wonderful because I um if people are already used to uh to going and looking at the immigration partnership uh web page then then that's wonderful. I think I was going at it from the perspective of when um I mean people who've lived here for a long time don't know what the region does and what the city does and at the end of the day they just think of it as you know probably the city. So not having I think it's important that we're that we're offering uh those uh that information. So it's great if it's if it's coming from elsewhere and uh thank you and that we're making sure those connections are in place. Thanks so much. Thank you. I also wanted to mention that community centers actually have lots of partnerships with regions organizations where they offer these services and they have like sessions with community where they can come in and get all of this information. I also know that my cultural group has a partnership where people from my cultural group can go to the African Canadian Association of Water Region and attend workshops and service and just access services and ask questions about things like that. So so many um organizations are doing this work in community. That's perfect. I knew it was in here. I just didn't know where exactly it fit in your themes. So thank you. Thank you. All right, Mayor Vette. Well, thank you very much and uh thank you uh Ola to you and Alan and uh the entire team um who have worked many months on on putting this together. And uh you know one one of the things that really stood out for me as I as I read through the report is the number of people that the organizations that you've had engaged um in the process um you know more than 1100 community members more than 25 organizations more than 25 events and activities uh the newcomer strategy working group meetings and then of course all of the staff conversations and committee presentations. I think it gives council a real sense of two things. Number one, um you know, the all of the work that went into it, the efforts around um engagement, which are so important on on something like this. Um and and I think also provides us um with some some reassurance around the the recommendations um that are that are in front of us. Um, you know, as you one question that maybe I'll get you to touch on and you referenced it a little bit in your opening comments. Um, I know there was an email that came late uh in the week. I believe it was from Allison and clerks um with the correction on the financial piece um that the annual cost going forward and all of this is obviously subject to budget but would be 50,000 and not 60,000 I remember correctly. I'm wondering if you can just for council's benefit go over that. Yes. Um thank you. Um through the chair, sorry through the chair. Um thank you. Um initially we had made a calculation error in terms of the amount of um funds that will be required for the newcomer internship. Uh so initially we had $80,000 for um 2027 and then an additional $80,000 in 2028 which would then lead to $160,000 here yearly subsequently from 2029. But we went back looked at our numbers and realized that it's actually $50,000 yearly from 2029. So first ask for 2027 is $25,000 and then the ask for 2028 which would be added onto that is 20 I mean $25,000. So we would have um two cohorts I mean four um two two four four sorry I'm sorry let me just clarify this six positions I'm sorry for the first year in 2027 at the end of 2027 September to December would have two positions in one cohort and then in 2028 we'll have two cohorts of two positions each in total it would be $50,000 required yearly of operational funds from 2020 29. I hope I didn't confuse you. Yeah, thank you. That that that that's helpful. Um I wonder you and and I think the other piece that sticks out for me is um you know as you looked at this you didn't look at building a you know a large full-time staff contingent but in fact focused on some newcomer internships or or co-op positions I guess in in in a sense um in terms of this and I'm wondering how you ended up on that. I I'm always encouraged, I think, to see opportunities for for young people or internships and I'm wondering if you can just talk a little bit about how you came to that recommendation. Um, through the chair, this was a big one from community. um you know that economic piece around I just want to be independent and one of the key things that I also know this as as a newcomer one of the key things that um is a challenge for many newcomers is gaining Canadian experience whilst that's been um I think the word is scrapped but it's it's still kind of there because even if we're not requiring Canadian experience on paper people still need to know the environment and the community to be able to find jobs and keep the jobs, right? So, that's something that came out from community in terms of we want to just have that experience of what it what it's like to work in Canada, you know, and then when people do go out, they'll be able to say, okay, I have worked for this amount of time in um and then it will just be easier for them to get a job. Okay. I also wanted to say that even as a newcomer myself, my in I went back to school and my short very short internship at the city of Wateroo really opened many doors for me after I left and I was trying to get other jobs and contracts and business like that. So that's certainly something that will help a lot of newcomers with economic um independence and to be able to contribute. Mr. Chair, can I just ask a follow up to this piece and then I'll queue in again. Um so just on this Ola so the recommendation came from input from committee members to to look at creating these internship positions. Yes. Okay. Thank you. Okay. Uh we're going to go to councelor stretch next. You're you're making comments or Okay. So all right councelor stretch. Yes. Thank you. Thank you. Ola. Um, in the themes that you've numbered one to five, is there an order of of the themes? They're all even. They're just um through the chair, there's no specific order. I'm sorry, I forgot to mention that. There's no specific order of prioritization. Um, it's just the way we organized it. I understand. Um, are you aware of any other cities? I know the the region, but does water does do they have a municipal newcomer strategy or something close to the chair? Um no. Um but but I I know I keep saying KitchenAid is way ahead. I do have to acknowledge though that some of the other municipalities that have like an equity um strategy or an EDI strategy, they have elements that might be a bit related to the newcomer strategy. For example, I know for the city of G, they do have an internship program um for for newcome for for newcomers and immigrants. I know for the city of G has that and then there's there's this research across Canada about top municipalities doing amazing in terms of supporting immigrants. So they have things like internships, they have things like funding for organizations which is not a key part of the strategy because we have the rights fund and then just um many of the other some of the other initiatives that we have on on the strategy are represented there but they are not called the newcomer strategy. Okay. Thank you. But the city of London has one. Great. Um, in in the report, which I thought was great, um, you talked about civic engagement being a priority for youth. Um, and I forget what department that that fell under. Um, but I'm just curious, um, when