Interview with Mayor Jerry Acchione - Tuesday August 8th

Tuesday, 8 August 2023 11:01

In his interview with Dan and Marcie this morning, Mayor Jerry Acchione talked about the bylaw that looks to ban consumer fireworks, as well as an upcoming meeting about a possible safe injection site in Woodstock.

WOODSTOCK - Fireworks will be a hot topic at this week's Woodstock City Council meeting.

Mayor Jerry Acchione says staff will bring forward a bylaw that looks to ban all consumer fireworks in the Friendly City.

"We're going to be discussing it at much more length and it's possible that we're going to vote on it. The vote possibly right now is a complete ban in the City of Woodstock for all consumer fireworks. The sale of, as well as usage."

If it's passed, you won't be able to buy fireworks or set them off yourself, even if it's for Canada Day, Victoria Day, or Diwali. The bylaw would not affect fireworks displays hosted by the City.

Another hot topic right now is the possibility of a safe injection site coming to Woodstock. Councillor Mark Schadenberg introduced a notice of motion at the last council meeting, asking his fellow council members to completely reject the idea.

Schadenberg has since withdrawn that notice of motion. Mayor Acchione says the City has decided to hold a special meeting on the matter in order to gather the public's input.

"September 26th at 1:00 p.m. at Council Chambers. We're going to be welcoming delegations to talk about it, pro and against. We want everybody to come because we want some good information. This is, in my opinion, a very big conversation for the safety of some of our community. So I don't think we should be making any decisions without having all of the information."

Those interested in presenting to council have until September 22nd at 12:00 p.m. to fill out the delegation request form.

This Thursday's City Council meeting will begin at 7:00 p.m. and you can find the agenda online here. You can also livestream the meeting on the City of Woodstock YouTube page.

During his interview with Dan and Marcie this morning, Mayor Acchione also discussed the following:

- How City Council will look over a motion that would add more parkland behind the ball diamonds at Cowan Fields.

- How Council will respond to Bill 23, also known as the More Homes Built Faster Act.

- How Council will receive an update regarding the negotiations for the water/wastewater contracts.

- His excitement for Cowapalooza next weekend.

You can listen to the full interview below: