City Council Meeting Wrap-Up – December 5, 2023
Dec 5, 2023
The City Council meeting on December 5 included an update on the aquatic service and facility review, a recommendation on the municipal housing pledge, and a member’s motion to advocate to the Province to amend the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
Amendments to Occupational Health and Safety Act
Council unanimously approved a member’s motion to request the Province amend the Occupational Health and Safety Act to clarify the definition of “employer” when it comes to property owners who contract with a constructor for a project.
The Act has long permitted an owner (municipality or other property owner) to engage a constructor to undertake a construction project on their behalf. The constructor is to be responsible for:
- complying with all measures under the Act and the construction regulations;
- ensuring that every other employer on a project site complies with the Act and regulations; and
- protecting the health and safety of all workers on a project.
Court decisions from the Ontario Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada have interpreted the Act to include owners as “employers” in these situations. By finding an owner to be an employer of the employees on the project, owners can be charged with the same offences as the constructor, even though the owner does not have direct control over the project site.
Council approved the Municipal Housing Pledge, which outlines strategies and actions to achieve Greater Sudbury’s assigned municipal housing target of 3,800 new homes by 2031. Staff will work to achieve this target in a number of ways, including land use policy and development process initiatives, strategic collaborations and partnerships and continual improvement. More details on these initiatives are outlined in the Municipal Housing Pledge.
The initiatives in the pledge align with those proposed in the Housing Accelerator Fund application report and the draft Housing Supply Strategy, which will be presented to Council in early 2024. The Municipal Housing Pledge must be submitted to the Province by December 15, 2023 in order for the City to maintain eligibility for the Building Faster Fund.
Strategic Core Areas Community Improvement Plan
Through ratification of the Planning Committee resolutions, Council approved an amendment to the Strategic Core Areas Community Improvement Plan. This amendment creates a limited-time incentive program to encourage the construction of new multi-residential, long-term care and retirement home developments along the City’s strategic corridors. This program was developed to address the need for multi-unit residential rental units in the city, as identified in the 2023 City of Greater Sudbury Housing Supply and Demand Analysis.
Aquatic Service and Facility Review
Council received an overview of the first phase of the Aquatic Service and Facility Review, which is being conducted as part of the development of a 25-year vision for aquatic services in Greater Sudbury.
The first phase of work included a review of aquatic trends and usage, a preliminary assessment of facility condition and capital requirements, and a comprehensive public and stakeholder engagement process. A number of preliminary key findings are included in the report, linked above.
The second phase of the review will consist of a detailed facility needs assessment, implementation strategy and additional public consultation. The final report is scheduled to be presented to Council in September 2024.
For more details on these and other items from this week’s meetings, visit www.greatersudbury.ca/city-hall/mayor-and-council/meetings-agendas-and-minutes.