Howew i'r ndui sddi llawi'r y dy'r â fel, ffdame i'r pwr leid, wei, ffdame i'r ly e 너dd.
Felidio, e fel fel, fy dweich yn ethio dron, defio, dwy enriddioethio, mwy o'r sylm, dwy enriddio.
Ffdame i'r eu'r I'r euel, dwy enriddio 2.
Ffdame i'r amoldio, ffdame i'r âed.
Mae'n i'n eich y-rwydr i'r i'r Iy sy'n i'r Iywydr i'n i'n i'n budd called ta'n rhwawn,
Gwyneth Gwyneth Gwyneth Gwyneth Gwyneth
O Canada, our home and native land, true, page with love, in all of us in land, with all in force, city council, and free, from far, far, far, far, far, far, far, far, far, far, far,
We stand on guard for thee, Lord keep a land, Lord he has to free, O Canada, we stand on guard for thee, O Canada, we stand on guard for thee, O Canada, we stand on guard,
and the land, thee, O Canada, we stand on guard for thee, O Canada, we stand on guard for thee, o Canada, we stand on guard for thee, O Canada, the land, the land, the land, the land, the land.
Thank you, everybody please, Be seated.
The town of Oakville is located on treaty lands and territory of the misfisagas of the credit first nation. We thank the misisagas for being stewards of this traditional territory.
By 1820, the Mississaugas began welcoming settlers from all over the British Empire.
Soon, Oakville was welcoming black people fleeing the United States.
Our indigenous white and black residents created a community of harmony that makes us proud.
By 1857, Ontario recognized Oakville as a town.
At Town Hall, we fly the flag of the Mississaugas with the flags of Oakville, Ontario and Canada to acknowledge our origins.
The vibrant livability that we are creating for everyone attracts people from across Canada and from around the world.
We feel sorrow for acts of racism and intolerance that are suffered across the world, including in Canada and here at home.
We want our future to be equitable and inclusive for everyone.
We believe the path of truth and reconciliation can unite us.
Please keep well, stay safe and let us on council know of any chance to be helpful to you and yours.
And please let us know anytime you can help increase Oakville's harmony, prosperity and livability.
Mr. Clerk, do we have any regrets?
There are no regrets, Mayor.
Thank you, everyone, for the full house of attendance.
Councilor, there are any declarations of conflict of interest.
Becunary or otherwise, Mr. Clerk, there are none.
Council in public, we celebrated the life of our colleague Mark Grant Ward 5 Town Councilor Saturday at a moving and fulfilling ceremony.
At this meeting of council, flowers are representing him at his place around the table.
He was a champion of transit, parks and public gathering spaces.
He was a voice on poverty and food security, and we all benefited from Mark's service to our town.
I'd like to extend an opportunity for each of his colleagues to acknowledge him, followed by a minute of silence,
after which we must exercise our municipal duty to formally declare his seat vacant.
And I'll start in numerical order with Ward 1, Councilor Omera.
Well, thank you, Your Worship.
And I know we all have our various aspects and niches that we focus on in council times.
And I'm just want to draw one that was special to myself and to Mark.
And we both had a special place for helping women's place.
And it wasn't just because of purple.
It was because it was something that Mark felt very passionate about.
And over my 12 years on council, there were times when he and I were the only councilors at that event.
And Mark could be counted on and many times de-sitting at the table to be there when many weren't.
And he always stood up for everything that whole women's place stood for, and it was always a great time.
And actually one of the few times that it was just Mark and I and my wife and de-fur for many hours talking about many different things.
And it was something that I know that he was extremely proud of.
And like all of you know, didn't speak very much about it, but you could tell by his actions and the passion he cared for,
and women's place.
And that's something that I share with Mark and we'll continue to do so.
And I will make a donation.
Thank you, Councillor McNeese.
Thank you, Worship.
I mean, Mark certainly, I spent one term with him, but he was certainly not a usual politician,
just such a kind-hearted person.
You know, very, very soft and caring that we'd expect.
And my experience with him was on the appeals committee, and he chaired it for the first time.
And appeals committee is not typically a friendly place.
And you know, he did it with his usual compassion, you know, for some difficult situations,
but it took the temperature down in the room and made it easier for us new ones on the committee as well.
So he certainly served the town with purpose and honor and compassion.
And like others have said, he was always looking out for what we missed and the people that we missed.
You know, I really appreciate his stand on food security and transit and affordable housing.
You know, and I think our communities, he certainly left a legacy in our communities really, really grateful for his dedication to the town.
So his family and loved ones can certainly be proud of the meaningful impact that he made to the town of Oakville.
He'll certainly be missed at this table.
Thank you.
Thank you, Councillor.
Councillor Doug.
Thank you.
I just want to begin by saying that glitch that took place with the singing of Canada.
Invariably, I would have seen Martin cross the way going like, okay.
And he would have had some quick comeback as usual.
Loved his sense of humor.
Quirky really, really dark sometimes, but I loved it.
And I think one of the fondest memories I have of Mark in my capacity as some chair of the Yokeville Santa Claus parade.
We had a fantastic gal who ran our volunteer reception for years for us, which meant they greet the people coming in from the cold with a hot chocolate doughnut.
Get warmed up.
Have a few words and send them on their way.
Well, I sent out an SOS immediately.
Mark responded as did the injury.
And they fulfilled that role for many years.
And you could ask for a better person to, with the warm smile, greet people as they came in.
Have a funny little quism to, you know, make them feel that they're personal.
And thank you.
Thank you, Dean.
I appreciate that as well.
Thank you, Councillor.
Councillor Chisel.
Thank you.
Where do you start?
Mark left us two early in life.
What I liked about Mark was a council.
He was low profile didn't ask a lot of questions.
Didn't jump up, pounding his fists.
But behind the scene, Mark was a real, what I call a community engagement.
I guess I'll keep it short and saying, when it can't be done, he usually is interrupted by somebody doing it.
And that was Mark.
And that's what I liked about Mark.
He had a great sense of humor, a dry sense of humor.
And yes, dark sense of humor.
We didn't cross past that much on subcommittees or committees, but watching Mark account.
So he was taking that information and he was doing an excellent job for his words.
So Mark, we miss you.
Take care.
Thank you.
Thank you, Councillor.
Councillor Janet, how's it feel?
Thank you, Mayor Burton.
I think when I was asked, if I would say a few words, I wanted to think about those moments that we had.
My very first time making a presentation, Mark was there.
And it was to think and celebrate a woman firefighter.
And I just so appreciated that he reminded me that AI could do it.
And be that together, we were celebrating something very important.
I also sat on appeals with Mark and he steadfastly ensured that the appellant always was heard.
Listen to knew that there were resources available to them and got a fair hearing.
And it's not an easy task to do.
And I was grateful for that.
But I think one of Mark's highlights was when he spoke about post-residents.
It was a project that had varying views.
But we all, I think, were struck by his words that night when he talked about finding a place and integrating individuals into a neighborhood.
So they could have a stable environment and that we should trust the partners that we work with.
He did it brilliantly that night.
I know Mackenzie, you inherited your father's gift for eloquence.
And Dee, thank you for sharing him with us.
Thank you, Councillor.
Councillor Gaines.
Thank you, Mayor Burton.
Looking across at Councillor Grant and its chair brings back a lot of fond memories.
It will be an incredibly difficult chair to fill.
And the Councillor Kathy is you said,
How did you interview somebody for dark and quirky?
I've never seen that on a job application before.
Our community and our residents are far better off as a result of Mark's dedication and efforts in world and in missing.
Thank you, Councillor.
Councillor Lungo.
Oh, sorry.
Yes, Councillor Lungo then we'll go to Councillor Elgar.
So Mark showed up for his constituents for 23 years and at one point I was actually one of his
conditions constituents living in a word five.
He cared about a lot of things that I shared.
So green space, transit, affordable housing, food security.
But I also playing trivia one night with him.
I learned that he was really good at trivia, especially Star Trek trivia.
So I was like, I had, it was great.
He was on my team thankfully.
But I want to say that he was just a good man.
He showed up and cared deeply around all of those that he surrounded him.
He wanted to make the world a better place and he definitely succeeded.
So I want to thank you, Mark.
And as we saw in Saturday until we meet again.
Thank you, Councillor.
Councillor Lungo.
Yeah, Mayor Burton and Councillor Colleagues.
I sat across this chamber from Mark Grant for 23 years.
We didn't know he's boat the same way.
And Mark never once created that as a reason for disrespect.
That's rare in this work than people think.
I can tell you.
And it's part of what made working with Mark fun and good.
He championed transit, parks, public gathering spaces, poverty and food security.
The files that take plenty of patience.
And repetition year after year.
And move even very little in any particular year.
Mark had that patience.
And that is persistence.
I would say that Mark had.