you talk about civic engagement for youth or for anyone who is a newcomer, what what does that mean? Thank you. Um so for that one in I think because we did a lot of engagement during the summer um season we got to talk to a lot of youth and that's how that came out in terms of you know what does leadership look like what does um so that would be volunteering you know what what that looks like what does leadership look like how decisions are being made at at the city you know and and just um things like that we also went to kayak which is the KitchenA youth action council and um that's that it was it was already part of the recommendations that we had but it got a lot of support from Kay in terms of yes we do want other youth to learn about leadership volunteering even information about how council works. So there was a time during summer where a group of youth um black youth got a chance to be here at coun at council chambers and the feedback was phenomenal like even the parents reached out to say thank you the experience was wonderful so um yes that's what it could look like so leadership how the council works how the city works volunteering program and things like that okay thank you um I guess with some of our program with some of our program programs that we already run like YDI or anything like that. How do you see some of these um internal partnerships as well as external? You've talked a lot about the external partnerships which I think is great. Um but internally, what can you paint me a picture about that a little bit more? So through the chair um we did in our conversations with internal partners we did um work extensively with Lori Paleski who's um who runs the program um PRS the program supports and services through most of our community centers and um and we basically talked about the exact thing that you're mentioning which is um which is and she was very enthusiastic about including newcomer youth in all of those programs that are already existing. Like we're not looking to reinvent anything that doesn't already exist. In fact, I think in all of the recommendations that we got directly from Lori, we're um doing the same programs they're already doing specifically for new cover youth. And so um that's why it was, you know, it just seemed like such a such a great opportunity for us to build on what the resources that are already here and the events that are already happening. Right. Thank you. Thank you, Councelor Dave. Yes. Yeah. Thank you. Uh there's really a lot of good work comprehensive um here on this. Happy to see it. Um and again thank you Mayor Vantage for highlighting the financial uh difference from the report because somehow I did miss that and makes quite a bit of difference in terms of the costing and I have yeah I could be much more positive about this now I'm happy. Um can I like one thing that's a bit unclear to me though at this point too is what and for me I've missed in the report but what exactly is the intent of the interns work like what what's planned for the interns to be doing? Sorry, I turned it off by accident. Um, so through the chair, um, we don't have the entire program fleshed out yet. So, it is set to start in the fall of 2027 and, um, the HR division is currently creating a another internship program that's specifically for youth. So again, part of this process was, hey, why don't we um kind of build on that and we can do a similar thing for newcomers. And so we've looked into a bunch of different opportunity um opportunities that we heard from the community in terms of what they were looking for and asking for. And just to sort of reiterate what Ola had already mentioned is um you know, things like medium experience um opportunities for just kind of getting their foot in the door in terms of employment and um When we talked to staff across different divisions, there were some um suggestions that were made in terms of um some of the things that are already being done for co-op students, but also looking particularly within divisions and departments where possible where they are in need of um staff and are having a hard time finding staff. So that was one of the things that we were looking to as a possibility as well as um you know sort of the the opportunities for newcomers who are looking for specific roles within the organ like within the community. So people who are you know trained in certain areas and would like to get opportunities um for within those. And so it really just, you know, it's still going to be fleshed out, but um we're really looking, I mean, like everything else in this strategy, we we would like to do what we can that aligns the best with the newcomers in our community. Okay, thanks. That's helpful. And it's it's not a huge amount, so I'm assuming it's like the plan is for a short term, like six months, and it's always going to be rotating different. Yeah, it's a four month up to 24 hours a week was what we came to as the as the sort of pilot. Okay. And how did you arrive at four positions or that just seemed like the right number like why two versus like why four versus you know six or two or whatever was just there any rational behind it. Yeah, we did we through the chair we did talk through this in terms of the length of time um four months was sort of like um you know an opportunity for people to get experience while also not holding them to something for a long period of time in case they were able to get different job opportunities that came along and that sort of thing. Um, but also we we also saw this as a learning curve for the city as well. So, we didn't want to go too much at the beginning. This is why we're starting in 2027 with two positions as sort of like the first step and then moving to four in the next year um in terms of being able to figure out what we're doing and how it's being done, that sort of thing. So, it was really just sort of being conservative about what we're able to do as staff because this is something that staff will be taking on on top of, you know, things that are already happening. Okay. Yeah. So assuming this gets approved then so that number could change based on the pilot after first and only other question then too is the um the contract position that's funded by active but um that's not a small amount of money is there there I'm assuming we looked internally that we don't have the staff capacity to be able to do that um with our existing comp through the chair. Um yes, you're correct. We had we actually had Curry who is the director of economic development on our working group and we actually had a chat with the economic development team at the SDG idea factory and the response is there's not enough hands right now to handle all of the because there's actually no action points related to you know the economic um um pieces of the strategy. So running a program telling stories about businesses um doing a needs assessment with refugee um immigrants um sharing information because one of one key piece is sharing information with newcomers who have the funds to do business but don't know where to find information. So all of these many pieces are do require the full-time staff for 18 months to to you know um handle all of those tasks. Okay. Thank you. Just one one last question, but I could Mr. Chair, thank you. Um I just want to make sure I know what like I'm always there approving something and then having the actual financial part um deferred to budget. So I want to make sure