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Housing news, updates on new street guidelines, park plans, and a summary of recent school board meetings are found in this week's Citified Council Round-Up.

The Council Round-Up (July 2026)A snapshot of what's happening in council chambers around Waterloo Regionbuff.ly

Hey #WatReg, is there an issue in your ward that you want to hear from local candidates on in this election? I'm hoping to share some "In Their Own Words" segments for Citified to highlight some ward-specific issues. 250 Lincoln Rd in Waterloo's ward 5 will be first up. What else comes to mind?

"A space is a set of co-ordinates, a physical setting. It only becomes a place when people return to it, interact within it, and assign it meaning. We don’t just need more spaces. We need more spaces that become places." #VitalIdeas

We need spaces that become places in Waterloo RegionToo often, our spaces support what research calls “socializing in parallel” rather than shared experience.buff.ly

If you're looking for ways to get more involved in your community, consider volunteering on a city committee or board. It's a great way to learn more about your city while also giving back! www.kitchener.ca/news/posts/h...

Have your say in Kitchener: committee and board recruitment now open | City of Kitchenerwww.kitchener.ca

Kitchener's most recent mayoral candidate is a familiar name: current mayor Berry Vrbanovic. He'll be running for his fourth term as mayor. #KitCouncil #WRvotes2026

I can assure you it really won't. 6-storey buildings already exist in neighbourhoods throughout our city perfectly well. buff.ly/3z2ZfMP

"Traffic crashes continue to kill and seriously injure Americans every year, but we often treat them as unavoidable. We call them accidents and rarely ask why they keep happening. Rarely do we ask whether the streets themselves are contributing to the outcome."

We know enough to start doing something.If we wait for enough knowledge to make action easy, we will be waiting forever.buff.ly

When we hollow out our local newsrooms, they too often are left relying on police reports as "news". That's a real problem.

Alright, maybe we need to bring back speed cameras and install them in any location people are caught stunt driving. #ASE

"It's a fundamental assault on democracy, he's the premier of our province, we have a right to know what he does and who he meets with," Turk said. #DeclineOfDemocracy www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Doug Ford’s daily calendar kept secret after changes to Ontario’s FOI law | CBC NewsPremier Doug Ford’s daily calendar will now be kept secret from the public following recent changes to Ontario’s freedom of information law — which no longer includes access to records held by ministe...www.cbc.ca

"Deadly confrontations involving police officers, including fatal shootings, have become far more common in Canada in recent years, while criminal charges against the officers in these cases remain exceedingly rare." #Policing

Number of fatal clashes involving police on the rise, though criminal charges rare, study findsFindings in the report raise questions about civilian oversight agencies, criminology professor saysbuff.ly

"As a society, we are horrified by gun violence, but generally give scant attention to deaths on our roads that result from motorists’ choices." From @seanyyz.bsky.social

Where’s the outrage when pedestrians are killed?Birchmount Road and Lawrence Avenue East, Scarborough On Friday, July 10, the driver of a westbound Toyota RAV4 SUV drove through a red light on Lawrence Avenue East and struck another vehicle trav…seanmarshall.ca

I appreciate this info graphic from the City of Waterloo which reminds us of the importance of affordable housing in order to ensure all residents are welcome in our cities. hdp-ca-prod-app-wr-engage-files.s3.ca-central-1.amazonaws.com/4217/8274/55...

"Increase the diversity of your inputs: Novel combinations require novel ingredients. Read outside your field. Talk to people who are different than you. Travel." thehappyurbanist.substack.com/p/the-underd...

The underdogs superpowerBreaking imaginary rules isn't cheating, & breaking dumb laws isn't wrongthehappyurbanist.substack.com

"The “war against the car” is a familiar refrain heard when an infrastructure project is proposed that doesn’t directly privilege car and driver." -Shawn Micallef www.thestar.com/opinion/cont...

Shawn Micallef: I’m a cyclist, I’m a driver, I’m a TTC rider. Stop making me pick sides, just make it easier to get aroundCyclists, drivers, TTC riders and pedestrians can unite in service of a better commutewww.thestar.com

"Kaitiakitanga (Māori) means guardianship. In a world on fire, it might be the most important word we’ve never used." indigenousinsider.substack.com/p/the-world-...

The World Just Named Its Most Beautiful Word- And It’s a Lesson for All of UsKaitiakitanga (Māori) means guardianship. In a world on fire, it might be the most important word we’ve never used.indigenousinsider.substack.com

"If we want more festivals, more community events, and more opportunities for neighbours to come together, we also need to make it easier for people to organize them and easier to find the spaces where they can happen."

Bringing Festivals Back to Our CommunitiesJune 23 2026buff.ly

"When people do bad things, police keep records... unless the person who did the bad thing was a police officer." -Toronto Police Accountability Coalition www.tpac.ca/bulletin.php...

"The vexing question isn’t whether this city should have more pedestrian streets. It’s why changes regarded as small steps for other cities are treated like giant leaps for Toronto."

Matt Elliott: Other cities close streets to cars all the time. So why does Toronto get tripped up by the idea of a pedestrian street?Creating a bit of long-term dedicated space for pedestrians in Toronto is not something that should require years of study.buff.ly

Ford claims "We’re making communities safer by keeping dangerous offenders behind bars." In reality, "the Ford gov't has expanded jail capacity but has done little to address what drives “dangerous offenders” — unrelenting poverty, untreated trauma, unmanaged mental illness & sidelined addictions."

Iris Gorfinkel: Doug Ford’s ‘Protect Ontario’ ads and messaging are a scam trying to hide the damage he’s doingDoug Ford’s Protect Ontario ads are a liewww.thestar.com