Open Council

Community and Protective Services Committee

Open Council

Community and Protective Services Committee

June 22, 2021, at 4:00 PM

Original link

1.   Disclosures of Pecuniary Interest

That it BE NOTED that no pecuniary interests were disclosed.

2.   Consent

Moved by E. Holder

Seconded by J. Helmer

That Items 2.1 to 2.7 BE APPROVED.

Motion Passed (6 to 0)

2.1   5th Report of the Accessibility Advisory Committee

2021-05-27 ACCAC Report

Moved by E. Holder

Seconded by J. Helmer

That the following actions be taken with respect to the 5th Report of the Accessibility Advisory Committee, from its meeting held on May 27, 2021:

a)     R. Wilcox, Director, Strategy and Innovation BE ADVISED that N. Judges, D. Ruston and K. Pereyaslavska have been appointed by the Accessibility Advisory Committee to sit on the Safe Cities London Advisory Committee; and,

b)     clauses 1.1, 2.1 to 2.3, 3.1 to 3.6 and 5.2 BE RECEIVED.

Motion Passed

2.2   2nd Report of the Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-Oppression Advisory Committee

2021-05-20 DIAAC Report

Moved by E. Holder

Seconded by J. Helmer

That the 2nd Report of the Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-Oppression Advisory Committee (DIAAC), from its meeting held on May 20, 2021, BE RECEIVED; it being noted that this Report and all future reports of the DIAAC will be considered by the Strategic Priorities and Policy Committee.

Motion Passed

2.3   Single Source SS21-27 Procurement of Learn to Swim, Lifeguard Qualifications, Literature and Associated Fees

2021-06-22 SR Single Source Procurement Learn to Swim and Lifeguard

Moved by E. Holder

Seconded by J. Helmer

That, on the recommendation of the Deputy City Manager, Neighbourhood and Community-Wide Services, the following actions be taken with respect to the staff report dated June 22, 2021, related to the Single Source Procurement SS21-27 for Procurement of Learn to Swim, Lifeguard Qualifications, Literature and Associated Fees:

a)     the proposal from Lifesaving Society, 400 Consumers Road, Toronto, ON, for the provision of Learn to Swim Programs and Lifesaving Certification for the City of London, at an estimated annual purchase value of $87,000 (HST excluded), for a five (5) year period BE ACCEPTED; it being noted that this is a single source contract as per the Procurement of Goods and Services Policy Section 14.4 e), as the required goods and/or services are being supplied by a particular supplier(s) having specialized knowledge, skills, expertise or experience in the provision of the service;

b)     the Civic Administration BE AUTHORIZED to undertake all the administrative acts that are necessary in connection with this contract; and,

c)     the approval and authorization provided for in a) and b) above, BE CONDITIONAL upon the Corporation entering into a formal contract or having a Purchase Order or contract record relating to the subject matter of this approval. (2021-R05C)

Motion Passed

2021-06-22 SR Property Standards Related Demolition - 120 Weston Street

Moved by E. Holder

Seconded by J. Helmer

That, on the recommendation of the Deputy City Manager, Planning and Economic Development, the proposed by-law, as appended to the staff report dated June 22, 2021, BE INTRODUCED at the Municipal Council meeting to be held on July 6, 2021, to approve the demolition of an abandoned building at the municipal address of 120 Weston Street, City of London; it being noted that the property shall be cleared of all identified buildings, structures, debris or refuse and left in a graded and levelled condition, in accordance with the City of London Property Standards By-law and Building Code Act. (2021-P10D)

Motion Passed

2.5   Single Source Approval – Open Space Solutions Incorporated

2021-06-22 SR Single Source Approval - Open Space Solutions Incorporated

Moved by E. Holder

Seconded by J. Helmer

That, on the recommendation of the Deputy City Manager, Environment and Infrastructure, the following actions be taken with respect to the staff report dated June 22, 2021, related to a Single Source Approval for Open Space Solutions Incorporated:

a)     the contract for the construction of the play area in South-west Optimist District Park BE AWARDED to Open Space Solutions Incorporated, 1561 Moser-Young Road, Wellesley, ON, as a single source procurement (SS21-30) with a total value of $186,868.74 plus HST, in accordance with Sections 14.4 (e), and (i) of the City of London’s Procurement of Goods and Services Policy;

b)     the financing for the project BE APPROVED in accordance with the Sources of Financing Report, as appended to the above-noted staff report;

c)     the Civic Administration BE AUTHORIZED to undertake all the administrative acts that are necessary in connection with this project;

d)     the approvals given, herein, BE CONDITIONAL upon the Corporation entering into a formal contract; and,

e)     the Mayor and the City Clerk BE AUTHORIZED to execute any contract or other documents, if required, to give effect to these recommendations. (2021-R04)

Motion Passed

2.6   Homeless Prevention COVID-19 Response (SSRF Phase 3) – Single Source Procurement (SS21-29)

2021-06-22 SR Homeless Prevention COVID-19 Response SSRF Phase 3 SS Procurement SS21-29

Moved by E. Holder

Seconded by J. Helmer

That, on the recommendation of the Deputy City Manager, Social and Health Development, the following actions be taken with respect to the staff report dated June 22, 2021, related to the Homeless Prevention COVID-19 Response (SSRF Phase 3) for a Single Source Procurement (SS21-29), as per The Corporation of the City of London Procurement Policy Section 14.5 a. ii, requiring Committee and City Council approval for single source procurements greater than $50,000:

a)     extensions to the existing Purchase of Service Agreements BE APPROVED as set out in the Housing Stability Services COVID-19 Response Allocations, as appended to the above-noted staff report, with a combined total funding amount of $2,658,850 in 2021-2022 to provide a COVID-19 Response, and additional Housing and Support Services;

b)     the Civic Administration BE AUTHORIZED to undertake all administrative acts which are necessary in relation to this matter; and,

c)     the approval given, herein, BE CONDITIONAL upon The Corporation of the City of London entering into and/or amending Purchase of Service Agreements with the Agencies outlined in Schedule 1 of this report. (2021-S14/S08)

