Search Results

Become a part of our expanding membership and gain access to the latest events, news updates, and more! Lend your voice to Niagara-on-Lake’s unique association that unites residents from all parts of our town and rural areas to advocate collectively on the issues that matter most to you Have a question or suggestion? Reach out! Social Media notlra2025@gmail.com

Home / Community / Parks & Trails / Heritage Trail! Bruce Trail Conservancy! Niagara Parks Parks Canada NOTL Parks and Trails!

Home / Town Planning / Official Plan / Official Plan Review and Updates! Read Our Position Paper Small Title March 13, 2026 NOTL Releases Final Draft of the Official Plan for Upcoming Council Adoption Comment Matrix Final Version. November 20, 2025 Notice of Public Meeting - Official Plan Update Third Draft COTW Planning Agenda Red Lined Version. October 1, 2025 Second draft of updated official plan! Town News Release! Join the conversation! Official Plan Review and Updates! Read Our Position Paper July 22, 2025 First Draft of Updated Official Plan for Public Review Red Line version! Staff Report CDS 25-104 July 8, 2025 Council Workshop – Official Plan Update and Conformity Exercise Staff report! CDS-25-084 March 28, 2025 Official Plan Update Public Engagement Presentation! Survey Results! CDS 25-044 July 22, 2025 2019 Official Plan! Link to Schedule A to C Link to Schedule D to F

Home / Resources / TOWN LINKS PROVINCIAL LINKS REGIONAL LINKS 2026 NOTL BUDGET FINANCIAL ARCHIVES

Home / Old Town / OLD TOWN Town hall with the Lord Mayor Legacy stone wall SORE & Randwood Chautauqua Residents' Association The Village Residents' Association

Active involvement in local and regional municipal affairs. Work effectively with other residents’ associations and groups in Niagara-on-the-Lake to achieve our goals Advocate for residents’ views and expectations, and that they be given full and respectful consideration in the Town and Regional councils and, where appropriate, higher levels of government​ Home / Get involved / JOIN US COMMITTEES CONTACT US EVENTS DONATIONS Photo by Rene Bertschi

Home / News & Updates / Provincial / March 10, 2026 Doug Ford has opened the door to privatizing our water history show how that can put public health at risk Learn More Ontario to table budget March 26, with eye to productivity, competitiveness: minister

Transit diesel buses >> more >> Diesel Item for NOTLRA from Seniors for Climate in Niagara. August 16, 2025 At its meeting on August 14, 2025, the Niagara-on-the-Lake Residents Association endorsed the goal set by local environmental groups “That, beginning in 2026, Niagara Region allocates appropriate funding to support Niagara Transit’s ability to achieve a zero-emission bus fleet by 2050 through regional and external funding sources.” Diesel fumes from vehicles are a significant contributor to greenhouse gases, which are responsible for warming the atmosphere and increasing the rate of climate change. They also contain carcinogens that cause lung and bladder cancer, and are therefore a danger to employees and communities using diesel buses. In this era of climate crisis, municipalities that transition to zero-emission buses make a major contribution to mitigating climate change and reducing cancer risk in their jurisdictions. Four groups, Seniors for Climate in Niagara, Biodiversity and Climate Action Committee, 50by30Niagara, and Grimsby Environmental Network approached NOTLRA requesting endorsement of their campaign to persuade the Niagara Regional Council and Niagara Transit (NT) to start electrifying the NT bus fleet, and put an end to harmful diesel fumes being poured into Niagara’s communities from bus tailpipes. NT plans to expand its bus fleet from 187 to 345 buses in the next ten years. At present, NT has no electrification strategy and has, we believe, 35 diesel buses on order. Its 10-Year Investment and Growth Strategy makes no mention of creating infrastructure for zero-emission buses, or purchasing them. As a municipal service board, NT derives most of its funding from the Niagara Regional Council. In its 2025 capital budget request to the Region, NT put forward a plan to electrify its fleet, requesting just under four million dollars as part of a $55.25 million budget. The majority of the costs would be obtained from external grants and funding. The Region turned down the request, despite having declared a climate emergency in 2021, and having committed to achieving net zero GHG emissions by 2050. The four groups hope to meet with NT commissioners and Niagara Region councillors in the near future to learn more about the region’s plans and urge the two organizations to initiate transformative investment in a zero-emissions bus fleet in their 2026 budgets. They are also planning delegations to the Region’s 2026 budget committee. Frances Stocker of Seniors for Climate in Niagara, who brought the motion to the Residents Association, comments that “Although NOTL itself isn’t served by diesel buses, residents experience the same climate and breath the same air as bus users as they travel through the region. Perhaps, of even greater importance, while provincial and federal governments stall and even reverse climate change policies, municipalities are ideally placed to continue their own mitigation and adaptation initiatives which have an immediate impact on local quality of life. It’s for this reason we’re seeking endorsement for our campaign from residents’ and tax-payers’ associations throughout Niagara.” May 2025 - Bus price Increase! NRT response to July 22 letter more >>> After many months of discussion between residents of Apricot Glen subdivision in St Davids and Town staff subsequent analysis of traffic has shown that excessive speed needs to be addressed. Town has now installed two speed humps with an immediate improvement in the safety and comfort of residents. If you have concerns about traffic in your neighborhood please feel free to contact the NOTLRA at notlra2025@gmail.com and RA members will be happy to help you address this with Town staff. Future Grimsby GO Train Station Grimsby GO station on the rails with contract to be awarded spring 2025!