like exactly what it is I'm committing to uh beforehand. So I just want to be clear in the recommended action supposeding and I'll be frank, I do have a bit of concern about finances in general of all municipalities going forward for the next little while. Um, even if we do def even if we do refer it to budget and the actual budget portion uh gets turned down or gets deferred to the following year or that sort of thing, it's really only looking at the reports, the items, recommended actions four and five and the anticipated outcomes. Those are the only parts that would get deferred. The rest of this work can be done within our existing um resources. Correct. Sorry that was complicated questions. So through the chair, you're correct. Yes. Okay. Everything else will go forward as planned. It's just these three specific um actions that have been um under the financial resourcing table with a with a yes beside them. Okay. And just to save no others making comment, Mr. Chair, just to say comment. I just that that's the understanding I'm approving I'll be approving this on is uh approving all that work to be done but not necessarily approving the financial part until we see the full budget picture. Thank you. All right, councelor Chop. Yeah, thank you and um thank you for for the report. Um I'm sure you're aware that IRCC has cut its funding substantially in different programs and I just wondered um how that I mean not that you can necessarily speak to how that's impacted some of the organizations that you consulted but als but more importantly how could that potentially modify our strategy? through the chair. Um, thank you. That's actually true. IRC has cut a lot of funding. Um, we heard that from community also. But I think one thing that and I don't want to speak for community organizations right now because I'm not in their position. But I do what I'm observing in community is that that's helping. It's collaboration has become a key piece. it have become a very important piece which is why our work with immigration partnership has even become more important because they do convey um a lot of community organizations to talk about sharing resources and you know um talking about what's available who's doing what and all of that so I believe that through our continued collaboration with immigration partnership we'll continue to have access to information to how things are unfolding and um we're going to be able to access information and also support in any the way that we can um through our partnership with our collaboration with immigration partnerships. Right. Great. Thank you. Did you want to add? No. Okay. Great. Thank you. Okay. Uh it looks like we're into comments. Councelor Sing. Yes. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Um love to be able to move forward the item when we're ready. Um I'll start up with uh I think the uh the points raised by councelor Davey. Uh I understand having a clarity of the program and the overall budget impact something that's um that will not catch us with surprise is the right step forward. Um know exactly having a better sense of the overall compounding of that that financial impact and have it referred through the budget will advise us into 2027. Uh that being said um you know there's parts of this u I guess recommendation overall work of just adopting the strategy uh as well as I think in 2026 the uh immigration partnership funding um the inter internship pilot or internship uh positions uh you know they there's associated costs but I think there's also really positive uh benefits that will be driven from it that will help us define what the overall funding funding will be in in a long-term basis. Um, you know, I want to speak in congratulatory sense to to staff and figuring a strategy that's uh all-encompassing at the same time focused on uh giving a gateway uh for new newcomers that would not have an opportunity otherwise. One of the biggest challenges faced by newcomers that are qualified that do have experiences from other other communities uh other parts of the world is that reintegrating into a community where they can transfer their skill sets. um they they have uh you know they have assets to be able to provide their their new new home but they find that barrier of being able to figure out how do I showcase that and these intern positions will give them that first access. One of the things I do want to encourage our staff to do and again this is not to be critical. I think this is an important step forward in us showing the right courses first and showing how that program can be run the the internship program but then also taking buy in from the community. We can't do enough if it just it's going to lead to two three or four positions. That's not enough. That's what we're piloting and showcasing to a corporate structure of how the benefit can be but at the same time in a community benefit but then we should take in by partners with working with the um um I guess the the chamber of commerce seeing other partnership uh organizations and all other well-intentioned businesses in our community that can learn from our experience can see the integration and benefit to to their businesses by taking on internship positions from essentially newcomers. I'll say this, there's no better way to create a lifelong uh loyal ambassador for your business, for your organization than giving someone a chance who wouldn't have that chance otherwise. The uh the internship program that we will have is these are individuals that will either come back essentially be trained to work within the city. They will be viable candidates for future positions which we are always seeking talent. And the second thing is they will take the benefits that they reaped from working within the city of Kitchener and take that and advance it and u essentially kind of see that positive goodwill across our community and that that's reflective of the positive steps that the city of Kitchener is doing in in ensuring that uh you know this newcomer strategy is not just in word but also it's through action. It's the internship program I think is the action. everything else a lot of communities do it's wordage it's a lot of in their policies they endeavor to do the things but it's always important to show what you're doing not just endeavor to do I think the internship program is is walking walking I guess walking the talk or whatever they're saying is but it's important um the delegate also addressed my last point I want to make is one of the struggles that they felt uh is u the language barrier and uh and it's important for us to remember as a Many newcomers arrive while still developing uh their English language. Uh navigating services, asking questions, participating in programs can be that challenge and language barriers exist and as a city and as residents I think it's important to build within our ethos and our culture to those interactions with patients um understanding and respect as uh as people work to build confidence influence. So that's the strategy that we have should be us reflecting inward and saying our delivery personnel, how patient are they with approaching newcomers, our front-end staff and community centers, how welcoming and how patient they are with those that can't necessarily speak the language. And this is I also as a a ethos of the city that should be we should be encouraging all our members to be caring and accepting of those that may look different, sound