Hi Sarah, can you hear us? Okay. Katie, are you able to hear me? >> I can. Can you hear us? >> I can. Yeah. So, I won't have my camera on cuz I am up in a forest. >> Oh, no. No worries. Hi, Councelor Delavio. Can you still hear us? Zoom. Zoom keeps glitching out on me. Uh, I've gone to the uh to the browser now. Can you hear me? Okay. >> Yes, we can. Thank you. I promise not to use my camera too much, but I just want to make sure it works. I don't want to frighten you people. >> No, that's that's great. Um, if it makes it any easier to keep the like for your service, if keeping the camera off works better, then you can do that as well. >> Thanks, Katie. We'll begin in 1 minute. Hi, councelor Garcandi. Can you hear us? Okay. >> Good evening, everyone. I'd like to uh call to order uh um Ginsby Council meeting of uh Monday, August 10th, 2026. Everyone that can please rise for the playing of the national anthem. Heat. Heat. Heat up here. Grimby is situated on treaty land. This land is steeped in the rich history of the first nations such as the hatawender, the hodnosoni and the inishab including the missagas of the credit first nation. There are many first nations, matei and ina people from across turtle island that live and work in Niagara today. The regional municipality of Niagara and the town of Ginsby stand with all indigenous people past and present in promoting the wise stewardship of the lands on which we live. Are there any disclosures of pecuanary or nonpunary interest? Seeing none, can I have a mover and secondary to approve the agenda? Moved by councelor How, second by councelor Dvoli. Resolve the agenda for the August 10th, 2026 council meeting be approved. All in favor? That's carried. Ginsby Public Library cho chair um Dedri Burke is here to present the board's end of term presentation. Dedri, please come up to the podium. Good evening, Mayor Jordan, town council staff, others, others online as well as in the room. Thank you for this opportunity. On behalf of the Grimby Public Library Board, it is my pleasure to provide an overview of the library board's accomplishments over this term. as a quick refresher about what a public library board does. Under the public library boards act, if you could forward that just one more, please. Thank you. Under the public libraries act, uh the Grizzly Public Library Board is its own corporate entity. The library board also is employer to library staff and hires the CEO and chief librarian who's responsible for the day-to-day management and supervision of library employees. In addition to appointing board members and providing the majority of the library's funding, town council has up to two counselors who sit on the board and participate in its governance role. I'd like to take a quick moment to thank councelor Hal for his important and thoughtful contribution as a leazison to the library board and council. Next slide, please. I have back a little bit, but that's okay. We'll stay there. The Grizzly Public Library Board has been very busy over the last four years. We've been guiding and supporting the library as it continues to provide valuable services and programming to Grimby. The board has been exploring the present and future needs of a growing Grimby and setting the stage for the future of library services. That begins with the recruitment of a new library CEO and chief librarian. In 2025, the board successfully completed the recruitment and appointment of a new CEO chief librarian, Ashley Whip, to provide strategic leadership to the Grimby Public Library. This ensured a smooth leadership transition while maintaining continuity of library operations and services. In 2025, the library board completed a growth feasibility study to evaluate current library space, services, staffing, and future community needs. Faced with growing pressures to provide more to more people, the board wanted to have real data about current shortfalls, desired directions, and a clearer picture of what it will take to respond effectively to our growing population. This document will be a valuable guide to the library's future. Next slide. We also chose to look at strengthening governance through policy review. Good governance requires a solid foundation. For the GPL board, that meant a comprehensive review of policies to reflect current legislation, best practices, and consistency with the town of Grimby where beneficial. The creation of a stronger governance framework for future boards increases clarity around board roles and responsibility as well as best practices and accountability. Next slide. We also took on the task of developing a new strategic plan, our 2026 2030. So, the board just recently completed this new plan. It includes a couple of items uh that we feel are really important and it came out in the surveys and all of the consultation that we did. So, we're looking at delivering what matters, providing accessible, inclusive, and responsive library services that meet the evolving needs of our residents, connecting our community, strengthening partnerships, expanding outreach, and fostering meaningful connections with residents and community organizations. and growing with Grimby, planning for the future by addressing population growth, evolving community needs, and ensuring the library has the space, staff, and resources to continue serving residents for years to come. We're now undertaking a plan for distributing our strategic plan to a various community partners and champions and working on action items for each of those priorities. Next slide. We also had a continued success of our Glam Gala partnership. The board was pleased that the glam galla tradition continued in 2025 despite challenges with changing commitments and circumstances. This major fundraiser for the library, art gallery, and museum demonstrates not only the strength of the collaboration between these three organizations, but also the desire in Grimby to nurture, support, and celebrate literacy, art, and history. We're very much looking forward to the 2027 event. And now we're in the process of looking at our board legacy and succession planning. So, as the 4-year term of the Courage GPL board comes to a close, the board is now completing its legacy and succession planning, our passion and commitment to library services in Grimby is a driving force behind our common desire to see the progress and momentum continue into the next term. Next slide. We also strengthen a great deal of our community partnerships. So over the past four years, the Grimsy Public Library has continued to build meaningful partnerships with local organizations to expand library programming and connect residents with valuable community resources. I want to just highlight a couple of them. There are more than this, but we could talk for a very long time about them. So certainly we had uh both the Rotary International as well as the Brain Injury Association of Niagara uh become collaborators and partners to the library. So Rotary members led the library's popular repair cafe and they also uh provided several successful initiatives including the monthly meet a professional professional or hobbyist series where local experts share their knowledge and expertise. The library also part made establish a partnership with the brain injury association of Niagara to host monthly peer support meetings providing a welcoming and accessible community space for those living with brain injuries and their caregivers to connect, share experiences and access support. Thank you to all our partners and collaborators. The library welcomes the opportunity to work with more organizations. The board itself also established goals. Uh each term the board establishes goals in order to steer its own work, not just the library. These goals help with board decision-m while focusing on the board governance role. These are not end points but are ongoing works. So our goals included responding to community growth. That was our feasibility study. also refining the board's governance role that was updating our policies. Improving financial sustainability that was adapting to changing municipal financial processes and planning for future resources needed that were identified in our feasibility study and strategic plan as well as developing an advocacy plan to build strong relationships with council, municipal staff, community organizations and residents. Next. So, what is the future for us? As this term of the library board comes to a close, I'd like to highlight some of the opportunities for the board into the future. There is nothing worse than a document which took time and energy, resources, and money being simply filed away or sitting on a shelf. The GPL board has begun acting on some of the action items from our growth feasibility report and will soon be encouraging the next board to do the same. Some of these items include planning for a 10,000qt library expansion, offering alternative service delivery models, increasing the library staffing complement, providing access to emerging technology, and planning for a second library branch around 2045. Next slide. Additionally, the future for the GPL board will include promoting the new strategic plan, finding champions, and making decisions and investments to align with the plan, developing an advocacy plan to raise better awareness of the library's needs, impacts, and strengths in support of addressing our staff and financial shortfalls, as well as future library expansion options. And finally, exploring opportunities to reinvision our current space to improve functionality, accessibility, and set the stage for clear plans around expanding current spaces and new spaces. Next slide, please. I want to conclude by stressing that these accomplishments are much are more so those of the library board. I've included a few more slides at the end of my presentation for council to amplify the success of library staff who are the real heroes of this story. Their work and dedication is what should be celebrated. And if I could take a second to just go to the next slide, please. Oh, back one. There we go. So, you'll see highlighted 7.5% increase in library visits, 16.7% increase in circulation, 16.9% increase in digital resource use. We've seen strong growth in how residents are using library services. Visits have increased as more community members are using the library to access resources, connect with others, and participate in various programs and activities. The next slide, please. Expanded programming and community engagement. 44.5% increase in the number of programs offered for all ages. 111.6% increase in program attendance. Just think about that for one minute. 10,592 attendees in June 2026 compared to 5,000 in 2024. The library's 2026 TD summer reading had a record 545 children register. This has been one of our greatest areas of growth in programming and community engagement. By expanding our program offering offerings and developing new partnerships, we've created more opportunities for residents to connect, learn, and participate. And of course, there were a couple of capital improvements. It says numerous, but there were a couple. We uh installed automatic doors, new protective window film, improved our quiet study furniture, made the addition of a drop down projector and screen in our fireplace lounge. We uh put in a water bottle refilling station, new HVAC system, as well as renovation of the public washrooms, which are currently underway. So now in closing truly uh next time you drop by the library and you should be dropping by the library be sure to thank a librarian. These people work extremely hard to provide the services that they do here in Grimby and they are very much appreciated by all of the uh residents of Grim Grimsby. Thank you very much. >> Thank you very much for your pre presentation Dearra. Uh certainly a lot happening at the library. It's certainly a vibrant place. Any questions or comments from council? Councelor Vardy. >> Um, thank you through you, Mr. Mayor. Uh, I just want to say my my son and daughter-in-law who have recently um moved to Canada from Japan have been going to the baby the baby reading on baby time on Thursdays and they're really enjoying it. And I I just want to say it's also a great place to sort of make connections when you're kind of new in town to be able to meet people in a sort of similar circumstance. So, uh just a sort of shout out for that that uh it's been a very positive positively recepted. >> Thank you, >> Councelor Shaw. Through Mayor Jordan, thank you. I just wanted to thank you and staff um with our community services committee. It was great seeing the evolution of the library from the beginning of the term to the end. It was great even when we started, but you could tell every single year there was momentum and growth in all of your programs and the amount of people that came and that's you know a testament to you and the committee. Um so just wanted to thank you and uh I find that um you know we talk a lot about quality of life and the library is an enhancement of the residents quality of life and that can't be understated. So um you know just continue to do the same programs that you're doing. Um, I know you have spoken before about um, you know, the expansion that's necessary and I've walked around with Ashley and um, kind