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Local advocate calls on Orangeville council to remove ‘procedural barriers’

April 16, 2026   ·   0 Comments

By JAMES MATTHEWS

At least one Orangeville resident feels the process by which people can request time to be a delegation before council is unfair.

Tamara Limebeer, an advocate for improved accessibility in Orangeville and area, was a delegate during council’s April 13 meeting.

“From an accessibility standpoint, this is a procedural barrier,” she said. “Accessibility is not only about physical spaces. It’s also about systems and processes.”

Individuals or groups who want to be delegates must register and provide all information at least seven days before the meeting, and may only delegate after consultation with relevant staff. Should the subject matter of the delegation fall within the scope of a municipal committee, delegates are encouraged to schedule their delegation with the relevant committee.

Only residents, taxpayers, service providers, or members speaking on behalf of an association or organization that serves Orangeville can register as a delegate.

Limebeer raised concerns about the delegation process for allotting time to an individual or group to speak at a council meeting. She said its shortcomings affect transparency, fairness, and public access in decision-making.

Residents are required to delegate requests before the meeting’s agenda is released, she said.

For the April 13 meeting, the delegate request deadline was April 2, and the agenda wasn’t publicly released until April 8.

“That means residents are being asked to speak up without knowing what they’re speaking about,” she said.

And that doesn’t respect the principles of an open and transparent municipal government.

“This process creates an uneven playing field,” she said. “It favours those who may already have an advance awareness of coming matters while excluding residents who rely on publicly-available information to participate.”

And that’s selective access to people who want to speak with council.

She said municipalities have a responsibility to remove barriers, not create them.

Mayor Lisa Post said the town has considered Limebeer’s argument in the past through discussions about the municipal procedural bylaw.

“We believe, like you do, that we want residents to have the opportunity to come up and speak at council,” Post said, and added that many Dufferin County communities don’t have a Question Period during council meetings.

Jordyn Lavecchia-Smith, the town’s deputy clerk, said the procedural bylaw will be reviewed after the Oct. 26 municipal election. Amendments were made to the legislation in December 2024 that enhanced public participation in council meetings’ open forum.

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