At the inaugural meeting of the Eastern Ontario Wardens’ Caucus, held January 11 and 12 in the County of Lennox and Addington, the 2024 chair and vice-chair were chosen. Peterborough County Warden Bonnie Clark (left) was acclaimed as Vice-Chair and Renfrew County Warden Peter Emon was reelected as Chair.
A group advocating on behalf on 90 municipalities and 800,000 residents in the area has set their mandate for 2024.
Among three major issues on the mind of Renfrew County Warden Peter Emon is a continued push for a regional housing plan.
Emon says the Eastern Ontario Warden’s Caucus’ 7-in-7 plan to build 28,000 homes in the Valley and beyond remains a top priority following his recent re-election as their Chair earlier this month.
He adds that the sooner they hear back from their government partners on funding, the sooner shovels could go into the ground.
7,000 of the planned homes would be affordable units, which would help the reduce the current 5-to-10 year wait time for residents applying for one.
Emon notes that another major focus for the upcoming year is a focus on paramedicine, with the EOWC pushing for single-stream funding from the government for paramedics, a stipend to entice health care workers to set up in rural Ontario, and ways to reduce off-load delays of patients from ambulance into hospital care.
The Caucus’ last mandate is a clear message to the provincial government that help is needed with financial sustainability, a growing concern across the province due to how much municipalities like those in the Ottawa Valley pay for certain services.
Emon says that, without a handful of provincial funding streams, rural municipalities like those in the Ottawa Valley would struggle to get work done on roads, infrastructure, and other vital projects.
(written by Kasey Egan)