City of Waterloo council summary November 27, 2023

** 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.

Council approves updated Fire Master Plan to support public safety and peace of mind

Council unanimously approved the recommendations in the updated Fire Master Plan that will ensure Fire Rescue Services has the resources they need to support public safety in the City of Waterloo for years to come. The updated Fire Master Plan will guide the addition of resources required to meet our community’s growing needs for public education, fire prevention, enforcement of fire safety standards and the Ontario Fire Code, and emergency response in our changing and developing City.

Recommendations include:

• Continuing the development for all staff to play a role in fire prevention and education, keeping in mind the varying needs of our diverse community.
• Increasing response capacity with expansions at stations 1 and 2 to accommodate additional vehicles, equipment and staff, and the maintenance, repair, and firefighter hygiene facilities required for support.
• Strengthen tracking and evaluation of the types of calls and efficiency of response, with particular attention to medical response, automated alarms, and traffic/rescue incidents.
• Implementing software and technology to improve the records system, inspection and incident planning, automatic vehicle locating, and to work with 9-1-1, fire dispatch, police services and paramedic services for improved dispatch.
• Hiring 27 additional staff over the next several years: additional firefighters to improve response, reduce risk and to manage and maintain additional equipment and necessary hygiene procedures, as well as non-firefighting administrative staff to support analytics and a business approach to decisions that pertain to public and firefighter safety and training.

In preparation for the 2024-2026 budget release, Council previously endorsed a phased-in model to increase fire rescue services staff and equipment over four years. The funding to support the implementation of the recommendations of the Fire Master Plan will be presented to Council on December 11 as part of the 2024-2026 staff tabled budget.

Council approves by-law amendment to support low risk food kitchens

Council responded to the increasing demand for home businesses by approving an adjustment to the Zoning by-law that will allow residents to operate a low risk food kitchen in their residence as a licensed home occupation. The amendment supports the preparation of food and baked goods that are to be consumed off premise, such as custom cakes or cookies for a special event. Low risk food kitchens do not include restaurants (including take-out restaurants), or businesses that have frequent deliveries or use delivery services.

The Ministry of Health defines low risk food as “items that are generally considered non-hazardous and do not require time and temperature control". Examples include most breads and buns, chocolate, hard candies and brittles, cakes (where icing does not require refrigeration), brownies, muffins and cookies.

To ensure low risk food kitchens are used for their intended purpose, the home owner will be required to have two business licenses (home occupation and food shop) from the City of Waterloo and regular health inspections from the Region of Waterloo.

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