Meaford council has given direction to municipal staff to proceed with formal negotiations with TC Energy to develop the framework and details of a community benefit agreement.
The direction came after the presentation of a 17-page report package during council’s September 22 meeting. The report included two recommendations: first, that council direct staff to proceed with negotiations, and the second directing that staff bring forward a final draft of the community benefit agreement no later than the end of the second quarter of 2026 for Council’s consideration. Council approved both recommendations in separate votes.
While council had requested that staff develop a community benefits bylaw during a meeting in March of this year, after holding a public meeting and receiving feedback from the public, staff have recommended against it.
“This report provides Committee of the Whole with a follow-up to the public meeting held on June 16, 2025, regarding the proposed Community Benefits Agreement By-law. The meeting was intended to provide a formal opportunity for public feedback and to further inform Council’s consideration of the proposed by-law,” staff said in their report to council. “During the June 16 meeting, staff presented an overview of the proposed by-law, outlining its intent to provide a framework for securing community benefits from private development projects that are not wholly subject to the Planning Act. Seven members of the public provided verbal deputations, as well as members of the public in the audience of the meeting. Feedback received reflected a range of perspectives and focused on several key themes. There was confusion about how and when Community Benefits Agreements would apply, especially with respect to existing versus future development proposals.”
Staff told council that some felt that the proposed bylaw was an overreach by the municipality.
“Some participants expressed concern that the by-law may represent an overreach by the Municipality or that the term “Community Benefits Agreement” may not accurately reflect the intent of the by-law. Suggestions were made to consider a clearer, more neutral name. Additionally, there were questions about how community benefits could be determined without first fully understanding the impacts of a proposed project. Several deputations also called for improved clarity in the by-law’s language and process, and stressed the importance of transparency, fairness, and alignment with community needs,” staff told council in their report. “After reviewing the feedback received, staff recommend that Council not proceed with the by-law in its current form. Instead, it is recommended that Council direct staff to pursue an alternative method to achieve the same goal of securing community benefits from private development proposals that fall outside the scope of the Planning Act.”
Staff advised council that community benefit agreements are a more common approach to negotiating commitments from private sector developments.
“With the benefit of discussing the TC Energy Pumped Storage Project with the Province and in particular the Ministry of Energy and Mines, staff have identified that it is typical that that common framework that is used for Public Sector and the Private Sector to negotiate and base long standing commitments is in fact a “Community Benefit Agreement” rather than a “Community Benefit By-law”. It is the recommendation of staff to proceed with formal Community Benefit Agreement negotiations with the assistance of facilitation by StrategyCorp on behalf of the Municipality. This recommendation by staff is supported by the information received through the Public Meeting Process and with more in-depth review of the Community Benefit Agreement versus the By-law approach that Council had directed staff to consider.”
Staff noted that the intent of the community benefits agreement is to allow the municipality to receive agreed-upon benefits as a result of the pumped storage proposal should it move forward.
“The goal is to better understand the potential impacts of these projects and to provide a way for the Municipality to enter into agreements that deliver tangible benefits to the community,” said staff in their report. “The intent of the proposed Community Benefits Agreement is to allow the Municipality to collect a benefit amount from the developer, similar to provisions under the Planning Act. These funds could then be directed to priority projects, services, or resources that help meet community needs.”
