Ontario Construction News staff writer
This year, the City of Burlington took the opportunity at the Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA) conference to highlight various issues impacting its rural areas, including housing options, transportation, and digital infrastructure.
A delegation from the city, led by Mayor Marianne Meed Ward along with Ward 6 Councillor Angelo Bentivegna and senior staff members, participated in the 2026 ROMA Annual General Meeting and Conference this week. They engaged with cabinet ministers, MPPs, and industry stakeholders.
The city reported that conversations centered around enhancing rural economic development, ongoing investment in broadband and 5G connectivity, and optimizing transportation network management to make better use of Burlington’s strategic location within the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area.
Meetings took place with Associate Minister of Energy-Intensive Industries 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.
Topics discussed included broadening eligibility for extra residential units on current rural properties, improving predictability for approvals related to housing and commercial developments, as well as tackling congestion and infrastructure needs on the QEW. The city also expressed concerns about coordinating roadwork planning alongside public communications while seeking to expand municipal eligibility under the province’s Road Safety Initiatives Fund and the Rural Ontario Development program.
Mayor Meed Ward also attended a meeting of the Top Aggregate Producing Municipalities of Ontario (TAPMO) board that focuses on a long-term provincial strategy for aggregate extraction.
During the conference, new measures were announced by the province aimed at addressing rural municipal priorities. This included additional funding through the Market Diversification and Trade Resiliency Initiative to assist farmers and agribusinesses as well as a second intake of the Rural Ontario Development Program designed to strengthen rural economies and their infrastructure.
“Burlington is half rural with family farms, agricultural economy, majestic parks and historic villages, nestled in a world biosphere reserve,” said Meed Ward. “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.”
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