of seen the uh, you know, the possibilities and I think um, one thing that I'd suggest is if we can start to get um, some outside partners maybe sponsoring some of these spaces. So that's something I look forward to hearing more about in the upcoming year. So, thank you. Thank you. I'll pass along all of the information to the library. Um, and certainly, you know, we're hoping for next year to have someone come in and look at the space and reimagine it for us at its current footprint as opposed to, you know, always looking for, you know, what's more, what's more. It costs a lot to build. Um, but, uh, it is something that is necessary. It's been proven through our studies. So, we are looking to do that just at a different pace. Uh seeing no further questions uh um we need a mover and seconder uh to receive the presentation. Thank you very much Dra moved by councelor Frank second by councelor Vardy resolve the delegation from Ginsby public library board be received. All in favor? That's carried. Up next, uh, Ginsby Downtown BIA Treasurer Daniel Manderstein is here to present the board's enderm presentation. Good to see you, Daniel. That's the button to talk. Okay, perfect. Okay, good evening everybody. Good evening, council and uh, audience and people watching at home. Uh, my name is Daniel Vanderstein. I am the owner of the Dutch shop at the corner of Christian Maine and I am also the treasurer of the Grimby Downtown BIA. I am absolutely thrilled to be here tonight to give you an update on what the BIA has been up to this term. Uh, next slide. So, introduction. Next slide. Uh, the BIA was founded in 1977 as the downtown improvement area. Some of you may know it as the DIA, which is its name for most of its history. Uh, we changed the name to the Grimsy Downtown BIA in 2024. This was purely an administrative change. They are defined in the municipal act as BAS, not DIA. So, it just brought us into alignment with every other community that calls it a BIA, but if you still want to call it DIA, that's fine. Uh, and you'll see us mostly out and about as downtown Grimby. Next slide. So, what is a BIA? A BIA is unique to Ontario funded by a levy on property taxes. So, commercial properties within our catchment area pay an additional fee as part of their property taxes that goes into a pot that funds the BIA's activities. Uh, the BIA is a board of council with a semi and events calendar and news updates, new social media handles with a growing audience, and I encourage everybody here to follow us along at downtownGrimby on Instagram and Facebook and check out our website at downtowngrimsby.com. Grimsytown also works. Um, beautifification. We continued our Christmas lights program. So, if you go downtown during the holiday season, you'll see some Christmas lights around on the poles. That's us. Uh, with the help of the wonderful people at the town who actually hang them for us. uh seasonal planters, which have gotten awfully big this year with all of the rain. Uh and our Canada flag program. This was a new initiative we launched last year that we're extremely proud of. So you see all of the Canada flags hanging off of the front of buildings downtown. That was a new program that we launched uh with the support of Canadian Tire as well. Next slide. Uh events. People mostly know the BIA for our events. So we do host a lot of them. Our goal is to kind of always have something happening downtown. So we have hopping around downtown. That was a tremendously successful Easter event. Music on the 40 comedy nights in the park which is happening now. So if you want to see a free family-friendly comedy show, come out to the park this Wednesday. Um, story walks, which is where you can take your kids and go uh through downtown. And there's different story book panels in the windows of all the different shops and you can read your kids a story as you walk your way downtown. Downtown shopping passport. That's a very cool initiative we have going right now where you can pick up a passport at any of the participating businesses and when you purchase something you get a stamp and if you fill out your passport you can uh enter to win some pretty significant prizes. Uh Grims Boo that's our annual Halloween trick-or- treat event which was also hugely successful. In fact, I think several of the grocery stores downtown ran out of candy to give away. Um ladies nights that's been a recurring promotion that the BIA has done for years and an upcoming holiday market you may have read about. Uh, we're also proud to support other local events that we do not run, including the Christmas parade and the happening in Grimby. Next slide. Governance. We did a lot of ground database. We actually sent some of our staff up and down all of the streets in our catchment area to build the closest thing to an accurate database of our membership that we'll ever get. It's constantly changing, but we're trying. Uh, we have an annual survey where we pull businesses and residents about what concerns they have and we compare that data to help design programs and identify areas of improvement. And then downtown reimagined is a project that we are heavily involved with uh along with the town and the chamber of commerce. Next slide. Future opportunities. There are a lot of opportunities for the next term. I think the work has only just begun. Downtown reimagine is going to be the big one and I'm not going to sugarcoat it. The next council has an opportunity to redefine downtown for a generation. This is a massive investment, a big project, and the BIA is going to continue to be very actively involved. We've been working great with the town and the chamber of commerce building out communications, rebranding the project. We've got some very cool signage coming up. There will need to be more work to do. Um, so we are working on project marketing, construction events, and business support programs, but the reality is even if the BIA hadn't spent a single scent this entire term, we still wouldn't have enough money to do everything that we would want to do. So there will be plenty of opportunities to uh enhance the support of downtown businesses during what will be a very uh challenging construction period. Next slide. Uh post construction, which you know, fingers crossed, 2028, uh new beautifification options. So we will hopefully have opportunities to install new beautifification elements throughout the downtown. Uh alley enhancement programs is something that we've talked about before. Making our alleys uh better lit, safer, and making it clearer how people can access parking on the north and south sides of downtown. Facade improvement programs. Uh the town you do tend to focus on Maine between Christy and Elm. Uh it's, you know, that's the part that we close for festivals or activities, but we have members beyond that and we should be doing more to support the rest of the town. Next slide. And then economic development, that is one of the things that the BIA is focused on. So, how can we support tourism? We know there's a lot of money coming from the province to build tourism in Niagara, and we know that those people have to drive pasture. So, how can we support the town in capturing those people and bringing them downtown? Town did a great job on a tourism study. We would like to see some money going into that. Uh downtown business growth and retention and recruitment. The reality is we have a couple vacancies downtown already. We fully expect there will be more before the construction is finished. So, how do we identify what businesses we'd like to fill those vacancies and then how do we go out and get them and encourage them to open up shop here so that we build a really strong, robust, diverse downtown that makes people want to come and spend time downtown. And then finally, partnership programs. We've already started with Downtown Reimagined, proving the value of when we partner with the town and the chamber of commerce. And there's plenty of opportunities on how we can support the downtown and small business community in Grimby by working together. Next slide. And that's all I've got. I think I managed to fit within the 10-minute window, but uh I'm happy to take any questions or comments. >> Thank you very much for your presentation, Daniel. Uh questions from councel. >> Well, I guess you explained quite well because there's no question. So, can I get that move and second to uh receive the presentation? Move by councelor Bradzy, second by councelor How. Resolve that delegation from the Ginsby Downtown BIA board be received. All in favor? That's carried. There was a written delegation from Adam Mers Head attached to the agenda for the public record. Can I have a mover and seconder to receive the delegation? Moved by councelor Frank, second by councelor Devoli. Resolve that the written delegation from Adam Metadet be received. All in favor? It's carried. Can I have a mover and seconder to approve the previous minutes? Uh, move by councelor How, second by councelor Bradsy. Resolve that the council minutes of July 13th, 2026 be approved. All in favor? That's carried. Can I have a mover and seconder to approve the Ginsby Heritage Advisory Committee's endorsement package? Moved by councelor How, second by councelor Frank resolved that the council endorsement package from the Ginsby Heritage Advisor Committee date July 14th, 2026 be approved. All in favor? That's carried. Can I have a mover and second to receive the board minutes? Moved by councelor Bradzy, second by councelor Dvoli. And councelor Devully, you have a qu you like to speak to one. All right, Mayor Jordan, if I could speak to item 9.1. >> Yeah, go ahead. >> Thank you. I just want to uh point out a few matters on those minutes. Um I I'll start with a few housekeeping things. Our clerk is listed as being a guest but was not in attendance that day. and and the second although minor matter is important and near and dear to my heart on item seven appointment of auditors KPMG including myself 2014 the three accounting bodies amalgamated were called chartered professional accountants not chartered accountants um but to some of the more major matters here which I think um you know I I'm just going to quickly point out um item number eight there is nothing under that particular item and that's because it was referred back to legal counsel. Um item nine it is the board of directors that declare dividends not the shareholders had an annual shareholder meeting so u that matter was truly just for information. Um and then we have some gaps too. We have item 10 and 11 with nobody making the motion nor seconding it. Um and yet it says all those in favor passed with dissent. Um I think in both of those cases of course the items were there for information. Um item 11 um it said the NPI board of directors approved the motion and so I assume that's why I say this is for information regarding the and I love the word explication of reporting between NPI and shareholders. Um and at that meeting they did say it would be effective immediately that they'd be coming to council but unfortunately we haven't seen them yet. Um and then on the last um item 12 that um it was spoken to but there was no discussion or voting on it and and the very last item and I realize I'm being very particular about these minutes. It was resolved at the board of directors meeting on that date be adjourned but this was a shareholders meeting not a board of directors meeting. So, um I realize we're receiving this item only for information, but might I suggest we refer it back to the NPI board to clean up the recording of the minutes at that time? >> Through the through the chair. Yeah, through the chair. uh these minutes were done by NPI so we are happy to send the comments along but these are here for council receipt so uh there's nothing further we can do as an action item all right so we have a mover and seconder um resolve that the following board minutes be received Niagara Power Incorporated AGM June 2nd 2026 Ginsby Downtown BIA June 10th 2026 Ginsby Public Library Board, June 10th, 2026. Committee of Adjustment, June 16th, 2026. Ginsby Heritage Advisory Committee, July 14th, 2026. Committee of Adjustment, July 21st, 2026. Art Gallery Special Purposes or Purpose Advisory Committee July 29th, 2026. All in favor? That's carried. Can I have a mover and second for the consent report? Moved by councelor Bradzy, second by councelor Dvoli. Resolve that council hereby approves the following items and that a consent that the consent items be approved on the recommendations as contained therein. PA26-27 one that report PA26-27 101 Main Street East and 3 346 Main Street West designation bylaws dated August 10th, 2026 be received and two that council proceed with the passing of the designation bylaws for the properties at 101 Main Street East and 346 Main Street West. PA26-28 the report PA-2628 3E street designation deferral dated August 10th 2026 be received and two that 3E Street be designated on part under part 4 section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act and three that a notice of intention to designate be issued in accordance with the Ontario Heritage Act. All in favor? That's carried. Can I have a mover and seconder to get the emergency management program report on the floor for discussion? Moved by