General City News

Owen Sound’s Backflow Prevention Program helps keep municipal drinking water safe while providing a cost-saving opportunity for property owners. To support compliance with the Backflow Prevention By-law, the City is offering a limited-time subsidy to help cover the cost of installing premise isolation and fire protection backflow preventers.

The City of Owen Sound is working with regional partners and service providers to support an extension of the Guelph Owen Sound Transportation (GOST) bus service.

GOST is an intercommunity public transit service connecting Owen Sound and Guelph with additional stops in Chatsworth, Williamsford, Durham, Mount Forest, Arthur, Fergus and Elora. 

Please be advised that the Strategic Planning Ad-hoc Committee meeting scheduled for Wednesday, March 5, 2025, at 9:00 a.m. will be rescheduled. The revised date will be updated on the City website in the coming days.

For more information, please contact Christina McLean, Recording Secretary to the Strategic Planning Ad-hoc Committee at 519-376-4440 ext. 1239 or email to cmclean@owensound.ca.

The Good Cheer Rink at Harrison Park is open to the public, following a brief closure this week due to warmer weather and sunny conditions.  The hours of operation are dawn until 10 p.m. daily.

Effective Saturday, March 1, select roadways within the City of Owen Sound will be under a reduced load period (maximum 5 tonnes per axle). This seasonal restriction is activated in alignment with Grey County and other local municipalities due to milder weather conditions at this time of year.

Please be advised that City Council will hold a Special Council meeting on Monday, March 3, 2025, at 9:00 a.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall.

The purpose of the Special Council meeting is to consider one matter in Closed Session regarding labour relations or employee negotiations.

The Special Council meeting agenda will be available for review prior to the meeting on the Council and Committee page on the City’s website. The meeting will not be livestreamed on the City’s website.

For more information, please contact Allison Penner, Deputy Clerk at 519-376-4440 ext. 1235 or email to apenner@owensound.ca.  

In response to heightened safety concerns, the City of Owen Sound is altering its strategy for excess snow removal in the downtown River District to nighttime operations. Beginning in the late evening of Sunday, March 2, residents are reminded to remove vehicles from downtown streets to avoid service disruptions.

The Good Cheer Rink at Harrison Park will be closed beginning Monday, February 24, 2025, due to unseasonably warm weather and sunny conditions.  It is intended to reopen later this week.

The City appreciates the public's patience and understanding at this time.  For regular updates about the Good Cheer Rink at Harrison Park, visit OwenSound.ca/PublicSkating and follow the City of Owen Sound on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Excess snow removal operations will begin in Owen Sound’s downtown River District area tomorrow, Tuesday, February 25, at 7 a.m.  8th Street East, between 2nd and 3rd Avenue East, will be closed Tuesday morning for these snow removal operations.  

City staff will implement rolling road closures throughout the River District as they work block by block to remove excess snow and accumulated piles. 

With an upcoming provincial election in 2025, Owen Sound joins municipal governments across Ontario in calling for provincial action and partnership to help them deliver a high quality of life to all Ontarians.

The Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) has launched a non-partisan awareness campaign to ensure that voters and provincial parties alike understand three key areas where provincial partnership and action can improve Ontario’s quality of life:

• tackling the homelessness crisis
• curbing reliance on municipal property taxes to fund provincial responsibilities
• investing in local infrastructure to build housing