City Council meeting overview package for August 4, 2026

By City of Peterborough - Jul 31, 2026

News Releases

Peterborough, ON – City Council will consider the following items during its General Committee meeting in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 500 George St. N., starting at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, August 4, 2026:

Authorizing the extension of the contract for providing policing services in the Township of Cavan Monaghan for an additional one-year term from January 1, 2027 to December 31, 2027;
Receiving for information a report on the Prudent Investor Standard for Municipal Investment Opportunities and providing direction that the Treasurer proceed with taking the necessary steps for the City to join the ONE Joint Investment Board as a participating municipality under the Prudent Investor Standard;
A report for information on economic development activities for the period of January to June 2026;
An information report to inform Council on the City's funding application made to the Development Charge Reduction Program;
A recommendation from the Peterborough Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee that Council designate 192 Hunter St. W. as a heritage property under the Ontario Heritage Act;
A recommendation from the Peterborough Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee that Council designate 479 Reid St. as a heritage property under the Ontario Heritage Act;
A recommendation from the Peterborough Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee that Council
designate 715 George St. N. as a heritage property under the Ontario Heritage Act;
A recommendation from the Peterborough Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee that Council
designate 297 Hunter St. W. as a heritage property under the Ontario Heritage Act;
An information report on the Province of Ontario's tire recycling system; and
A Notice of Motion by Mayor Jeff Leal that Council direct staff to bring a report to Council in the first quarter of 2027 with information on the considerations of retail businesses being permitted to open on various statutory holidays, and outlining the options and required next steps if Council decides to proceed.

Items endorsed by Council during the General Committee meeting will proceed to the regular Council meeting on Monday, August 10, 2026 to be considered for approval.

Council meetings are livestreamed at peterborough.ca/WatchCouncil. Agendas and recordings of meetings are posted at peterborough.ca/agendas.

Council meeting agenda

To speak as a delegation at a Council meeting or during a Public Meeting under the Planning Act, individuals must register no later than 11 a.m. on the day of the meeting. To register, complete the online application at peterborough.ca/delegation, or phone 705-742-7777 ext. 1820.

Before the public portion of the meeting, Council will hold a closed session General Committee meeting to consider two items as permitted under the Municipal Act, 2001, including:

Section 239(2)(b) of the Municipal Act, 2001, Personal matters about an identifiable individual, including municipal or local board employees - Appointments
Sec239(2)(e) litigation or potential litigation, (f) advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege, and (k) 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 or local board - Potential Litigation

Following the open session of General Committee, Council will hold a Council meeting to consider ratifying its direction from General Committee related to the Potential Litigation matter from the closed session meeting held earlier in the evening.

Cavan Monaghan policing agreement

City Council will consider authorizing the extension of the contract for providing policing services in the Township of Cavan Monaghan for an additional one-year term from January 1, 2027 to December 31, 2027.

The existing policing services contract with Cavan Monaghan Township expires on December 31, 2026. Representatives from the Township have requested a one-year extension.

The Police Services Board is supportive of the request.

For the year 2026, the Township will pay $1.7 million for Contract Services. Contracted Services provided include at a minimum, crime prevention, law enforcement, assistance to victims of crime, maintaining the public peace and emergency responses. The annual fees paid by the Township cover such cost categories as, human resources, tech support, fleet, communication, software licences and equipment, where applicable.

Investment approach

Council will consider receiving for information a report on the Prudent Investor Standard for Municipal Investment Opportunities and providing direction that the Treasurer proceed with taking the necessary steps for the City to join the ONE Joint Investment Board as a participating municipality under the Prudent Investor Standard.

In 2019, Ontario introduced the Prudent Investor Standard, giving municipalities more flexible investment options to improve long-term returns. Municipalities can invest more broadly under a “prudent person” approach, allowing for more diversified investment portfolios.

To participate in the Prudent Investor Standard, municipalities must delegate management of money not required immediately (MNRI) to a professional external investment board. The ONE Joint Investment Board provides municipalities with a cost-effective way to access professional investment governance and expertise.

The City’s average monthly cash and investment balances in 2025 ranged from a low of $155.3 million to a high of $188.8 million in 2025 (2024 - $80.4 million to $182.1 million).

The City of Peterborough currently makes investments based on a relatively narrow list of allowable investments under Section 418 of the Municipal Act, 2001 (the Act), which includes:

Government debt
Bank and financial institution debt, deposit receipts, and notes
Corporate debt
Canadian equities and longer-term corporate bonds, through ONE Investment
A limited range of asset-backed securities

The returns from the current investment approach can be lower and may not keep up with inflation in certain market conditions.

The Prudent Investor Standard empowers a municipality to make any investment for their longer-term funds.