councelor Hal, seconded by councelor Sharwa. Sarah, go ahead. >> Thank you, Mayor Jordan, and good evening uh to you and members of council. Um so in 2018 uh our emergency management plan was part of the Niagara West emergency management plan and we decided this year to um create a plan that was more Grimby specific. Again this plan that is before you this evening is very similar however to the Niagara West plan. We use it as a guidance with permission uh and it does align very closely to the other municipal plans and also the region plan. Uh so it is quite familiar to the team already in terms of how we exercise and we train. The plan does fulfill our the plans we need to make for community safety and also for our compliance pieces. And we are continuing to do future work with the annexes that are kept confidential but are more of our kind of working files uh updating them collaborating with various partners and monitoring for legislative changes or different opportunities to improve. So before you this evening is the uh bylaw to be adopted by council which is a requirement that we must do and also as part of that bylaw adopting the emergency management program which outlines some of the responsibilities that we must fulfill including the emergency management plan the appointment of our emergency control group and some other pieces including uh public education and different things like that. Otherwise I think it's fairly uh hopefully straightforward. I know it is a lot of content. Happy to answer any questions. Thanks, Sarah. And and again, I just really want to thank you for taking on this role. Uh it was something that uh really we felt needed to be done and and really happy that you stepped up and and and took that role on. So, thank you, Councelor Dvoli. >> Thank you. >> Thank you, Mayor Jordan. Um, Miss Sweeney, um, you you made reference to something that I was going to ask a question about, and that was to ask if we could see the annexes, which were not included. Um, and I heard you say that it is confidential, but would it be possible to come in and see them at town hall myself >> through the mayor? Yes, I would imagine that that definitely can be done. They're kept confidential just as they are working files. I'm sure you can imagine why, but happy to share some of those with you to get a better sense of what some of those look like as long as they are are our ours to share. But yeah, should be fine. >> Thank you. >> Any other questions? >> See, oh, councelor H. Sorry. Second through you, mayor. um at any time was the group called together or were we on too short a uh a line you know between this report I guess I'm thinking of when we did the the walk through back a year ago or couple years ago but um I'm assuming that there was a lot of interaction between people and the phones were probably live but was there any you know like where we used and what's the term for uh the the office or the the head of this management team >> activating the EOS. >> Okay. Activating the emergency. Yeah. At any time >> through the mayor I are you referring to recent events and activating the center? >> Yes. >> Yes. So we did not um act have a formal or a partial activation of the EOC. However, we do utilize some of those principles and pieces within it in terms of what guides whether or not we do and how we um carry out our activities. I will say for this plan, which I'll speak more specifically to with this plan, I did consult with the fire chief, the deputy fire chief, with the region um and also with our CLT team. So, there was some discussion um on the plan in terms of what's in there. But again, I will also emphasize that it is uh does mirror quite closely the plan we had previously as well. So it isn't a significant change from what it was. >> Councelor Vardy. >> Uh thank you through you, Mr. Mayor. Um I'm just looking at the emergency control group roles and positions and um I'm just going to make the suggestion that you include counselors as well as because you know we're often the people uh residents talk to uh first uh when they have an issue and I'm think I myself spent a year in emergency management at the federal level. Um so I you know I think that there's a lot that we can contribute to and uh we're a good group to mobilize uh in the event of emergency. So um I'm suggesting that at some point you revise this to include roles for uh counselors other than mayor and deputy mayor. Thank you. >> Uh through the mayor. So it t it's what we see in terms of those roles is is very typical. I will emphasize so what you see in the emergency control group is one group but oftent times we do there is much more communication and interaction with different uh parties including counselors and other staff that you bring is as well. So it is something that can be scaled up and down but most of these positions are fairly specifically defined in terms of how they're rolled out. But I'd happy to chat with you later about how the convers the communication occurs with council to make sure we're getting those inputs. >> Yeah. Thank you, Sarah. >> Council shorter Jordan. Thank you. Uh just a question. So as you know um the August 2nd um rainstorm that we had was significant and it fell on a long weekend. Have we um through this plan given um consideration to all the people that need to communicate during holidays? Has that been included >> through the mayor? So that's a great question counselor. You know, it is always something we talk about as a team is not being a really large municipality, making sure we're being mindful of, you know, the likelihood that not all people are available for those positions to fulfill. So there is some plans in place to make sure that there is some redundancies and ability to to shift people around according to what needs to be done. There's also some really good in and it's a lot of it's in our annexes some really good documentation to outline what is to be done so that we can fill those roles in different ways if if it would be necessary and certainly when you have things occur on long weekends in the summer those are the perfect times to reflect on who is available and what that might look like. Yeah, I would I would just suggest we make that a little bit more flexible just so that there is some communication from town hall um just because it then it just streamlines everything a lot uh easier for residents. So, thank you Sarah. >> Thank you. >> Seeing no further questions. >> Oh, councelor defl. >> Yeah, I see you now. >> Sorry about that. Thank you. uh through you, mayor. Just a quick one. Um so through you to Sarah. Sarah, the times that I can remember that we activated the emergency plan was uh both times that I can remember were during major fires like the downtown uh fire and the fire at the old ARL factory or two that I recall during my my terms on council. And in both of those cases, we set up um you know uh the Peach King Center as a place for people who had been displaced. And it was obvious when people had been displaced. You know, the Red Cross came out in one of those cases. Uh it was pretty obvious when people had been displaced. I'm concerned about events like the one that just recently happened. And I don't want to, you know, I don't want to get too deep into it, but I'm concerned about people who have been displaced that we're not aware of. So, do we have a procedure in place to keep track of people? Because people are out of their homes. It's pretty clear that people are out of their homes as a result. There are people that are out of their homes as a result of the recent events. Do we have a procedure in place to keep track of people who have been displaced? um you know, make sure that they are they're housed because not everybody has the option of going to a relative's home or uh has the insurance policy to go to a motel or a hotel. So, do we have a procedure in place in this emergency plan to keep track of that sort of thing? And then my second question, my follow-up to that is after everything is done and I'm I and I think I recall um what is the debriefing process at the end, you know, like how do we bring it all together? Uh you know, an afteraction review kind of thing following a significant emergency. Um and I guess will the recent flooding be go through that kind of process or does it not fall into that that deep of a of a a study? I'll leave it at that. >> So through you, Mayor, so I'm trying to make sure I address all your questions. So in terms of a procedure to track displaced uh individuals. So in the plan um and you're right, those are two emergencies we had. The another big one would be CO um that went on for quite a long time that actually did follow this model. But when those things occur, if it's fire or other things, um there's a couple of things that can happen. We are working right now with Red Cross to um have the peaching center, the new peach major refrigeration peaching center evaluated as an emergency reception center. Uh so that work is underway and is almost complete in terms of what that plan could be. Um but one thing I will just mention is it's not uncommon as well that we actually call upon other partners who who do this work uh more frequently and and perhaps better than we do because they do it more frequently. So group partners such as the Red Cross actually will come in and support some of those types of things as well um to guide people to different places just depending upon the scale um of things. But certainly keeping track of of people making those communications and making those connections would be part of the plan. Uh in terms of a debrief yes every time we would use the plan that we would do a debrief of the plan. I will say we also do a full debrief after we exercise the plan which is something we have to do every year. Um but in terms of the flooding um it wouldn't specifically follow the this plan but I would say it would be guided by those same types of ideas and I know there is has been discussions among our team to do a bit of a debrief from that just looking at how we can improve and it's great time for us as we're updating our annexes to do that and make any updates appropriately. Thanks, Mayor. Through you. U Thanks, Sarah. I appreciate that. That my concern is um you know, when when we talked about house homelessness in the past, uh we talked about we've talked about hidden homelessness, you know, people who are couch surfing and and find a place to stay. And I'm concerned about uh the kind of hidden displaced people as a result of the kinds of events that we went through recently. And again, it could be a very small number, but I think it's important that we keep track of the impact. um however we do that as a municipality. So maybe just something to take back and consider as a team. That's all. >> Yeah. Through the mayor. I'll take that away. It is something we would look a little bit to the region as a support. Um the region has emergency social services plan. Um so it' be something would be worth consulting with them a little further too in terms of what they would recommend and suggest. And again, if we had an activation, we would and we needed those types of things, we would likely call upon them to support as well. All right. Seeing no further questions, move by councelor How, second by councelor Shawa. Resolve that report DCS26-39, emergency management program, dated August 10th, 2026, be received and that council adopt the emergency management program and the emergency management plan pursuant to the emergency management and civil protection act RSO 1990 CE9 as ex amended. Two, that council authorized the mayor and clerk to execute the necessary bylaw adopting the emergency management program and emergency management plan. And three, that council direct staff to submit the approved documentation to the emergency management Ontario in accordance with provincial requirements. All in favor? That's carried. Thank you very much, Sarah. >> Thank you. Can I have a mover and seconder to get the branding report on the floor for discussion? Moved by councelor Shawa. Secer councelor How Sarah. Go ahead. >> Thank you, Mayor Jordan. So back in June, we were before you with a presentation for branding and the outcome of that meeting was that we come back with some further options which is uh what we are have before you this evening. Uh for this work with the options we did engage a local uh graphic artist. They have a lot of local context and familiarity. They've actually worked on several graphics projects um with our team in the town. so has a really good understanding of how we use um some of the imagery and how how our branding ought to fit. Uh I can confirm that all of the work that they completed is original work. Um and I just want to before I turn it over to Christina, our communications specialist, just want to emphasize again, um you know, this is a really challenging project because I I will say if everybody were asked to draw an image, it would be different. Not every everybody sees things a little differently in terms of colors, the types of things they want to see in it, but when we really think about the discovery report and how we connect those pieces, uh we feel confident about what we're bringing before you this evening. I think Christine is going to walk you through