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The City of Burlington advanced its rural strategic priorities earlier this week at the Rural Ontario Municipal Association’s (ROMA) 2026 Annual General Meeting and Conference in Toronto.
Burlington’s delegation, led by Mayor Marianne Meed Ward and made up of City staff and Ward 6 Councillor Angelo Bentivegna, met with government officials including cabinet ministers, MPPs and industry contributors.
As part of the meetings, the City advocated for rural economic development opportunities, the ongoing need for further continued investment in digital infrastructure investments, and improved transportation network management to better leverage Burlington’s strategic location within the Greater Toronto Hamilton Area (GTHA).
Conversations took place with the Associate Minister of Energy-Intensive Industries, the Honourable Sam Oosterhoff, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Matthew Rae and Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Transportation, Hardeep Singh Grewal.
Key discussion items included expanding Additional Residential Unit (ARU) eligibility to existing rural residential properties, the need for greater predictability for prospective housing and commercial development, QEW improvements and enhanced coordination on roadworks and public communications, expanding municipal eligibility under the province’s Road Safety Initiatives Fund (RSIF) and Rural Ontario Development (ROD) program, and improving rural broadband and 5G connectivity.
Mayor Meed Ward also participated in the Top Aggregate Producing Municipalities of Ontario (TAPMO) board meeting at the conference. TAPMO’s mandate is to develop a long-term approach to aggregate extraction in Ontario.
In tandem with the conference, the province made key announcements related to rural municipal priorities, including making additional investment through the Market Diversification and Trade Resiliency Initiative to help farmers and agribusinesses sell more Ontario-grown products around the world, and launching the second intake of the Rural Ontario Development Program to strengthen the economies of rural communities, build infrastructure and keep workers on the job.
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Quotes
Marianne Meed Ward, Mayor, City of Burlington
“Burlington is half rural with family farms, agricultural economy, majestic parks and historic villages, nestled in a world biosphere reserve. The ROMA Conference is an invaluable opportunity to learn from other rural leaders and advocate directly to provincial decision-makers on behalf of our rural residents and businesses alike - from infrastructure limitations, to traffic mitigation and environmental protection. Our delegations had productive, solutions-focused conversations, and I’m encouraged by the province’s willingness to listen, collaborate and act. We committed to further action together on these matters, ensuring meaningful progress for our rural community.”
Angelo Bentivegna, Ward 6 Councillor
“Advocacy during the ROMA Conference aligns with the City’s commitment to conserving the character of the rural area and protecting and enhancing its natural environment, while also enabling the rural economy to evolve and change. By seeking additional investment in this sector, we will not only protect farmland, but also foster a thriving rural economy, strengthen food security, and enhance climate resiliency. I would like to thank Burlington’s Agricultural and Rural Affairs Advisory Committee for their contributions in preparation for this year’s meetings with provincial officials.”
Links and Resources
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Media contact:
City of Burlington Corporate Communications
2026 Annual ROMA Conference City of Burlington Backgrounder
Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA)
ROMA is the rural voice of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO). The Association is an integral part of AMO and a number of its Executive Members serve on the AMO Board of Directors. Policy, research and advocacy activities are undertaken by ROMA through AMO. ROMA is committed to promoting, supporting and enhancing strong and effective rural governments and socially and economically sustainable rural communities, today and into the future.
Each year, Burlington leads a delegation to the conference and arranges meetings with key ministries and Members of Cabinet, and opposition party leaders to discuss and advocate for the City’s top priorities.
This year’s conference had nearly 2,000 attendees, who took part in three days of education, delegation meetings and networking opportunities.
Burlington’s Rural Community
Approximately 50% of Burlington’s geographic area is considered rural, with the majority protected within the Greenbelt and designated as a Prime Agricultural Area. Burlington’s agriculture sector operates over 70 farms and generates approximately $46.4 million in Gross Farm Receipts, as of the 2021 Census of Agriculture.
The Burlington Agricultural Action Plan sets out ten core actions that the City can take to advance opportunities for economic growth, innovation and resiliency in the Rural Area. The actions are structured in a way that aligns with the City’s commitment to conserving the character of the Rural Area and protecting and enhancing its natural environment, while also enabling the rural economy to evolve and change. By investing in this sector, the City will not only protect farmland, but also foster a thriving rural economy, strengthen food security and enhance climate resiliency.
Burlington Delegation Rural Strategic Priorities
Expanding Additional Residential Unit (ARU) Eligibility to Existing Rural Residential Properties
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The City of Burlington met with the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) to discuss potential expansion of the municipality’s additional residential unit program into existing properties in its rural areas and the necessary supporting policies that would enable this change. This is in response to significant program demand and will work towards the City’s housing targets and create new opportunities for rural economic development.
Permitted Uses in Ontario’s Prime Agricultural Areas
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The City of Burlington also met with MMAH to allow municipalities such as Burlington to rely on their currently approved mapping until the province has undertaken its review of the Greenbelt Plan to ensure harmonization with the Provincial Planning Statement (PPS), 2024, and has released updated Agricultural System implementation procedures under the PPS, to provide greater predictability for prospective housing and commercial development.
Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) Improvements and Delegated Oversight of Off-Ramp Signal Operations
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The City of Burlington met with the Ministry of Transportation (MTO) to request approval for a limited, timebound pilot that would allow municipal traffic operations teams to temporarily adjust traffic signal timings at QEW off-ramp intersections when the QEW mainline is operating at or near a standstill from Burloak Drive to Northshore Boulevard, and also discussed opportunities to further coordinate roadworks and public notifications on forthcoming improvements to the QEW & 403 juncture.
Expanding Eligibility Under the Road Safety Initiatives Fund (RSIF)
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The City of Burlington also recommends that MTO amend the eligibility criteria for the forthcoming application-based Road Safety Initiatives Fund (RSIF) to include municipalities that had demonstrated significant progress towards municipal automated speed enforcement implementation. The City of Burlington remains ineligible for money from the program because the municipal photo radar program was not operating when Ontario passed legislation banning speed cameras, despite significant progress towards implementation.
Expanding Rural Ontario Development (ROD) Program Eligibility
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The City of Burlington met with representatives on behalf the Ministry of Rural Affairs (MRA) make amendments to the eligibility criteria for the Rural Ontario Development (ROD) Program that would expand program offerings to more municipalities with uniquely mixed urban and rural areas to bolster rural economic development opportunities. Burlington matches the character of other municipalities with urban-rural splits that have recently been deemed eligible under the program’s eligibility parameters and requested similar permissions.
Improving Rural Broadband & 5G Connectivity
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The City of Burlington met with representatives on behalf Ministry of Infrastructure (MOI) to institute a timeframe within which Internet Service Providers must demonstrate meaningful progress towards provincial funding obligations under the Accelerated High-Speed Internet Program commitments. These investments are critical to unlock further economic development opportunities within Burlington’s rural boundaries and to fully take advantage of its strategic location.
The City of Burlington remains committed to advocating with all levels of government to advance Council’s strategic priorities, and looks forward to continued collaboration with both federal and provincial partners.
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