Welcome to the Town of Yarmouth
On the Edge of Everywhere
Agendas, Minutes & Livestream
The Town of Yarmouth believes in operating in an open and transparent manner, so you can be fully informed about what's happening and add your voice to the conversation. We post agendas with all relevant reports, correspondence and other documents for meetings on this page. For Council and Committee of the Whole agendas, documents are normally posted on the Tuesday immediately preceding the Thursday meetings. You can access agendas and minutes by selecting the meeting of choice from the calendar below.
Livestreaming & Past Meeting Videos
To watch live meetings, first, select the meeting in the calendar below. At the time of a scheduled meeting, a link to the livestreaming video will be posted just below the Agenda and Minutes links for the meeting. If there is not a link, the stream has not yet started. Please wait and refresh this page until the link is available. You may access videos of past meetings by clicking the "Video" link below the posted agenda and minutes.
A Note on Closed Captioning: If you require closed captioning service while watching the livestream, we recommend using Chrome web browser as it allows for real-time closed captioning within its settings. Go to Use Live Caption in Chrome for a brief tutorial on turning on captions. We also post our council meeting videos on our YouTube channel where you can access Closed Captioning.
To access meeting agendas/minutes prior to February 11, 2021, please visit our meeting minutes archive.
Open & Closed Meetings
Meetings of the Council and committees appointed by Council are open to the public in accordance with the Municipal Government Act of Nova Scotia.
Open Meetings
For most open meetings, we welcome everyone to attend and listen to the discussions and decisions, but remember – only those who are on the agenda may address Council or a committee. Exceptions to this general rule include public hearings, public participation meetings, and second readings of any by-law under consideration. If you want your voice on the agenda, learn more about making presentations.
Closed Meetings
For confidentiality reasons, some Council and Committee meetings must be held in closed sessions. To ensure complete accountability and transparency, all past and current agendas and reports for Town Council and advisory committee meetings are posted online – including agendas for closed meetings of council. (Specifically, we note in the minutes of an open meeting whether a closed meeting has been held, and generally the matter under consideration.)
Closed sessions may be held to address:
- Purchase, sale, lease, or security of property
- setting a minimum price to be accepted at a tax sale
- Personnel matters
- Labour relations
- Contract negotiations
- Litigation or potential litigation
- To receive legal advice eligible for solicitor-client privilege
- Public security
Alertable - Community Notifications
Emergency alerts and day-to-day community notices for streets, construction, parks, transit, water disruptions, municipal services, facilities, meetings, programs, severe weather and emergency planning, and more.
Know before you go. Use Alertable to stay aware, plan ahead and save time. Check for construction, street closures, transit delays, and more in advance. Notifications are FREE, fast, and easy to see and hear. Personalize notifications by type and severity. Choose notifications for more than one location. Home, office, cottage, family and friends and more. Turn on roaming and override silent mode.
SIGN UP TODAY!
Multiple Notification Methods
Download the FREE Alertable app for iOS and Android smartphones. Over to the right are a series of other sign up options, including FREE email and SMS text notifications or phone calls.
Other options include a FREE Alertable skill and action for Amazon Alexa, and you can also follow Alertable on Facebook and Twitter, and connect with Alertable directly on Facebook Messenger.
PLEASE NOTE: to ensure you receive alerts for street closures/construction, transit delays, traffic light issues, and other matters that affect travel within town, you must provide a town address or select Town of Yarmouth as one of your locations.
SIGN UP OPTIONS
PLEASE NOTE: to ensure you receive alerts for street closures/construction, transit delays, traffic light issues, and other matters that affect travel within town, you must provide a town address or select Town of Yarmouth as one of your locations.
Mayor and Council
Top Left to right: Deputy Mayor Steve Berry, Councillor Kelley Bishara-Lacroix, Councillor Derek Lesser, Town Solicitor Greg Barro
Bottom left to right: Councillor Belle Hatfield, Councillor Wade Cleveland, Councillor Gil Dares, Mayor Pam Mood, CAO Jeff Gushue
Photo: Clifton Saulnier
Your Town Council consists of a Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and five town Councillors, each elected for a four-year term. Yarmouth voters elect the Mayor and Councillors, while the Deputy Mayor is selected and appointed through a Council motion. Unlike your provincial or federal representatives, Councillors do not represent specific areas within the town.
On November 12, 2020, the current Council was sworn into office.
Members of Town Council meet for regularly scheduled Council and Committee meetings throughout the year. Our meetings are open to the public (with a few exceptions), and upcoming agendas and reports for Council meetings are published online at least 6 days prior to the meeting date. Archived minutes and reports are available on our website, including videos from livestreamed meetings.
Council members may be appointed to local or regional boards and advisory committees. They also have the opportunity to represent the town on committees for the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) and the Nova Scotia Federation of Municipalities (NSFM).
Role of the Mayor
The Mayor serves as the head of Town Council, with one vote on council and the responsibility to officially represent the council to the world. Along with providing leadership within Yarmouth, the Mayor represents the interests of the town in inter-governmental relations with the provincial and federal governments on a variety of issues affecting our town.
Role of Town Council
Your Town Council is responsible for representing the public and advancing Yarmouth's economic, social, and cultural well-being. This includes developing and evaluating our policies and programs that match our priorities, ensuring accountability and transparency, and giving voice to the issues that matter to you. We encourage you to learn more about how our Council works and join our regular meetings.