some of uh the further pieces. >> Uh thank you Sarah through your chair. Uh good evening mayor, members of council. Um I am very excited to present the recommended corporate brand identity for the town of Grimby. this evening. Today's recommendation represents the culmination of nearly two years of work involving community engagement, stakeholder consultation, council feedback, and a thoughtful design process. Tonight isn't simply about choosing a logo. It's about providing the town with a modern communications tool that reflects who we are today and also supports where we're going tomorrow. Before any design work began, this project focused on listening. The consultation process brought together more than 150 participants through workshops, interviews, engagement sessions that included residents, business owners, municipal representatives, and community leaders from across Grimby. These conversations were complemented by a broader public survey, ensuring that the community had multiple opportunities to help shape the discovery report. Together, they established the brand direction and the brand attributes that guided every decision throughout this project. The logo wasn't the starting point of this work. It was the outcome of it. Uh Katie, if you don't mind popping up the um recommended logo, appendix A. Following council's direction in June, staff worked closely with our local designer to refine the concepts based on the feedback that we received. We then asked each member of council to individually evaluate the revised options. The recommended logo put forward this evening and that you can see on the screen emerged as the preferred concept receiving the strongest level of support from council. We also sought feedback from the corporate leadership team as well as the brand guardians whose responses closely aligned with councils giving staff the additional confidence in this recommendation. One of the reasons staff is recommending this brand is because of the story behind it. Throughout the discovery report, we heard repeatedly that Grimby is naturally gifted, inherently friendly, historically rooted, genuinely open, and intrinsically innovative. Rather than representing those qualities through literal symbols, the logo brings together a collection of the elements that tell that story. The flowing water represents connection and movement. The Anigracment, Limestone Foundation, parks, and tree canopy representing the Carolinian forest reflect the landscape that has shaped our community for generations. The rising sun symbolizes optimism, opportunity, and the future. Just as importantly, the circular form represents connection, belonging, and community. Community emerged as one of the strongest themes throughout the engagement process. And rather than depicting the community with a literal image, the design expresses it through the idea of people being connected to one another and to the place that they call home. Together with the colors and supporting brand story, these elements create a visual identity that is authentic, timeless, and uniquely representative of Grimby. The tagline, um, if you can scroll down to page three. No problem. The tagline friendly by nature also received the strongest level of support. It reflects the welcoming spirit that has long defined Grimby aligns closely with the brand direction and brand attributes. It's memorable. It's authentic and meaningful. And most importantly, it's already owned and protected by the town. I'd also like to reinforce that our municipal crest is not going anywhere. The crest will continue to represent the corporation of the town of Grimby and remain on council agendas, bylaws, proclamations, ceremonial functions, and official correspondence. The recommended corporate brand simply serves as a different purpose by becoming the town's primary public-f facing identity for communications, tourism, economic development, and community engagement. Finally, I'd like to leave council with one thought. A logo cannot represent everything our community is, and it isn't intended to. A brand is much bigger than a logo. It's the story that we tell, the values we share, the experiences people have with our community, and the consistent way we present ourselves over time. As staff, our responsibility wasn't to recommend a logo that we liked the best. Our responsibility was to recommend the brand that best reflects Grimby aligns with the discovery report and brand attributes responded to council's direction and positioned the town well for the future. That's why this recommendation is based on four far more than a single graphic. It's grounded in research, grounded in community engagement, strategic planning, creative exploration, refinement, and ultimately a complete brand system that tells Grimby's story in a consistent and meaningful way. No logo, no logo can represent everything our community is, but a great brand gives a community a story that it can be proud that it can proudly and consistently tell. We believe that this one tells the right story, and that's what what we make. Pardon me. That's what makes it the right brand for Grimby. >> Thank you. And I'd be pleased to answer any questions. >> Thank you for your presentation, Christina. Questions from council. Councelor Dvoli. >> Thank you, Mayor. Um, yes, a a question to the team. It's really important when we have a design like this that it not be close to the design of anyone else or any other organization. Can you just share with us what work was done to make sure that we aren't in too carefully aligned to um or too carefully um an image that is close to anyone else? >> Through you, Meritt, when you say close to anyone else, do you mean like neighboring m municipalities or just general like logos in in general? >> I'm going to say both. For example, when a business entity applies to the um Ontario government to for a name, it must do a search and um and prove that um it basically is not copying any other entity that would be in its market or in its area. Right? And I just want to be sure that our pictorial concept um doesn't, you know, come too close to anyone else that um that they might mistake us for them or them for us. >> I think that's a great question. Um I I'm aware that STC the the consultants that we worked with and did extensive research, they did do a lot of research. I I would have to refer back to the exact process that's outlined to ensure that there is not I I mean I can I fairly confidently can say that there is nothing else like it. Um but I would have to understand a little more of their process because I can't speak to it um exactly >> through you Mr. Mayor. Um, similar to our crest, if this logo gets approved, we will be going through the trademark process. So, if there are any issues like that, uh, we will bring it back to this table. Uh, seeing no further questions, uh, I have a mover moved by councelor Sharwa, second by councelor how resolve the report DCS 26-40, town of Ginsby corporate brand recommendation dated August 10th, 2026 be received and the council approved the proposed town of Ginsy's new brand identity, including the logo, tagline, and supporting visual system as presented in appendix A. All in favor? You want to record it? >> I don't know. It's up to you. Does anybody There's just so many people online. Okay. >> All right. >> Um, vote again. All in favor? >> Can we do it? >> Yeah, if you ask for it. Yeah. >> Ask for a question. >> Sure. Go ahead. So, if we turn this down, what is the alternative? So, I >> to you, Mr. Mayor. Um I think it would be up to the new term to bring this back to the table if they wish to pursue it. But right now it is our last meeting of the term of this council. So if it's uh turned down defeated then uh it would be on it. It's defeated for this term of council. >> All right. I read the resolution. Um councelor Shaw asked for a recorded vote. So vote on your escribe please. Can you just get Councelor DeFlavio >> and Councelor DeFlavio and Councelor Costi, we need your um votes. Councelor Corsi, uh, trying to get your vote. All right. So, that's defeated. All right. Can I get a mover and secondary to get the staff memo flooding events on the floor for discussion? Moved by councelor Frank, second by councelor Vardy. All right. Um, I have a little bit to say about this. I understand and share the frustration and concern being experienced by residents and businesses affected by the recent flooding and storm impacts. I want to reassure the the community that town is actively responding, assessing impacts, and supporting recovery efforts. It is important to understand that declaring a municipal emergency does not automatically provide access to provincial or federal funding. An emergency declaration is the specific tool used when extraordinary measures are needed to protect public safety or strengthen the municipal response. The severity of the damage is not in question. The hardship experienced by residents is real. Regardless of whether an emergency is declared, the town continues to monitor conditions and accessess assess the situation based on established emergency management criteria. Staff are documenting damages, reviewing infrastructure impacts, and pursuing all available assistance opportunities. Our decisions will continue to be guided by facts, local conditions, and the best interests of the Ginsby community. If an emergency declaration becomes necessary, we will act without hesitation. Our focus remains on supporting residents, advancing recovery efforts, and keeping the community informed. Uh, Brandon, go ahead, please. >> Sorry, Mr. Mayor. Did you want me to introduce the memo? >> Yes, please. >> Thank you. So, uh, yeah, I guess, uh, just to let you know, staff have, uh, carried a a memo forward, um, with, uh, just summarizes a bit of the response for all of the, uh, teams, uh, different departments, fire department, public works, uh, community services. Also provides some outlines in terms of the, uh, rainfall u, uh, data that we collected in terms of what the scope and scale of the events were. um and provides uh some a general uh understanding of of uh uh kind of the high level in terms of uh what occurred. But uh as uh you had said in your statement uh staff are still in the process of uh primary step is is following up with all the phone calls and emails that we're receiving. Um beyond that uh we'll be doing a full debrief uh in the coming uh weeks to um pull together all the information, identify hotspots, uh look at what we can do in terms of uh uh improvements going forward. Um I'm sure you've all had a chance to uh look at the memo, but if there's any questions, I'd be happy to to receive them or we have other members of staff, our CEO and others that uh can certainly answer questions as well. >> Thank you, Brandon. Um, councelor party. >> Um, thank you. Uh, I've got a lot of comments and um, I I have to tell you I feel a little bit like stomp and Tom in that I've been everywhere, man. So, I've been up on the mountain, I've been along Dorchester, I've been in various neighborhoods just to talk to people to see how um, what are some of the impacts that they've had. And while this is not an emergency, I would say it's an urgency. And uh the fir the first thing that I do want to say though is to thank staff because um these are I'm going to say these are kind of an exceptional event, but maybe not necessarily for future. It's going to be an exceptional event, but I think staff have done everything that they could have done um in terms of response to this. So, what I'm suggesting is in no way a criticism of staff. I just want to make that um that really clear. So, I've put together a resolution, if I could um read it, Mr. Mayor. >> Uh we're just the way we're going to do this because I think there's a number of um resolutions or motions that are on the floor. Okay. >> So, we're going to do the first round of speaking and then um read the motions for the second round. >> Read it now, but we'll see if all the books still. >> Yeah. So you if you want to read it now, we can save the vote to L. >> Okay. >> All right. So, um I'd like to read my motion and I think I might have a seconder uh on the far corner. Uh resolve that town staff undertake a comprehensive review of Ginsby storm water drainage system and identify and map areas experiencing chronic or recurring flooding, including basement flooding, roadway flooding, and problematic overland flow locations. Secondly, staff develop a prioritized list of flooding hotspots throughout Ginsby and identify infrastructure maintenance or drainage improvements that could reduce the risk of future flooding. staff develop a proactive riskbased and funded ditch and culvert inspection and maintenance program particularly in areas on and above the Niagara escarment which establishes regular inspection and maintenance schedules and includes vegetation management, sediment removal, ditch clearing and culvert cleaning as required. Um staff identify drain drainage infrastructure improvements that may be required in areas experiencing recurring flooding or where existing infrastructure is inadequate to accommodate increasingly significant rainfall events. staff develop a long-term flood mitigation and storm water resiliency strategy identifying recommended projects