Twenty-three years a long time to share a council table.
And I give my condolences to especially daughter Mackenzie, who was with him at so many different events.
I was at an FCM at Amel.
She would go with him.
And to his fan, whole family.
And to the ward for five residents who count on him.
He'll be missed.
And a great tribute to Mark on Saturday.
I must say from everyone that was there or couldn't be there.
But a good person.
And I thank you.
Thank you, Councillor.
Well, I'm going to reserve some comments because I will speak to the motion that's coming up a little bit later.
And get going to a bit more detail.
I do want to, first of all, acknowledge that quite a few of Mark's family are with us today.
So Tracy's here.
Her parents.
Deave course.
Mackenzie Mackenzie's.
And you husband is here as well.
And oh my gosh.
Caroline's here.
Well, I thought you were going back.
That's Carling Mark's stepdaughter.
I don't know if many of you have met her, but she's lovely.
And she brought him two little grandchildren into the world.
And he was so you probably all remember seeing those photos over and over and over again.
So it's so wonderful to see you here.
And thank you for being here with us today.
And thank you to all members of Council who could be there on Saturday.
It was a wonderful service and a great and fitting honor to our great friend.
I don't know what more to say at this point.
I'm finding it very surreal that this seat is empty beside me.
Mark and I have been friends close friends for 23 years beyond the council chamber.
And we did everything together both here and in creative pursuits and just fun.
And yeah, he's a wicked trivia player.
But I'm better.
So as I said, I'll have more to say a little bit later.
But I do really miss my friend.
Thank you for those of brought flowers.
Thank you.
Thank you for flowers today.
And yeah, that's going to be hard for me to get through.
Thank you, Councillor.
Councillor Adams.
Thank you.
I wanted to give my condolences to the entire family.
All of Mark's friends.
It was a giant shock when I heard the news.
I'm sure it was a giant shock for everybody else as well.
But I want to remember Mark not just as a colleague but as a friend.
He's been my, also my seatmate for 23 years.
And for all that time, I have...
The privilege of getting to know the guy behind the public service. And we worked on many, many things
over the years from housing affordability issues, and we shared a great interest in improving
public transit. And so we spent lots of time on that together, making it easier for people to get
around in our community. But Mark was an incredibly kind person. And he was always generous with
his time. He was a considerate of everybody else in the room. No matter how irritating
somebody else might be, he never showed it. He was the kind person in the room, always.
But he also had this wonderful sense of humor that everybody has now talked about. And I was
a beneficiary of it more often than not being the seatmate. And I always enjoyed his wit, darker
otherwise, because it made time pass really easily and really fast. And so the moments that we all
shared in laughter with him, I think we all appreciated it. And I'm really sorry Jeff, you're now going
to have to deal with my engineering and banker jokes instead of Mark. But in any case, Mark is going
to be a deeply missed, fondly remembered. And I think everybody and I thank the world for
the opportunity to work with them. Thank you, Councillor. Councillor, this gentleman.
Thank you, Your Worship. First, I want to offer my sincere condolences to the family who are here.
Councillor Noel loved all of you. Councillor Councillor Grant loved all of you. And I know
Councillor Noel does too. He loves you just as much. Over the last ten years, Mark and I served
on Council. And I've also had lots of wonderful memories. We attended a lot of community events
together and I can always count on Mark to bring a smile to everybody at the table. He was a
gentle giant who genuinely cared about people. Every year, he and I joined Councilor Noel
for a candidate, pancake breakfast, including just a few weeks back. We were the three amigos serving
up pancakes and maple syrup. And Mark's pancakes were the pretty ones. They were always the
beautiful ones and we know Mark really enjoyed making food. He was a chef and he really
took pride in making sure those pancakes were beautiful. So I will always remember his pancakes.
I love to walk trails and when I first got elected to Council, Mark joined me on the trails. I was
always saying this is the way to get to know the community, but it was also a way for me to get a
real sense in understanding of what Council was about and the meetings and the issues of the
day and he was so generous with his time and really helped me understand a lot of what's going on here.
So I really appreciated that. And for those who know Mark was shy to give hugs to anyone outside of his
family. I'm not and despite his shyness any time we would be meeting up at some event. He had this huge
grin because he knew I was running up to give him a hug and we can see where there are a lot of times
and he would just give you this thing look but a big grin and I will miss Mark. He's with the angels now
and rest in peace my friend. Thank you, Councillor. Councillor Neda. Thank you, my burden.
First and foremost I want to give my sincere condolences to the family, McKinsey, Deedron, everyone else that is here
today. It was a great shock to hear. It's obviously difficult to put into words, losing someone
suddenly that you respected so much. I feel fortunate that I had the opportunity to serve alongside
Mark. I was also on the Peel's committee so we had a little committee together and it was wonderful to
be able to serve on that and although it was my first term with Mark and not as long as most of the other
members, I do remember the quality of time we spent and I feel everything happens for a reason. So
by some fortune, Mark, I feel wanted some of us to be there in the end for his last time that he was
at an event and I feel fortunate that I got to be there with my family and with Deedron and meeting
her, some of her extended family but Mark also talking to my daughters and being the kind person that
he was and telling them what movies to watch and they were talking about Star Trek and so when I had to
tell them about his passing they were like well we were just talking to him and we just met him and we were
talking about movies so he always had that jolly side to him to make everyone happy but like many
others said he didn't always have to be vocal around the council table but when he said something it was
something important that he was always saying so he always made a difference and that's what everyone will
be able to share out of the 23 years that he spent on this council is what he gave back to the
community and he gave so much so please accept my deepest and heartfelt condolences and Mark
rest in peace you will be missed but we'll see you again thank you thank you counsellor counsellor
sure thank you Mr Mayor beyond the marks his years of public service it was marked the person
that I will be remembered most so his smile could light up a room and his sense of humor always
made even most challenging moment a little lighter his kindness humility and geography was calling for
that touch so many people around him so Mark and I we attend the sunrise Chinese schools
lunar new year celebration every year so Mark always did the first to give all the beautiful English
world best wishes to the families kids group now I did in Chinese as well so all the kids love
marks they quote mark is Chinese center for me Mark was more than a council colleague he was a good friend
a trusted advisor and my counsellor as well and someone I was lucky to have beside me through
my first turn to serve our community I will always appreciate his encouragement, his friendship
and many counsellor counsellor counsellor counsellor counsellor counsellor counsellor counsellor counsellor
loves and memories we shared thank you Mark for your service your friendship your laughter
and for the positive difference you made in all our lives you will be deeply missed but
your legacy will leave you on in the community you love and deserve thank you thank you counsellor
the next duty that we have is to declare the vacancy this is a duty that falls on us from the
municipal act and the resolution is that the office of town councilor ward five formerly held by
counsellor mark grant be declared vacant in accordance with section 262.1 of the municipal act 2001 and two
that council consider the appointment options outlined in this report and provide direction on its preferred
option to fill the ward five town councilor vacancy and three that staff be directed to report back to
council within 60 days to implement council's direction in accordance with section 263 of the
municipal act I would invite a mover and seconder counsellor know all as a mover and counsellor
dotica seconder and I would I would suggest that you need to put details on item two which is
what the appointment options you recommend staff recommendation I thought made a great deal of
sense counsellor know it's a so counsellor dotica all right then we have the motion in order
is there any objection mr clerk there's no objection in that carries the next thing I'd like to do
is to consider item 14.1 about dedicating a park in marks memory and in order to do that
we need to take two votes the first is to wave the noticed provisions of the council procedural bylaw
and for that we need a mover and a seconder counsellor chism and counsellor this gina thank you any
objection is to clerk there's no objection select carries and now we need a mover and seconder
for the actual motion to do the naming counsellor know all is the mover and the seconder counsellor
nando thank you any objection counsellor know you have the floor thank you first of all thank you
for the motion to wave the procedure so we can deal with this today and I'm pleased to be able to
to do this in order of our deep friend and our friend and our colleague in front of his family
I think it makes it more meaningful so I said a few words and I'm going to ask the mayor some
latitude in terms of potentially string away from the issue just a little teeny bit and as I
honor our friend so it's really difficult to find the right words to speak about someone who should
still be sitting in this chair I acknowledge before our friends and family who or his friends and family
who are here with us today and we want to thank you again for being here today McKenzie D Carling Tracy thank
you for being here and I know how much Mark love all of you and I hope you know how much he was loved by
this council and by the community that he served and I think it'd be fair to say and I think you've heard
it around this council chamber that you have the deepest condolences of not only every member of this
council but our entire staff team many of whom worked very hard to put together the service on Saturday and
I want to say a big thank you to Jane and her team our our facilities folks everybody that came together