Motion Passed

2.7   London Homeless Prevention Housing Allowance Program – Single Source Procurement (#SS 21-36)

2021-06-22 SR London Homeless Prevention Housing Allowance Program - SS 21-36

Moved by E. Holder

Seconded by J. Helmer

That, on the recommendation of the Deputy City Manager, Social and Health Development, the following action be taken with respect to the staff report dated June 22, 2021, related to the London Homeless Prevention Housing Allowance Program for a Single Source Procurement (#SS 21-36):

a)     the funding increase to the existing Municipal Purchase of Service Agreement with St. Leonard’s Community Services BE APPROVED, at a total estimated increase of $381,000 (excluding HST), for the period of August 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021 to administer London’s Homeless Prevention Housing Allowances, as per The Corporation of the City of London Procurement Policy Section 20.3.e.ii, requiring City Council approval for contract amendments greater than $50,000 and where funds are available; and,

b)     single source approval for administration of London Homeless Prevention Allowances BE APPROVED with London Cares Homeless Response Services (London Cares), at a total estimated cost of up to $63,000 (excluding HST), for a period between August 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021 to administer London’s Homeless Prevention Housing Allowances, as per The Corporation of the City of London Procurement Policy Section 14.4 for Single Source approval. (2021-S14)

Motion Passed

3.   Scheduled Items

3.1   Strategy for High Acuity Homelessness

2021-06-22 Pres. Wish To Be Home - S. Campbell

Moved by A. Kayabaga

Seconded by J. Helmer

That the presentation, as appended to the Agenda, and the verbal delegation from S. Campbell, Ark Aid Mission, with respect to homes for those who have been deprived of housing and the importance of low-barrier options for stabilization and moving towards home, BE RECEIVED. (2021-S14)

Motion Passed (6 to 0)

4.   Items for Direction

4.1   5th Report of the Animal Welfare Advisory Committee

2021-06-03 AWAC Report - Full

Moved by J. Helmer

Seconded by S. Lewis

That the following actions be taken with respect to the 5th Report of the Animal Welfare Advisory Committee, from its meeting held on June 3, 2021:

a)     the following actions be taken with respect to the Sub-Committee Update:

i)     the attached document, with respect to the proposal to limit the number of animals in foster homes, BE FORWARDED to Civic Administration for their review and consideration; and,

ii)     E. Williamson, Ecologist, BE INVITED to a future Animal Welfare Advisory Committee meeting to provide information with respect to the City of London’s Bird Friendly Designation; and,

b)     clauses 1.1, 2.1, 2.2, 4.1 and 4.2 BE RECEIVED.

Motion Passed (6 to 0)

4.2   School Planning

2021-06-22 Sub. School Planning - S. Lewis

Moved by S. Lewis

Seconded by J. Helmer

That the Civic Administration BE DIRECTED to provide an information report at a future meeting of the Community and Protective Services Committee with respect to the roles and responsibilities of the local school boards and how the City of London interacts with the boards related to the items listed in the communication, as appended to the Agenda, from Councillors S. Lewis and P. Squire; it being noted that the above-noted communication, with respect to this matter, was received. (2021-S13)

Motion Passed (6 to 0)

4.3   London’s Climate Emergency Declaration - Fireworks - REQUEST FOR DELEGATION STATUS

2021-06-22 Sub. Fireworks - R. Amendola

Moved by E. Holder

Seconded by S. Lewis

That the communication from R. Amendola, as appended to the Agenda, and a verbal delegation from R. Amendola with respect to London’s Climate Emergency Declaration and Fireworks, BE RECEIVED. (2021-E00)

Motion Passed (6 to 0)

Voting Record:

Moved by A. Kayabaga

Seconded by E. Holder

Motion to approve the delegation request from R. Amendola BE APPROVED to be heard at this meeting.

Motion Passed (6 to 0)

5.   Deferred Matters/Additional Business

5.1   Deferred Matters List

CPSC DEFERRED MATTERS as at June 14, 2021

Moved by S. Lewis

Seconded by E. Holder

That the Deferred Matters List for the Community and Protective Services Committee, as at June 14, 2021, BE RECEIVED.

Motion Passed (6 to 0)

6.   Confidential

Moved by E. Holder

Seconded by S. Lewis

That the Community and Protective Services Committee convene In Closed Session for the purpose of considering the following:

6.1. Land Acquisition / Solicitor-Client Privileged Advice / Position, Plan, Procedure, Criteria or Instruction to be Applied to Any Negotiations

A matter pertaining to the proposed or pending lease of land by the municipality, including communications necessary for that purpose; advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege; commercial and financial information, that belongs to the municipality and has monetary value or potential monetary value and a position, plan, procedure, criteria or instruction to be applied to any negotiations carried on or to be carried on by or on behalf of the municipality.

6.2. Land Acquisition / Solicitor-Client Privileged Advice / Position, Plan, Procedure, Criteria or Instruction to be Applied to Any Negotiations

A matter pertaining to the proposed or pending lease of land by the municipality, including communications necessary for that purpose; advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege; commercial and financial information, that belongs to the municipality and has monetary value or potential monetary value and a position, plan, procedure, criteria or instruction to be applied to any negotiations carried on or to be carried on by or on behalf of the municipality.

Motion Passed (6 to 0)

The Community and Protective Services Committee convened In Closed Session from 5:13 PM to 5:22 PM.

7.   Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 5:23 PM.

Full Transcript

Transcript provided by Lillian Skinner’s London Council Archive. Note: This is an automated speech-to-text transcript and may contain errors. Speaker names are not identified.

View full transcript (1 hour, 32 minutes)

[20:21] I think you made the media there, buddy. Mr. Mayor, you’re not on mute. Good afternoon, everyone.

[21:01] We’re just waiting to get quorum and we’ll get started. Thank you. Yeah, maybe.

