Councillors Brad Nieman and Corey Engelsdorfer will join a new Childcare Task Team, recommended in County’s Economic Development Action Plan. 

More than 400 children are on the waitlist for licensed daycare. That is a barrier to economic growth.

The Team will also include two members from the Prince Edward County Needs Childcare Group, an advocacy group formed by parents and caregivers. 

Third-Party Planning

Councillor Chris Braney wants a third-party review of the Planning Department. 

The resolution responds to both the increase in planning applications and the challenges of keeping up with Ford’s micro-changes to provincial planning legislation. 

The Ford Government’s 2024 Provincial Planning Statement introduced several changes that affect building in rural communities, including a new provision allowing two additional dwellings to be built on rural properties. 

Councillor Braney argued that the review would “improve the effectiveness of services for residents in Prince Edward County.”

“We don’t have to accept a lot of them,” he said. “But external reviews can pull together best practices from other municipalities.”

Councillor Kate MacNaughton objected that third-party recommendations might lead staff and Council in the wrong direction. 

She noted that other municipalities in Southeastern Ontario delegate planning decisions to staff that would normally come before Council and the public.

“I think that’s possibly where planning is going in the future or where the province is going and I’ve got grave concerns about that.” 

“I would hope to keep planning control local and public.”

Councillor Phil St-Jean said a review could provide planning staff with more tools to navigate new legislation.

“We have been inundated with changes from the previous and new Conservative governments. I think we’re going to see more changes and we need to be as prepared as we can to do the best we can to support our staff and do the best for our community and the people we represent,” he said.

Councillor Janice Maynard asked  that the term “streamline” be removed from the resolution. “I don’t want us necessarily fast-tracking and missing things in our planning files,” she said. 

The resolution carried with all but Councillor MacNaughton in favour. 

Affordable Housing Funding 

Councillor St-Jean will advocate for the County’s housing needs at the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the Federal organization that distributes affordable housing grants. His resolution carried unanimously. 

CMHC gathers its own statistical data on vacancy rates and median market rents to determine where funding goes. 

Councillor St-Jean sits on the Board of the Affordable Housing Corporation — and its grant applications have been turned down repeatedly. The resolution notes that CMHC’s lack of local rental data creates an inaccurate picture of where the needs are. 

Council intends to have CMHC review their funding formulae and criteria, and to recognize that Prince Edward County is a community in need of affordable rental housing. The resolution urges the CMHC to clearly provide the rationale behind their funding decisions. 

Correspondence will be directed to the Chair and CEO of CMHC, along with elected representatives and ministers at the Federal and Provincial levels. 

Council will invite a senior representative of the CMHC to its April 8th meeting to address its concerns. 

Councillor St-Jean noted that the Affordable Housing Corporation had received a response to its concerns from CMCH President and CEO, Coleen Volk, that afternoon.

“As expected, there were a lot of generalities in this letter,” said Councillor St-Jean. 

“I think it’s important that we do follow through, continuously advocating for the changes that are necessary, that we have identified as shortfalls in the CMHC funding programs and policies.”