different and may not be able to communicate with the fluency but giving that chance. So good job to staff. I think this is a important step forward but something that we're going to continue having to build on. Thank you. Thank you Mayor Vad. There we go. Thanks uh thanks Chair Schneider and um thank you councelor Singh for uh for moving this. Um I I really want to uh begin by uh expressing my thanks to to you Ola to Alan to Romina and to to others on on the staff team who have been uh uh part of this. obviously the newcomer strategy working group and and everyone who took the time to participate in this. Um, you know, I think uh Ola, this is obviously the first time you did a project like this. Uh, you came on board at the city to uh uh to to make this happen and uh I think you did an outstanding job in terms of uh of delivering this. So congratulations and and and kudos to uh uh to you for for your hard work along with the uh the support uh and leadership of others as well. Um, I'm uh I'm very excited and enthused uh about this uh report because I think it's it's really worked and it's and it's always hard on on issues to find that right balance of of figuring out in a space where multiple u entities or orders of government uh have have jurisdiction or have a role to play. it's trying it's hard to carve out that appropriate space uh and minimize uh overlap and uh I think you've really worked hard to to achieve that in in terms of um the report that's before us. The other thing I I will note um and you know to to have a strategy like this come forward uh with not an overabundance of um of of asks financial asks in particular uh I think is also a a big achievement and so the fact that you've been able to you know find ways of working that into the existing work plans in the organization um I think that's also exciting and important I think one of the other things um you know because one of the things that's come up is how do we also welcome and engage new people who come into the community um that maybe aren't as new uh in terms of being new Canadians uh as others. And I think you know it's an opportunity here to acknowledge another program that we have and that's our Love My Hood program. And I say that because um you know just a few weeks ago I had an opportunity to go into the Victoria Commons neighborhood and some of you may know Devin Fernandez uh who is one of the leaders of KW Library of Things and him and his wife or partner hosted um a uh an event called the Rooted Box and it's actually some people may remember Welcome Wagon back in the day. I don't not sure if it exists anymore. Well, they came up with a rooted box, which is this little gift box that they give uh neighbors that move into their into their neighborhood uh with little uh you know, gifts from some of the businesses in the area um and so on. And uh and then I was at a chili and and macaroni uh uh mac and cheese uh cookoff in the auditorium neighborhood and I found out they have a similar kind of uh initiative that they do in their neighborhood. So all that to say some of those things are actually already happening through another great program that the city helped facilitate and community now leads and and runs. So you take that, you take what we're doing here with the newcomer strategy and and you know focusing primarily but not exclusively on u you know new Canadians and newcomers who are either coming to Canada or to our community um is is is I think really exciting. Um I'm also a big believer in in uh providing opportunities um for for newcomers and and particularly younger people who are looking to get that kind of work experience and uh I think you've sort of found that sweet spot. There may be an opportunity for us particularly on the summer hires to apply to the federal government uh for some some funding um in the uh in the summer months. um that won't wouldn't be a year- round thing, but uh it's certainly an opportunity for us to uh to to look at that. Um and lastly, I I'm glad that you know in the recommendation in terms of immediate funding while the rest will be referred to uh budget, I'm glad there's a recommendation here uh for for funding uh for our uh for our friends um that uh that spoke earlier in terms of uh the partnership, the water region partnership. Uh so thank you uh for all of the work. Uh this is really important as as someone whose family immigrating here um with with me and tow as a as a young child. Um, you know, I I've really been disturbed about the negativity that quite frankly as time has lately about newcomers and um the reality is that the strength of Canada has been folks who have come at different points um along Canada's history uh along with of course our our first nations um and and that's what made has made Canada strong and I think a strategy like this will only help us uh become stronger in the future. So, thank you. Thank you, Councelor Inex. Thank you, Chair Snyder. I promise I won't be as long as uh Councelor Singh and uh Mayor Verbanovic, but uh I do agree with with all their comments. Um I also want to thank uh the delegates for for coming in and for their support with uh with this uh strategy and the program. And more importantly, I want to thank our team. Uh this is a really great body of work. Um I think I think I have no doubt this is going to set up newcomers for success. In fact, I I like it so much that I like the fact that we're building a system to, you know, tap into those the resources of those newcomers. And uh I think to me it's just a it's just a great overall successful strategy in my opinion. Um that the community is going to benefit huge. So uh I I really really that's that's the one I really really like a lot about this and I know there's all the others in here. My computer froze. I can't mention them all but I think that's the one that we're going to see the best benefit and I look forward to the updates. and uh and seeing where this where this goes on a hopefully it's a yearly basis. Okay. Thank you. Thank you, Council Johnston. Thank you, Chair Schneider. This is this is really great and I just want to say uh thank you to the team that has put this together. Thank you for the community members that participated in being a part of this. It's amazing. Thank you to our community partners as well. This is a win-win. And uh when we look at the strategic plan alignment of fostering a caring city together, creating an economically thriving city together, what we're doing here, what we're what we're uh you know, our our uh a really strong push towards truly is setting our new residents up for success. And this is really exciting. I am I'm thrilled to see this. Um, I'm actually uh a seventh generation Canadian and I know the implications of of being that in terms of uh our First Nations and that is about uh making room and uh helping other people along the way and making really good decisions and along this is one of those this is incredible and it's exciting to see. um can't wait to see the reports that are going to come from this and and I'm happy to support the financial uh pieces that we're putting into this because at the end of the day I think that the more that we support and set people up first to be successful frankly that costs our community a lot less money in the long run and that piece is really exciting. So thank you so much to everybody who worked on this. This is really great piece of work that uh you and frankly Kitchener should be