City Council meeting overview package for June 2, 2025

Peterborough, ON - City Council endorsed the following items during its General Committee meeting in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 500 George St. N., on Monday, June 2, 2025:

• A recommended Sanitary Master Plan and publishing the plan for a 30-day public review in accordance with the Municipal Class Environmental Assessment process;
• A Functional Analysis and Feasibility Study report for the Queen Alexandra Community Centre at 180 Barnardo Ave. and a recommendation that an estimated $8,157,000 be included in the annual budget over the next five years to repair and maintain the building;
• A report to provide Council and the public with the Report on Complaint, received from Guy Giorno, Integrity Commissioner for the City of Peterborough, and Council recommendations that no penalty be imposed in response to the report and that remedial measures referenced in the report be referred to staff for consideration in relation to potential amendments to the Council Code of Conduct and the Procedure By-law;
• A plan to support the continued operation of the Modular Bridge Housing Community while awaiting notice for the next provincial homelessness funding allotment or to provide for the responsible winddown of the program in the event that provincial funding is insufficient;
• Transferring $770,000 from the Parks Levy to the Recreation and Parks Capital Budget for the purchase of new equipment, including a new garbage truck for maintaining parks, trails and open spaces as well as other park maintenance equipment;
• Increasing the project budget for the Woodland Drive and Water Street Intersection Improvements by $417,000 to $4,617,000;
• A recommendation from the Peterborough Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee that 1310 Albertus Ave., known as Moira Hall, be designated as a property of cultural heritage value or interest under the Ontario Heritage Act;
• A recommendation from the Peterborough Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee that 640 Walkerfield Ave., known as the Hamilton House, be designated as a property of cultural heritage value or interest under the Ontario Heritage Act;
• Report of Closed Session - That staff be authorized to proceed as outlined in closed session report of the Commissioner, Legislative Services regarding 2350 Woodglade Blvd.; and
• Staff be directed to explore options, including grants and financing, to support the Mount Community Centre with the acquisition of property for the provision of affordable housing and report back to Council on August 5, 2025;
• Be it resolved that the open session of General Committee start at 3 p.m. on June 23, 2025; and
• That a staff report come back to Council in the next 90 days with a comprehensive breakdown of all costs associated with enforcement strategy to clear the city's parks and spaces of encampments the week of May 27, including but not limited to staff time, temporary shelter at the Morrow Building, Public Works, By-law enforcement, and any other related expenses.

Items endorsed by General Committee will proceed to the regular Council meeting on Monday June 9, 2025 to be considered for final approval.

Council did not support a recommendation from the Peterborough Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee that 129-135 Hunter St. W., 381-395 Water St., and 137 Hunter St. W., known as the Commerce Building, be designated as a property of cultural heritage value or interest under the Ontario Heritage Act.

To speak as a registered delegation at a Council meeting, 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.

The meeting is livestreamed at peterborough.ca/WatchCouncil. Agendas and recordings of meetings are posted at peterborough.ca/agendas.

Before the public portion of the meeting, Council held a closed session to consider an item as permitted under the Municipal Act, 2001, Section 239 (2)(c), a proposed or pending acquisition or disposition of land by the municipality - Property.

Sanitary Master Plan

Council endorsed a recommended Sanitary Master Plan and publishing the plan for a 30-day public review in accordance with the Municipal Class Environmental Assessment process.

The Sanitary Master Plan (SMP) establishes a comprehensive framework to guide the City of Peterborough’s sanitary infrastructure development through 2051, aligning with projected population growth from 83,000 (2016) to 125,000 and beyond.

The plan identifies 25+ capital projects, including upgrades to pumping stations and new trunk sewers, ready to proceed as demand arises and pending archaeological and other permitting requirements

A $277.9 million capital program is proposed to support system upgrades, with $207.5 million intended to be eligible for Development Charges (DC) recovery and $70.4 million to be funded by the City’s Wastewater Reserve (Sewer Surcharge).

Maintenance and replacement of wastewater services are primarily funded through user fees collected from a sewer surcharge. In a user pay model such as this, it is assumed that charges collected from users of the system, cover the full lifecycle costs of the existing infrastructure in use. Sewer surcharge funding collected by the City is pooled and used to fund various maintenance and replacement projects all across the City. Detailed assessment of current sewer surcharge rates was outside the scope of this study.

Now, and in the coming years, with more infrastructure being placed into service, aging infrastructure requiring replacement, increasing infrastructure costs, and past practices of low-density growth occurring on the fringes of the City, funding availability for wastewater services will be limited.

The plan reflects robust consultation with agencies, the public, and Indigenous communities, with a commitment to continued collaboration during project implementation.

Queen Alexandra Community Centre

Council endorsed receiving a Functional Analysis and Feasibility Study report for the Queen Alexandra Community Centre (QACC) at 180 Barnardo Ave. and a recommendation that an estimated $8,157,000 be included in the annual budget over the next five years to repair and maintain the building.

The report recommends the next steps for considering the immediate and longer-term maintenance and renovation needs of the building to maintain current operations.

Staff are recommending that the QACC be preserved and maintained as outlined in Option 1 as outlined in the Council report. This option comes with associated capital costs to undertake needed renovations over the next five years. The development of housing on the QACC property is not being recommended due to the high costs to develop a relatively low number of units. 

The Functional Analysis and Feasibility Study considered options for redeveloping the property or add residential development on the property. Peterborough Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee provided feedback related to the heritage status of the property.