to make that day wonderful there was nothing that they wouldn't do for us to make that day go smoothly
and I'm so grateful for that and I know I share the families appreciation for that as well
Mark Grant was our colleague on this council he was my word five partner my friend and it's so many ways my brother
Mark and serve the people of Oakville since December 2003 almost 23 years of public service and just a quick little
story some of you heard this at the service of the day Mark came to this job because he spoke out
and he was really trying to lead the community in change he really did not want street lights at the corner of us
six line and the creamy and he mobilized his community he spoke on there behalf he was passionate
he impressed the heck out of me now I'd already known him from scouts and so when it was all over
unfortunately he lost the day and he did not get his way it was a split photo in council
but when we I was speaking to him afterwards what more can I do what more can I do and I said run for council
that's how you make change you get involved you actually you put your feet on the street and you get the job done
and so he did and in December of 2003 he took his seat and 23 years later he left his mark on this
community Mark has served the people of Oakville since 2003 almost 23 years of public service
that is an extraordinary commitment to a community and over all those years Mark became such a
familiar and trusted presence in word five for the residents of word five Mark was exactly what a
local council should be he cared deeply about the people he represented he listened he answered the
phones he returned the calls he returned the emails he took on the small issues that you can
steam that seemed really insignificant until they're happening to you and he worked just as hard
on larger files affecting our community Mark understood something fundamental about municipal government
this level of government is personal it's important it's meaningful it's about neighborhoods roads
traffic trees community centers parks and everyday things that shape people's lives and Mark loved that work
now to the point one of Mark's particular passions was our parks in word five
he understood the parks are much more than grass playgrounds and pathways there were neighborhoods come together
there were children grow up families gather neighborhoods meet and another a sense of community is built
Mark cared enormously about those spaces he paid attention to them he advocated for them he wanted them to be
places that residents could be proud of and enjoy that makes the motion that I'm bringing forward today
particularly meaningful Mark loved old film but word five was his home he knew its neighborhoods
and its parks as well as its people and more importantly they knew him those of us around the table new
mark as a thoughtful intelligent and client colleague and you've heard that from my colleagues today
he had a wonderful sense of humor a tremendous capacity for friendship and a deep commitment to public
you brought his own perspective to this council and made our deliberations better because he was
part of them one more quick story I can't remember which council I think it was council are getting a
council or a castle field that mentioned at the development the affordable housing development as
six line in an upper middle road we had lots of conversations about that because I want to be very clear that this
was not this was not an easy decision from a constituency perspective there was a lot of opposition in the
media neighborhood and we saw many of them at the meeting that night and I asked him I said what
what do you want to do like how do you want to perceive with this you know you're you're running for
re-election in this word and how you want to face that issue because it's you know it's certainly
going to be some division he said I it doesn't matter if I lose my seat I lose my seat it's the right
thing to do and that's what Mark did from the day he started in 2000
And three, when he stood up for his community as a citizen and then pledged to service the community for 23 years. 23 years later, he stood up for the people that really needed a voice at our council table.
And I respect the heck out of him for that because I know he was he was torn and harassed and called and and he deeply felt every single delegation that was there that night.
You're allowed to do it as a way over five minutes now.
Okay, I'm almost done.
For me, his abstinence is especially difficult.
For years, the residents of Ward 5 had two councillors working together in the half.
I could turn to Mark beside me and he was always there.
We compare notes, divide up issues, laugh frequently and somehow get the work done.
That chair is now empty.
But after 23 years of service, Mark's contribution to this community should not disappear with him.
That's why I'm bringing forward a motion today to rename Ridgeview Park as Mark Grant Park.
I cannot think of a more appropriate tribute.
To put Mark's name on a park in the community, he represented a particular given how much he cared about a park.
And the role they played in building strong neighborhoods feels especially fitting.
It will not simply be a sign bearing his name.
It will be a living part of the community Mark served.
Children will play at Mark Grant Park.
Families will gather their neighbors will meet their life and word five will continue there.
And I hope in time that the kids in the neighborhood will simply call it Mark Park.
I think Mark would have liked that.
And years from now, someone will undoubtedly ask who was this Mark Grant guy.
I hope the answer will be simple.
It was a good man.
He loved his community.
Served faithfully for almost 23 years and left it better than you found it.
I miss my colleague.
I miss my word partner.
And most of all in this my friend.
Is with profound sadness but also tremendous pride in the contribution Mark made to a film,
particularly word five, that I'm pleased to move this motion to rename Rich U Park in his honor.
Thank you.
Thank you, Councillor.
And in the same spirit, I was proud to second it.
Councillor, are there other speakers?
Your worship recorded vote.
Mr. Clerk, would you please call the vote?
Councillor Romira.
Yes.
Councillor McNeese.
Yes.
Councillor Duduk.
Absolutely.
Councillor Hazethiel.
Yes.
Councillor Gettings.
Yes.
Councillor Elgar.
Yes.
Mayor Burton.
Yes.
Councillor Noll.
Yes.
Councillor Adams.
Yes.
Councillor Licina.
Yes.
Councillor Nanda.
Yes.
Councillor She.
Yes.
Thank you, Mr. Clerk.
At this time, I would invite everybody to join in a moment of silence to remember Mark Grant.
Thank you.
Thank you, everybody.
Council.
At this time, we need to move on.
Seconder.
Or else corrections for the minutes of the previous council meeting.
As listed in item 5.1.
Councillor Longo and Councillor Shea.
Thank you.
There are being no corrections.
Is there any objection?
There are being no objection.
That is carried.
And that brings us to the first item of the public presentations.
The Oakville Transportation Initiative's presentation.
And Commissioner Foo will be introducing our presenters.
And Commissioner Foo, you have the floor.
Thank you very much.
Good afternoon, Chair.
Member Wood Council.
We are pleased to be here to afternoon together with Haltern region to speak about Oakville Transportation Initiatives.
With a particular focus, a managing traffic congestion.
The young Jones Commissioner Public Works will be presenting this afternoon alongside
with our Director of Transportation Engineering Lynn Rogers.
Over the past couple years, through our work supporting Haltern region in the maintenance of traffic signals,
we have worked collaboratively to advance this initiative as one part of a broader strategy to create a more efficient
transportation system that continues to support growth, mobility and complete community across Oakville.
We certainly appreciate the region's investment in this project and selection of Oakville
for the implementation of the adaptive signal control technology.
I will now turn it over to Leon and Lynn.
Welcome, Ms. Jones.
This is very exciting.
We're looking forward to, and we hope the public appreciates what you have achieved.
For the opportunity to share the work we have underway to improve traffic flow through Haltern region.
So starting off in Haltern region, major arterial corridors form the regional road network,
which consists of more than 1,200 laying kilometers of roadways and 336 traffic signals.
With growth in Haltern forecasted to effectively double by 251,
we've been working together to develop a master plan to an expand and upgrade the corridor to meet the growth needs to 251.
The master plan is focused on local improvements combined with delivering the infrastructure that supports transit priority corridors and active transportation.
For Oakville specifically, this includes widening of Niagara Boulevard between William Hulten Parkway and Dundas Street
and localized improvements through the length of William Hulten Parkway and Upper Middle Road
and improvements on Ford Drive between Upper Middle Road and Highway 403.
Access to transit is supported with the implementation of the transit priority corridor network on Trafalgar Road
and this includes a new corridor south through Midtown Oakville as well as a long Dundas Street.
The master plan received regional council approval and we're accelerating implementation of a number of the initiatives,
including working with the town to implement HOV on Trafalgar Road.
This close coordination on the delivery of capital improvements ensures that the recommended infrastructure strategies support vibrant growing communities across the region.
Many of these initiatives are multi-year projects given their complexity, so we're looking at operational adjustments we can make now to improve the travel experience.
Several of you have heard of the improvements we've implemented on the Trafalgar Road corridor at the Oakville Ghost Station
and as I'm sure you've experienced, the Oakville Ghost Station is the second busiest station in the entire network,
trailing only Union Station.
Between 3 and 7 pm, 26 trains arrive here and in many cases each of the riders disembarking represent a single vehicle.
That means that every 9 minutes a wave of up to 200 cars pour out of the station.
Now unlike many corridors that have a predictable single rush hour peak, this corridor exhibits frequent oscillating peaks of traffic that continue for several hours.
This unpredictability makes traditional fixed time signal patterns highly ineffective.
So as the mayor has said, we've been investigating some innovative operational strategies and I want to share some of the early outcomes of this exciting pilot project that is supporting improved traffic flow.
Traditional traffic management systems use pre-program plans that assume traffic stays the same, but by using live traffic data and predictive modeling,
the program along Trafalgar adjusts the signal timing in real time between Leeland Avenue and Cornwall Road to balance vehicle flow on Trafalgar while optimizing side street delays.
So the goal is a mutually beneficial timing that maximizes volume for both Trafalgar Road as the main artery and the connecting roads.