[24:04] Good afternoon, everyone. And welcome to the 10th meeting of Community and Protective Services Committee. Right now, so you know, the YouTube stream is down, but it’ll be up shortly. It is working. I’m sorry. The city of London is committed to making every effort to provide alternative formats and communication supports for council, standing or advisory committees meetings and information upon request. To make a request for any city service, please contact accessibility@london.ca four, five, one, nine, six, six, one, two, four, eight, nine, extension two, four, two, five. To make a specific request to this meeting, please contact CPSC@london.ca.

[24:42] Are there any disclosures of pecuniary interest? I can’t see the screen. It wasn’t so mean. I can’t see the face. Oh, there it is. In a second, we’re having a technical problem.

[25:16] Do you know how to get up? Okay, I think we’ve got this taken care of.

[26:07] We have no disclosures of security interest, so we’re moving on to the consent items. Would anyone like to get the consent items pulled? I know I have, the mayor would like to speak to 2.5. Is there anything else? Nothing, so I will go to the mayor for 2.5. What I think is really tremendously positive situation that’s occurring in Southwest London at the Optimus District Park.

[27:00] And that is that Randy and Audrey Collins, so probably to celebrate their 50th anniversary in business are choosing to develop what will now be the seventh park that they have put in place in London over all these years. I think it’s a testament, Chair, to their commitment to this community. And they’re supportive young people. When Mr. Collins and I spoke about this issue a couple of months ago, I remember him saying to me, he said, “Do me a favor.

[27:39] “Can you please direct me to the person “that can help expedite this on behalf of the kids? “Move this along and we have the kids as quickly as we can. “It’s something that is really important to Audrey “and mean it’s something that we want to do.” And, Chair, while we’ve had many, many examples of the community reaching out, I can tell you, this is one of those examples where this is, that this is community at its best. And our community members who are doing this, and I couldn’t be more proud of, knowing the Holmes family and the commitment they make to our city.

[28:19] So say thanks to them on behalf of all of our city council, and the great cooperation we’ve had from staff and working with them to expedite this and moving this along in a very thoughtful and positive way. Well done, Holly Gully, well done, Audrey, and ready call. Thank you very much. And I’d like to extend my anniversary wishes as well. The only wish, only one I’d like to comment on personally from the Chair would be 2.4, 120 West and Street. I have friends that live in that area, and they will be very thrilled to see that property be flattened.

[28:52] It’s been a problem for many years. I am now looking for someone to move the consent agenda. I got first for Mayor, second by Councillor Halmer. Thank you very much. All in favor, oh, let’s vote. Mr. Chair. Yes, I don’t have a participant thing, so I can’t see Ariel, I know I can hear you. Mr. Chair, can you hear me?

[29:27] Yes, I can. I don’t know if you just said vote, but I did want to make a comment before it goes into a vote. Terribly sorry, I can’t see you on the screen over here, so we’re working on that right now. What would you like to comment on? We pulled that back, and we’re working now. Do you have a comment?

[30:04] I’m not sure if you can hear me, Mr. Chair. I did want to make a comment before it goes into a vote. Yes, we pulled the vote back, and yes, you can comment, we can hear you. They just lost her. I’ll come back to Ariel. Councillor Halmer, your hand is up, would you like to speak? Yes, thank you.

[30:35] I just wanted to address 2.6 and 2.7, no reason to pull them, but very supportive of all the things that are being added in through the SSRF Phase 3 funding. I think it’s wonderful to see the city staff really pushing as far as we can with all the money that has been made available to respond to the issues we’re seeing and people experiencing homelessness and the impact of the pandemic in particular. It’s good to see the province stepping up to help us work through that.

[31:11] This is certainly an area where we have seen the need for increased resources, and I think these are really good ideas. They’re gonna help, it’s not. I don’t think we never really say it’s gonna be enough, but I think this is really making good use of the money that’s available. And I’m 2.7, the London homeless bridge and housing allowance program. This is a really substantial increase in what I think is a very good program, really a very good value to provide people with some funding to get them into units that otherwise might not be available and help them find housing stability and stay in the housing.

[31:51] Housing allowance, the housing benefit that’s provided that provincial and federal level in this program really, really I think good approach to trying to, without having to build new housing and make existing housing units more affordable and expand what is essentially available to people in the market. So I’m glad to see this one being increased by 300,000 and it’s not a small increase. So I’m glad to see that that’s happening in this meeting. Thank you very much.

[32:24] I’m just waiting for Councilor Caiabaga who’s having some technical problems. Give us a second. Right now staff is checking on Ariel to see if we can get her hooked up.

[33:00] It’s up to the committee if you wish to vote without her comments. I know she wanted to comment on this before an end. Mr. Chair, it’s Kathy Saunders. I’m wondering if we knew which item the counter wanted to speak to and perhaps you could vote on all of them except that one. She did not tell us yet. In form, she’s logging back in now.

[33:36] So we’ll just wait another 30 seconds. Mr. Chair, perhaps you might want to go on to the item that was pulled and then come back to these items or did you deal with that already, sorry?

[34:35] There was nothing pulled for sent just for comment. Okay, perhaps you could go on to 3.1 and come back to these items once the Councilor has joined us. Thank you. That’s a very good suggestion and I think we will do that. With the committee’s permission, I think we should move to 3.1. It’s a presentation from arcade and it was approved at the last meeting and I think that will allow Councilor Caiabaga chance to get back in. Is Ms. Campbell here?

[35:12] There she is. Please Ms. Campbell, give your presentation. Thank you so much for accepting our delegation request. I’m joined right now with Dan Turner and he was a resident at our Elizabeth Street Wish location and he’s just here in case you have any questions that you want to direct towards him as a participant in our program. The slides I think have been provided in the package. I’m not sure if you’re able to see them during this time.

