Council Highlights – April 7, 2026
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Announcements
Councillors extended their thanks to the Volunteer Firefighters Association, the Sophiasburgh Recreation Committee, the South Marysburgh Recreation Committee, and the Museums & Cultural Services team partnership with the Ameliasburgh Recreation Committee for hosting wonderful Easter egg hunts across The County over the Easter weekend.
Mayor Ferguson proclaimed April 22, 2026 as Earth Day, noting the global theme for Earth Day 2026 is ‘Our Power, Our Planet’ and refers to the role of people and communities worldwide in sustaining environmental protections that affect the cost of living, public health, infrastructure reliability, and long-term stability. Please see here a list of Community wide Earth Day events. Click here to see the proclamation.
Mayor Ferguson also proclaimed Saturday, April 25, 2026, as Owen Jones Memorial Clean-up Day in Prince Edward County, an opportunity for residents to follow Owen’s example to beautify the community he cared about. Click here to see the proclamation.
Presentations
Mark Londry, and Lauralee Cowan from the Quinte Organ Transplant Support Group made a presentation to Council regarding Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation in Ontario.
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Deputy Warden Townsend from the Township of Loyalist, who also serves as Chair of Southeast Public Health, provided Council with an update on SEPH’s activities and priorities.
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Comments from the Audience
Cathy White and Ian Beverage spoke to the presentation on the Southeast Public Health activities and priorities.
Items for consideration
Report: Tax Tools and Policies for 2026 Property Taxation
Council approved that the 2026 Notational Tax Rates used to calculate the municipal levy change on the reverse side of the 2026 Property Tax Notice will not include any 2026 supplemental or write off tax adjustments after the 2026 roll return.
Council approved that the tax ratios and subclass tax reductions for 2026 be the same as the tax ratios and subclass tax reductions adopted by Council in 2025, and the corresponding By-Laws.
Click here to view the report.
Report: Municipal Accommodation Tax Financial Report for 2025
Council received the Municipal Accommodation Tax Financial Report for 2025 for information.
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Report: Recreation and Community Facilities Department Update
Council received the Department Update from the Recreation and Community Facilities for information.
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Recommendation: From the Audit Committee from the March 25, 2026 meeting
Council directed staff to provide an analysis and forecast of the County’s debt position. Staff’s findings will then be presented to the Audit Committee at a meeting in July 2026.
Council also directed staff to publish the last 5 years of BMA consulting reports on the municipal website.
Click here for the full list of items staff must include in the analysis (item 11.4 in agenda).
Recommendation: From the Audit Committee from the March 25, 2026 meeting
Council directed the Director of Finance and I.T to provide an overview of the process and systems (information technology) improvements being made at a meeting of the Audit Committee to be held in July 2026 with the overall objective of bringing more visibility, transparency and timeliness to the financial reporting process.
Committee of the Whole Highlights – April 9, 2026
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Presentation
Ben Hicks and Ashtyn Nauffts presented to the Committee regarding the Municipal Climate Intern Program.
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Items for consideration
Report: Municipal Financial Relief Grant 2026 Guidelines
Council approved the proposed 2026 guidelines for the Municipal Financial Relief Grant and directed staff to take necessary actions to implement the 2026 program according to these guidelines.
Click here to view the report.
Report: Millennium Trail By-Law Update
Council referred the item back to staff to conduct a more comprehensive review.
Click here to view the report.
Report: Operational Services Department Update
Council received the Department Update for Operational Services for information.
Click here to view the report.
The next Regular Meeting of Council will be held on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, at 7 pm at Shire Hall, 332 Main Street, Picton.
The next Committee of the Whole meeting will be held on Thursday, April 23, 2026, at 1 pm at Shire Hall 332 Main Street, Picton.
This summary is not a complete record of the proceedings of the meetings. For the official record, please refer to the minutes in the next Council agenda. A video of this meeting is available on The County’s YouTube Channel.