priorities estimated costs implementation timelines and potential sources of funding. The uh six, the town engaged Niagara region, Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority, the Niagara Escarment Commission, and other appropriate agencies and land owners to identify opportunities for coordinated measures to better manage storm water runoff originating from lands on and above the escarment before that water reaches developed areas below. that staff identify the annual funding requirement to establish and maintain the proposed ditch and culvert maintenance program and incorporate appropriate funding requirements into future operating and capital budget considerations. And uh finally, staff report back to council by the first quarter of 2027 with findings, recommendations, priorities, estimated costs, and proposed implementation timelines. and any necessary funding requirements considered as part of the 2027 budget process. And the one thing I would like to add is that we investigate the possibility of a backflow valve um uh program where we can help subsidize uh residents, you know, who want to um install a backflow valve in their home. That's something that keeps sewage from coming into your home. Okay. So, that's it. Thank you for your attention. >> Do you have a seconder? >> Councelor Bradley is the seconder. >> Yeah. So, so we'll keep these to >> Okay. Thank you. >> Uh, councelor Shaw. Okay. Thank you. Uh through Mayor Jordan, uh as you know, I submitted a notice of motion. So I spoke with the clerk and she advised I read it now. So um I'll read it and then just briefly explain. Sorry. Pull it up. All right. Okay. Um, whereas the town of Grimsby experienced significant flooding on July 21st, July 27th, and 28th, and August 2nd, 2026. And whereas Grimby or sorry, whereas council adopted a new official plan on July 13th, 2026 establishing a growth framework for a population of 51,100 residents by 201. And whereas council considers considers it appropriate to review the flooding events to identify lessons learned and opportunities to strengthen the town's resilience to future storm events. Therefore, be it resolved that council direct staff to prepare a report on the flooding events, including a summary of the event and its impacts. Two, identification of known floodprone areas and recurring flooding locations. Three, observations regarding the performance of the town's storm water management system during the event. Um, and four recommendations for policy, operational, engineering, or infrastructure measures to improve resilience to future storm events and support the town's long-term infrastructure planning. Be it further resolved that the report consider measures to support the protection of existing neighborhoods and inform future development planning. Be it further resolved that staff post the report and additional information on the town website. Can I just briefly explain this? Okay. So, um this notice of motion came um July 22nd. It was submitted to the clerk after the the first um major kind of flooding on July 21st. So, it was originally just for the one event. We had um I spoke with councelor Christi who is my seconder. Um I had quite a detail a detailed list. Um but we kind of decided we were going to leave this a little bit more flexible just for for staff to um provide more feedback. Since then we've, you know, added the um the dates. So I'm flexible and I think it's fabulous that uh councelor uh Vardy has kind of made these suggestions to refine it a little bit more. So my suggestion would be if we take um councelor Vard's as well and we implement whatever um from my motion as well. would be great if we could combine them. Um, and the other thing that I was going to I had flagged to staff the backwater valves pilot. I would hope um or look into that. So, that's great. So, I'm not going to bring that up. But if also we could somehow um look into how power outages um impacted residents because one thing we haven't identified is is the sewage um situation which was fortunately not for most people but it did happen and from what I'm gathering um it was mainly when the power went out on August the 2nd. So I'd like to for staff to kind of identify um you know that little gap. Okay. Does that sound great? Okay. Thank you. >> All right. Thank you. Uh just for the record, we need a seconder for yours. Uh because councelor Costangi is not online right now. >> Through you, Mr. Mayor. I'm happy to just combine the two as sort of >> Well, we have two more. >> We have two more tonight. No through the chair. I would just suggest that we put all the table the motions on the table and then we can just vote on them either all together if everyone is if there's a a dispute or if not staff will take these away and sort of go through and see what we can report back on. >> All right. >> Just a question. >> Okay. Councelor Devoli. >> Um not on the topic itself. Um so we have various resolutions coming forward. I can tell um and people are reading them only councelor Charw is in writing to be able to see. So if um if we are going to vote on the each of them at the end I would really like to see the actual writing of the resolution so that I know exactly what I'm voting on. Um just having someone read it and then trying to remember everything that's in it I don't think is sufficient. Um, >> we'll make sure that they're put up on the screen so they can be read. Uh, up next, uh, Councelor DeFlavio. >> Thank you, Mayor. Uh, through you. Um, so I I I had a motion that I sent the staff to. Mine is simple. It was based on the staff report. The staff report suggested that council could put forward a motion uh related to asking the province to look further into the the relief program. Would you like me to read it or would >> Yes. Yes, please. Yeah, go ahead and read your >> resolved at the council of the town of Grimby and this is again this based on what was in the staff report saying this is what council might want to consider. So resolved that the council of the town of Grimsby request that the province of Ontario review and expand its available disaster assistance program to better reflect the impacts experienced by residents, businesses, farms, and municipalities during these events. And that the province consider the impacts experienced across the entire Niagara region when determining eligibility for disa disaster assistance. and that a copy of this resolution be forwarded to the premier of Ontario, the minister of municipal affairs and housing, local MPP, regional municipality of Niagara and the municipalities across Niagara for their support. So I I kept it very simple. It was just staff said, let's you you know, you might want to ask the province to look into this more deeply. Mine's not trying to direct staff or suggest anything like that. I I actually want to start by thanking staff. Um they mentioned the firefighters. I want to thank the firefighters and everyone who helped out during these storms. It um it was an extraordinary event. There's no, you know, it was a natural disaster and uh with the huge amount of rain falling in such a short amount of time. Uh I think staff did a great job dealing with a very difficult situation and are still continuing to do a really good job. You know, there there's still more information coming through every day. They're continuing to gather that. Um, I also appreciate that the staff memo says they're going to do a full review after the cleanup's finished. Uh, I think that's important. You know, we can't stop these kinds of storms from happening, but we we can learn from what happened. And I think that's the most important part, right, is the learning part from what happened and see if there are things we can do better. Um I while I appreciate the content of both of my fellow counselors resolutions, I think a simple resolution that just says, you know, and I don't think we even need a resolution, frankly, because I think staff are going to go back and do this on their own. um that you know uh I know that there was a storm water management plan that was in the works but there's been a lot going on in the public works department over the last couple years as everybody at the table there knows. So if we want to make that a priority for the upcoming council uh you know completing a storm water management plan making sure that all those things everybody mentioned will be part of that storm water management plan. So I don't think that we need to have a checklist I think staff will have that. I mean, if you want to send those to staff to make sure that those are part of it, I'm fine with that. But I I'm not comfortable with a resolution that details every part of what we think staff should be doing to deal with storm water. I think that the engineers and experts that we have and we've hired to do that are the best people to approach that. Um, you know, there are areas in my ward like Winston Road and Kelson Avenue that I think need to be looked at. you know the but again I've said this before and I'll say it again uh the fact that we haven't dealt with issues like this over the last you know I I'm going to say 20 years that I've been on council there's been some basement flooding but nothing to this extent means for the most part the system's working in my opinion uh that said obviously if there are things we can learn from this we need to learn from it and you know we we have lots of residents have contacted us. Um, I noticed in the report it says that basement flooding appears to have been caused by overland water rather than widespread sewer backups. I'm not questioning that, but given the number of residents who've contacted us, I'd like to st I'd like staff to look more closely at the properties that were affected. I think that they're doing that. Um, there are things we could be are there things that we could be doing to help homeowners reduce the risk. Council have already, for example, mentioned a backwater valve program. Can we help with sump pump replacement programs? You know, these are not huge cost items, but maybe might help keep this kind of thing from happening again in the future. Um, I'm going to leave it at that. I I I do want to say that I really like Niagara and the Lakes explanation and I think Mayor, you did a really good job at the beginning of the meeting talking about why we didn't declare a state of emergency. Um Niger the Lake CEO talked talked very extensively in the newspaper about how uh declare the declaration is a legal and operational tool. It doesn't automatically trigger trigger provincial funding. I trust staff's opinion when it came to not declaring a state of emergency. I know where we've declared them in the past and I don't know that this was one of those situations where it was necessary. We have to trust the experts that we have on staff and in this case I do trust them. Um >> you just you're just working with the regent. >> Councelor DeFlavio just I'll sum it up. Uh okay. Thanks mayor. I I I think I said everything I wanted to say. Uh I just want to thank everybody that was involved and I want to make sure that we keep this kind of thing from coming back and do all the practical things that we need to do to prepare for the next time. Unfortunately, there will be next time that we see a storm like that. >> All right. And do you have a seconder? >> I just sent it to staff. It was based on the staff report. I hope there's somebody that will second it at the table. It's very simple. It's just asking the province to look at the entire region rather than a a peace uh a peace meal uh approach which is what they've taken a municipality by mun. >> Well, we have councelor Frank as your seconder. Uh, and up next we have councelor. How? >> All right. Go ahead, councelor. >> You, mayor. Um, resolve that council direct staff to investigate the potential of a rebate and or grant program for flood assistance and include any expenses or reserve transfers required in the 2027 budget. And if there are any immediate rates or fees that could be waved or services that can be offered or extended to assist residents now for staff to have delegated authority to do so. Very low u um dollar figure. Um it it has the opportunity to to help some people that are just need a little pickme up. Uh but it's it's not, you know, a trillion dollars. Do you have a second or counselor? How? >> Oh, councelor Bard's going to second. All right. Any further councelor uh Bradzy, go ahead. >> Thank you, Mayor Jordan. Through you as uh as far as I was aware from the emergencies declared by St. Catherine's uh Lincoln that uh uh any residents affected by flooding across Niagara as a whole were already able to apply to these benefits. Could uh correct me if I'm wrong? what which benefits are you talking about? >> Uh well, the deployment of the Ontario cores uh and our neighbor neighboring municipality in Lincoln. Um obviously we're not going to get provincial funding from the municipal municipal emergency preparedness and response without declaring an emergency. And I'm not disagreeing with not declaring an emergency, but uh it kind of to me feels redundant to ask the province for for funds and at the same time saying that we're not in an emergency. I don't know how the strength of that ask how much how much teeth that has. Um, but then just to