[35:47] Are they up and able to be seen? Have them in the agenda. I’m actually looking at it right now. Okay, great. ‘Cause I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to share my screen. So just trying to figure this out. Thank you. So I’m really thrilled to just be talking about the amazing opportunity that it has been to provide the winter interim solution to homelessness and some of the outcomes of that work. You know, in looking over the statistics, the folks that we have at York Street on average have been with us now for anywhere between four and six months and previous to their stay with Wish, the average length of stay was 15 days.

[36:36] And so we’re incredibly grateful for the opportunity to journey with people for that amount of time to create that level of stability for folks that have been, you know, we use this language of high QD, people who have really struggled with multiple challenges, whether they’re addiction, homelessness, trauma, and barriers to accessing traditional shelter options, we’re really grateful that we were able to do that in the winter months. What we didn’t anticipate in that interim solution is the longer term implications of that disruptive model and how we might support people longer term.

[37:15] And so as we’ve been watching people transition into housing, Dan here being an example of somebody who has made that transition into a head-least unit, you know, we’re thrilled to see the positive outcomes of the program, 100% of the participants at the Wish sites have had access to healthcare through the health bus from a London inter-community health. And during this extension that you provided until the end of June, we’ve been able to really go deeper in terms of linking to community resources such as mental health and developmental services type supports that, you know, just take more time.

[37:57] And I’ll be honest, we haven’t had great success yet, but we are looking forward to those things moving forward. The other thing is, as people have stabilized, we’ve seen the incidents that have taken place both on and off site reduced by 55% over the course of the project. The reason I’m presenting to you today is because our residents wanted it to be stated very clearly that the low barrier access and the form of sheltering that was provided through Wish was really important to many of them as it related to accessibility and their ability to join their response.

[38:32] And so we just want to highlight the importance of that low barrier model as civic administration is looking to redesign the homelessness RFPs, that this language and this a model of service needs to be considered. And this includes physical forms of housing or sheltering. And so we wanted to just say that we encourage councils continue to support future low barrier options. Secondly, we want to assure you that we are preparing to move towards that stabilization to long-term home with people.

[39:08] And so in this six-month extension that you’ve now funded at the last meeting, we are working to build our capacity around maintaining those core values with low barrier harm reduction and person-centered approaches that drove the Wish project into a housing model. And finally, we want to speak up for those who continue to be unhoused and unsheltered in our community. And simply say that as a coalition of organizations that wanted to do something in the winter time, even in the summer when people find themselves self-sheltering, we want to ensure that we find ways of supporting those who are still outside, recognizing that there is not adequate space at this point.

[40:02] And so we arcade mission, along with many of the partners around the table, wanted to just highlight that we do need to be thinking of how do we include those members of our community as we continue to move forward. And so basically I want to say a big word of thanks to council for the ways that you have supported this effort and also acknowledge that we do ask other levels of government, particularly mental health addictions and housing funders.

[40:36] So that would be the provincial and federal governments to step up. This is not just our municipalities issue. These issues exist across our province. And we’re grateful that here in London, we’ve been able to try out a made in London solution and that has had positive outcomes. And we would like to see how we can take the evaluation committee. There was an evaluation of the first wish, the short-term project. They’re just getting preliminary findings. And it’s really reflected in those findings. These asks that we’re putting in front of you today.

[41:09] Thank you again for listening. And we are available for questions. Thank you very much, Ms. Campbell. Anyone on the committee have any questions for Councilor Helmer? Thank you. I just wonder if you wanted to highlight some of the differences in terms of the model that you’ve found to be most useful from what you’re hearing from participants who say they’re things that they’ve really liked about the way the temporary shelters were set up, the low barrier approach.

[41:47] What are the really key differences, things that we need to make sure we incorporate into future responses to make sure we’ve got a good range of options for people sort of no matter where they’re at on their housing journey? Certainly, with your permission, I’d like to hand that to Dan Turner to answer the question as a resident of the site. I think he can speak well to what’s different from the other things he had experienced. Would that be okay? Yes.

[42:18] Yes, hello, thank you for this opportunity to speak to all of you. The main differences and the main keys between the standard shelters and the low barrier is basically the simple fact that most of the people that would go to the low barrier shelter, when they go to the other shelters, they basically feel like they’ve been placed back in prison, if that makes any sense to any of yous.

[42:52] They’re watched constantly, they’re put under a thumb, they’re subjective to searches of both their person and their property, which is understandable if they are high-risk participants, people do understand that, but not everybody is a high-risk participant and they basically feel like no matter what they do, that it’s just basically an onset to be booted back out to the street.

[43:28] With the low barrier option, we basically, the participants, we take it upon ourselves to basically police ourselves and to make everybody responsible for their own decisions and everything like that that would go with the low barrier option, plus we have the opportunity of Sarah’s team and the people that are there in order to reach out in case something needs to be done that is either A, needed to make it happen better or B, something that we can’t on a personal level handle and we need an outside source to help us out.

[44:13] Also, with the low barrier option, people don’t feel like they’re constantly being judged, being looked at like their addicts or anything like that because not everybody who goes to the site or is using the site is a drug addict or anything like that or does have or will have mental illness that he, well, I guess I shouldn’t say will have but that they don’t have mental illness. Like I myself was one of the ones that did not have mental illness and not what I would consider a drug habit to be an addict anyway, it was done recreational but that’s all in the past now and ever since I got the room in the house through Sarah and being able to move forward, it’s really helping me out.

[45:14] I’m actually working as a volunteer now and hopefully it’ll lead to some full-time employment. Thank you very much, I really appreciate that Dan. Thank you. Thank you very much. Councillor Caiabaga, you had your hand up but I’m not sure if you still want to speak on this. We are on 3.1, we will be coming back to the rest of the consent agenda for yourself. I think my questions have been answered. I just wanted to ask Sarah sort of speak on the difference between the WISH program and other programs and also just want to take the opportunity and I hope I’m not speaking in the air.

[45:56] You guys can hear me, I should have checked that before I went off. Can you hear me, Mr. Chair? Yes, we can. Okay, good. We’ve had sort of connection issues. I just want to thank Sarah for the report and as well as the work that they’re doing. I think it’s important work. What we’re experiencing right now in our community and across the province, even across the country, if I can say is very interesting. As a lot of people are struggling, they’re struggling with mental health issues.

