Thunder Bay City Council meeting scheduled for Monday

Thunder Bay City Council is scheduled to meet on Monday, but whether council meetings will shift to teleconference or other means of electronic participation remains unknown.

City Clerk Krista Power said both the city's own procedural bylaws, as well as provincial legislation, don't allow for strictly-electronic council meetings.

"You have to have physical quorum in the room," Power said. "Anyone who is participating electronically does not count towards quorum, and therefore does not have a vote."

In Thunder Bay's case, at least seven councillors would have to be present physically for a quorum.

Compounding the issue is the city's own procedural bylaw, which doesn't currently allow for electronic participation by councillors.

"We are looking at that, to see if we make that consideration," Power said.

And there is a wider, province-wide push to see the provincial rules regarding quorum changed as a response to the global COVID-19 outbreak.

"There's been interest from mayors from the big cities, and concern about, again, social distancing and all of the things we're doing to actually, you know, restrict folks from from being together," Power said. "So, certainly that is one of the asks of the Association of municipalities of Ontario, and of many mayors as well, is to extend the provision for electronic participation to be less than quorum, and not to require the physical requirement for quorum in the room."

Power said the City of Thunder Bay is waiting on a decision on the matter from the province.