The system continues to evolve and adapt practices as it learns traffic patterns and allows it to manage increasing volumes while still improving travel time.
The adaptive system monitors the main flow on Trafalgar Road and as the number of cars is moving up the curve of road capacity to the saturation point.
It will adjust signals to hold the side street traffic for just a few seconds longer.
These extra seconds allow the cars to clear, preventing the tip over into overcapacity, which creates the backups into the intersections of Cornwall and Trafalgar, and the resulting gridlock scenario where no one moves.
It's a similar concept as the ramp meters you see on the QEW where you're essentially metering the on-rance to Trafalgar to minimize the occurrence of gridlock.
I have a brief video here to show what our system sees in real time.
Thank you.
What you're looking at here are the five key intersections from Leeland down to Cornwall.
You'll notice green and blue shapes appearing over the lanes.
It looks a little like a video game but it's actually high level data processing.
Every time a car rolls onto a blue shape it turns green.
The system isn't just watching the cars, it's counting them, and it's measuring the gaps between the cars and adjusting signal timing to clear the rush from the train station.
The train station before the next train arrives.
In the bottom right, you'll see our pan tilt zoom camera.
That's our eye in the sky at Leeland.
This allows the staff in the command center to zoom in and see exactly why a backup may be occurring.
Whether it's a particularly heavy surge from the ghost station, or is there a stalled vehicle or other event requiring emergency response.
Now that you've seen the system making decisions, I'd like to share the details that are so promising for our communities.
This chart shows medium travel time for a vehicle moving from Leeland down to Cornwall.
And if you look at the center group of bars, the Northbound PM peak, when that gold station tidal wave we discussed is at its height, we can see the improvement.
When we started the pilot, signage and other operational improvements had established a 5.3 second travel time baseline shown in blue.
Now we saw a brief uptick in December, and this was caused by some hardware issues, but once those were resolved, we saw a steady consistent decline, and over the last few months these travel times have stabilized down around 4.9 seconds.
Now while parts of second travel time improvement may not seem significant, we're seeing an increase of road capacity without adding a single lane of asphalt.
So if you look at the cross avenue intersection in the Northbound direction during PM peak, before the pilot, which is the blue line, we were moving about 230 vehicles per hour.
Now after the adaptive system took over that jump to 670 vehicles per hour, we're moving almost 3 times more cars through that intersection during these peak surges.
Now we do acknowledge that during those periods throughput on the side streets is impacted, but those few extra seconds of wait time on a side street, keep the main artery moving and avoid the entire network from collapsing into gridlock.
Now we've been able to validate this performance through a marked drop in customer complaints about traffic in the corridor.
At its peak, we were receiving daily complaints about Trafalgar Road congestion and since implementation, it has dropped back to the more typical weekly occurrences.
Now this corridor continues to face significant pressures due to MTO work at Dorval Drive and the ongoing Metro links construction at the ghost station.
So our team continues to use all available operational tools to manage the flow and maximize throughput.
In addition to adaptive signal control, we're also coordinating closely with halt and region police on enforcement and we're implementing signal adjustments with Oakville traffic staff to keep the side streets moving.
We're also implementing measures to direct motorists to other corridors, including turn restrictions and expansion of real time, driver messaging at other intersections to give drivers.
Earlier an advance notice to take alternative routes.
As we move into the fall, we'll be looking at a broader implementation phase of the adaptive signal controls and this includes additional signals in the Trafalgar Cornwall area and implementation along other regional corridors throughout halt and.
And with that, I'll turn it over to Lynn Rogers to share plans for improvements in the local corridors. Thank you.
Commissioner, Ms. Rogers.
O'Fill's Transportation Master Plan outlines the township from an auto-centric system to a multimodal, sustainable, and future ready network.
This plan includes over 324 actions and policies to guide this transition.
These actions cover all parts of the transportation system.
Streets, active transportation, transit, goods movement, emergent technologies and transportation demand management.
Together, they ensure Oakville can keep people and goods moving effectively and as the community grows.
The plan also introduces new policies, including complete street guidelines and curbside management, as well as design guidelines, all intended to support safer and more flexible use of the road space.
Finally, the TMP supports major infrastructure improvements in urban growth areas, especially midtown Oakville, aligning transportation investments with long-term growth to 251.
The midtown transportation plan outlines how Oakville will support a significant growth in one of its most important urban growth areas, midtown Oakville.
Centered on Oakville Ghost Station, midtown is planned to evolve into a vibrant, transit-oriented mixed use urban center with substantial new population employment by 251.
A key feature of this plan is its balanced transportation system and strategy.
This integrates road improvements, transit supportive measures, and active transportation infrastructure to create a connective multimodal network.
This balanced approach is essential for managing congestion, generated by natural transportation growth and accommodating new development within the 103 hectare midtown area.
To manage congestion, the plan identifies targeted improvements along key corridors, such as Trafalgar Road, Spears Corneral Road, and the Royal Windsor Drive Interchange.
These upgrades help relieve existing pressure points and ensure the road network can accommodate future travel demand.
This plan also expands walking and cycling infrastructure and strengthens transit access to the ghost station, encouraging more shifts to shift away from driving.
This multimodal approach reduces vehicle volumes and helps keep traffic moving as the area intensifies.
Finally, midtown transportation plan aligns with the transportation investment with midtown official plan amendment OPA70, ensuring that infrastructure keeps pace with development and supports a higher density urban core.
It replaces and builds upon the earlier 2014 E.A. providing modern future ready framework for growth.
OPA's neighborhood transports traffic safety program is the town's comprehensive approach to improving safety and managing traffic in our residential areas.
First approved in 2021, the program brings together a set of coordinated initiatives that work collectively to reduce speeding, improve crossings, manage and calm traffic, and create safer streets for all road users.
A key part of the traffic signal construction and optimization is one of these items.
This helps improve traffic flow along major corridors within the town, and the town uses ongoing data collection and traffic studies to identify where signal timings and adjustments of new signals are needed.
This allows to reduce delays and improve reliability across the network.
Some of these corridors include Rebekah Street, Third Line, Cornwall Road, and Eight Line.
The neighborhood traffic safety program also expands community safety zones.
The areas where speeding fines are increased and encouraged safer driver behavior.
In 2025, road, sorry, staff assess road segments across the town and 27 streets met the criteria for designation with 29 new roads being planned for implementation.
These zones are often near schools, parks, and other areas with vulnerable users.
Traffic calming is also a major component of this program.
Sorry, measures such as speed cushions, lateral shifts, roundabouts, and raiders speed display signs are used depending on the road type.
In 2025 alone, the town installed speed cushions on nine streets implemented calming at eight school locations and continues to assess additional sites for future installation.
The improvements are designed to reduce vehicle speeds and create safer neighborhood streets.
Overall, the neighborhood traffic safety program strengthens traffic management and safety in every part of Oakville.
Through traffic optimization, community safety zones, calming measures, and targeted road safety improvements, the town is taking steps to make neighborhood safer, more walkable, and more comfortable for all residents and ages.
Traffic has Oakville also manages construction impacts through a coordinated well structured approach designed to help residents informed, keep residents informed and traffic moving.
For town led projects, staff take the lead on planning and communication, ensuring construction schedules impacts, progress updates are shared publicly so that residents know what to expect.
This includes proactive measures to minimize disruptions and maintain safety throughout the construction period.
To manage traffic during construction, Oakville uses a combination of detours, traffic signal adjustments and traffic management tools such as signage and public notices.
These strategies help maintain mobility while critical infrastructure is being built or repaired.
The town requires contractors whether municipal or third party to actively manage construction impacts, including traffic control, communication and safe site operations.
The same approach not only applies to town projects, but also interagency projects like provincial transit improvements such as the Burl look grade separation and regional utility works such as the upcoming Trafalgar wastewater and water project.
We're coordinator planning, clear detail, detour routes, consistent communication and careful contractor oversight help reduce congestion and maintain safe travel throughout Oakville's neighborhoods.
And with that concludes our presentation and happy to answer any questions.
Thank you both. Councilor Amaro was first out of the box.
Thank you. And it might be a question for a regional commissioner and I thank you for.
This is the second time we've seen this presentation once it region, but here at the town was just great.
I'm wondering if you can maybe just peel the onion back a little bit more on what exactly the adaptive signal controls are who's running that.
Thank you for the question councilor Amaro through you Mayor Burton.
The signals are run by a computer program that is housed in the region traffic management center.
It uses real time feedback from the traffic signals and as you saw it from the video.
Traffic, traffic, traffic timing and adjusts the signals to to move traffic through the corridor.
So if we wanted to do that on I don't know third line or door valve or someplace where we have other bottlenecks is that something that we could easily roll out moving forward.
That is part of the next phase of the project so we're just finishing the pilot on the Trafalgar corridor.
And now we're reviewing those results and seeing where routes throughout the region.
