Read and decide if you want to sign the petition.  We will drive it forward.     Jason Lewis

Dear Mayor Kelley and Members of Council,

I am writing as a taxpayer and resident/property owner concerned about the repeated flooding affecting the Muskoka watershed. I respectfully ask the Township of Muskoka Lakes (TML) to provide leadership, transparency, and immediate action regarding watershed management and ongoing flood impacts.

I am requesting that TML convene an emergency public meeting as soon as possible to gather facts, hear directly from residents, and seek accountability from the province and all agencies involved in water management. It is important that a public record be created immediately while events are ongoing and information is current.

Send your pictures and comments to: Plan@muskokaflood2026.com

In support of this request, I respectfully submit the following:

1. Municipal Leadership and Representation

Residents look to their Mayor and elected Councillors to represent community concerns, ask difficult questions, and advocate for practical solutions. The TML has the ability to convene meetings, communicate publicly, and bring stakeholders together. Those tools should be used now to ensure an open, transparent, and solutions-focused response.

2. Convene an Emergency Public Meeting with All Relevant Agencies

TML should invite all organizations and officials involved in watershed and dam operations to attend and answer questions publicly. Suggested participants include:

• Mayor and Council of Muskoka Lakes
• District of Muskoka representatives
• MPP Graydon Smith
• MP’s Adam Chambers and Scott Aitchison
• Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (MNRF)
• Ontario Power Generation
• Orillia Power
• Lakeland Power
• Potentia (Bala operators)
• Any additional agencies involved in water management decisions

If any invited body declines to attend, residents should be informed.

3. Request and Publish Relevant Data

The TML should formally request and publish all available information relevant to recent flooding, including:

• Water flow data
• Dam gate operations and timing
• Lake level targets and thresholds
• Historical flood records
• Communications logs during flood events
• Emergency response protocols
• Any and all records, agreements, policies, directives, correspondence or other documents relating to compensation, liability, indemnification, reimbursement, subsidies, incentives claims handling, insurance or hold harmless arrangements between the Province of Ontario, the MNRF, any related agency including but not limited to  any dam, hydroelectric or water management connected to the Muskoka watershed.

Public confidence depends on transparency.

4. Hear Residents and Record Community Impacts

Residents should be given the opportunity to speak and submit evidence. Many hold valuable historical knowledge, observations, and factual information that may assist in understanding recurring flooding.

The TML should also formally collect and document impacts, including:

• Shoreline erosion
• Property damage or loss
• Safety concerns
• Insurance difficulties
• Business interruption losses
• Repeated flooding patterns

5. Pass a Formal Resolution

I respectfully urge the TML to pass an immediate resolution that the:

·       TML immediately convene a public emergency meeting regarding the current and repeated flooding affecting Lake Muskoka, Lake Joseph, Lake Rosseau, Moon River,  and surrounding waterways and if requested, urgent follow up meetings;

·       TML issue a demand to the MNRF that the dam operators immediately take all steps to immediately under the current conditions reduce any further harm to the Muskoka Watershed;

·       TML request that the MNRF and the Province and the Ministry of Environment (MNOE) immediately investigate and identify any and all environmental and ecological harms emanating from the current flooding;

·       TML request immediately from the Province of Ontario, the MNRF, and all relevant water management operators, all records, data, operating decisions, protocols, and communications relating to watershed and water-level management contributing to current flooding conditions and send it to the legislature clerks to be published on the TML and the MNRF website for public disclosure;

·       TML establish, within 7 days, a public reporting portal for residents and businesses to submit flooding impacts, damages, safety concerns, and related evidence; and

·       TML resolved that three further public meetings will be held by council in Bala, Ontario no later than Labour Day 2026 to address this issue.

I further request that copies of this resolution be sent immediately to the Premier of Ontario, the local MPP, District Municipality of Muskoka, MNRF, and all relevant watershed management authorities.

Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter. I respectfully request a response outlining what immediate steps Council intends to take.

Send your pictures and comments to: Plan@muskokaflood2026.com