proud of. Thank you. Thank you, Councelor Stretch. Thank you. Um I loved hearing from our delegate that Kitchener is the place where they come and they study, they work, they heal, and they live. Um and I, you know, experienced that too. And I really believe um and I'm proud of the work that Kitchener does, taking a lead within the region, often solving a lot of regional problems um here in Kitchener. We're really intentional about working with the community and the members um in it taking great care and I really saw this reflected in the report. I thought um it was it was very thoughtful. Um I loved all of the community engagement and all the partners. I think that's a really wise direction to go in. I know you said that the the five themes weren't in any order, but if they were, I was going to recommend flipping them completely upside down. So, theme number five being priority one and going down from there. I think um equipping our staff and our team will really really help inform our way forward as we build internal internal experts. And as you know from this work relationship, those trusted networks really do um lead in in in fostering that that reciprocity that can come through supporting newcomers. And so I just wanted to say I'm looking forward to support this work. look looking forward to support this work. Um and encou encouraged by, you know, what what it looks like and excited about what's to come. Um yeah, that's it. So, thank you. Thank you, Councelor D. Yeah, thank I just wanted to clarify that I'm actually while I'm assuming I'm still around the horseshoe when next budget comes around, while I'm reserving my um judgment on those specific portions for the full picture, I would be remiss not to say that I am very much supportive of the immigration partnership funding uh at this point and the good work that they do. And I would also ask for recorded vote, Mr. Chair. Thank you. Thank you. Well, the great thing about being a chair is you've got a great committee and they've made all the great comments already. So, I won't repeat them. Although, I do want to say thank you to Miss Herrer for uh your wonderful delegation and it really crystallizes why this is so necessary. So, the mystical newcomer strategies been moved by councelor Singh. A recorded vote has been called. Sir and uh that passes unanimously. Thank you committee. All right. Okay. We'll move on to um item number 5.1, our summary water report. As we set up for that, Angela Mick, our manager of quality management and water programs, has a presentation for us. Good evening, mayor and council. My name is Angela Mick and I'm the manager of quality management and water programs. Every year we present reports to the owner council to summarize the drinking water quality management system referred to as the DWQM and to meet the regulatory requirements of the safe drinking water act. Our reports focus on the safety of the water. Kitchener's 2025 water reports confirm compliance and ensure our drinking water remains safe. The region of Waterlue supplies and treats water. The city distributes the water and ensures water quality through testing. The DWQM framework guides safe operations through monitoring, maintenance, risk assessment, audits, and continual improvement. The 2025 review and testing results for Kitner show strong performance completed maintenance programs and full regulatory compliance. The region identified a water capacity constraint in late 2025 which is largely not reflected in these reports. Collaborative work is ongoing. The operational plan is a living document that contains over 300 procedures, work instructions, and forms that describe the various activities required to operate the water distribution system. The DWQMS management review is a document summarizing the elements of the standard. The summary water report is a compliance report which covers testing and ministry inspections. These documents work together to report on the compliance and conformance of the drinking water system. Kitchener is meeting the regulatory requirements to ensure that the drinking water is safe. The region is responsible for water supply, treatment, storage, and the transmission water mains which feed into Kitchener's distribution system. Kitchener is responsible for the water once it enters the distribution system. Kitchener responsibilities include operating, maintenance, and replacing assets including water manes, hydrants, valves, water services, and meters. Kitchener is also responsible to routinely test the water within the distribution system to confirm the ongoing safety of the water. We all contribute to conservation to support the operation of the water distribution system. There are 21 elements. These include maintenance, infrastructure renewal, sampling, testing, monitoring, and preparation of an annual management review. The management review is a summary document to inform council of the status of the drinking water system on an annual basis. We were reacredited by a third party this fall. This means we are in conformance and are we are doing what we say we do in our procedures. We completed a variety of water maintenance programs including water main cleaning, valve turning, valve replacement and hydrogen operating checks. We have processes for responding to emergencies like water mane breaks and to customer complaints. Water man replacement programs were mostly completed as planned. In 2026, we will continue with the maintenance and replacement activities. There are no concerns with the water quality in the drinking water system. The annual water quality report is a compliance report to confirm that we are taking enough samples, that we are reporting when results are outside the limits, and that we are completing appropriate corrective actions to resolve any issues. Over 2,200 bacteriological tests and 4,100 chlorine residuals were taken across the city in 2025. There were 20 adverse samples, meaning that there was either bacteria present or the chlorine was below limits. Adverse samples require reporting and resampling to be resolved. Kitner is audited annually by the Ministry of Environment, Conservation, Parks, and is in compliance. Are there any questions on these reports? Thank you, M. There are. Uh, we've got Councelor Johnson. Thank you, Chair Schneider. Um, thank you so much for your presentation, Miss Mick, and I find it confusing in terms of um like everything that's going on with our water right now. So, the region is responsible for supplying the water, but we're responsible for sampling and and making sure um uh that it it hits the quality standards. Can you maybe explain like where the where the region ends and then kind of where we start with that because I do find that confusing. Thank you. Through the chair there is a little bit of overlap. So sorry. Can you speak into your um sorry? Yes. Go ahead. Through the chair. There is a little bit of overlap with things like testing. So on the supply side of things they the region does test the water as well before it enters our system. So um and then it enters through transmission water manes. So these transmission water manes there's not like a like a start and stop in the distribution system. It's kind of like you know arteries with veins. So we are we would maintain some of their water manes although if they broke they would fix them. So there is like a a relationship there, but supply is um the region's responsibility, right? So they're supplying