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Orangeville pressing province on train station lands, water capacity at AMO

August 20, 2026   ·   0 Comments

By Sam Odrowski

Orangeville is heading into this year’s Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) Conference asking the province for support on two fronts: the future of the train station lands from Broadway to Town Line, and long-term water capacity.

The town has two confirmed delegations at the conference, which runs in Ottawa from Aug. 16 to 19.

The first delegation centres on the train station lands, which have been used for rail purposes and are expected to require environmental remediation before they can be redeveloped. The town is still determining the scope of that work, Post said, but wanted to raise the issue with the province early.

“We don’t have a plan for the lands yet, but what we do know is that there will be some environmental impact,” Post said. “We don’t know how significant yet… but we do know that if we ever want to turn that land into housing, there will definitely need to be some remediation done. So we want to early on get the province’s support in principle to help us with the cost of remediation.”

The second delegation builds on a water sustainability conversation the town has had with the province since the start of Post’s term in 2022. The town has already received $8.1 million through the Housing Enabling Water Systems Fund, which has gone toward well upgrades. The next phase includes expanded treated water storage, water main upgrades and other supply improvements.

“We’re using it really well,” Post said of the existing funding. Now she will tell her provincial counterparts at AMO, “here’s what we need to keep growing that in the future.”

Post is also attending AMO as warden of Dufferin County, where she has a separate delegation with the province regarding the Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Program. She said some local child-care providers have raised funding concerns with how the program is structured in Ontario, which is limiting the creation of new childcare spaces.

“We believe that the program is a good one,” Post said. “But there are some definite opportunities to make sure that it’s as beneficial to the providers as it is to the recipients.”

Post said the value of AMO delegations isn’t about walking away with a cheque.

Instead, she said the conference is an opportunity to build relationships with ministries that pay off over time. She pointed to funding the town and county have secured in recent years, including the $8.1 million in water funding, money toward Rotary Park, a countywide transit initiative, and the HART Hub Dufferin, a provincially funded homelessness and addictions recovery hub that opened in Orangeville earlier this year.

“All of these things are a result of the relationships that we build at AMO,” Post said.

All members of Orangeville council are attending the conference except Coun. Andy Macintosh, Post said.

When asked about a potential shift from an elected warden position to a provincially appointed county chair, a change already underway in Simcoe County, Post said Dufferin has not received any indication that a similar change is coming to the region.

“They’re the only one in my Western Ontario region that is being transitioned at this time,” Post said. “We all are kind of anticipating that that will come, but we’re not sure when. Again, it’s a provincial decision.”

Starting next term, the warden’s position will shift from a one-year term to a two-year term, the only confirmed change to the role at this time.

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