[46:32] There is a growing opioid crisis that we’re also not talking about and I think being able to have a little barrier service system that people can go to and trust and feel comfortable is one of the different ways that we can continue to be proactive in supporting our community. So I can’t even imagine it being easy work. It’s not easy work. So I want to thank everybody who’s involved in this work. And I’ve been a supporter from the beginning and will continue to be a supporter.

[47:06] I hope the program gets the support that it needs to grow to be able to help more people because the issue of addiction is just getting so large in our community and we need to, everybody needs to figure out a way to be proactive in responding to it. So thank you for your report and thank you for your testimony. And yeah, thanks. Thank you, Councillor Caiabaga, anyone else? Not seeing anyone?

[47:39] I need a motion to receive 3.1. I’ll move it. Thank you, Ariel. A seconder with just Councillor Halmer. Thank you very much. We will vote on that. I vote yes, Mr. Chair. Thank you. Chair, I don’t have my e-scribe up either, but I will too, we’ll vote yes. Thank you, Councillor Lewis. Councillor Halmer.

[49:04] Bozing the vote, the motion carries six to zero. Thank you very much. Now we will circle back to the consent agenda. Councillor Caiabaga, before we have the technical issues you had to make a statement on one of them. Would you like to speak now? Can you hear me? Yes, we can, thank you. Yeah, I just wanted to make comments on items 2.6, the housing items to just, I had a few questions, given that I’m kind of glad that we did this in this order because we heard from the WISH program and what they’re doing.

[49:47] I’m wondering as we allocate this funding right now, are we still going to be receiving a report from staff to see how we can connect to roll the WISH program more or I’m just wondering where that’s standing at? Let’s check with staff. Thank you and through the chair. We are continuing right now. Our priority is on the transition from the winter response, which has been the continuation of the York Street site and the Hamilton Road day drop in space.

[50:25] It is focusing on the conclusion of those services. Civic administration did receive the unsolicited proposal around a low barrier service. That does in some regard align with what we as civic administration have indicated prior to this, is that we would be seeking an RFP in 2021 for additional lower barrier services within the community. So that work is still ongoing through our housing stability services team.

[50:59] And we expect to be engaging community stakeholders within the coming weeks to begin that RFP process. Thank you and just to clarify, the closure of the program has not happened until we have an alternative plan, correct? So through the chair council endorse at the June 1st meeting that we would conclude the York Street site at the end of June and move to an alternate location, working in partnership with WISH through a single source procurement.

[51:37] I’m optimistic to share that currently, the WISH to be home organization is in the process of finalizing agreements, which will allow them to make offers of housing with supports to the current tenants at the temporary York Street shelter with WISH maintaining their involvement in offering the onsite supports with these housing offers. We hope that everyone at York Street will be able to transition to their new housing accommodations.

[52:12] Should some of the individuals at York Street be unable or uninterested in the offer of housing with supports, they will have access to all of the services that we set out in our June 1st caps report and this report, including the temporary resting spaces, which they could stay at until we were able to match them to appropriate housing with supports as well. At this time, it would appear that they need to use a hotel response as an alternate location to the York Street site would be little to none.

[52:53] Thank you for that information. And when you say little to none, is that because most participants are interested in the housing option or is there any other factor in just speaking, and I’m only asking this just because we, personally, I received a lot of communications from members of my ward needing to know whether or not this was a program that once it ends, what’s going to happen and we’re in June now. So people want to know what’s the next step. And there was perhaps some miscommunications around the fact that people thought that we just closed it and it just ended and people are right back on the street.

[53:34] And that’s why I’m asking this question, just to clarify for the community. Thank you very much for the question and through you, Chair. Yes, the intent was never to just close down the temporary sites and return everyone to the streets. I think credit to Ms. Campbell and the work of the Wish Coalition to provide a lot of housing stability services during this extended period for those individuals at York Street. The goal during the extension of the end of March through to the end of June was to prepare people for housing, so we’re very optimistic to say that the reason that we do not need a hotel response or we would need a very minimal, if any, hotel response is because most participants at York Street will be moving into housing with supports, which is what the goal has been all along.

[54:25] So we’re very optimistic to have those agreements finalized in the coming days and in anticipation for that. We referenced that it could still be an outside possibility if there is some unforeseen delay in those agreements being finalized or should there be a lack of interest from some of the participants, we would certainly try to match them to our other housing programs and our resting spaces. Thank you so much. I appreciate that response and appreciate the work that the department is doing.

[55:02] Thank you. Any more questions on the consent agenda? I don’t believe there is, but I have to ask. I’m not seeing any, I need a mover for the consent agenda. Oh, we already have a mover and secretary of support. Yes, we just need a vote. Thank you. Councillor Saleh and Councillor Lewis.

[55:44] I will verbally vote yes, Mr. Chair. Councillor Saleh, does the thumb up mean yes? Opposing the vote, the motion carries, six to zero.

[56:50] Thank you very much. Moving on to items for direction. We have the fifth report of the animal Wolfler Advisory Committee. Someone like to make a motion. I need a mover for 4.1.

[57:24] There’s Councillor Halmer, thank you. And Councillor SRI to Councillor Lewis, I believe as a seconder, thank you. Voting. Councillor Lewis.

[57:57] I will vote yes. Opposing the vote, the motion carries, six to zero. Thank you. Items for direction 4.2 is a communication from Councillors Lewis and Squire. I believe Councillor Lewis is here to speak on it. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am and you’ll forgive me. I am logging in from the vehicle following a doctor’s appointments and I’m just having trouble getting the item open on my remote device.

