Part 1: Food for Learning Growth, Tourism Data Strategy, and Winter Road Decisions – 02/10/2026
- PECConnect
- Feb 10
- 5 min read
Mayor Steve Ferguson opened the Feb. 10 Regular Council meeting with a land acknowledgement and a reminder that the meeting was being livestreamed and recorded as part of the public record. Council confirmed the agenda, then moved into a closed session to discuss labour relations and employment contract negotiations. When Council returned to the open meeting, Ferguson said there was nothing to report out from the closed session.
View the entire PEC Council meeting, or continue to speaker comments and councillor votes.
Before the night’s main business, Council shared a few community notes. Councillor Sam Grosso announced Walt’s Sugar Shack was set to open Saturday, Feb. 21 (10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) on Salem Road, with food and activities. Ferguson also pointed residents to County-run Family Day programming and read proclamations for 211 Day (Feb. 11), Ontario Heritage Week (Feb. 16 to 22), and Canada’s Agriculture Day (Feb. 10).
Food for Learning: more meals, more need
Council then heard an update on the Food for Learning program from Jenn Barrett, Resource Development and Communications Coordinator with the Hastings Prince Edward Learning Foundation, alongside the Foundation’s Executive Director, introduced as Kelly Brace.
Their message was simple and blunt. Need is rising, and the program keeps growing because they still have not found the “ceiling” on how many students need support. They shared regional numbers for Hastings and Prince Edward counties, including 1.5 million meals and snacks supported by around 24,000 volunteer hours.
For the County specifically, they said seven school locations served over 186,000 meals and snacks last school year, with an average of 833 students using a Food for Learning program each day. They also flagged a big nutrition shift this year: schools are able to order fruits and vegetables at no cost to their program budgets, which they said led to a 289% increase in fruits and vegetables served, adding roughly 108,000 more servings so far. Halfway through the current school year, they reported being 42% ahead of the same point last year.
They also highlighted a partnership model with the County Food Hub at Sophiasburgh School, which has helped launch lunch programs in three schools at least once a week. On funding, they said about half comes from government and the other half is raised locally, and they thanked Council and staff for support through the annual Feed the Kids campaign. Council formally received the presentation.
Visit the County: a 2025 report and data-heavy 2026 plan
Next up was Sarah Fox, Executive Director of Visit the County, presenting the organization’s 2025 report and 2026 strategic plan.
Fox described 2025 as a “foundational year” focused on improving internal operations. She also noted a board transition, with chair Mickey Ahrens stepping down as of March 31 due to relocation, and Crystal Agostino expected to take over as chair.
Fox said Visit the County provided funding to 15 community events running between Nov. 1, 2025 and March 31, 2026, investing just under $27,000, and committed to continuing that program annually with at least 5% of the organization’s budget. She also said a new community section has been launched on Visit the County’s website, including an FAQ explaining the Municipal Accommodation Tax (MAT), access to meeting minutes and records, and a way for residents to share feedback on how tourism affects their lives.
A big part of Fox’s presentation was about building better tourism insight through data, including continued use of AirDNA and a visitor survey pilot that collected 195 completed surveys in October and November 2025. She said Visit the County plans to roll out an always-on version of that survey more broadly.
Council questions focused on locals, marketing, and what the available data can and cannot show. Councillor John Hirsch asked about Countylicious and Fox said surveys suggest about 60% of diners are Prince Edward County residents. Councillor Janice Maynard asked whether Visit the County can track where visitors are staying within the county, and Fox said they do not currently have that information. Councillor Sam Grosso asked how MAT applies when cleaning fees are involved, and Fox said she believes MAT is charged on the accommodation amount and does not include cleaning fees. Council received the presentation.
Code of Conduct: enforceability and Integrity Commissioner costs
Resident Paul Allen then spoke to Council about conflict of interest language in the Council Code of Conduct, and whether parts of it function as enforceable rules or more general principles. Allen said an Integrity Commissioner response to his past complaint raised concerns about enforceability, and he urged Council not to wait for provincial direction before making basic improvements.
Councillor John Hirsch said recent Integrity Commissioner decisions made it clear the County’s Code of Conduct has weaknesses, and supported moving sooner rather than later. Another councillor asked staff for a sense of what Integrity Commissioner investigations have cost. Staff responded that the municipality spent $28,714.06 in 2023, and $71,281.94 in 2025 as of the most recent financial reports they had available (as of November).
The Clerk said Council direction already exists to review governance mechanisms including the Code of Conduct, and staff intend to bring work forward this year. Council received the deputation.
Roads and practical decisions
Council also dealt with a few decisions that land directly in the “day-to-day life” category. Council awarded a winter highway maintenance tender to QBT Excavating Services Ltd. for a three-year term (with optional extensions), with staff describing the approach as similar to the current setup and tied to required standards and inspections.
Council also approved an amending agreement connected to the rehabilitation of County Road 49, extending the provincial deadline to Dec. 31, 2028, which staff said allows another full construction season.
And Councillor Phil St-Jean brought forward a motion directing staff to consult emergency services and notify area residents about making Barker Street (from Bowery Street easterly to Paul Street) two-way traffic, with a report back on what implementation would look like. Council approved that direction.
Council later deferred Cultural Heritage Master Plan motions until after a presentation at Planning Committee, then passed the consent agenda and by-laws, and adjourned at 8:32 p.m.
Key Takeaways
Food for Learning is growing fast, and the program is still relying heavily on local fundraising to keep up with rising demand.
Visit the County is putting more weight on data and transparency, including clearer public-facing info about MAT and new tools to measure visitor experience.
Council made several practical moves, including a new winter maintenance contract, an extended timeline for County Road 49 funding, and steps toward reviewing Barker Street for a possible return to two-way traffic.
Disclaimer: This article is based on a meeting with an approximate duration of 2:33:34. 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.
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