Council Summary May 26, 2025

Posted On Monday May 26, 2025

** The council summary below provides a snapshot of the major items presented at Monday’s council meeting. The council meeting webcast is available on the City of Waterloo YouTube page. Please refer to the minutes for an official record of the meeting.

City of Waterloo will support Canadian Businesses, defer taxes for industrial and commercial as part of US Tariff Response Plan

Council passed a City of Waterloo 10-point US Tariff Response Plan to support residents and local businesses, to support Canadian unity, and to mitigate the impacts of US tariffs on the City of Waterloo. The 10 points include:

  1. Amend the City’s Purchasing By-Law & Templates to enable preference for Canadian Companies. This will provide flexibility for the City to support Canadian Businesses (as defined in the bylaw to match the Provincial definition) whenever possible.  
  2. City Operations - Buy Local / Canadian. In 2024, 96 per cent of the purchases facilitated by the City's Procurement team were awarded to companies meeting the definition of a Canadian Business, and 34 per cent of those were awarded to local suppliers. Staff making low-cost purchases (guided by procurement practices, but not facilitated by the Procurement team) are directed to make them from local suppliers whenever possible, and work with local suppliers to ensure they are encouraged to respond to procurement opportunities.
  3. Capital Cost Mitigation & Advancement of Key Capital Projects. Tariffs could impact purchases and projects already underway. For example, seven large pieces of equipment are currently on order, and staff have secured a tariff cap from the manufacturer on that order. Staff are also looking to the potential for grants and cost sharing opportunities to mitigate potential impacts of tariffs on major infrastructure projects.
  4. Streamline Development Approval Process. The City's ongoing work to streamline the development approvals process will reduce delays and lead to lower costs and quicker project completion, supporting development as a key driver of economic growth.
  5. Capital Projects: Joint Initiatives with Area Municipalities. Staff will continue to collaborate with the Region and area municipalities to identify opportunities for alignment on design requirements, construction specifications and joint partnerships on emerging technologies. A consistent and standard approach among area municipalities will lead to more efficiency and reduced project costs for contractors.   
  6. Coordinated Advocacy with the Area Municipalities/AMO/OBCM such as the Federal/Provincial Stimulus Funding Advocacy. The City anticipates that new grant opportunities may be launched in the coming months as Federal and Provincial government consider economic stimulus. City staff will be ready to respond to these opportunities with shovel-ready projects.  
  7. Industrial and Commercial Tax Deferral Plan. The program will allow industrial/commercial property owners who have experienced significant financial hardship as a result of the imposition of tariffs to extend their final 2025 tax due dates up to 60 days.   
  8. Financial Tracking of Tariff Impacts. These costs may be challenging to track, but where tariff impact data is available, it will be separately tracked within project/operating budgets, and communicated broadly to staff. This information can be used in grant submissions and other Government advocacy efforts.
     
  9. Greater Support for Start-ups in our Region: Waterloo MedTech Accelerator Centre Initiative. The announcement of a new hospital to be located in Waterloo is an opportunity for the City of Waterloo to establish itself as a national leader in medical technology (MedTech) innovation. The Waterloo Economic Development Advisory Committee (WEDAC) is asked to make recommendations to Council on a Waterloo MedTech Accelerator Centre Initiative for startups.
     
  10. Local Economic Development Supports in cooperation with Business Economic Support Team Waterloo Region (BESTWR). This includes supporting the development of a Buy Waterloo campaign by staff and the Uptown BIA.


The full City of Waterloo 10-point US Tariff Response Plan is available online (PDF, beginning on page 18).

Waterloo is committed to age-friendly action

The City of Waterloo is continuing our work to become more age-friendly, considering the unique needs of people of all abilities, genders and races to ensure the needs of all older adults are met. Council endorsed the City's Age-friendly Action Plan for 2025-2026, which includes actions related to outdoor spaces and public buildings, transportation, housing, communication and information, community support and health services, civic participation and employment, respect and social inclusion, and social participation. The actions are aligned with the priorities of the City’s 2023-2026 Strategic Plan.

The full City of Waterloo Age-Friendly Action Plan 2025-2026 is available online (PDF, beginning on page 43).

Noise By-law updated with new definitions and simplified processes to support community events

The City of Waterloo’s Noise By-law regulates various types of noise by designating prohibited times and regulates the exemption process for community events, private gatherings, and construction projects. Council approved an updated Noise By-Law to provide greater clarity for residents, adding new definitions and updating the noise exemption process reducing timelines, revising the fee structure and simplifying the process for smaller community events. Engagement on the Noise Bylaw included feedback from the community regarding concerns with noise related to fireworks and vehicle exhaust. Council approved changes to the City's Fireworks By-law on May 5, 2025 that will help to address noise concerns related to fireworks, and will continue working with police partners and using education and outreach to respond to the concern of vehicle exhaust noise.

Waterloo calls on province to consider importance of higher green building standards for climate action

Councillor Bodaly brought forward a motion regarding feedback and advocacy to the province related to Bill 17, the "Protect Ontario by Building Faster and Smarter" Act. The motion, unanimously passed by Council, resolves that the City of Waterloo advocate for elimination of provisions within Bill 17 that restrict municipalities’ ability to set higher green building standards, such as community High-Performance Development Standards. High-Performance Development Standards help with the long-term affordability of living in new homes by encouraging and incentivizing the use of lower carbon and lower cost energy, and making sure homes use water more efficiently.

The motion notes that implementation of High-Performance Development Standards is critical to achieve Waterloo's community greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals. WR Community Energy (a collaborative initiative between the Region of Waterloo, the urban municipalities and local utilities) has been working on the creation and harmonization of High-Performance Development Standards since 2021, with the intention of implementation in 2026. The motion also directs staff to continue the work on local standards to guide sustainable, green new home construction. Fifteen other municipalities in Ontario have already implemented similar development standards.

The full motion is available online (PDF, beginning on page 8).


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Media contact:
Cari Van Niekerk
Director, Corporate Communications
cari.vanniekerk@waterloo.ca