[58:36] But I will share that this communication from Councillor Squire and I does arise from discussions that we’ve had with leaders in other surrounding municipalities and working with their schools and with their school boards. I am, I’ve been made aware that the Thames Valley School Board Trustees will be voting on a similar motion from their side at an upcoming meeting. And really the motion speaks to importance of data sharing and planning sharing between the school board and the city both in terms of the need for new school locations as well as utilizing school locations that are underutilized and are in some cases in danger of closure.

[59:25] So we brought this forward for committee’s consideration. There have been some discussions with our municipal staff as well. And many of these things that are in the motion are things that they are doing in communication with the school board already, but what is not happening necessarily is that that information is not always coming back to us in sort of annual reports. And so that’s the spirit of the motion that’s there before you. I’d like to put that on the floor and I don’t know if I have a second or not, but we’ll see if there’s somebody to second that and have some discussion about it.

[1:00:00] Councillor Homer is seconded. Any discussion on this? Yes, I see the mayor. Chair, I have the information that’s put forward by Councillor Squire. So my question through you to staff is to try to understand as it relates to school planning and the like, what kind of information do we typically get either in advance or long range or just so?

[1:00:50] I’m not sure if this has been prompted by virtue of a dual situation that in part plus London specifically or whether there are other issues, but is it ever a bad idea to have more information to assist us? I’m equally as concerned what information staff gets and I just wonder from a timing standpoint whether this information is already available and we just don’t see it or whether the information is not available and would also equally be useful to staff.

[1:01:28] Through the chair, it’s Cheryl. I can speak and answer some of those questions if you wish. So as part of the information we get is when it comes to new builds or renovations to schools, if there’s a high need for a licensed child care center in those neighborhoods, we are involved in part of the application process to the province, to the Ministry of Education. However, until such time as that’s made public, it’s confidential information.

[1:02:09] But once public, we can share that information. As part of an annual process, the main school boards, I know for sure that Thames Valley and the London District Catholic School Board meet with staff from planning and some staff from my area and they provide annual updates as to their capital plans, their enrollment numbers, their plans for looking at schools as identified on those schools that are underutilized and those areas where they’re new schools, as we share information on our census information about growth, et cetera.

[1:02:51] And finally, we also get information from the school boards regarding schools that are potentially going to be put up for sale, et cetera, so that we can make comment on that or be made aware of potential land. So it’s for you, Chair. Thank you, Ms. Smith. I think that’s extremely helpful to hear that and to know that that kind of ongoing communication happens. It sounds like if that includes our planning folks and includes your areas, it relates to childcare and it also ties in issues around surplus schools or surplus facilities.

[1:03:31] I should say that a lot of what the counselors are looking for, it seems to me, is covered in that meeting suggest that we don’t get it. And so, what I’m trying to understand through the motion is there a reason why, and maybe Casa Square might want to make a or if Casa Lewis might be a engineer, but is there any other reasons that it is not shared with council members, which is the direction of this motion?

[1:04:07] And maybe that’s for planning or perhaps Ms. Smith or she would like, but I’d like to hear from planning as well on that, please. Through the chair, I can comment on that. I think as part of the motion, civic administration, we would be happy to be directed to meet with representatives of the area boards, as there are four of them. And in my area, we do often meet with them about planning and future builds and renovations. However, you correct that information is usually shared at our level and is relied on because it’s the request usually for capital, those from the schools directly to the province.

[1:04:51] So we rely on them to share the information. So if you wish, we would be happy to meet with representatives of the school boards and other stakeholders to discuss the items outlined in this communication submitted by Casa Lewis and Casa Square and report back at a future meeting of CAHPS with respect to the results of those discussions and their request to share information annually. I’ll actually just be kind of supposed to be more than just a letter list. I think there’ll be very specific requests for direction and if this does come to pass.

[1:05:38] So I’m going to sit back a bit to understand through Councillor Lewis’ motion with Councillor Square. If it’s already there, it’s just what’s missing except the fact that it’s missing from us and I’d like to hear if I can from Councillor Lewis at the right time. Well, you’re in luck. His hand is up next, Councillor Lewis. Thank you, Mr. Chair. And I did have my hand up in anticipation of being able to respond partly to the Mayor’s line of inquiry. I will also share that it’s great to have Ms. Smith’s perspective with us from her division today. Actually, the discussions I had around this with staff were with Mr. Barrett in planning. So I’m getting a slightly different perspective from Ms. Smith’s view today. Certainly, one of the biggest pieces in this is that the information that is going back and forth between the board be updated to us annually. And I think a report to CAPS is exactly what one of the pieces that we’re looking for here. I think it’s also important to note that in this motion, there are actually six pieces. And one of those pieces is actually a support in principle of the resolution of the community and school alliance to support for our rural neighbours, the rural and northern education fund differentiator in the funding model, which is important for London in terms not only of being a good municipal partner with our surrounding communities, but in some cases, creating a situation where rural students are not bust in long distances into London schools because they’re able to be accommodated more easily in their home communities.

[1:07:31] The Mayor did reference the other situation in Northwest London that was before planning committee a couple of weeks ago. And I will share your worship. That’s actually just a happy coincidence. These discussions have been happening with Tem Center and with Zora Township for several weeks now, and that PEC matter only highlighted the fact that sometimes it would help us to have a little more information, particularly in our ability as Councillors to advocate more actively with the province on school funding and school planning, which I think we all recall from the PEC discussion is a scenario where there are some problems. And if we are forearmed with information, we may be able to be more effective advocates in preventing some of those situations from occurring in the future. So that’s the spirit of this motion or this communication with the draft motion for a resolution in it certainly open to colleagues concerns or requests. But I think this one’s both a partnership one and one that allows Council to play a little more informed role in terms of perhaps advocating with senior levels of government in terms of how our schools are provided for in the community. Thank you very much. Any more questions? Mr. Mayor, did you have any?