We have the technology in the place and in the situation to fully utilize the the functionality of adaptive signals.
In place of the more traditional put in a program and and it runs.
So we have Oakville is is fully equipped with the traffic signal feedback and then we would need to move in to the next phase of camera installation and setting up the programs to learn.
So we'll be looking for the next candidate locations and we'll bring that back to regional council in the spring with our annual traffic report on on those locations.
So bringing that back to the region in the spring does that mean town roads would not be included in that would that be a separate program if the town wanted to roll that.
Out would you work with the town on town roads or would you only be focusing on regional roads.
So our focus is on the regional road corridor but what we've learned from implementation on the Trafalgar corridor is that we do need to look beyond onto the side streets for that that full control.
It doesn't mean in every application that we would include local road signals in the programming there may be certain circumstances and we're looking at that for Trafalgar we're getting some adaptive control over the signals on the side street is really what's required to keep traffic moving on the corridor.
Thank you I know that probably my top one you know number one issue is I can't get around the town anymore it's too busy so anything we can do to alleviate that I'm sure everybody appreciates thank you.
Thank you Councillor council how's it?
Thank you very much thank you very much for taking all my nagging emails about Trafalgar and Cornwall and Trafalgar and Cross.
I have two follow-ups that I just want to make sure I'm clear on so you did a great job of explaining about metering and that that's how.
What we have to sort of embrace that we're almost in a metering system of who we're going to how we're going to let cars in and move forward.
But there's no question that Trafalgar and Cornwall is getting very close to gridlock even with all the progress that you've made.
It's not seeing the advancements that you are having on cross crosses like a home run you've really like it's working well.
Trafalgar and Cornwall continues to have cars pull in so when you mentioned potential additional implementation in the Trafalgar Cornwall where you're talking specifically about adaptive signal optimization.
Perhaps at Reynolds and at the parking garage which MetroLink should never have put there but they did so can you help me out of it.
Thank you for the question Councillor has let feel so that next phase that we're looking into into the fall is identifying where we can bring additional signals into the control and make improvements in the corridor.
I think our focus is also on trying to reduce as much as practical cars using Trafalgar road during those peak periods and that's where those automated signs.
We're looking to direct people exiting the go train station to alternate routes not always turning left to head to Trafalgar and I do recognize that that's a little bit hampered with the work that's ongoing door valve.
So it's it is a very complex and an ever-changing situation and so our team is continuing to look at what measures we can do to to bring some sort of reduction during those waves of traffic coming out of this station.
So thank you for that. So as Councillor Omiram mentioned then one of the biggest it's always busy is what we hear it's always busy and I appreciate we have technology advancing our our operational effectiveness.
Can you let us know the transit priority corridor for Trafalgar the HOV to have an approximate time frame which may reduce the number of cars coming down Trafalgar.
So that is so that is an initiative that we would work on in coordination with Tonobokeville staff and I can get you some updated timing on that.
So I'm going to look at over at limb any chance when you have a date mind.
No I don't have through the way I don't have a type we are working with the region to work on this schedule on the plan and program for that.
So I don't have an update at this time sorry because on midtown we have a 2035 north south timeline but we don't have the HOV and I think that one should surely be able to get get ahead to help us with this growth that we have been told we must take and and enable better safe driving habits on that road and I will ask one other and that is if.
Through my discussions I've asked about traffic wardens and about health and police and about the limited capacity they have to assist us at the intersections.
Can you come back to us with the results of your discussions with the Toronto police on any option that's viable with the adaptive signal optimization.
Yes Councillor has let the all we are reaching out to the city of Toronto and the as we understand the traffic warden program that they implemented.
During the World Cup was a special program done in coordination with Toronto Police and we'll follow up with them and understand if there's any applicability in these circumstances.
Different scenario, of course, during that event, the focus was on managing pedestrian traffic, a different scenario here, and we would need to understand how the traffic wardens worked with their automated, if they had automated traffic control at those intersections.
The having manual intervention into an automated system could have ramifications throughout the corridor that would take several cycles for the adaptive system to overcome.
During that period, you've got gridlock happening. So we'd want to understand the full application of the system where it was used, when it was used, what challenges they encountered and from those lessons learned, we can see if there's anything that we can implement in the Trafalgar corridor to deal with the go-train peak offloading.
Thank you very much for your commitment to finding solutions.
Thank you, Councillor. Council, I have to say that questions about the future can be left to the future and questions about what's in place and presented here would be more germane.
I say that only out of kindness because we're not going to get through your agenda if we don't have a bit of discipline here, Councillor Chism.
Fine, I'll drop it.
Councillor Chism, you're a good sport. Thank you, Councillor Noll.
Okay, I will cut down to one question then. You're welcome.
Have you been in touch with the Hall and Regional Police Service with respect to the recently-approved real-time operations center that we are about to embark on pending budget approval?
Because it seems like there might be some synergies in terms of operating that together.
Thank you for the question, Councillor Noll, and through you may are burdened.
Yes, we have a meeting scheduled with Hall and Regional Police Services later on in the month to discuss their initiative.
We also met with them last week on specifically operation in the Trafalgar corridor, so we have a very close working relationship with the traffic staff at Hall and Regional Police Services.
And we look forward to collaborating with them on that initiative.
It's a terrific initiative on both fronts.
So we're working together might save some money and also increase some efficiency.
Thank you. Thank you, Councillor Elger.
Thank you, if you've remembered. Yeah, I've got to move your north just for a quick question.
William Hall Parkway Bridge.
Do we have any date when that is going to be completed?
So a car could actually get from east to west?
Thank you for the question, Councillor Elger, and through you may are burdened.
We have just recently completed final inspection on the bridge and are looking very carefully at the date that we can open the bridge to through traffic.
Of course, we need to make sure that the contractor has fulfilled all their obligations before we can bring traffic into the corridor.
And we expect that notification to come out very shortly.
It's shortly a month, a year or two years.
People are like I get so many emails and people are really getting upset.
I'm sorry, but it is a bit of a drag two years late and it really ticked off a lot of people.
Can we get it narrowed down a little bit?
We expect the notification to come out within the next several weeks.
I'd like to hear that several weeks, not several blocks.
I thank you very much, Commissioner.
Thank you.
Thank you, Councillor.
Thank you, Ms. Jones and thank you, Ms. Rogers.
I hope that everybody appreciates the progress that's being made.
And I would welcome a mover and seconder to receive the presentation.
Councillor Chisholman, Councillor Longo, thank you.
Any objection?
There being none that carries.
There are no committee minutes.
And there are nine public consent items.
And I would solicit a vote to adopt them as presented.
Councillor Adams and Councillor Duduk.
Thank you.
Any objection?
They're being done.
They are adopted.
Thank you, Councillor.
That brings us to, I hope, I should have a ten here.
The confidence.
Thank you.
There it is.
So then I counsel on the confidential consent items.
I'm looking for the same Councillorless China.
Thank you.
And Councillor Longo.
Any objection?
They're being done.
The confidential items are also adopted.
Now, that brings us to our first discussion item, which is the 11.1.
The provincial support for municipal safety powers.
And this is a notice of motion that was brought that was lodged with Council on July 6.
And it's now under our process.
Do for discussion.
The Councillor is bringing the motion.
Our Councillor O'Mira and Councillor McNeese.
Councillor O'Mira, the chair recognizes you as the mover.
And then I'll turn to Councillor McNeese.
Councillor O'Mira.
Well, thank you very much for that worship.
And I believe the chair sent around just an updated copy.
I did not hear back from the chief of police prior to the initial tabling.
And he had recommended actually that we asked the province to look at face-concealing masks,
during unlawful or disorderly public contact.
Sorry, public gathering, so I'll just read it very quickly if that's okay.
Whereas, hopefuls experience repeated public safety concerns during candidate celebrations,
including large unsanctioned youth gatherings.
Dangerous fireworks use in disorder and risk to residents.
Visitors, businesses and emergency responders.
Whereas municipalities need clear tools to respond.
When large gatherings create immediate risk to public safety.
Therefore, it resolved the town of Oklahoma.
Request the Ontario Solicitor General to work with municipalities to review and amend provincial legislation
to provide clear charter compliant authority for police and municipalities to direct
the dispersal groups when an imminent public safety risk has been determined.
And that the province review the use of face-concealing masks during unlawful or public or disorderly public gatherings
where warned for the purpose of concealing identity rather than for medical religious or other lawful reasons.
And consider whether additional charter compliant enforcement tools are required.
But any new authority include clear limits, including defined locations, limited time periods,
objective safety, criterias, and accountability measures.
And that this resolution, before we did to the Solicitor General, municipal, municipal,
mayoral affairs, and housing, local MPPs, ammo, and the police governance of Ontario board.
Thank you very much for that.
Councilor Noll.
