Grey Highlands council sets 2023 budget meetings

Grey Highlands council will be busy in the new year setting the 2023 budget.

At its meeting on Dec. 21, council set aside some dates to deliberate as committee of the whole on the proposed 2023 budget.

Council has set aside January 9, 10, 25, 30 and 31 for budget meetings, if necessary. All committee of the whole budget meetings will go from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Council has received a draft version of the proposed 2023 budget, which includes a 9.2 per cent hike to the local tax rate.

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Grey Highlands Mayor Paul McQueen will hold the mayor’s new year’s levee on Jan. 7.

The levee to celebrate the new year will be at the Flesherton Library from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. All members of the public are invited to attend.

“It’s an opportunity to reflect on the past year and the upcoming year,” McQueen said.

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Grey Highlands will continue to have a Natural Gas Expansion Task Force.

At the meeting, council voted 7-0 in favour of a resolution from coun. Tom Allwood to continue the task force. The task force was created during the last council term to investigate ways to expand natural gas services to local residents in Grey Highlands.

Allwood said the task force is nearing the completion of its work, but has not issued its final report yet because it is waiting for additional information from Enbridge and AECON. Allwood asked that the task force remain in place to complete the process.

Allwood, McQueen and coun. Paul Allen will remain the members of the task force.

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Council will receive some training about the Grey Highlands Lens project in the new year.

In a 7-0 vote, council passed a resolution from Coun. Nadia Dubyk that asked municipal staff to set up a training session for council on the Lens concept.

Grey Highlands adopted the Grey Highlands Lens in 2017. It was a joint project between the municipality and the University of Guelph’s School of Environmental Design and Rural Development to help the municipality make sustainable decisions. Full details can be found here.

“It is a decision-making framework that can benefit our council,” said Dubyk.

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In future staff reports, council will receive notes on how a project or a recommendation may affect the environment.

Council unanimously passed a resolution from coun. Paul Allen to include environmental impacts in all staff reports. Allen said the system does not need to be complex and suggested a numbering rating system for staff to use. Allen said it would be a great way for council and the public to stay informed about how issues are impacting the local environment.

“It’s so we’re aware and the public can see we’re aware of how it affects the environment,” said Allen. “We receive the legal and financial implications in most reports. This is a good one to include.”