to underscore my main point and council have already alluded to it, the backwater flow valve why isolated incidents of uh basement flooding might not be might be an urgency and I agree with that. You add sewage back backflow into the the equation and having raw sewage in your basement. I think that's a very serious biohazard emergency. So, I think there are municipalities, Hamilton and Lincoln, directly beside us on both sides that have um backwater flow valve programs for for installations that I think that's something wherever motion is looking for for my vote tonight. Uh something that I want to see definitely on there. And then lastly, uh just a question for staff and just your observations are fine. Uh, Director Warman, would you say just how would you compare the older neighborhoods with without storm water drains at at the street to the newer neighborhoods at the street level just in your observation? >> Maybe uh thank you uh uh councelor uh maybe I can take a step back and a little bit of a higher review. I thought this question would come up and uh I think what I've said in my notes here it's it's difficult to summarize. We've had three major events over the course of a couple week period. uh one of those events for sure was more than a one in 100year storm. Uh two other events were less significant but in some cases were more significant in the response. So to characterize I guess in in a few sentences uh the first event u you know produced the most impact on our storm water over over land flow if you want to call it. Uh so our our storm water or storm water infrastructure re reached its capacity and our overload overland flow routes were activated. So essentially uh the water that was supposed to get into the storm sewers the storm sewers fill up and the water ends up on the road and the road takes it to wherever it goes. Uh this the second uh the wastewater system was less affected during that event. Um the second event was more of uh less of the overland or there was overland flow occurrences but they were much less severe and again I think the the wastewater system was was less affected. The third event which was the August uh August 2nd event um we had a bit of both overland flow issues that were again not as bad as the first event but a little worse than number two. And we also understood that we saw more issues with the wastewater system during this event which extended the duration uh- which because of the extended duration of of the storm event. So um in terms of where uh what was which area was hit worse uh it's we're still in the process of gathering all that information. I think we have a general idea of uh during event one here's the worst spot and here's the repeat occurrences in event two and three. Uh event three again was met a bit more of we saw a lot of wastewater and basement flooding that we hadn't saw uh seen in the previous event. So we're still gathering all that information. Um I realize that probably doesn't fully answer your question, but I I guess that's the best I can do and try to sum it up in a few sentences. So hopefully you'll accept an answer, but happy to answer more questions. >> No, thank thank you very much. And then lastly, I'd uh get on the old 40-year storm drains that you see in backyards and 90% of the time have no use for anything. And then but over time people build gardens, you know, raised structures around them that block them. Uh is this in your opinion something that we might need to take a look at and start kind of enforcing the drainage pathways to those old 40-year storm drains you've seen backyards? >> Uh thank you councelor through you Mr. Chair. Um so obviously um when we uh when new subdivisions are designed um they are designed with um you know uh grading grading involved and they create a master grading plan and say uh here's how the storm water is going to be accommodated and some of that accommodation occurs on private property and some of that occurs on on public property. Uh we use catch basins in rear yards to get some of the rain water from the backyards to the front yard to the road and and out to the lake. Uh the function of the overall grading uh has a lot to do with uh how residents um uh in terms of uh if they've make changes to their landscaping or or grading and things like that then certainly can cause impacts. likely those impacts uh are depending on the scope is uh limited to a few lots here or there. Uh we do provide some redundancy in the design so that we're uh for example in rear rear yards we're not uh we limit the number of houses that drain into one catch basin. Therefore you provide some redundancy if one uh swale is filled in uh you know it it impacts a a smaller area than a larger area. But uh one of the challenges we have is uh you know staff sometimes get called into these situations of hey my neighbor uh filled in their swale and it's impacting me and unfortunately we don't have any measures unless we have an easement uh on that piece of property uh that we can enter in and provide some authority there. So a lot of uh what we do as staff is trying to help uh diagnose the issue uh and present a bit of a mediation between the property owners to to address those those type of things. But ult ultimately at the end of the day it does fall down to like uh neighbors working together and and if they can't work together and they're causing damage it becomes a you know what do you call a civil matter between residents. >> Thank you. Thank you. That actually you answered my next question was if we had any recourse. So thank you very much Director Warman. Mayor >> Councelor Devoli. >> Thank you Mayor Jordan. I think I probably speak on behalf of all counselors when I say that um it it was such an un unfortunate event that Mother Nature decided to bestow us with a and that everybody here on council and every single staff member um really feel for the residents who some who suffered worse than others. Um, and we would, as you can tell by the resolutions tonight, we would all really like to be able to do something um to stop this from happening again. Um, but that is a very big solution and um virtually impossible because that means redoing the existing infrastructure. So, um, as I'm hearing the suggestions, I I know from talking to some of our staff already that, you know, you are quite well aware of the flooding areas and the the paths that water takes through our community and so on. And and I guess my concern with many of the very specific resolutions tonight is that um they're very specific and I'm not an engineer. I don't know exactly what needs to be done. That's why I'm counting on all of you. So, um I think just a general resolution which probably echoes what councelor DeFlavio was saying, you know, to refer it back to you for a report to um quantify and um list, you know, the things that we could do going forward, including the impact on our budget because it is always the ying and the yang as to where we spend money. And obviously this is now um becoming a bigger concern than it ever was before. Mother nature has pointed out that it is time that we look more seriously at this. Um and so I would support just a very general resolution uh to give it back to you. Um, but perhaps you could just speak to some of the very specific things that have been raised because I know you know all these things already and just haven't had a chance probably to talk extensively about them yet. >> Thank you. Thank you uh counselor. I appreciate that uh question and and uh as soon as the rain started flowing, you know, the brain starts turning of okay, what are we going to do? What are we going to do? So, I tried to again in my notes here to to break it down into kind of a three-step approach. Step one is to deal with the immediate aftermath of the recent events, which includes following up with the phone calls. Yes, we're still doing that. Answering the emails, yes, we're do still doing that. Assessing the damage to the infrastructure, completing the repairs, and and triaging the issues. The second step, so I I measure that in a matter of weeks. We're a couple weeks into this event, and it took should take us a couple more weeks to to uh to to try to uh you know, deal with that immediate response. Uh the second step is where we're pulling all our information together. That's the emails, the phone calls, the pictures, the videos, our staff's observations, our engineering records, the weather records. Uh we're going to complete a wholesome debrief of the storm event. Uh this will include looking at things where our responses went well and what lessons can be learned from this. Generating maps to identify our problem areas and developing action items both short-term and long-term about how uh you know what we can do to make improvements for the future. Uh the third step will be implementing those solutions. So this is I I would say is a matter of it could be months and it could be years depending on the scope and scale of those improvements. Uh to fix a pe to fix a pipe uh versus to replace a pipe is is uh different, right? So um it all depends on that scope and scale. Um but this could be short short-term improvements. This would be changes to our procedures, enhancing our communication protocols, minor improvements to our infrastructure and then uh you know things like carrying out additional technical reviews and studies. Again, we already have talked to the team earlier today and and last week about uh additional information, technical reviews that we need to look at uh based on the situations. I think what we I've always been care careful about is making not making knee-jerk reactions is uh you know walking around ridge road and and when it was raining I started thinking okay well what if we twinned this pipe and made it and made it bigger so the water got through that pipe realizing though that that water goes downstream and it affects people on the bottom of the escarment. So all that to say is making a change somewhere could could have a detrimental effect somewhere else. So we want to be careful about the changes that we are making. Uh and then just further the the step three I guess is is the larger action items and that's the capital improvements. Uh and again I I think uh to be fair this is you know the first step the immediate aftermath is a matter of weeks. Uh I think the step two that's the triaging potentially bringing you know if it's the direction of council and I even if it wasn't council's direction I would think that we need to bring a report back to council saying what all of our findings are. Uh, and I think I think I think that's a matter of months where we need to uh take that time to review that. And then uh like I said in terms of step three, um, I just want to be careful too or or just to to communicate to council uh to be realistic uh or or maybe to set the stage that we I want to be realistic in terms of uh what what we're going to find out of that uh review. Um we when we design storm sewers they are designed for a 5-year storm. Uh what we saw over the the se uh first event was uh in the range of a 100redyear or more storm. Um the challenge is the that we cannot build uh pipes big enough to take in that amount of storm. So uh the way the system is designed is the pipes fill up and then the water goes on to overland flow routes and those overland flow routes are traditionally the roads. Uh however there can be weak spots in that in that network and those are we are going to be identifying and trying to address them. But again, uh I just I just wanted to be clear that, you know, it's uh I don't think it's a matter of, hey, we can replace every pipe and and we're going to deal with this uh a future event like this. It's um you know, it it would be impractical to try to deal with that. I am entirely uh uh compassionate about what people are dealing with. I had a flood in my own basement and I'm dealing with uh the the same impacts as well. ripping out the carpet, dealing with insurance, a new sump pump, uh living in the uh not living in the basement anymore, that kind of thing. So, um that was a very long- winded answer, but I hope I addressed what you were asking me. a followup to that. Um, given our geographical location with the escarment, you know, to the to the south of us, um, and not being an engineer, I I really and and having I'm going to say 95% of our population located between the escarment and the lake. Um I I'm going to raise a different side to this and say um that it absolutely amazed me that there weren't more people impacted by this um as opposed to our neighboring municipalities much which are much bigger geographically and therefore have more room for the water to flow. whereas I almost expected that we were going to have little mini waterfalls coming off the escarment and we probably did to a certain extent but not nearly not nearly the impact that I really expected. Um I I often say it's a bit like examining the unemployment rate. We all moan and groan and go, "Oh my god, it's 6%." But that also means that 94% are working. And I realize it it is so unfortunate that we did have residents who um you know had water in their homes and so on. But at the same time I just want to say that given our proximity to the escarment and the lake I was quite pleasantly