Modular Bridge Housing Community

Council endorsed a plan to support the continued operation of the Modular Bridge Housing Community while awaiting notice for the next provincial homelessness funding allotment or to provide for the responsible winddown of the program in the event that provincial funding is insufficient.

Council will consider directing that the Social Services reserve fund maintain a balance at a minimum of 50% of the annual operating costs of the Modular Bridge Housing Community program, and that the Commissioner of Community Services be authorized to utilize these funds, if necessary, to support an orderly 6-month winddown of the program in the event that provincial funding is not maintained.

The Modular Bridge Housing Community supports 50 vulnerable residents with transitional housing and is becoming a cornerstone of Peterborough’s homelessness strategy.

This current funding is secured until March 31, 2026. While staff remain optimistic that the Province will renew the level of HPP funding for an additional three-year term, the process for confirming the renewal—particularly the funding amount— typically does not allow sufficient time to plan for and implement a responsible winddown of programs should funding fall short. The HPP funding program is a long-time provincial program whose allocations are announced in three-year terms but have traditionally waited to be announced mere weeks prior to its ending. The Modular Bridge Housing program was funded via an increase in funding to the City’s historic level of HPP funding received from the Province which provides an even greater element of risk to the continuation of this funding. 

Without advance notice of future HPP allocations, the program is faced with a significant operational risk. In the absence of committed funding, the program operator would need to begin planning for winddown as early as October 2025 to ensure a responsible closure by March 2026. This includes engaging each of the 50 residents to develop individualized housing transition plans, sourcing alternative housing options—despite a critically low vacancy rate for affordable and supportive units—and coordinating with partner agencies for continuity of care.

Parks Levy transfer

Council endorsed transferring $770,000 from the Parks Levy to the Recreation and Parks Capital Budget for the purchase of new equipment, including a new garbage truck for maintaining parks, trails and open spaces as well as other park maintenance equipment.

As per the authority granted under the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, the City is permitted to require parkland dedication as part of development applications which meet certain criteria outlined in the Planning Act. The Planning Act specifies that the money can be allocated or spent by the municipality only for the acquisition of land to be used for park or other public recreational purposes, including the erection, improvement or repair of buildings and the acquisition of machinery for park or other public recreational purposes.

Recreation and Parks Services staff recommend the purchase of new maintenance equipment and machinery to respond to an increasing demand relating to waste collection and create efficiencies with regards to parks, trails, and open space maintenance operations.

Recreation and Park Services currently operates a single garbage truck to service 519 waste and recycling
receptacles across the city’s parks, open spaces, and trails. The increase in waste has created challenges in meeting the growing demand. To address this, staff recommend utilizing the parks levy for the purposes of renting a temporary truck to increase services for the 2025 season and maintain those services until the supply of a secondary garbage truck arrives. Additionally, existing park maintenance equipment is nearing the end of its useful life, and staff recommend using parks levy funds to purchase replacement equipment.

Heritage designation: 1310 Albertus Ave.

Council endorsed a recommendation from the Peterborough Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee that 1310 Albertus Ave., known as Moira Hall, be designated as a property of cultural heritage value or interest under the Ontario Heritage Act.

Moira Hall at 1310 Albertus Avenue has cultural heritage value as an excellent example of Victorian residential architecture in the Italianate style. An early work of John E. Belcher, it showcases many of the characteristics of the style in its construction materials and decoration. It has strong historical value as the location of Peterborough’s first hospital from 1886-1889. It has further historical significance through its associations with notable previous owners, local business magnate George A. Cox and philanthropist Charlotte Nicholls.

Heritage designation: The Commerce Building

Council did not support a recommendation from the Peterborough Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee that 129-135 Hunter St. W., 381-395 Water St., and 137 Hunter St. W., known as the Commerce Building, be designated as a property of cultural heritage value or interest under the Ontario Heritage Act.

Staff told Council that the property owner has expressed that they support heritage preservation through their work on their buildings; however, they did not support having a heritage designation on their building.

The Commerce Building has significant cultural heritage value or interest as a landmark commercial building in the Victorian Italianate style in the downtown core of Peterborough. Constructed in 1894-1895, with a small earlier portion, the building retains many of its fine exterior decoration executed with high quality materials including Don Valley Brick Works’ bricks. The Commerce Building is a surviving monumental street corner structure from the Victorian era and was historically home to a number of prominent institutions. This prominence is shown in the building’s size and decoration, unique amongst other buildings in the core of a similar era and purpose. The building has historical connections to important figures and institutions in the history of Peterborough including George A. Cox, the Canadian Bank of Commerce, and John E. Belcher, the architect of the building.

Heritage designation: 640 Walkerfield Ave.

Council endorsed a recommendation from the Peterborough Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee that 640 Walkerfield Ave., known as the Hamilton House, be designated as a property of cultural heritage value or interest under the Ontario Heritage Act.

The Hamilton House at 640 Walkerfield Avenue has cultural heritage value as an excellent example of mid-century modern residential architecture. It is one of prominent architect Eberhard Zeidler’s first residential projects in Canada. He won the Massey Medal for Architecture for this design. Zeidler began his career in Peterborough designing landmark structures such as the Peterborough Memorial Centre and Adam Scott Collegiate and Vocational Institute, before going on to international renown for projects such as Ontario Place and the Toronto Eaton Centre. The house also has direct associations with General Electric and Quaker Oats, two prominent employers, through its early owners.

640 Walkerfield Avenue is a unique landmark in the west end residential neighbourhood and stands as reminder of Peterborough’s expansion following World War II and the city’s legacy as a centre for mid-century modern architecture.