us the water, but they're supplying us the clean already tested and treated water and then and we're further testing it. Okay. Through the chair, we test further because the chlorine can uh get used up through the system. So the the water system is very large and it has to go out to all the the ants. So we have to continually monitor that to make sure that nothing grows within it might have gotten contaminated or something is what you're saying. Okay. MAR would like to address this as well. Uh yes. So through the chair perhaps the simplest way to describe it is the region is responsible for um sourcing and supplying uh the water and then treating that water um to for the city to distribute and then the city is responsible responsible to make sure that the drinking water quality is sustained through our drinking through our distribution system. So at the end of the day, the customer has clean, safe drinking water. Yeah, that that's you know what that's really helpful. So it's just making sure that uh customer A who's at the say the top of the water chain, let's put it that way, who's getting the the water that's coming directly from there and the person who's maybe the farthest away is getting that same quality water. Thank you. Thank you, Mayor Vado. My fault. Okay. Thank you. Um, thank you, Mr. Chair, and uh, thank you, Angela, for the uh, uh, the report and Mr. Goldendrick for that uh, um, that clarification. I guess in in a sense, we're kind of the the last mile on water delivery and the first mile on on sewage export. Is is that kind of a a fair way of putting it? Um, in ter sounds like it sounds like it is. Um so in terms of the report that's in front of us, we're purely dealing with quality, not the quantity issue which has been so much in the news today or not today but in in recent weeks. Correct. Through the chair. That is correct. It's a quality report. Okay. And um this may be a question not so much for you as much as um Miss McGold. Is there sort of any overlap between the two? Um, and and I guess I'm thinking more um and and the report touches on it a little bit is as we look at this quantity issue in the longer term and methods of of of mitigating or conserving water. um we need to think about how this how that may uh in the fullness of time impact this wonder just touch on that a little bit. Uh so through the chair just in terms of um how we would incorporate um the current water supply issue into these types of reports in the future. Um that would be incorporated through our annual management review and what informs that are things like our risk assessment. And so we'll be um while we do have supply as a risk um in a risk assessment, that'll be something that we'll be paying, you know, looking uh for a more robust review given the current information that's available. And then that will come out through the management review. And so um the the water supply issue, the region wasn't reported until late in the year. Um and so that would then inform uh this the 2026 management review and those those results would come forward to council. Okay. So so I guess in in a sense that as we think about things over the long term like hyd flushing and things like that that's where kind of the two maybe overlap a little bit. So currently um we maintain maintenance programs to make sure that we are operating um the water distribution system as effectively and safely as possible. There are some programs that we have that utilizes uh water um to maintain the system. So things like water mean flushing, hydrant maintenance. Um we are taking a look at those programs to look at how we can uh more efficiently deliver those programs in light of the water supply. At the end of the day, we we will need to conduct maintenance activities that utilize water to continue to ensure um the customer receives uh clean, safe drinking water. Okay. And that that would be true for I guess all five of the seven area municipalities that are responsible for delivery like we are correct and then obviously the region will look after the other two townships specifically. Uh that is correct. All area municipalities are are looking at uh our program delivery in those areas. Okay. Wonderful. Thank you very much. Thank you. And councelor Davey. Yeah. Thank you. My question just relates to like salt salt runoff and salt content in our our groundwater. I I guess it's clear that that's actually regional responsibility to to monitor and look at, but I don't recall if the that information is shared directly with us. Um, and I guess the reason I asked is because we're obviously the large municipalities are largely responsible for road salt. Um, and I guess I'm a bit concerned too when we've had twice the amount of uh snow we've had historically. I'm assuming that relates to probably twice the amount of salt we've been using on the roads when we don't run out. Um so I guess I'm just wondering how that um connections made between the region the city to try and make sure we manage that through the chair. um within the distribution system, we don't typically sample for sodium um that I can't say 100% where how often they do that at the region, but they do have um annual reports that they post that has a summary of all the chemical sampling that they do as well. Okay. I think going forward maybe if um just I my personal preference if there's a way to give us uh just maybe just attach the region's report with respect to that because there's a greater focus on um the water supply in general. I think it's a key aspect and and one that I'm frankly worried about in terms of our runoff. So thank you. Thank you Mr. Report. Okay, see no further questions. Do we have a mover for the summary report or councelor Denell? Okay. Uh those in favor and that passes the carries. Thank you. We'll move on to item 5.2 which is our citywide active transportation route two. Should we get set up for that? All right. And Liz Christensen said, our project manager trails has a presentation for this. Welcome. Project manager in our transportation services department. And tonight I'm here to present to you uh route two of our citywide active transportation and wayfinding plan. So the city of Kitchener um active citywide transportation routes um are justified through the Kitchener strategic plan for building a connected city together. Um the purpose of this project is to encourage increased use of active transportation that connects neighborhoods through holistic trail and bike route enhancements that are easy to identify, navigate for all users uh ages and abilities. So the uh Kitchener is created um is creating a city-wide network of branded active transportation routes linking eight major neighborhoods with 100 kilometers of safe accessible infrastructure. Each route uh has a dist distinct name, color uh and number that make navigation easy. To succeed, each route must meet all ages and ability standards, which includes filling infrastructure gaps, and adding uh upgrades like curb cuts, raised crossings so that the entire route is safe and comfortable. In 2025, the city implemented its first wayfinding route um called uh route one, which is from the down, sorry, from the boardwalk to the downtown. These you'll see are some of the photos that are posted right now along this route. So, route 2 um is 7 12 km long. It is uh most sections are already built, including parts of the downtown cycling grid and the most recent complete streets reconstruction of East