Economic development update

Council will consider a report for information on economic development activities for the period of January to June 2026.

Highlights include:

Economic Development team is now at full capacity, with a Manager hired in January 2026 and two Economic Development Officers starting in June 2026.
Approximately $92,000 in grant funding secured to support the Economic Development Strategic Plan and foreign direct investment (FDI) readiness work.
Active investment attraction files across industrial, commercial, hospitality, and film sectors, supported by trade missions and ongoing FDI and site selection relationships.
Peterborough Aerospace & Defence Cluster (PADC) launched in June 2026, bringing together 60 local businesses, post-secondary, and public sector partners.
Economic Development Strategic Plan process launched, with community engagement underway and completion targeted for late 2026.

Development Charge Reduction Program application

Council will consider an information report to inform Council on the City's funding application made to the Development Charge Reduction Program.

On June 15, 2026, City Council approved a motion to reduce Development Charges by 50%, effective March 30, 2026, and will maintain this reduction for all residential development types for 3 years.

On June 19, 2026, the City of Peterborough submitted two applications to the Development Charge Reduction Program (DCRP). The first application included a total of 5 different Roads and Related projects, and the second application included a series of Water and Wastewater projects intended to service growth in the Coldsprings Planning Area.

The Development Charge Reduction Program presents a significant opportunity for the City to provide meaningful relief to the residential development community while advancing critical infrastructure needed to support housing growth.

The projects included in the applications include:

Chemong Road – Parkhill Road to North of Sunset Boulevard - Chemong Road project is the City’s highest-priority submission for the funding application due to the scale of planned residential growth, existing transportation and safety deficiencies, and the project’s readiness to proceed. Chemong Road is identified as a strategic growth area in the Official Plan, with approximately 5,372 residential units approved or in progress, and 2,967 enabled by the project.
Lansdowne Street West – Spillsbury Drive to Clonsilla Avenue - The Lansdowne Street project is the City’s second highest priority for the funding application and would extend previously completed corridor improvements further west. The project will provide additional transportation capacity to enable approximately 873 residential units while improving traffic operations, road safety, active transportation, transit access and overall connectivity.
Water Street – University Heights Boulevard to Nassau Mills Road - The Water Street project is the City’s third-highest priority for the funding application and is directly connected to the completion and occupancy of approved residential development. Increased development activity since completion of the Transportation Master Plan has created a need to widen the corridor and construct a centre turn lane. Additional townhouse buildings within an approved multi-building development cannot proceed to occupancy until the required turn-lane improvements are completed.
Sherbrooke Street – Glenforest Boulevard to West City Limit - The Sherbrooke Street project is the City’s fourth-highest priority for the funding application and would widen the corridor to three lanes with an urban cross-section. The project is required to support significant residential development occurring within and adjacent to the corridor, including townhouse and apartment projects that are under construction or have received planning approvals.
Armour Road – Cunningham Boulevard to Nassau Mills Road - The Armour Road project is the City’s fifth-highest priority for the funding application and is intended to support long-term residential growth within the Auburn Secondary Plan area. The project would provide an improved roadway alignment, additional traffic capacity, active transportation facilities and stormwater management infrastructure along an important north-south arterial corridor.
Coldsprings Growth Area - The Coldsprings application bundles several interrelated water and wastewater projects required to service approximately 280 hectares at the southern limit of the City. The area is expected to accommodate approximately 2,908 residential units and a range of housing types, tenures and densities. The proposed works include the Coldsprings Sewage Pumping Station, Southpark Drive Sanitary Trunk Sewer, Otonabee River sanitary forcemain, a 675 millimetre (mm) trunk sewer connection to the Wastewater Treatment Plant, and the upsizing of local sanitary infrastructure from 300 mm to 450 mm. These works are fundamental enabling infrastructure without which planned development cannot proceed.

Provincial tire recycling system

Council will consider an information report on the Province of Ontario's tire recycling program.

Due to recent changes within Ontario's tire recycling system, collection sites have experienced challenges securing timely tire collection services. The Peterborough County/City Waste Management Facility (PCCWMF) is currently storing two to three times the normal volume of tires.

Ontario's Tire Program operates under an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) framework administered through the Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act, 2016 and regulated by the Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority (RPRA). Tire producers and their Producer Responsibility Organizations (PROs) are responsible for the collection and recycling of end-of-life tires and are intended to bear all associated costs.

Since early 2026, municipalities and collection sites throughout Ontario have experienced significant delays in tire collection services due to challenges within the provincial tire recycling system.

The County/City Waste Management Facility at 1260 Bensfort Rd. currently has an inventory of approximately 8,000 to 9,000 scrap tires awaiting collection. Under normal operating conditions, approximately 3,000 to 4,000 tires are stored on-site awaiting collection.

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