Council

Who decides, and how you can hold them to account

Macdonald Meredith et al is run by an elected council of 5 people. They set the budget, approve big purchases and hire the senior staff who run the town day to day.

Current council

• MayorLynn Watsonlynnwatson@ontera.net
• CouncillorShelly Baileysbailey@ontera.net
• CouncillorParker Brockelbankpbrockelbank@ontera.net
• CouncillorAdam Chevisachevis@ontera.net
• CouncillorDerek Hansendhansen@ontera.net

Names and official email addresses from the town's council page. None of the members lists a public social media account there.

• Yes
  Budgets posted online

  The budgets for 2024, 2025 and 2026 are posted as PDFs on one page. Many of the budget pages print their labels and numbers in separate blocks, so we used only totals that sit on the same line as their label. Source

• Yes
  Audited financial statements

  Statements for 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 are posted. The 2024 audit report is dated November 18, 2025; the 2023 one is dated August 20, 2024. We did not find 2025 statements. Source

• Partly
  Council agendas and minutes

  The township's minutes page lists agendas and minutes up to the regular meeting of December 16, 2025. We did not find any for 2026 on that page. The page also embeds an eSCRIBE meeting portal that loads its list by script, which we could not read, so 2026 meetings may be there. Source

• Unknown
  Council pay and expenses statement

  We did not find a yearly statement of council remuneration and expenses on the budget and financial statements page or the council page. Source

• Partly
  Tender results (who won, how much)

  Winning bids appear in council minutes (for example the water tower and the fire truck). The bids and tenders page we read lists no results. Source

1. Send the request in writing to the town clerk (the freedom of information coordinator), on the town’s form or in a letter, with the $5 application fee.
2. Describe the records, not the answer you want. Dates, departments and the kind of record (a list, invoices, emails) make a request quicker and cheaper.
3. The town has 45 business days to answer (the law changed in 2026; older guides say 30 days). It can charge for search time and copies, but must send an estimate first if the fees will be over $25.
4. Some parts can be held back, such as legal advice or personal information about other people. The town must say which part of the law it relied on.
5. If you are refused, or the fees seem too high, you can appeal to the Information and Privacy Commissioner within 30 business days of the town’s decision.

The town's request form (on its Forms page) · The law · Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario

• Engineering assessment behind the 2024 landfill closure estimate

  Note 10 of the 2024 statements says a new assessment raised the closure cost and the monitoring period.

  Show the request wordingHide the wording

  Under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, I request the 2024 engineering assessment of landfill closure and post-closure costs and any report to council that sets out how the township plans to fund the obligation recorded in note 10 of its 2024 financial statements.

  Copy the wording

• Funding plan for the pumper truck and the water tower job

  Two large 2025 purchases were approved in the minutes without a published funding split.

  Show the request wordingHide the wording

  Under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, I request any report to council showing how the new pumper truck purchase (accepted October 21, 2025) and the water tower relining and painting job (accepted June 17, 2025) are funded, by source (grants, reserves, other municipalities, borrowing, taxes).

  Copy the wording

• Statements of council remuneration and expenses

  We did not find these on the township's website.

  Show the request wordingHide the wording

  Under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, I request the township's yearly statements of remuneration and expenses paid to members of council under section 284 of the Municipal Act for 2023, 2024 and 2025.

  Copy the wording

The wording is a starting point, not legal advice. Narrow the dates if the town says a request is too broad or too costly.

1. Code of Conduct

   The township posts its Code of Conduct on the council page. We did not find an Integrity Commissioner, a closed-meeting investigator or any investigation reports on the pages we read.