surprised and pleased at how well we actually managed to come out of all of this with three successive storms in a row. Um, so, um, just to sort of come to a conclusion in all of this, but Mayor Jordan, I I think just referring this back to staff, they've heard all our comments and our suggestions and and leaving it in their hands to come back with to finish their work, summarizing, you know, the the summary of what happened to look at potential short, medium, and long-term solutions and so on. Um, is really the best that we can do at this point in time. Councelor Shara through Mayor Jordan. Thank you. Just to follow up on a few of these things. So I just uh want to kind of take a step back. So when I had kind of flagged this with um my motion before um so on August the 5th, I had kind of put the call out to find out how many residents were actually impacted. Um and I'm I'm saying this because councelor Dvoli, you had mentioned not many people were impacted. So put it out just on Facebook. Within 48 hours I had 107 people message me on their own. Um and since then I'm probably up to about 130. And then there are other areas that I know were affected cuz I saw them on July 21st and they aren't even in that area. So this was widespread. I would say it's every neighborhood in Grimby. Different impacts, different reasons like um uh Brandon had mentioned. So um it it absolutely impacted a lot of people. Um want to get that straight first. I did talk to our MPP um Hoff who was very helpful and I reiterated the fact that we had that many number of residents who were impacted and I wanted to flag it so that you know we're not repeating this. we're identifying the issues um and then we're able to ask the province and the federal government for upgrades in the future. So I I'm kind of taking that approach that how are we going to learn from this and how are we going to um improve and I would I'm and I want to say staff was wonderful. I saw them on July 21st all over the place. I was looking and just kind of seeing where the damage was and people were out and I know that they've worked very hard. So, I definitely don't want to downplay that, but um I'm I'm fine if you know um it sounds like um Director Wartman is is on the right track as far as taking our information back. And if you want to, you know, I can withdraw my motion and then you can provide a report that would be great. Um it would be nice because it sounds like the consensus through with council is support for the backwater valve program. So if that could be something that we look at um I would uh appreciate that. Um and and just one more note um and I I will draw on community services. So when we started the community services um committees in 2023 um we had um um director Sweeney had suggested we have free swim days for heat advisory days, heat alerts. And in the beginning, there were only a few and every single year there were more and more of these heat advisories. So, you know, yes, these were exceptional circumstances this year. That doesn't mean that we're not going to continue to experience. So, so I'm just looking for, you know, we have to be as prepared as we can be. Um, and it sounds like you're on the right track. So, I I'm I'm okay with withdrawing my motion and and sending that to staff if uh if that's something you want to do. Councelor Vardy. >> Um thank you. So um I'm not comfortable withdrawing my resolution and um part of my concern is our operations department has a day job which keeps them busy. So they're in in order to do and to accomplish what needs to be done, they're going to need help. um they I mean the I I don't think it's fair to kind of just put it on operations without giving them some support, some funding, um to even do the background work that's that's required to to accomplish what needs to be done. And and I can tell you that even in my first term, I would get calls about the ditches on the mountain being full of foliage. Oops. Whatever. And um and when I went up there, I mean, I could see the ditches were full of stuff. And I know we clear them out when people complain, but I think we need a kind of regular program of maintenance. And and I don't want people to think with that with this motion, I'm thinking these guys are going to do it next week. They're they're not. It's it's too big a task. And I think we're going to get more storms like this. So that if we don't do the groundwork and also support our staff to be able to do the kind of work that they have to do, they they're going to need they're they're going to need additional people just to develop the plan. You know, additional resources just to be able to do that. And there's so many partners. Um, you know, when you look at when you look at the escarment, you got the Niagara Escarpment Commission and and I I guess all I'm thinking is that if the water on the mountain is not escarment, I call it the mountain. I guess I've been around too long. Uh, the water on the escarment, um, if it's not going into drains up there, then it's coming down here. and and so I I actually think my resolution is rather all-encompassing and and uh would be helpful. Um and so I would like to see a go ahead even even as a background information piece. But I guess the thing I want to make clear is I don't think staff can do this on on their own. I think it's too big a task and I don't think it's fair of us to ask them to do that without resources. I mean, they, you know, I'm sorry, like when Marvin came out and looked at the uh the storm water, uh I'll I'll just say he came out with a plan that was 25 years old because that was the last time it was done. And so getting this information, it's a huge task. So, I just I just want to be fair to staff because I think what needs to be done is is very big because I think we're going to get more and more of these storms in future. And if we don't have a plan that's that's going to address this and you know, it could be a 5-year plan. I'm not saying everything's going to be done in six months. It's certainly not. But we need to have a plan. And I think our staff are going to need help uh and resources to be able to develop that plan. >> Councelor Dvoli, >> thank you. Um so on behalf of councelor Vardy, I'm going to ask staff um what do you envision these steps are and um and the cost to actually coming up with this? >> Uh through you, thank counselor, through you, Mr. Chair. I think again I'm it's really early on in this process. Uh we're still as we said uh digging out of the uh last events or the recent events. Uh I have some ideas in mind in terms of what that's going to look like for the team. Um and I do have some ideas about what we can do in terms of larger studies. Um, we have certain areas that we've already identified that we have have uh in our books for us to do that work and uh to kind of stress Councelor Vard's input or feedback is we've had difficulty getting that uh going because uh you know we've have a lot on the table right now. Well, if the question is, do we need more resources? Uh, more resources help. But I don't have a uh I can't say right now that it's it you need three more people or two more people or hundreds of thousands of dollars. Uh I just I I guess what I would ask from council and I I think this is the general sense that I'm getting from the motions is there is a an interest to make sure that we're doing our due diligence and debriefing from the storm event. uh looking towards the future in terms of what we need to do to further uh enhance our systems and that is without these motions we we will be doing that I guess so um it's it's in our our our minds as staff again soon as the rain starts uh I'm I'm watch I'm watching the weather a lot more often these days but um that you know we're we're in line with with council's expectations. We as staff care about our community and the uh the people that we work for and work with. Uh and we will be doing a full assessment and will be bringing um information forward to council whether that's as part of this year's budget or further budgets. But um again, I I'm just I guess what I'm asking for is time to allow us to to dig into this. And I appreciate that it sounds like uh council is is somewhat aligned in that is this is not an overnight thing. Uh I and I guess I would say uh I do appreciate the support in in counselors asking for hey do you need resources to do this? So if you would let me take that away with the team and we can come back uh to you with a uh appropriate at at the appropriate time with more with more uh details on that. So hopefully that answers your question. uh I I don't really want to go line by line in terms of the motion, but I think the general sense is I I understand what what uh council is looking for in all the various motions. So, uh I'm happy to uh take the direction from council, but uh agree that, you know, we will be coming back with more information. >> All right. I think um now we can call the vote. Councelor Devoliv spoken twice, so um um we have the resolutions up there. Um, I'm not going to reread them. What we can do is vote on them separately and just have a a show of hands on the votes. Council Brady. >> Thank you, Mayor J through. Um, would it be a friendly ask to add that we actually put the back water flow valve as an a bulleted item? >> Thank you, Council Freddy. >> Yes. And a question if I could on these resolutions. The the recommendation from staff is that built into one of these resolutions or will that be like the last one? >> Yeah, it's in councelor de flavios I believe. >> And the backflow we'll put in councelor house because I think it makes the most sense to put it there. All right. >> Could we also have these displayed on on escribe so we could see them? >> Are you able to do that? >> It's a little more complicated if we're not going to vote like can we just >> Can I ask a quick procedural question? >> Sure. Go ahead. Councelor >> Defle I thank you for you mayor to uh to the clerk. I I'm concerned that some of these resolutions um are making decisions for the next council. So, I just want to know, you know, from a procedural perspective, and I know that we make decisions all the time that carry on to the next term of council, but some of them are very specific saying 2027, you know, so we're getting pretty close to the lame duck period of this council. And I just want to make sure that we're not breaking any, you know, kind of traditional rules, anything like that. I I don't think we are, but I I just want to make sure that we're considering that >> through the chair. Uh the current term of council cannot commit the next term of council to anything. Uh however, what is directed for staff in these will they'll continue to work on that until um you know, an item comes forward that we get different direction from the next turn of council. Yeah. Um we have resolution um the number one moved by councelor Vardy, second by councelor Bradzy. >> Um all in favor? >> Yeah, we're going to have to do recorded votes. So So this first one on escribe is just councelor Vardy and coun second and councelor Barazz's resolution on the screen. >> That's correct. All right. Um the first one is approved. It's carried. Up next we have um Councelor Shawwah's motion seconded by councelor Vardy. And that's carried. Up next we have uh Councelor DeFlavio's uh resolution. Um second councelor Frank. >> Yeah that's carried. And finally we have councelor How's resolution um with a seconder of councelor Vardy >> just not And we've included the backflow program. And that one's carried as well. Up next, uh, can I have a mover and seconder to get the staff memo on the transportation master plan on the floor for discussion? Moved by councelor How, second by councelor Bradzy. Brandon, please go ahead. Uh, thank you, Mr. Mayor. Uh, so we did uh come before council on May 25th with a presentation on our transportation master plan. Uh essentially we received u an in in principal endorsement of the temp at that time with the understanding that staff would be bringing a report back uh to council following the 30 day uh 30-day public comment period. Uh so following that we published our notice of study completion on July 10th. Uh this kicked off our 30-day public comment period. Uh so our notices as part of that notification the notices go out to the public and various project contributors uh including various agencies. Um so we received some followup from our local indigenous communities who expressed interest in reviewing the TMP uh and providing their feedback but however they asked for some additional time to do so. Uh further the minister of environment also reached out to us and asked us uh to provide some more comprehensive documentation of our consultation activities uh as we did uh throughout the the uh development of the TMP. So to address both matters, uh staff felt it was appropriate to pull our notice of uh study completion. Um and then uh take the essentially we've reverted the document back to a draft version and kept it available for public review on our our web page until uh all of the additional consultation is done. Uh so once we've completed that consultation and updated the study document, we will repost it uh um we repost the notice of completion. Our original intent was to bring the report back to council