Home / Get involved / Contact Us / Send us a message
 and we’ll get back to you shortly. First name Email* Subject Write a message Send

Royal George Position Survey EXECUTIVE SUMMARY by Michael Ennamorato! Executive Summary The Shaw Festival executive wishes to demolish the Royal George Theatre on Queen Street in the heritage district of Niagara-on-the-Lake and replace it with a new, expanded theatre facility at the same location. This initiative has been spurred by consideration that the Royal George, in its current structural form, has reached the end of its useful life. With some funding secured from the provincial government, there is a desire to move relatively quickly to the construction phase and to complete redevelopment of the site within a three-year time frame. Preliminary architectural plans have been made available for public input with the aim of arriving at a widely accepted proposal to put forward for local council approval. The Niagara- on-the-Lake Residents Association (NOTLRA) wishes to engage in this process as an advocate for residents from across the municipality. As a grassroots organization, it is critical that the NOTLRA solicit direction from its members to ensure that its approach to advocacy is consistent with their perspectives, concerns, needs and desires. To this end, The NOTLRA conducted a survey among its members to determine the extent to which they are aligned with the leadership’s proposed advocacy approach vis-a-vis the Royal George rebuild. Results of the survey indicate that members typically have a good understanding of current issues surrounding the Royal George and are, consequently, well placed to provide the NOTLRA with direction on an approach to advocacy on their behalf. With this knowledge-base established, they were presented with the following proposed approach for assessment. The Niagara-on-the-Lake Residents Association supports the Shaw’s initiative to replace the current Royal George Theatre with a new theatre facility at the current location. We are committed to working with the Shaw and other stakeholders to alter aspects of the size and design of the proposed structure in an effort to better protect the unique heritage character of the streetscape and the residential integrity of the surrounding neighbourhood. Members strongly support this position, with 9-in-10 indicating agreement and more than two- thirds doing so in unequivocal terms. Moreover, among the few who express dissent, the prevailing rationale is that the proposed position is not strong enough. Some would rather have the new theatre constructed at another location that might be better suited to the scale and design of the facility outlined in initial plans. Relocating is not feasible for a number of practical reasons. However, dissenters’ underlying concern about compatibility suggests that that they would endorse the NOTLRA advocating for the majority with some forcefulness, insofar as that advocacy strives for a better fit at the current location on Queen Street. Implications On the basis of these survey results, the NOTLRA has a mandate to intervene on behalf of its members in a manner consistent with the proposed positioning statement. This involves taking a collaborative and constructive approach that recognizes the Shaw’s role as an important partner in nurturing NOTL’s long-term health. Nonetheless, in alignment with members’ core concerns, the NOTLRA should not hesitate to adopt an assertive stance in continuing to advocate for changes to the design and scale of a new Royal George at the current location with the aim of preserving the heritage character and the residential integrity of the surrounding neighbourhood. Rational for survey! Official Survey Analysis Unfiltered response to Q2b and Q3 May Survey Results! MESSAGE FROM OUR PRESIDENT, STUART MCCORMACK! Niagara-on-the-Lake Residents Association OUR TOWN OUR FUTURE June 2, 2025 Communique We were truly encouraged by the strong turnout at our open house on May 14, 2025. Your presence and engagement demonstrated a clear interest in the future of our community. We’re also pleased that several attendees expressed a willingness to get involved with the Association. We’ll be connecting with these individuals in the coming weeks to explore how their skills and interests might align with various opportunities within the Association. The purpose of the open house was to introduce our organization, share that we are now incorporated, and confirm that we have directors and officers’ liability insurance in place. It also gave attendees a chance to hear directly from members of the Organizing Committee and learn more about our goals. We hope the event helped provide a clearer picture of who we are and what we stand for. Following the open house, the Organizing Committee met on May 29 to review the results of our recent community survey. The survey included 15 multiple-choice questions along with two open-ended ones to allow participants to raise additional issues or elaborate on their views. The areas with the highest levels of concern were, in order: 1. Planning and Development 2. Council Procedures and Activities 3. Strong Mayor Powers These stood out significantly compared to other topics. Responses to the open-ended questions, summarized with assistance from ChatGPT, highlighted several recurring themes: · A desire for greater transparency in local governance · Stronger community representation in decision-making · Preservation of the Town’s heritage and character · More responsible and thoughtful development · Improvements to local infrastructure and amenities Additionally, some comments expressed concern about the direction of local leadership and a desire for change in future elections. As we move forward, we will be focusing our efforts on the priorities reflected in this community feedback. We are also committed to broadening our outreach so that all stakeholder groups in Niagara-on-the-Lake have opportunities to connect with and contribute to the work of the Association. OUR TOWN OUR FUTURE Niagara-on-the-Lake Residents Association Official Survey Results Official Survey Analysis Ron Simkus survey anylysis!

Home / Resources / Provincial Links / MPPs & Cabinet members Most visited pages Services Provincial budget

Home / News & Updates / Council Decisions & Updates / Council Decisions & Updates (no mtgs for August 2025) July 22, 2026 June Council Meeting: Decisions and Updates View Details! March 25, 2026 March Council Meeting: Decisions and Updates View Details! June 29, 2026 June Council Meeting: Decisions and Updates View Details! February 25, 2026 February Council Meeting: Decisions and Updates View Details! May 28, 2026 May Council Meeting: Decisions and Updates View Details! January 29, 2026 January Council Update: Decisions and Updates View Details! April 29, 2026 April Council Meeting: Decisions and Updates View Details! Dec 9, 2025 December Council Update: Decisions and Updates View Details!