[1:08:55] I’m sure if I had very specific ones, I probably would have had to begin. But given this opportunity to speak, it doesn’t feel to me as if the information isn’t available. I mean, clearly it is. And I feel that the information that is given from the school board to our own staff is readily available. And I’m trying to think, Chair, if there are any confidential reasons why some of this information might not be shared. And I’m not sure if staff have any insights into that or maybe, you know what, frankly, I’m overthinking it. And it may well be that we get some response from the boards of education as it relates to this as well. But I guess I would ask you one final thing and that is this is clearly directed to the two primary school boards. We have private schools as well and associations of private schools. I’m not sure if the mover and seconder were looking to see and determine if if they were looking to dig as deep as trying to get into private schools as well, or whether they were satisfied that the public and separate school boards were sufficient. Maybe that’d be a question I’d ask you to move. What do you say there? And the question I’d ask who?

[1:10:41] The mover. Through you, Mr. Chair, in response to the mayor, in our conversations, we’re quite satisfied with it being the the public and the separate board. The reason being, we know when it comes to things like planning, the population out of private school is often not reflected in a geographic area, but is more of a community of interest and that those students often do travel considerable distances outside of what would be their home school in the public or the separate system for that particular private schooling opportunity. So we didn’t see there being a big planning component to the private schools. Those locations tend to be based on where they can purchase land and and their students attend regardless of how close or far it is from their geographic residents. So for us, it was more about planning partnerships and you’ll note even in the the first bullet point in terms of reflecting this in our strategic plan, we feel that there might also be opportunities to go beyond just the use of the child care centers, right? And are there opportunities for us to look at other partnerships and synergies with the school board when school space is perhaps underutilized? So, you know, that would be part of an ongoing discussion as well, which is why we’re really seeking this just sort of in principle today, because we know that there are pieces of this already in play that our staff are already working on and staff have certainly indicated that that to me, it’s about us having an opportunity to be advocates for this and be informed as well. Mr. Livingston. Mr. Chair, I wonder if I might provide some additional information and an effort to be helpful. Please do. So I’m wondering if it would be helpful if staff provided an information report on the policies that school boards have to follow.

[1:12:43] There are a number that address and circle around this particular issue, including a policy around seeking community partnerships whenever they have surplus space. There’s a longstanding protocol with respect to that, along with the pupil planning process, they must follow, which includes annual meetings with all of the participating municipalities around the plans that school boards have. So, perhaps civic administration could assist by providing an information report that lays out all of those policies so Council has a clear picture on the roles and responsibilities of the boards and how we interact with them around those planning initiatives. I think that might be helpful to understand how we work together around the use of space and and their future planning.

[1:13:33] How long would staff need to get that back? We could endeavor to do that this summer. I think I don’t want to commit to the next cycle, but certainly we could look to do it by September. Council Lewis, would you be willing to defer this for what three cycles? You know, I’m willing to defer it until, sorry, as I said, I’m joining you from a parking lot after an appointment, but I’m willing to defer it for as long as staff require. I’m cognizant of the fact that they have lots on their plates still with COVID recovery and everything else. So, to me, this is not a burning issue through you, Mr. Presiding Officer. So, I’m willing to defer it till staff are able to come back with that information. They’re drafting that direction right now. Just give us a moment. So, I’m just going to read the motion as I believe it was intended that the civic administration be directed to provide an information report at a future meeting of the caps with respect to the policies that need to be followed by the local school boards.

[1:15:41] It being noted that the communication has appended to the agenda with respect to this matter was received. Is that okay with you, Council Lewis? Very much. Councilor Helmer, you’re the seconder. Thank you very much. Any other questions before we move to vote? Seeing none, we will vote now. I will vote verbally. Yes, Mr. Chair. 6-0. Okay, we are now on to our last 4.3 item for direction, a request for delegation from our Emondola Financial College London Climate Emergency for fireworks.

[1:16:45] Matt, committee’s discretion. Mr. Chair, I’ll move to accept the delegation. I have a mover. I need a seconder. The mayor’s seconding. Thank you very much. We are voting on that now. Yes, Mr. Chair. Thank you. Housing the vote. The motion carries. 6-0. Ms. Emondola, is your turn to speak now?

[1:18:03] Okay. Thank you very much. I apologize. This is the first for me. So, I’ve never mentioned like this before. I had originally just contacted my local counselor for ward 11, Ariel. Thank you, Ariel, for your support, by the way, to try and make the proposal that London set a president in Ontario and in Canada in general by banning fireworks. Through my research, I have learned that there are safer means, safer chemicals that can be used for fireworks at certain times, and that is one approach that has been taken. But on the grand scheme of both cost and environmental impact, considering the declaration that London and the council has made regarding the emergency of the environment, it seemed only sensible to recognize the harm that has been known for decades to be caused by fireworks shows. And a lot of the articles that I shared demonstrate that through environmental impacts, but one that I realized I failed to provide sources for was the impacts on people. A number of studies that I’ve been reading through while listening to the rest of the council meeting have been stating that though many of the chemicals that are part of fireworks are not considered toxic pollutants, and are not generally considered harmful to people in small portions, the fact is during fireworks shows we are exposed to really high concentrations in really small time periods, and a significant number of people who aren’t part of the show and who aren’t enjoying the show get exposed to those chemicals as well, just because of the winds. And so in that way, it causes a significant number of respiratory issues for a lot of people who have various different respiratory health problems. And the toxins that end up showering down on people have not been properly studied, but it is suggested that more study is needed in terms of the harm that that causes. And just to briefly summarize in terms of the sources that I shared, I realized that I had shared other sources with Ariel in regard that I had downloaded, but I was told that those couldn’t be shared in this situation because you can only view links from websites. So what I provided was very brief, didn’t have the full studies, but the summary was ultimately that it’s very harmful to the waterways, the airways, and many, many different animals who live around rivers. A notable fact regarding this is that 75% of Canadian geese populations live in urban areas and around waterways, and that’s just geese. There are many, many animals who, if they aren’t in the unfortunate situation of somehow dying from the various explosions causing heart attacks, then often they will abandon their young, or at the very least have stress that leads to later issues. And so, again, considering the declaration of the climate emergency that’s not just in terms of our fossil fuel output, but as well as all the different ways that we impact the environment, it seems very clear that we need to take a step in recognizing the lack of sustainability in fireworks celebrations, and the need for development for these celebrations to be much more sustainable, moving on to laser shows, or drone shows, or things that can honestly be recycled each year and don’t have to be purchased the way that fireworks would be. So thank you for listening. I really appreciate your time. And thank you very much for coming and participating.

