Local

St. Catharines City Council green lights extensions for developers struggling to meet CIP-approved project deadlines

As Canada seeks to emerge from one of the most economically tumultuous periods in our nation’s history, municipalities have contended with a global pandemic, supply-line challenges, labour shortages and inflation woes. These acute challenges have had a direct impact on developers striving to complete both intermediary and longer-term projects. In an attempt to facilitate optimal progress in the building of essential infrastructure, St. Catharines City Council has chosen to grant extensions to community improvement plan (CIP) approved projects.

CIPs provide property owners with financial incentives that can help to mitigate the burden of certain aspects of redevelopment initiatives. CIP agreements require that the projects be completed within three years, while brownfield redevelopment remediation projects must be completed within five years. For extensions to become available, the council had to amend bylaws from 2015 and 2020.

Local

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Sports

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Opinion

The energy transition that isn’t

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National

Power play: NDP’s Jagmeet Singh abruptly ends deal with Trudeau—what happens next?

As the federal Liberals enter the final day of their annual caucus retreat, the political landscape in Canada is set to shift dramatically.

Provincial

Singh’s move complicates Ford’s early election calculus

Last week, federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh reneged on his promise to support the minority Liberal government on any non-confidence votes, thereby preventing an early election.

Opinion

The outcomes of a Harris victory

Since undertaking the role as the designated nominee of the Democratic Party in July, the idea of Vice President Kamala Harris winning the presidency has become more accepted and increasingly plausible.

Welland City Council skeptical of staff report which recommends reducing number of councillors by half

Local

The City of Welland is the third largest municipality in the Niagara Region. With a population shy of 58,000, it ranks significantly behind the City of Niagara Falls, which has about 95,000 residents, and the City of St. Catharines, which nearly 137,000 people call home.

Despite these statistics, Welland has 12 councillors, not including the mayor. Putting these numbers into context, St. Catharines also has twelve councillors, while Niagara Falls has only eight councillors.

Municipally elected officials in Welland are currently the highest-paid lower-tier councillors in the Niagara Region. This has been the case for four years, when the previous council approved a 47 per cent pay increase for themselves. This year, councillors are slated to receive a total of $28,041 while the mayor will make $78,114.

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