Richmond Hill changes Council time, allows cryptocurrency

Council meeting to be held once a month on the third Wednesday at 9:30 a.m.

Yorkregion.com
July 12, 2019
Shelia Wang

To say the Richmond Hill council meeting on July 9 had a packed agenda would be an understatement.

Despite a long list of decisions to make, council members took their time to debate most of the motions in front of a full house, a majority of whom had to leave before the seven-hour-long meeting finally concluded.

Amid bickering and interruption between the representatives, council adopted a number of important policies and projects.

Changes to council meeting time

Council members voted to change the times for council meetings and committee of the whole meetings, again.

From September until Nov. 31, council meetings will be held once every month -- instead of twice a month -- on the third Wednesday at 9:30 a.m.

Meanwhile, the committee of the whole meeting will take place on the first Wednesday of each month at 9:30 a.m.

The second and fourth Wednesday of each month will be allocated for any required special council meetings.

In addition to meeting times changing, the delegation registration time will also change. All delegations must register with the clerk before 12 p.m. the day before a meeting.

Open House Signs

Councillors voted to implement a six-month trial program to allow open house signs in Richmond Hill.

Coun. David West originally introduced a sign bylaw amendment based on the Vaughan model, which permits up to five signs per open house. It garnered the support from councillors Karen Cilevitz and Godwin Chan.

After two rounds of amendments from other representatives, a majority of council members eventually decided on a temporary solution permitting anonymous open house signs with no photos and no information of the realtor and brokerage. Only the municipal address, date and time of the open house are allowed.

The city was the only municipality in the GTA that bans the installation of open house signs.

Library board expansion

Council voted 5 to 3 to pass a motion to add five members to the Richmond Hill Public Library Board, on the grounds that it can be “a challenge” to achieve quorum with a smaller board.

There are currently 12 members on the board, including four city councillors.

Mayor Dave Barrow, West and Chan voted against the motion put forward by Regional Coun. Joe DiPaola, a board member himself.

Cryptocurrency for tax payment

Residents and businesses in Richmond Hill will have the option to pay taxes in cryptocurrency -- a form of digital currency.

Council also approved a contract with Coinberry Limited, a Toronto-based company that buys and sells Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Chan was the lone vote against the motion, which was introduced by DiPaola and seconded by Coun. Carmine Perrelli.

Road removal in Ward 5

Council members voted to remove a new road in Ward 5 in absence of Cilevitz, the ward councillor.

The motion, put forward by DiPaola, proposed to get rid of a new east/west road connection between Carrville Road and Spruce Avenue.

It was the second time the representatives voted on the same motion during the prolonged council meeting, after it failed to carry the first time when Cilevitz voiced her strong opposition.

The councillor, who was absent for the last part of the meeting, said earlier she was not consulted on the motion in advance.

It was the last council meeting before the summer recess. The next council meeting is scheduled for Sept. 10.

For more information, please visit richmondhill.ca for the full agenda and the video of the council meeting.