Avenue. Only minor fixes in trail paving um are needed to meet all ages and ability standards. Key destinations along this route include Central Station, uh City Hall, the Central Library, the Odd, Stanley Park Community Center, Dom Cardillo Trail, and Stanley Park Mall. Based on public feedback, the route will continue along the spur line linking three major destinations, Stan, Stanley Park, downtown and uptown Waterlue. So, here is a map of the route from Uptown Waterlue to Stanley Park. Um, this route begins on the Dom Cardella Trail at River Road and ends on the spur line in Uptown Waterlue. Some of the upgrades along this route are the expressway trail that runs along the expressway from Krug to Burbank, a walkway block from Burbank to Lynhurst, the trail that links between Ottawa Street and Greyber Place, and the Dom Cardillo Trail from Franklin Street to River Road. There are four trail crossings. Three that uh three of them are along uh the Spurline Trail at G Street, Louisa, and Wellington, as well as a raised crossing at Midland Road. Wayfinding signs will be installed at all uh decision points for a seamless intuitive journey. The financial impacts the total estimated capital cost is approximately 835,000 to complete the following work. 1.4 km of trails um to upgrade them to multi-use trails including a boulevard multi-use trail. 80 wayfinding sign uh along the route an installation of 0.7 kilometers of neighborhood bikeways improving of four trail crossings. There is approximately $180,000 of increased operating cost to maintain the paved trails and the PXOs. So through the community engagement that we did um their overall wayfinding strategy was undertaken in 2025 where over 400 um people provided feedback online and in person at the goal block uh boardwalk and Konosoga College. And then this past January we posted details regarding Route 2 on engage Kitchener uh with an interactive map so people could share their safety concerns and confusing areas al um that they navigate. and we received over 150 online comments and direct emails regarding route 2. So what we heard through the public feedback on engaged Kitchener was that safe infrastructure for all ages and abilities. Wayfinding is uh appreciated but only if the route itself is safe and includes things like safe crossings, separation for motor vehicles and year- round maintenance. route two alignment uh and wayfinding preferred uh preferences varied at specific locations that were confusing to navigate or currently have challenging barriers um that people uh try to avoid. So build a connected city together getting around easily, sustainably, and safely to places and spaces that matter the most. Route 2 connects several neighborhoods providing a reliable option to get to school, transit, shopping, and major destinations. Thank you. And thank you. Are there any questions? Councelor Chapman. Thank you. Um, so I love the trails. Um, and I know last summer they you you put in some signs that were more visible to cyclists, for example, like keep to the right or use your bell. I forget what all of the signs were, what all the signs said. and they were dispersed throughout um sections of the the Iron Horse Trail. I was wondering wondering if that's gone beyond just that the Iron Horse Trail and if there are opportunities to put similar signage um throughout the whole um trail network. So through the chair um we did put some up and within the first week three of them were stolen down by Queen Street. Um they're made of aluminum so a pretty quick um they were temporary and we had planned on moving them around the city. There are still a few in the Glasgow uh in the iron horse trail area through this um plan. We have some subway style mapping that we're putting on and we do have trail etiquette that will go on those as well and they are posted along three locations along that route at the beginning of each end of the route and then one in the middle. We do need more uh wayfinding etiquette on there and that our plan is to continue to add it where possible. Okay. Because they were very useful for cyclists in particular because you're you're biking by a bigger sign and you don't really catch it, right? So I found those were very helpful. Um and what about um ebikes and e scooters? Um, are there any I know it's a difficult topic, but um any changes in the foreseeable future on how those can be um managed on the trails? And I don't know if it's manage, maybe that's not the right word, but um just to make it so it's um the trails are accessible for all all users through the chair. We we do anticipate a variety of users using uh route two and all of our future active transportation routes. Um that's one of the things we look at is to see what type of demand and volume we expect along these routes uh and have the appropriate etiquette and wayfinding signage to to meet that. I'd say in terms of larger bylaws and strategies that's probably outside the scope of this report, but it is definitely something we're continuing to monitor. Okay. Thank you and thanks for the work you do. Thank you. Thank you, Cassie Johnston. Thank you, Chair Schneider. Um, yeah, my questions were around safety on the trail as well, because you said that's one of the um one of the things that you're looking at. And what we hear, what I hear most about uh with the Iron Horse Trail in particular, uh is about um ebikes and scooters on the trail and people not feeling safe because of the speed of them uh on the trail. I I know we were supposed to get a report. Is this is this considered the report that we were going to get on that or do we have something else coming? There would be another report for this is specific to the way finding groups. Okay. Okay. Which is great and I'm very supportive of that also around the um wayinding. Is are these signs going to be lit at all? because that's another piece of the of the trails around the safety is the um uh whether or not they're lit at night through the chair of the sorry yeah the the signs themselves are not lit but they do have the required reflectivity so with the street lights that we would have around uh they would be visible uh through that they would also reflect off of bike lights and that type of thing so they would be visible at night if you have some other uh lighting around it which they all should have a light on their bikes So hopefully absolutely. Okay. All right. Thank you. Thank you, counselor. Sing. Yeah. Thank you. And I think uh some of the proposed numbers do seem high but much of that is related to the I think the safe crossing of the streets which um I'll staff answer but in my my assessment that creates almost a speed calming measure along that route as well as the uh year round maintenance and accessibility of that trail. let you answer because again I don't want people to take away thinking that's going to cost us 800,000 600,000 whatever those numbers were towards us putting up signs. So through the chair in terms of the capital cost that's primarily related to paving trails. So um there's 1.4 kilometers of trails that will be paved. So that's a a significant amount of trail added in terms of the operational cost. We'll refer that to budget, but I what I what I would say is that's worst case scenario and it's a number that we can refine in terms of operating budget as we get close to operating budget season. Okay. Now, a couple suggestions are let's avoid using uh aluminum or anything that's looks