And I think the real reason here is, is this isn't just constrained to Oakville.
We saw it in July.
What happened in London?
On Ontario, we're offered officers.
We're actually targeted and hit with incendiary devices.
We've seen it in Branton etching.
We've seen it at Woodbind Park.
We've seen it in Waterloo.
We've seen it at a number of places.
And there's a point in time where our officers know that this is not going to be safe.
And we need the tools to do that.
So we're asking the province to work with municipalities either through ammo, through individual
or big city mares, to come up with some rules and legislations that allows our officers to
determine when something is unsafe to go ahead and declare it as such and make sure that
safety and our community safety is paramount.
So thank you very much.
Thank you, Councillor.
Councillor McNeese.
Thank you, Worship.
Not much further to add.
I mean, I think we're making progress on this file collaboratively.
It has taken sort of a whole of town and a whole of region approach to it.
But the problem is certainly beyond us.
It's, you know, a bit of a societal issue.
We're dealing with and it's spreading to more and more municipalities every year.
So, you know, we're looking for more collaboration provincially.
It's a tricky issue and we still want people to feel safe going out and celebrating
and large crowds and if we're looking for ways to take away some of those concerns.
Thank you.
Councillor.
Councillor Noell.
I thank you, Worship.
And thank you to the mover and seconder for bringing this important issue forward.
I do want to make another friendly request and that you also afforded to the Ontario Association of
Chiefs of Police.
I will tell you that the Police Governance Ontario Police Governance Ontario, which is
be called OAPSB, we actually had an informal robust conversation with some of the municipalities
that are facing these problems around the table and they are certainly interested in following
this law as well.
So, sending that along to them would be very useful to advance that policy work.
Thank you.
Councillor, let's consider that automatically right in.
Is there any objection to the motion?
Mr. Clerk, they're being none.
That's carried.
Now, there are no confidential discussion items.
You have your staff member, Anna.
And that brings us to item 14 new business.
And I'm going to ask if there are any notices of motion at this time.
Councillor Adams.
Thank you very much.
Councillor Lishana and I would like to introduce a motion.
I do want to make sure that we've dealt with the other item that's on the agenda here.
Councillor leave the chairing to me.
Just a little bit.
Okay.
I wish to introduce a motion regarding data centers.
And I'd like to also ask that we wave the procedure by law in order to deal with that item tonight.
Okay.
So, we have three notices of motion that we have a motion.
I need a seconder for the motion.
For the motion to wave the procedure by law.
I'll cancel this.
But this is for all three notices of motion that we have on the agenda.
Is there any objection to waving the procedure by law?
There being none, Mr. Clerk.
That carries.
Now, the first one that's in order is the notice of motion from.
Councillor Amirah and Councillor Haslith Till, which is automated noise enforcement technology for excessive vehicle noise.
Councillor Amirah, you have a floor.
It's we're really just writing on the heels of Milton and Toronto and a couple of municipalities who have asked for the province to bring to allow us to use this technology,
which has been used in municipalities across the world and it works.
And we've had for years.
Areas and communities who said, can we please do something about this?
So, and it's our propo as we're going to ammo next week in sitting down with the Minister of Transportation to say,
we're in line too.
So, if you're thinking about doing it, we're willing participants in a pilot project.
So, thank you.
Thank you.
May I call the vote?
Is there any objection?
Councillor Haslith Till, did you want to speak to us?
I just wanted to add two things.
I'm happy to second it.
You know, these are the safeguards that are essential and we're looking for the province to give us that authority to do.
And we need to do what we need to do.
And we just need better tools.
And we can get on with solving some of this problem.
So, I'm hoping everybody agrees because the noise levels are one of the top five concerns I think that we're hearing for people.
Thank you, Councillor.
I know I'll get better sleep at night if they're not going crazy.
Any objection, Mr. Clerk, they're being none that is carried.
And that brings us to the notice of motion on data centers.
Councillor Adams, you have before.
Thank you very much.
Earlier today, I provided to a to the clerk, a notice of motion that I wanted to bring forward with the Councillor.
With China regarding data centers, it's been circulated.
I wonder if our clerk could put it up on the screen so the public could see it as well.
I'd like to have that up and then I'd like to read it.
And I've got two questions to ask one of staff in one of you, Mr. Mayor.
There we go.
Okay.
So, the motion that's been brought forward is one that staff undertake a review of the official plan policies and zoning by law regulations for data centers,
enterprise computing facilities and similar high-density digital processing facilities.
The municipal study shall review the official plan policies and zoning by law regulations and analyze such regulations appropriate to mitigate potential adverse effects of development relating to noise, vibration, emissions and land use compatibility.
The municipal study shall also define municipal responsibilities relating to environmental sustainability, energy supply and affordability, water supply and other utility infrastructure.
Two, that staff prepare an interim control by law for council to consider imposing a one year moratorium on new data centers, enterprise computing facilities and similar high-density high-intensity digital processing facilities within the business employment,
industrial and business commercial designations and the employment district designation, including lands designated Parkway, Belt West lands, while the municipal study is completed.
I wonder if our planning director could let us know just how fast could an interim control by law be brought to council for a consideration.
Through your Mr. Mayor, we'd be able to do that relatively quickly as early as tomorrow.
Then I'll read into this, could we choose a time? Mr. Mayor, would 130 work? 130 would work? Then very well.
That staff provide the interim control by law for council at a special meeting at 130 PM on 11 August, 2026.
Such meeting being called by council's adoption of this motion.
And for that the clerk give public notice immediately of the special meeting with the shortened public notice,
the mayor having duly determined that the interim control by law is an urgent and important matter as per section 8.6 of the hopeful procedure by law.
Mr. Mayor, could you confirm that in fact you believe this is an urgent and important matter?
I do confirm. Very well. Then that's the notice that we'd like to bring forward and have voted on today.
Councilor, if you were your motion and you're the first. First, I want to thank Mayor Burton for the mayor's direction,
that produced the council memo that we had before us just a few minutes ago regarding data centers,
that we've all received that, we've all read it and we appreciate that.
I'd also appreciate the work that council's chism and how's it feel,
to put in to working with the mayor towards that memo and requesting that information.
And finally I'd like to also thank our staff for the speed with which they responded to the mail direction, which is brought us to today.
So finally, so over the last several months, we've heard growing concerns about large-scale data centers,
and development across the GTA, it's not just an Oakville issue, in fact it's not just a GTA issue,
it's a Canada-wide and perhaps North America-wide issue.
These projects are complex, they're energy intensive, and they're capable of reshaping land use patterns in ways
that municipalities must fully understand before making long-term decisions.
And that's precisely why further study is not only appropriate, it's responsible.
Oakville deserves a clear evidence-based understanding of how data centers interact with our electricity,
our water, our wastewater, and our telecommunications infrastructure, our environmental goals, our employment lands,
the character of our neighborhoods, and most importantly the health of our residents, including impacts from things like noise and vibration and other emissions.
We can't afford to do our planning just based on assumptions, we need to have facts, we need modeling, we need expert analysis, all to be part of our planning.
This motion reflects the memo that we've just received, which notes a number of important areas for further study and quite detailed study.
An interim control by-log gives us the breathing room to do this work properly.
And ensures that development does not get ahead of policy, it's a safeguard measure that protects residents, protects our planning framework,
and ensures that when Oakville does make decisions, that their decisions that are informed, deliberate, and align with our long-term vision.
By supporting further study and an ICBL, we're choosing clarity over uncertainty and planning over reaction.
That's good governance, and it's what our community expects from us.
So thank you in advance for your support. I'd like to ask for a recorded vote at the appropriate time, please.
Thank you.
Thank you, Your Worship. I'm pleased to second this motion, because our first responsibility is to the people of Oakville, and protecting the quality of life that makes our communities such a special place.
At the same time, I believe strongly that decisions we make a council should be based on evidence, careful analysis, and clear understanding of both the opportunities and the consequences of new development of such scale.
Data centers are evolving rapidly, and while they can bring economic benefits and support in increasing digital economy, they can also create significant demands on energy, water, infrastructure, as well as potential concerns related to noise, emissions, and compatibility with surrounding communities.
Taking the time to study these issues is not about prejudging the outcome, or saying no to innovation.
It is about making sure that we have the facts before us, and the appropriate policies in place before making decisions that could have long-term consequences.
One, your pause gives us the ability or opportunity to listen, learn, and make informed decisions.
That balanced economic opportunity with environmental responsibility and above all, the interests and well-being of the people, research.
Thank you.
I just have a question of staff on this, if that's okay.
So I think on July 28th, Minister Leicci said in two weeks they're going to have the regulations.
I think they passed bill 40, which had regulations on energy with data centers.
And if my math is correct, that would lead us to this Thursday, that regulations would be coming out.
