Council Highlights - June 8, 2026

Stay-up-to-date with what’s happening at the Council table with the Town of Arnprior’s meetings in just a few minutes.  Please note these summaries are not an official record of Council meetings. Official minutes are posted online once they are approved during a subsequent meeting. You can also access the meeting recording on the Town’s YouTube channel.

Delegations:

Cahdco – Affordable Housing   

Adrian and Pat Richards from Cahdco informed Council on their mandate as a not-for-profit housing provider. They have identified that across rural communities in Eastern Ontario the constraint to affordable housing development is not demand or land - it’s a lack of capacity, capital and skilled labour. Cahdco is seeking Build Canada Homes (BCH) investment in the three main areas - capital investment in a pipeline of nonprofit housing, a revolving construction loan, and support for modern methods of construction factory production. Investments from BCH will unlock private financing to fund the capital investment in a factory/training center, and for private lending for the majority of the capital stack on all affordable housing units.  For more information, please visit www.cahdco.org.

Public Meeting – Zoning By-law Amendment 2/26 – Leo Moskos Street

A public meeting was held under the Planning Act regarding a zoning by-law amendment. The proposed amendment to Comprehensive Zoning By-law 6875-18 is to amend the zoning of 4, 59, and 63 Leo Moskos St. (lots 1, 99 and 100 on Plan 49M-75) from Residential Three exception eleven (R3*11) to Residential Three exception fifty-two (R3*52) to increase the maximum driveway width from “50% of the frontage of the lot up to a maximum of 7.0 meters” to “50% of the frontage of the lot up to a maximum of 9.15 meters”, and to amend the zoning of 8, 23, 27, 31, 35, 39, 43, 47, 51, and 55 Leo Moskos St. (lots 2, and 101-109 on Plan 49M-75) from Residential Three exception eleven (R3*11) to Residential Three exception fifty three (R3*53) to increase the maximum driveway width from “50% of the frontage of the lot up to a maximum of 7.0 meters” to “60% of the frontage of the lot up to a maximum of 9.15 meters”.

Council considered any public comments and passed a by-law to implement the amendments as applied for.

Reports:

Robert Simpson Park Phase 1B Update – deferred

Staff provided Council with an update on planning for the next phase of revitalization at Robert Simpson Park, which is intended to include a washroom retrofit. Council discussed alternatives for the washrooms and agreed to implement Option #2 which includes separate washrooms, family and universal washrooms, all designed for year-round use. Council authorize pre-commitment of funds for the Robert Simpson Refresh Phase 1B of $1,470,000 with 85% funded from the Capital Expenditure Reserve Fund ($1,249,500) and 15% funded from the Development Charges Reserve Fund ($220,500).

Marshall’s Bay Meadows Phase 5B – Subdivision Agreement and Lifting of Reserves

Council approved entering into a Subdivision Agreement for Phase 5B of the Marshall’s Bay Meadows Subdivision (47-T-14002) and to lift 0.3 m reserves; dedicate Blocks 63 on Plan 49M-115 and Block 10 on Plan 49M-127 as public highway; authorize the disposal of Block 9 on Plan 49M-127; and authorize the release of a temporary turning circle easement. This will allow the development to continue into the next phase.

Gaumond Bequest Project – Arnprior & District Humane Society

Council approved a funding request from the Arnprior & District Humane Society in the amount of $33,800 to be taken from the JA Gaumond Animal Control Centre Reserve Fund to assist with continued flood remediation and prevention work at the Animal Shelter, located at 490 Didak Drive, Arnprior, ON.

Development Charges Reduction Program

The General Manager Client Services/Treasurer provided an overview of the Development Charges Reduction Program (DCRP), part of the provincial and federal government’s $8.8 billion in funding over 10 years, intended to provide housing-enabling infrastructure to support housing development in Ontario. Participation in the program is voluntary. As part of the program, municipalities are required to commit to reducing their respective residential DCs by 30% to 50% for a minimum three-year period. Municipalities would then submit an application for project(s) that could be eligible for the grant funding. Municipalities must provide at least 10% of the funding for these growth-related project costs. Grant funding is paid out over 10 years. The program has a short program intake window, from June 1 to June 19, 2026.

For various reasons included within the staff report, staff do not recommend applying for the DCRP at this time. Staff will continue to monitor the rollout of this program and if a second application phase is offered in the future, reassess to determine if the program is financially viable at that time.

Proclamations – Pollinator Week (June 22-28, 2026)

Council proclaimed June 22nd to 28th, 2026, as Pollinator Week in the Town of Arnprior, and encourages all residents to learn more about pollinators, plant native species that support pollinators, support local bees and beekeepers, and continue to promote the health and wellbeing of pollinators in our community. Council is doing the following to support pollinator health and bring awareness to the importance of pollinators in our community:

• Applying to become a Bee City;
• Distributing Native Wildflower – Ontario Pollinator Mix seed packets and information brochures from Pollinator Partnership at the Arnprior Market throughout the season;
• Installing native pollinator gardens at Town Hall and the Arnprior Public Library;
• Continuing with the installation and maintenance of the meadow garden near the Arnprior Marina; and
• Completing a Tree Planting Program, with the planting of 233 native trees throughout the Town.

By-laws:

Council also passed by-laws to amend the Procedure By-law – Land Acknowledgement and to appoint K. Vieira as Deputy Division Registrar, Deputy Issuer of Marriage Licences and Marriage Officiant.