this evening at the end of the day the third at the end of the 30-day public comment period uh to update you guys on on uh when this that the study was completed uh and any impact or input that we received during that uh that time. So with the coming election we'll not be able to bring this report forward until the new term of council. Uh, with that said, I don't see the core recommendations from the study changing significantly and and staff's intent is to continue to move move forward with the TMP recommendations with the understanding we may need to make some adjustments following our consultation period. Um, uh, so I'd be happy to take any questions on on that matter as well. >> Thank you, uh, Brandon. Uh, councelor How? >> Uh, thank you and through you, Mayor Brandon. Um what extension do they do they want? We everybody else was working with 30 and then it it had to be extended. What do we extend it? Is it going to be done or with the next term of council um will be done by then? We'll >> we get any kind of a guarantee that >> through you Mr. Chair. Uh so we had initial uh uh reach out to um the uh six nations and had a meeting with them. Uh they've asked for you between four to 6 weeks in order for them to turn around uh their review. Uh we still have to consult with one other community, but I don't see this being a huge time frame in terms of um um providing the the feedback. It's just a matter of uh they asked for additional time and with um the ministry uh informing us, hey, you need to do some a little bit more dot your eyes and cross your tees in terms of how you're documenting your consultations. Uh we were, you know, we just said, okay, we'll pull it back, put it in a draft. We just need to put it on pause for a little bit. So, again, I don't I don't feel this is a it's it's putting it on pause. The the the report or the study is 99% complete. we do have to do that consultation ensure that we're ensuring everyone has their input. Um uh so um you know I don't I don't see this it won't be coming back to this council obviously but the next term of council it will be expected it'll be the first of the year I it should be in place by then. Hopefully that answers your question. All right. Thank you. Seeing no further questions, move by councelor H, second by councelor Bradzy. Resolve that the staff memo regarding the transportation master plan be received. All in favor? That's carried. Uh, can I have a mover and seconder for the coach's week proclamation? Moved by councelor Dvoli. Second by councelor How. Moved by councelor Devoli. Second by councelor How. Whereas the town of Grenby recognizes the tremendous positive impact coaches have on athletes and communities and whereas the purpose of National Coaches Week is to provide the 300,000 coaches who call Ginsby and Ontario home with the resources, representation, and recognition they deserve for the time they devote to ensuring Canadians live an active and healthy lifestyle. And whereas we celebrate the many amazing coaches who live and volunteer in our communities for their selfless commitment to their athletes and participants by saying #thanks coach. Therefore, be it resolved that I, Mayor Jeff Jordan, do hereby proclaim September 14th to 20th, 2026 as coaches week in Ginsby. All in favor? That's carried. All right. Can I have a mover and seconder for the rail safety week proclamation? Moved by councelor how second by councelor Bradzy. Whereas rail safety week is to be held across Canada from September 21st to 27th 2026. And whereas 252 railway crossing incidents occur in Canada in 2025 resulting in 69 avoidable fatalities and 60 avoidable serious injuries. And we're educating and informing the public about rail safety, reminding the public that railway rights away are private property, enhancing public awareness of the dangers associated with highway rail grade crossings, and ensuring pedestrians and motorists are looking and listening while near railways and obeying the established traffic laws will reduce the number of avoidable fat fatalities and injuries caused by incidents involving trains and citizens. And whereas Operation Lifesaver is a public private partnership whose aim is to work with public the public rail industry, governments, indigenous communities, police services, media, and others to raise safety awareness. And whereas CN and Operation Lifesaver have requested town council to adopt this resolution in support of its ongoing efforts to raise awareness, save lives, and prevent injuries in communities, including our municipality. Therefore, be it resolved that I, Mayor Jeff Jordan, do hereby proclaim September 21st to 27th, 2026 as Rail Safety Week in Grimby. All in favor? >> All right. Councelor Dvoli, question. Sorry, didn't know how to to put my hand up fast enough there. Um, this is a really important thing, rail safety, especially in our town because our rail lines by and large run through urban areas unlike other municipalities where they may run through forests or or farm country and so on. Not to downplay the the risk in those areas too, but I think it's especially risky in urban areas, which is what we are. And so I hear all these good things in this resolution, but my question is, will they be supplying us with materials? What can we actually do? Boots on the ground here in Grimby to make our residents aware, please don't walk on the rail tracks, the biggest one. And we've shut down and closed roads that used to um be unused, but used to go over the rail lines. Um, but what can we do or will they be providing us with something we can put in the newspaper, put on our website? Um, I don't know even who to ask the question to. >> We'll be asking uh CN to for a followup on this. >> All right. And certainly uh we'll find um track them down at AMO because I know they'll have a booth there and uh and ask them there. So, all right. All in favor? And that's carried. All right. Up next, can I have a mover and seconder for the childhood cancer awareness month proclamation? Move by councelor Frank. Second by councelor Vardy. Whereas over 800 children under the age of 15 are diagnosed with cancer each year in Canada. And whereas childhood cancer is the number one cause of death by disease of Canadian children. And whereas childhood cancer places a tremendous financial burden on families and whereas over 75% of childhood cancer survivors live with an at least one chronic health condition and a third of these are severe or life-threatening. And whereas little is known about what causes childhood cancer which limits the opportunity for prevention. And whereas additional awareness for funding for childhood cancer is needed as only five cents for every research dollar goes toward childhood cancer research. And whereas annually September is officially recognized as childhood cancer awareness month by the province of Ontario. Therefore, be it resolved that I, Mayor Jeff Jordan, do hereby proclaim September 2026 as childhood cancer awareness month in Grimby and encourage all citizens to learn more about how they can make a positive int impact on the lives of children with cancer. All in favor? That's carried. All right. So, um, there is a notice of motion on the floor. Councelor Coststani submitted it, but, uh, I was the seconder. Councelor Kstani is not here right now. So, I will I will move this motion. So, uh, and councelor Frank will be the seconder. So, councelor Devoli, if you could take the chair. So, at this point in time, councelor Corsandi has moved um and Mayor Jordan has seconded the motion, but um so that still stands even though she's here. So, you're moving the motion just to be clear and um we will need a seconder for the motion. And councelor Frank, you have so indicated. Thank you. Um, so at this point in time, um, the question is there for discussion and Mayor Jordan would like to speak to it. >> Yeah, we need do need two together. >> Thank you. Okay. Um, because we are discussing the motion immediately this evening. The first motion on the table is resolved that the rules of procedure be temporarily suspended by an affirmative vote of twothirds to discuss um Mayor Mayor Jordan and councelor Frank's notice of motion tonight. All those in favor and councelor DeFlavio, are you still online to vote? I think that motion is carried even without hearing. >> Yes, I'm in favor. >> Yes, you are. Okay. Thank you. We don't we we want to be sure to include those online too. Thank you. So, that motion actually was passed unanimously. Um, so now we are able to discuss it. So, go ahead, Mayor Jordan. >> All right. Thank you. Through uh you, acting chair. Uh yeah, the Livingston Avenue extension is something that's always uh um been a thorn in my side. uh when uh previous councils at one time uh and the region uh proposed to move it through all the way to Oaks Road um being always a proponent of the of the wood lot uh which is uh it's the largest tract of uh Carol remnant Carolinian forest over 17 acres below the escarment in all of Niagara and I haven't checked for sure but I do believe it's one of the top three in all of the golden horseshoe. So, it's something that's so significant and um I really feel strongly and I hope that council feels strongly that um the Livingston Avenue extension passed any farther than the GO station should be permanently off the table. Um it's certainly I think we need a strong message from this council um to uh to keep a roadway away far away from the wood lot. Uh there's significant species there both animal species and plant species as well as uh um very significant uh with it being in the um Carolinian forest zone. Uh it is the m most diverse zone in Canada yet it's the smallest zone in Canada. So we need to really preserve these areas. So I just really hope that council approves this. Thank you. Councelor Frank, go ahead. >> Thank you, Chair. This this particular uh uh piece of property goes back to the first term of my council, and I remember that the folks in in Grimby in general came out in in throngs in support of, you know, maintaining and keeping that wood lot safe. Uh we've had Bruce McKenzie out here, you know, uh being being the one of the biggest cheerleaders for this. It's the one as as Mayor Jordan said, this is one of the only Carolinian protected forests in Canada. So, we need to protect it. Not only that, but it it is uh there's a lot of other life on that on that particular piece of property that needs to be protect protected. thought we had gotten this through to to the region in the first term and I thought they were listening to us but obviously they weren't and they continue to push it and now it's in their 10year I think it's in their 10-year plan. So we need to really fight hard to keep this particular woodlock safe. So I and I just encourage everybody on this council to to vote in favor of pushing this more and more and more as much as we can back to the region and to the province for that matter. Thank you. >> I think councelor Charw had her hand up first and then councelor Bardy. No, >> I Oh, I'm sorry. I'm okay. I thought somebody's mic was on. I just wanted to thank you, uh, Mayor Jordan and councelor Christi for bringing this forward. I think it's great that we have this in writing, so hopefully this moves forward. I'm I'm going to support it as well. Thank you. I'll just draw everyone's attention to the motion uh that I put forward uh a few years ago about making Grimby the Carolinian capital of Canada and it was passed. So, um I'm absolutely going to support this motion. Brandon, why are you laughing? Are there any other counselors who wish to speak to this at this time? Seeing no other hands up, then we will call for a vote on it. And I will read the motion one more time. >> Could we have a recorded vote, please? I think that's always good for the record. >> So moved by Mayor Jordan, seconded by Councelor Frank. Resolved that the council of the town of Grimby affirms its strong opposition to any consideration of extending Livingston Avenue beyond the Grimsy GO station lands and that a copy of this resolution be forwarded to the region of Niagara and Metro links. All those in favor, please vote on Eastcribe to >> and councelor DeFlavio. >> I vote yes. Yes, I I'm putting it to describe, but yes. >> Thank you. >> And that is carried. Thank you. And I will turn the chair back over to Mayor Jordan. Can I have a mover and seconder for the bylaws? Moved by councelor Sharwa, second by councelor how resolved that leave be given to introduce bylaws 26-47 to 26-49 inclusive and that same be read a first time considered and passed. All in favor? That's carried. This is the last regular council meeting of the 2022 to 2026 term of council. If a special meeting of council is required, it will be posted on the town's website and social media channels at least 24 hours prior to the meeting. The inaugural council meeting for the 26 to 23rd term council will be held on November 23rd, 2026 at 5:30 p.m. Can I have a mover and seconder for the confirming bylaw? Moved by councelor Frank, second by councelor Vardy, resolved that leave be given to introduce bylaw 26-50 and that same be read a first time considered and passed. All in favor and that's carried. Good night everyone. Um this term's gone by really quickly. Thank you everyone. Uh meeting is adjourned.