So what happens to our interim control by law if the province in a matter of a couple of days brings in regulations?
Through your mayorburden.
Haven't seen any regulations as of yet, Councillor.
Not sure yet what those are going to look like from the province.
What we have seen is that there's still responsibility to really look at what are the implications to these types of uses, not just with respect to our land use planning, but also the regulations that go with those.
What are the implications to our employment lands, et cetera.
So the electricity piece is just one part of it, and that is governed primarily by ISO.
Ophilhaidro does have a role to play in that, but we would be taking the lead from the province just in terms of how they are.
From control by law or our seeking of our own regulations or OP planning policies, these sorts of things.
Through your mayorburden.
The study that we would look to undertake that would be derived from an ICB all-should council choose to pass one.
That would be done regardless of what the province is doing because I would be looking at a land use policies that would be looking at our zoning regulations.
I would be looking at our overall development process to see are there things that we could do through that process to augment how it works and are there other things that we may require should these types of applications come forward.
Okay, yeah, and I appreciate that I think in bill 40 there is some latitude for other things besides energy in there.
They can also regulate on other land use issues with that.
So I appreciate that.
Do we have those expertise in house for these studies or will we be going outside of house and hiring consultants and things to bring these studies back?
Through your mayorburden.
I expect that we will need some assistance external consulting work, but we need to get it started sooner than later and start to scope out what that work is going to look like and then from their evaluate how we're going to need some further assistance.
Okay, perfect.
I appreciate that and I'll just just speak for a couple words here and I completely support the getting the studies and understanding what the rules of the game are because I think they're important.
I do want to also note that this is not the US. This is not what we're seeing in the states. This is not an Aaron Brockovich moment. This is about Canadian sovereignty. It's about where your personal information ends up.
Right now, a lot of the information that Princess Margaret Hospital is using to analyze images at the Peter Monk Cardiac Center is using that a rookville hospital is using right now that geo tab.
We had an incredible performance on moving traffic with AI data from geo tab and Oakville based company.
Seemance Canada is $150 million manufacturing tech. All of that goes probably through Virginia right now and all that data gets scraped and hold and held in the US.
There are four countries that have LLMs. The US, China, France and Canada.
And either we figure out how we control our own information and our own privacy and our children's privacy or other countries are going to control it.
So we have to be very careful about what we're trying to do. We have to protect our residents and our citizens absolutely.
But again, in Oakville, Ford, Collins, Space, Arrow, Collins, aerospace, Aviva, Palomarex, a weather network, finding out weather mapping. All of these things are happening right now.
And they're all looking to us to see where we can do this and how we can have a Canadian based solution and our own Canadian information that we protect here.
So I'm on board, I'll support it.
But I do want to send a message out there to our Oakville businesses and our Oakville.
Oakville based hospitals and our Ontario hospitals and researchers across this country, even the Terry Fox Cancer Foundation.
We hear you. We want you continue doing the research you're doing. It's important.
It's going to save lives.
But we want to do it right. So I support it. And thank you for bringing the motion forward.
Thank you, Councilor Mera, Councilor Elver.
Remember, I just want to thank yourself, the councillors and the general public and everyone for bringing this motion forward. I appreciate it. Thank you.
Thank you, Councilor No.
Thank you. I too want to join the thanks to my words, six colleagues and I believe Councilor Chism and Councilor has a feel who really raised the alarm bells on this issue.
It's certainly something that we need to take very seriously.
And I do think that an interim control by a law is the exact proper response at this time to give us the time that we need to study this.
And come up with the proper regulatory framework to manage it.
I have no doubt that the province is going to influence this in some fashion.
We'll probably be seeing more announcements as we come on.
We know that the ministers and the premier have made a big deal about the fact that data is a prime industry
for Ontario, so I'm certain that we're going to hear more from them.
I do have one question, though, you were ship and I like to ask staff.
And that is with respect to the studies that would come as a result of the interim control by law.
Is there an opportunity to actually maybe crowdsource some of the work that's done with other municipalities
or facing the same things that have all recreating the wheel?
Maybe some sort of symposium or some sort of opportunity to get everybody together because we're all going to be studying the exact same issue.
It would help us save costs, bring in more expertise into the issue and really understand
both the points that Councillor Amir are bringing up but also the concerns of the residents on a more full-sum basis.
Councillor, I would just say first that the interim control by law does not enable to study the study.
The study enables the interim control by law.
The interim control by law exists to give us the ability to enact new regulations if any or need it.
But that enacting new regulations if any or need are going to come as a result of study and work that happens following the interim control by law.
And that's what I'm referring to.
So what I'm really asking is that can we take a bigger, bigger larger view of this thing with other municipalities, other stakeholders that have concerns about this.
The timing is up to staff and up to whoever is putting this together.
Councillor Will turn to the CAO for your answer.
Thank you.
Madam, CAO.
Through you, Mr. Mayor.
Absolutely.
We can coordinate with the other municipalities to see what we can do collectively.
This item is in front of many council.
So everyone is currently looking at it.
I know through the OBCMCAOs.
This has been an issue that's been raised as well.
So there is a lot of collaboration that we can have happen among Ontario municipalities.
This is a quick follow-up.
I mean, this may be a real leadership moment for Oakville 2 that we potentially lead.
The charge on putting together that sort of collective effort.
Just something for thought, amongst the team there, I know it's extra work.
But certainly it's something that we're going to have to face as a largest project so far that we're hearing about.
So maybe Oakville could take a leading charge on working through this proposal.
Do you hear Mayor Burton or I'll certainly take that under advice?
Thank you, Councillor.
Councillor Choeson.
Thank you, worship.
I want to thank everybody who has involved with this.
I think it's very important.
It came up so quickly in the last couple of months across Canada and across the world.
I'm glad that staff have taken on the responsibility of doing the research.
I think it's have it.
We need evidence-based information in order to make appropriate decisions and judgment.
However, through the process, I know through the planning process, we need to have community engagement.
It's important that we're transparent on this and our community is well aware of what is happening and have input as much as possible.
This is new territory folks and we need your input.
Thank you very much.
Thank you, Councillor.
Councillor Nanda.
Thank you.
Thank you to you, Mayor.
And thank you to yourself and my council colleagues.
Councillor Adams and this cannot be bringing this up.
There were several questions up in the north.
Whether this was in word six or word seven.
So although this is in word six and directly beside word seven.
And throughout Oakville, all the residents that came out and spoke and advocated.
We're here to let you know that we are here to listen to your concerns.
Because they are our concerns as well.
And knowing the large scale, I've facility that they're proposing is very concerning at this point.
And so once we can have all the information given to us to know what is acceptable and what is not acceptable.
This is the right thing to do at this time.
So thank you.
Thank you, Councillor.
Councillor Hazarddale.
Thank you, Mayor Burton.
I echo my council colleagues comments.
We're studying to do, and I agree with Councillor Null's comments about, you know, let's go broad and let's get some expertise and resources pulled together.
There is a high expectation of the public being able to participate, but my understanding is you need to do a lot of this research before you're going to come back to the public.
So at what point will you give us a consultation plan? Because I believe that expectations need to be clear. We need to hear from the public. We value the public's input, but we also want to make fact-based decisions.
And so is will you be reporting back to us just to walk us through what you think the consultation plan will be?
Councillor, my advice is that we allow staff and the professionals to produce a report, and we then have public consultation on the report.
We want regulations that will stand up to challenge, and they should be based, therefore, on the professional approach.
The consultation for the public can follow, and council can then consider the input of the public.
But I wouldn't mix the two for the fear of dragging down the credibility of the actual professional report.
So Mayor Barton, that was the level of clarity I was seeking for the public.
And if the CAO agrees, then I would concur. I wasn't encouraging mixing it. I just wanted clarity for the public on how it would flow.
And is that mean?
Through you, Mr. Mayor, as the Mayor had said, once the study itself is concluded, certainly there would be public consultation elements with that.
And the website that you quickly were able to pull together, will we see updates on it over the next while or will it wait until you've completed the study?
This moment I'd suggest it will probably wait until we conclude the study.
There's a fair amount of information and expertise we need to get in order to pull the information together.
So at this point I'd suggest that it's once the study itself is available. Thank you very much.
Council, just add that it is a fact that an interim control by law can be appealed.
And so it may very well happen that we will be tested.
And that's why I are just to be very careful about dotting our eyes and crossing our teeth and being very official.
I'm about to call the vote. I want to say that it's important to understand that a data center could happen anywhere in town.
It's not just one. It's important I think to remind everybody that in my time as your mayor,
we have been guided as much as we could be by the precautionary principle.
And the precautionary principle means acting now and not waiting to see what the province may or may not do.
And in the meantime, I would urge everybody to who hasn't to read the staff memo.
It's easy to read. I have read it carefully. It is very well done and very well written. It's only 11 pages.
