Grey County wants to see two high profile municipal conferences combined into one event.
At its meeting on March 28, county council supported a resolution from the Town of Goderich that called on the Ontario Good Roads Association (OGRA) and the Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA) to combine their separate annual conferences into one event.
“It makes great sense for the OGRA and ROMA conferences to be returned to a combined conference effort, not only financially for the municipality but also for availability and for participation of members of council and staff,” the Goderich resolution states.
In 2019, a resolution was passed at the annual general meeting of OGRA asking for a combined conference format. The COVID-19 pandemic delayed any action coming out of that resolution.
Owen Sound Mayor Ian Boddy pulled the Goderich resolution from the consent agenda and moved a motion to support the resolution and have Warden Brian Milne send a letter of support.
“It’s more financially reasonable for us to attend one conference,” said Boddy.
Boddy’s motion received unanimous support from his colleagues.
“It’s unfortunate the two associations couldn’t play in the sandbox together,” said Chatsworth Mayor Scott Mackey.
Owen Sound Deputy Mayor Scott Greig said with the price of hotel rooms in Toronto, it only made sense to combine the two events.
“It’s an atrocious waste of taxpayer dollars to have the two conferences separate. Resources are precious,” said Greig.
