Part 1: Health Care, Accessibility, and County-Wide Policy Debates – 02/13/2024

The County Council met at Shire Hall on the evening of February 13, 2024, for a wide-ranging Regular Council meeting that blended ceremony, policy debate, and long-term planning. The meeting was chaired by Mayor Steve Ferguson, with all councillors present and senior staff in attendance, and was livestreamed for residents following from home. The meeting opened with a traditional land acknowledgement, followed by procedural confirmations and announcements. With no declarations of pecuniary interest, Council moved quickly into a full agenda that reflected both community recognition and pressing social and infrastructure concerns.

Early in the evening, Council paused formal business to recognize The Reasons, a well-known local band, with a Civic Award. Mayor Ferguson spoke about the group’s long-standing role in supporting charitable events and entertaining residents, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, when they performed for seniors in long-term care homes during periods of isolation. Councillors and members of the public applauded as certificates were presented to the band’s members. This moment set a community-focused tone before Council transitioned into several substantive presentations.

© PEC Council (YouTube)

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Primary Care Pressures and a New Community Clinic

The first major presentation came from Barinder Gill, Executive Director of the Prince Edward Family Health Team, who addressed Council on the launch of a new PEFHT Community Clinic.

Gill outlined the growing challenge of unattached patients in the County as physicians retire and fewer family doctors are available. She described recent initiatives, including COVID, cold, and flu clinics, hospital discharge clinics for residents without primary care, and a newborn clinic supported by retired physicians and midwives.

The core announcement was the launch of a two-day-per-week community clinic, beginning February 27, operating in Picton and Wellington. The clinic will be led by an experienced nurse practitioner, supported by Family Health Team staff and physician consultation, and will focus on acute and problem-specific care rather than emergency services.

Councillors asked detailed questions about patient capacity, record-sharing, online booking, and future expansion if provincial funding becomes available. Gill emphasized that the clinic is intended as a bridge until patients can be attached to long-term primary care, and that emergency departments remain overburdened by issues better handled in a community setting. Council formally received the presentation following discussion.

Accessibility: Progress Made and Gaps Remaining

Next, Irene Harris, Chair of the Accessibility Advisory Committee, delivered the committee’s 2023 annual update. Harris framed her presentation within the broader provincial context, noting that Ontario is not on track to meet its commitment to full accessibility, despite the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act being in place since 2005.

She detailed local progress, including accessible benches, beach mats, transit services, park improvements, and accessible washrooms on the Millennium Trail. At the same time, she identified persistent barriers in County facilities, including Shire Hall, limited accessible parking, and the absence of closed captioning for deaf residents.

Harris outlined the committee’s work reviewing site plans, supporting businesses through accessibility outreach, assisting non-profits with grant applications, and contributing to County planning initiatives. She concluded with a call to action, urging Council to advocate for a dedicated provincial accessibility fund to move beyond piecemeal grants.

Councillors praised the committee’s work and discussed next steps, including the possibility of a future motion to support province-wide funding advocacy. Council formally received the report following questions and comments.

Traffic Concerns and Speed Management

Council then heard from Kelly McGillivray, Chair of the Traffic Advisory Committee, who presented the committee’s 2023 annual report. McGillivray explained that the committee handled 28 public traffic requests during the year, with the majority related to speed reduction, traffic calming, and safety zones.

She described improvements to committee efficiency, including the addition of a fourth meeting to clear a backlog and greater use of verbal staff reports to conserve resources. Looking ahead, the committee plans to focus in 2024 on speed management in settlement areas, developing clearer standards and guidelines to reduce reliance on one-off studies. Councillors discussed response times, costs, and expectations around traffic safety interventions. The report was received without amendment.

Public Delegations and the Enbridge Debate

During Comments from the Audience, two residents spoke to Item 9.4, the Eastern Ontario Wardens Caucus update.

Don Wilford raised concerns about climate change and the environmental implications of expanding natural gas infrastructure. Mary Warner focused on financial impacts, referencing a recent Ontario Energy Board decision that shifts the cost of new gas infrastructure away from ratepayers and toward developers, arguing that overturning the decision would not serve residents’ long-term interests. Their comments foreshadowed a more complex debate later in the meeting about the County’s position on natural gas policy.

Street Names, Poverty, and Municipal Finances

© Prince Edward County

Council approved a Reserve List of Commemorative Street Names, along with revisions to the Commemorative Street Naming Policy, following discussion about balancing local history, diversity, emergency services clarity, and future renaming requests.

Later, Councillor Bill Roberts introduced a resolution calling on the Province to increase Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) rates, citing rising living costs and local poverty data showing 10.1 to 13.5 percent of County residents living on low income. Councillors spoke in support of the motion, which was carried unanimously.

Council also supported a resolution from Mayor Ferguson urging the Province to undertake a comprehensive social and economic prosperity review, developed with the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, to address growing municipal financial pressures.

Eastern Ontario Wardens Caucus Update

Mayor Ferguson provided a verbal update on recent EOWC advocacy, including meetings at Queen’s Park on housing and infrastructure. Council debated whether to support the caucus’s earlier position on natural gas process changes.

Following amendments, Council ultimately directed the Mayor to urge EOWC members to pause support for Enbridge’s request and instead consider the Ontario Energy Board decision and cleaner energy alternatives, reflecting concerns raised earlier by residents and councillors.

Key Takeaways

1. Access to primary health care remains a critical issue, with the new PEFHT Community Clinic offering short-term relief for unattached patients while longer-term solutions depend on provincial funding.

   
   

2. Accessibility and inclusion are moving from discussion toward action, with Council increasingly positioning itself as an advocate for systemic funding and better planning standards.

   
   

3. Council signaled a growing willingness to challenge provincial policy directions, particularly on poverty supports, municipal finances, and energy infrastructure, when local impacts are at stake.

The meeting adjourned at 9:41 p.m., closing a session that combined local recognition with debates likely to shape County policy throughout 2024 

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Disclaimer: This article is based on a meeting with an approximate duration of 2:42:39. Due to the length of the meeting, our team was not able to independently review the full recording in its entirety. As a result, we relied on software-generated transcription, automated summarization, and automated recognition of speakers and participants, which may not be entirely accurate. All transcriptions, summaries, and related content are prepared by our team in good faith and on a reasonable best-efforts basis. The content is provided for general informational purposes only and is intended to support public understanding of the topics discussed. While reasonable efforts have been made to present the information accurately, automated processes may result in errors, omissions, or unintended misinterpretations. This article does not constitute an official, certified, or verbatim record of the meeting, and it should not be relied upon as such. Readers are encouraged to consult original source materials, official minutes, or recordings where available for confirmation or clarification. Questions, requests for clarification, or suggested corrections may be submitted to hello@pecconnect.ca for review and consideration.