And it really covers the matter to a T. It is a good base from which to move forward in our research.
And for members of the public that are concerned or have anxieties about this, this would be a good place to start to reduce your anxiety and to become confident that
that we are going to continue to do what we have always done, which is protect our town and make sure that our livability is celebrated around the country.
So Council recorded vote was asked for.
Mr. Clerk, would you call the vote?
Councillor Romera.
Yes.
Councillor McNeese.
Yes.
Councillor Dedic.
Yes.
Councillor Chishol.
Yes.
Councillor Gettings.
Yes.
Councillor Algar.
Yes.
Councillor Lungo.
Yes.
Mayor Burton.
Yes.
Councillor Adams.
Yes.
Councillor Lachina.
Yes.
Councillor Chishol.
Yes.
Thank you everybody.
That seems to carry.
We have a request for report from Councillor Null and Councillor Liz China.
They want to have a report where staff will report back to Council on options to address a legal use of electric scooters by children under the age of 16 in Oakville.
Separated apart from the broader electric scooter pilot consultation.
That the report include a review of the current legal and enforcement framework, potential education and awareness measures,
possible enforcement or by-law options, opportunities for collaboration with relevant community and public safety partners.
Best practices scan of other municipalities addressing of illegal and unsafe e-scooter use by children.
And any other measures staff consider appropriate to reduce illegal underage use and improve public safety.
And that staff report back with recommendations as soon as practical recognizing that this is a curtain and growing public safety concern involving children.
Is there any objection to this report request?
Councillor Chishol and Councillor Nanda.
No?
Yes.
Just a comment on it or a question.
Go ahead.
Thank you.
Just for staff.
Just from recollection.
Have we not pursued this e-scooter report through inter-ministeral memos and regulations down the line?
If I recall, I just want to make sure we're not duplicating staff workloads.
Through mayor burdens.
So there isn't memos through the inter-governmental memos, but as well as part of the transportation master plan that I spoke about earlier,
is one of the action items includes a e-scooter implementation review which we are bringing forward later in 2026.
Thank you.
Do you guys remember this?
But it's more than the e-scooter's.
I think we also made a friendly amendment on e-bikes.
Bikes to pedaling so forth was another issue.
So I don't want to confuse the reports or the request reports.
So if we're separating that out, that's so be it.
But I just want to make sure we don't lose that because we have challenges with e-bikes too.
When they're passing cars at 40 kilometers an hour and they don't have a helmet.
Mayor Burton, yes.
It wouldn't encompass both items actually because it is a full-sum report that we would be bringing that address all aspects of electronic mobility if you want to call it.
Thank you.
Thank you, councillors.
I'm councillor Nenden.
Thank you.
Through you, Mayor Burton.
So I just know this this morning today that Toronto police is doing a safety enforcement campaign for the next two weeks on micro mobility and e-scooters and e-bikes.
Is that something we've had a chance to discuss with Halt and Police yet?
Through Mayor Burton, we like all of the traffic matters with Halt and Region.
We have a closed relationship with the traffic management team at Halt and Region Police.
We'll be communicating with them throughout the process of this study and seeing what type of education and awareness can be included as part of the implementation review.
I think this would be really good to do closer to the time that they do their safety blitz when school starts.
I think they could probably work this into that as well.
So thank you.
All right.
Thank you, councillor Nenden.
Councillor Noel, I would you have the floor next.
But I'd like to ask you if you want to change the words electric scooters to micro mobility devices.
I think that the issue that we're trying to get at councillors chin and I are actually kids on e-scooters.
That was what I was going to actually speak about.
Why be careful not to conflate the issues of the pilot project and micro mobility because this is specifically for children.
I see children in the neighborhood all the time on micro mobility devices that are not exactly e-scooters.
So my compromise it's it's it's up to you. I have a compromise if this is okay with councillor Lestina.
If we put a comma after e-scooters and say and other micro mobility devices that I'd be fine with that.
Well, I think that e-scooters are where the majority of our constituents are expressing their concerns.
The clerks have written it in. Thank you.
All right. Councillor Noel next.
Then.
Okay. Yeah. Thank you. I basically said what I was going to say.
I want to be really clear that this is a separate issue from the pilot project because at no point is the province or anybody suggesting that
Children under the age of 16 will be legally allowed to use e-scooters.
This issue is coming up over and over and over again amongst our constituents.
And I do think that many are.
I haven't seen the data by me assuming a lot of writing in on the pilot project about children.
So I think it's really important that we have a separate lane no pun intended on this particular issue to really find ways that we can address this.
I know other municipalities are looking at this. So I think there's some good best practices out there both in county and
United States. But we really is something we need to get our head around before.
There's another tragedy. There's one recently with two children that were one with severely injured in atobico.
Doctors are speaking out from sick kids.
It is a huge issue.
And I really look forward.
And thank you to Lynn Rogers for the conversation.
We talked a little bit about how this would work if it got passed.
And I totally support of blending it together in the same report.
So, and last thing I want to say is the Halton Regional Police Board will be hearing report from Halton police on this very issue on August 27th.
Everybody's interested.
Our board meetings are televised on YouTube.
Thank you, Councillor.
Your worship point order. Can we get that report to council?
We're happy to.
Thank you.
After the fact.
Councillor O'Mara.
Yeah, thank you, worship.
And I just want to be clear with the motion that Councillor Hazlett,
Feeling I passed last year with the Transportation Master Plan.
It wasn't just to bring back a survey.
The second part actually asked for options to advance the town's opportunity to regulate the use of these scooters and e-bikes.
So that's coming back with the survey.
Is that correct?
Yes, that is correct.
We are hoping to provide a full some overview of e- scooters implementation as well as the options for council to consider, which includes the survey and in addition to Councillor Knowles motion items today.
Okay.
And I just just to be clear as well.
I know Councillor No one wanted to separate e-bikes.
But there's this new thing where 60 kids get on there.
Sorry.
I'll wait for a second here.
And the council.
Can.
Thank you.
Councillor Comerra, I apologize.
I know problem.
Thank you.
And just to be clear, there's a new thing where from Cursed Street to Bronie now, 60 kids get on their e-bikes.
And I'll do wheelies all around.
Like sure road and take cars off the road and everything.
So there are kids on e-bikes.
There are kids on these e-motor bikes.
On Dundas doing wheelies going 85 kilometers an hour.
There's nobody enforcing any of this.
There's nobody doing anything with this.
I would say there's some imperittiveness to get on this.
So I thank you for that.
And I thank you for Councillor Nolan.
Listen for.
For.
Relating this issue for sure.
Thank you.
Councillor.
Councillor McNeese.
Through your worship.
Just have a question for staff where this would fall.
I was reading and heard about Toronto fire.
Came out in our to call.
But a week ago saying that every day now they're getting a call for a battery fire related to these e-scooters e-mobility devices.
You know, if Toronto's 10 times the size is oakville then I'd say probably we're getting a couple of week or so.
Would that be needed through a direction or is that already encompassed in what you're reporting back on later this year.
The fire hazards of where these things are stored.
I'm hearing it's on balconies and condos and you know all over the place causing problems.
Through May of Britain the study and itself looks at the transportation component.
It doesn't speak to or won't speak to again the storage component or the that component of you know the use of e-scooters again because we are looking to bring forward options for a council to consider.
You know the use of the implementation so we do it will depend if the council does want to proceed with that then I would see that coming in afterwards.
Okay.
So just for clarity council or no would that be something you would want to include just the safe storage of these devices as well seen or there's a knowing concern about them catching fire and I'm sure here too but you know Toronto is always the first one to deal with these issues.
It doesn't fit doesn't.
Yeah I with with great respect and I do understand the issue.
I'm reading about them as well.
I do think that the imperative around children 10 11 12 year old children driving e-scooters and micro mobility devices at.
You know 25 50 60 kilometers an hour is is so important and use a stand alone in my opinion.
Okay.
I certainly support if you want to add something later on.
I think that's a lot to run away before they give the report but I prefer to keep this one clean on this issue.
No problem I'll take it up with staff.
Thank you.
I would advise that the fire service almost certainly already has the authority it needs to deal with a lack of safety around incendiary devices such as a battery and we do inspections.
So there's there's powers already in the fire department.
Thank you.
And after we consult with them if they need more we'll find them for them.
All right.
I'll ask if there's any objection again and this time I don't see any and so the request is approved.
I now ask you for a mover and seconder for the bylaws as listed in the agenda 17.1 through 17.4.
Councillor Gittings.
Thank you.
And Councillor Shea thank you.
Any objection?
They're being done.
The bylaws are read considered in past and that ends our work.
Thank you very much for the discipline and the focus that you showed today and you've got through the agenda.
A couple of minutes less than I thought it would take so well done everybody, that ends the meeting and we'll see you at 630 for planning and development council.