Meaford council has given pre-budget approval of $215,000 for the migration and upgrade of the municipal website.
The municipal website (meaford.ca) was last upgraded in 2018, and seven years later the website’s platform is nearing its end of life and needs to be migrated to a new platform.
“Over time, the needs of the Municipality and its residents have grown. Staff have continued to work within the existing platform to meet these needs. The website now contains more than 300 pages of information and serves a diverse group of users, including residents, businesses, and visitors,” staff advised in their October 6 report to council. “In late 2024 and again in early 2025, the Municipality’s website provider notified staff that the current version of the platform will soon be obsolete. As a result, staff have been exploring options for a replacement.”
The municipal website must be migrated to a new platform by June of 2026.
“The current platform, i:Create, will be discontinued, with maintenance and support ending in December 2025 and the site going offline in June 2026. To avoid disruption, staff must begin the procurement process immediately,” staff advised in a September 22 report to council.
Members of council expressed concern about the cost to build a new website, and staff advised that the existing website could be moved to the new platform as is, which would cost less, but would not see any improvements to a website that many, including members of council, have complained is difficult to navigate.
“The Municipality has received two updated quotations from its current website vendor, GHD, to migrate the municipal website and three microsites. Vendor costs for migration and annual hosting range from $76,439.30 to $100,042.30, depending on whether a new site map and user testing are included. There are also opportunities for other add-ons to introduce new features. These figures exclude the considerable staff time required to review and correct migrated content, estimated at three to four weeks minimum of full-time work for two staff members,” staff advised in their report to council. “Staff have also prepared a preliminary estimate of $215,000 for a full website rebuild through a competitive RFP process. This estimate includes vendor services for design, implementation, project management, contingency, and annual hosting. Migration represents a lower vendor cost but requires significant staff effort and results in limited improvements. A new website build requires greater investment but delivers a modern, sustainable platform aligned with the Municipality’s Communications Strategic Plan and reduces long-term staff workload.”
The migration quotation also includes the three municipal microsites: Meaford Hall, Meaford Public Library, and Meaford Museum.
Council asked staff it if would make sense to migrate the current website to the new platform, and then have a new website built at a later date. Staff advised that such an approach could ultimately be more costly than doing both at the same time.
“A website migration is the process of transferring all existing website content, structure, and files from the current platform to a new version of the same platform or vendor system. This process is typically automated through software tools and scripts, which copy content “as is” into the new environment. While migration preserves the current look, feel, and structure of the website, it often carries risks such as formatting errors, broken links, or incomplete transfers that require staff intervention to resolve. Migration does not provide a full redesign or modernization of the site,” staff noted in their report to council. “A new website build involves creating a website from the ground up on a modern platform, often through a competitive procurement process with a new vendor. This process includes a complete redesign of the site’s appearance, navigation, and functionality, along with a restructured backend that is cleaner and easier to maintain. A new build offers the opportunity to align the website with current accessibility standards, user expectations, and strategic communications objectives. It provides a long-term, sustainable solution designed to grow and adapt with the Municipality’s needs.”
The difference in cost between a simple website migration and a migration plus a website rebuild could be more than $100,000.
The $215,000 requested by staff for pre-budget approval includes the design, setup and implementation, project management support, contingency, and annual hosting.
“Migration options involve a lower upfront cost but place significant demands on staff resources and provide minimal improvements to the site’s design and back-end. A new website requires a larger capital investment but provides a modernized, sustainable platform with reduced staff workload and long-term strategic alignment,” staff told council in their report.
If the municipal website is not migrated to a new platform before June of next year, the municipality would find itself without a working website.
“If pre-budget approval is not provided, staff will be unable to initiate the procurement or migration process in sufficient time. As a result, the Municipality faces a significant risk of the website being taken offline following the June 30, 2026 end-of-life deadline for the current platform,” staff advised council in their report. “This outcome would leave the Municipality without a primary, owned digital communications channel to share critical information with residents, businesses, and visitors. To mitigate this risk, Council direction is required at this stage to ensure the timely initiation of either the migration process or the procurement of a new website.”
Deputy Mayor Shirley Keaveney told council that she didn’t support migrating the website first, and then redesigning and rebuilding the website at a later date.
“For argument’s sake, if we use $100,000 (for a simple migration), and that could get us, worst case scenario, two years and then we’re looking at a new site in two years, which will cost us most likely more than $215,000. So, I’m not seeing the logic in investing $100,000 for two years, and then looking at an increased cost for a new website at that point,” Keaveney told council.
Ultimately, council supported the staff recommendation for pre-budget approval, and staff will issue a request for proposals (RFP) for the migration and rebuilding of the municipal website and micro-sites.