[1:21:56] Does anyone have any questions regarding this? I have no questions. I need a motion to receive. Have the mayor is first. Oh, Councillor Morgan is here all of a sudden. Would you have a question of Councillor Morgan? I don’t have a question for the delegation, but I have a question for our staff. Would you like me to do that now, Mr. Chair? Yes, please. So I will say I certainly appreciate the concerns raised by the delegate. However, from my experience, one of the things that have been more common in my particular ward is not letting off fireworks in the first place, but people not following the rules when they light them off, thus making fireworks much more prevalent than the bylaw intends. So my question for our staff is, do we have any plans to continue to educate the public, particularly with fireworks approaching in just a couple of weeks on Canada Day around the city, to ensure that people know when they’re allowed to light them off, what times of day? Because I know there’s certainly been some challenges in the recent fireworks allowable periods. According to the bylaw, people following those dates and, frankly, the time frames. So I would like to ask our staff that question. Let’s see what they have.

[1:23:37] Through the chair, it’s Cheryl Smith. I’m happy to start on this one and then turn it over to Orst if I miss anything. So to answer Deputy Mayor Morgan’s question, city staff are working together to support enhanced education and enforcement in the coming weeks leading up to Canada Day this year. So according to the fireworks bylaw, residents can discharge fireworks on two days. They can discharge them on Thursday, July 1, which is Canada Day from dusk until 11 p.m. only. And then because Canada falls on a Thursday, the bylaw allows residents to discharge fireworks on Saturday, July 3, between dusk and 11 p.m. only. So we’ve undertaken a couple of enhanced education enforcement processes. And what we’re doing is starting June 25, messaging is coming out of the city of London and the London Fire Department social media channels. And our communication plan also includes using the downtown billboards and boosting Facebook posts specifically through the London Fire Department. And the communication is going to be really specific of exactly when you can discharge fireworks as Canada Day. It’s going to remind people that the improper use of fireworks could result in a serious burn injuries. Of course, our safety is important. And also, it’s going to inform people that ignorance of this bylaw could result in fines of up to 10,000 dollars. We’ll also use messaging on how to be safe, that consider your neighbors, and that you have to be 18 years and over. In addition to that, we prepared a brochure that’s going to be delivered to the vendors to hand out at the point of sale to residents, clearly stating that messaging again, when you can sell, when you can purchase, and when you can discharge fireworks, and the consequences of ignoring the bylaw and additional safety information. And in addition to the city’s regular enforcement of city bylaws, city staff are planning to have proactive enforcement, particularly on the evening of Friday, July the 2nd, which is in between two of the allowable days.

[1:26:06] Thank you. Councillor Morgan, anything else? Yes, I want to thank Ms. Smith for that detail. I would say the experience in May was not good. There was fireworks on days where they were not allowed. They were outside of the allowable hours. And although it sounds like committee is not to the point where they’re willing to entertain the notion as outlined by our presenter today, you know, at the very least, what we can do is ensure that fireworks are discharged under the timeframes in accordance to the bylaw, because that is also causing significant issues in the community. And I would say, like I said, May was not a good experience. And there was a lot of frustration, particularly up in my ward, with people not following the rules. So I’m glad to hear about the additional measures that we’re taking on the education side. And I certainly think that that is a good first step to ensuring that fireworks are only set off when they’re supposed to be. Thank you very much. Anyone else? Councillor van holst.

[1:27:17] Thank you, Mr. Chair. And I’ll also thank staff for the added communication. Great to see we’re making use of the billboards. And I particularly like the idea of having the flyers handed out by the by the vendors. The fireworks are fun. I think anybody who goes to say Disney World would be pretty disappointed if they didn’t have a chance to see them, those go on every night. I don’t think people like the explosions to be a surprise. So that’s why it’s nice when it just happens on the days and at the times that we expect them. So I hope people will respect those.

[1:28:06] And also clean up their mess. So they do make a mess as the presenter alluded to. And so I know I’ve had complaints about someone saying I have to clean up this stuff in my yard from my neighbors. So neighbors, if you’re shooting these off, please, please volunteer to clean those up and in somebody’s yard if they get into there. So those are my comments. Other than it is nice to see, I look through some of the research articles that were presented by the by our delegate. And there is a move towards safer fireworks and more sustainable things. So that’s what I prefer is that we improve the technology as opposed to prohibiting people from from doing things. So if we can keep if we can keep the fireworks to the days that and the times that they’re meant, I think that will be a big improvement. So thank you. Thank you very much. Anybody else have any questions? Notice that Ms. Amundola has her hand up. Did you have a question you wanted to ask?

[1:29:40] You have a moment right now? Yes. Thank you. I just quickly wanted to comment on on the recent chair as I could suggest that the delegation has been concluded. Okay. Thank you. Sorry. Thank you very much. Okay. Then we need a motion to receive 4.3. Got the mayor. I need a second. I got council Lewis. Thank you very much. We’re voting. I will vote yes. Closing the vote. The motion carries six to zero. Thank you very much. We have no deferred matters. What? We have to receive the deferred matters list. Sorry. Pages are at order here. Who would like to move the deferred matters list and a seconder? Sean Lewis and the mayor. Thank you. And we’re voting. I will vote yes, Mr. Chair.

[1:31:45] Carry six to zero. That concludes the public portion of our meeting. Now for our confidential session, we will go in camera and I intend to leave from there. I just need a motion to move in camera and council Lewis. Thank you. Let’s give us a second to set up the technology and we will be in closed session. Thank you. Mr. Lewis. I will vote yes. Closing the vote. The motion carries six to zero.