aluminum as signage perhaps to deter from uh them team being taken away. Uh the other thing is is more of a strategic approach. I mean, I'm supportive of this. This is something that's uh been pushed by council as a part of our trails and master plan and encouraged by many members of council including myself in our endeavor to have more accessible trails network that's here around winter excess uh is towards a phased approach. Um again these routes are recommended for you know paving and then the street crossing and then the signage but have you considered perhaps paving first seeing the usability of the trail the the how how actively it's used and then going the pre street crossing and then later on signage so that we're investing the right amount of money in the right spots and that we're not going all in in every trail or along the strategic network that we've defined. But there may be some other priorities through the chair. So the the capital investments are guided by the cycling trails master plan priority list. Um what we try to do when we have one of these citywide routes is bring it up to that highest level of standard. So part of the brand promise is when you see this route, you're confident that you're going to be safe the whole way. So we do want to give it as much of a holistic approach. If there's, you know, minor upgrades that we can defer, sure. But it it's really that what we heard in terms of our consultations on this is that if you're going to wifide a route and say this is a citywide route, you're going to get from Stanley Park all the way to downtown Kitchener. Uh the community is expecting that there's a certain level of standard along with that uh and a brand promise. That's it's not just about a wayfinding color. It's about a brand promise that this is going to be a reliable and safe route. So that's that's our intention. Okay. There's a little bit of a comment the more advocacy for my ward that I'm fortunate to represent. Uh but if there's staff want to comment back on it. Uh as we looking at strategic like networks, one of the the corridors that's very crucial uh for a lot of pedestrian traffic is the hydro quarter uh from Sun Sunrise Plaza or Mall uh going all the way on toward like along block line uh towards the LRT station which is at Courtland. It connects W five and six integrated together and again makes that community uh as one and the more important thing is feed in traffic towards the LRT station and Courtland and block line. When would that be in the phase uh again because it's a it's a wellused border and it's underserved right now. Through the chair that is one of our citywide routes connecting Sunrise to Fairway Station. Uh so it is on our radar. Um what I can say is that we've been trying to prioritize routes that have the least amount of upgrades uh to stay within that budget. So route one boardwalk had again minor ch uh paving of trails. Route two some trails that need to be upgraded and crossings but that is is definitely one that is on the the priority list for sure. Okay. And I'll just you know re back or state at least we've invested significant infrastructure and trails maintenance network because of some of the work that I had initiated with the pilot uh many of those trails started in W six. So many of the the neighborhood trails already thank you the council already waved and winter maintained and and staff as well and this quarter is really crucial in linking that already investment made. I think it would serve an existing population that's using the neighborhood trails connecting into a citywide trail. Thank you. And thank you, counselor stretch. Thank you. My question is around winter maintenance. Um East AB runs right through W 10 and um with the new um with the new bike trail or multi-use trail there. um especially after this big winter, there was a lot of frustration that the trail would be clear but the sidewalks would not be cleared by the city. And so I'm just wondering if you can speak to that and why that has to happen and why that does happen. Uh so through the chair, thank you for the question councelor stretch. It is different uh equipment that is used to support the maintenance on multi-use pathways uh those trails uh versus the sidewalk um equipment. So we use a trackless uh plow for the sidewalks and a pickup truck with plow blade at the front for trails. Um so it is a different crew um operating at different times. We do prioritize um in terms of some of the multi-use pathways that get um folks into the downtown area. So, the area uh that you're referring to, uh the trackless uh sidewalk operation, we have several routes throughout the city um and they start in the wee hours of the morning uh to try to get through a route, but a full route does take um eight hour a typical eight hour day. And so you're you're seeing um those sidewalks cleared typically within 24 hours after um a snowfall snow event. Um but it could be anywhere within kind of that that 8 to 10 hour time frame. Um thank you. I guess my question was more around we as a city are required to to clear the snow from the the act of transportation through the province or um is that something that we are choosing to prioritize? So through the chair it it is a little bit of both. So we there are minimum maintenance standards associated with trails particularly adjacent to roadways within the right ofway where there are required response times. In addition, um, in terms of the broader off-road, uh, multi-use pathways and trail system, um, we know that those are, uh, really important routes for, as councelor Singh mentioned, school children and other commuters, um, to get to their, you know, to get to where they need to go. And so we also, uh, prioritize those off-road trails as well. Okay. Thank you. Thank you, Councelor Dau. Thank you, Chair Schneider. And before I ask my question, I'll just uh thank the city again for paving uh the rest of the existing uh gravel path in Wilson Park. Uh because it was paved so late, we've had snow covered it covering it for the last four months. And so I was able to finally able to make my way over there yesterday. And so I think it's it's a big win for our community. Um, but having said that, uh, do we know how many how much of our our trails are not paved um, across the city? And and if obviously there are some that aren't, is there a goal to pave them all? I stumped you guys through through the chair. I I don't have the exact kilometers on me. What I can say is that in the cycling trails master plan that's definitely been identified how many kilometers of trails we have. Uh are we paving them all? Not not exactly. There is a hierarchy of trails. So we have uh what's considered a multi-use trail. Those are the are kind of the highest standard and would generally be hard surface with the goal bear around maintenance. So, we do have um at least dozens of kilometers of those types of trails that still need to be upgraded, but there are going to be some trails that are more uh more foot path types of things through nature areas. Uh wouldn't be the intention to pave those. Okay. Awesome. Thank you. Okay. Uh no further questions. Is there a mover for this item? Councelor Johnson had her arm there very quickly. That's good. So the uh the item has been moved. Uh all those in favor. Okay. And that carries. Okay. And that concludes community and infrastructure services. Thank you.

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