Vaughan reviews ward boundaries - it’s all in the numbers

NRU
May 4, 2016
By Leah Wong

In anticipation of its next wave of population growth the City of Vaughan is reviewing its ward boundaries to ensure residents are fairly represented as the city grows.

The city estimated its population in March 2015 was 319,893-up almost 11 per cent since the 2011 census. The city continues to grow and is expected to reach 416,600 by 2031. But there are pockets that will experience a higher rate of growth than others.

For example, the Vaughan Metropolitan Centre, a provincially-defined urban growth centre, is expected to meet or exceed a target of 200 people and jobs per hectare by 2041.

In April the city retained consultants Beate Bowron, Canadian Urban Institute, Davidson Group principal Gary Davidson and Hemson Consulting principal Russell Mathew to review the city’s ward boundaries.

To ensure effective representation across the wards as the city continues to grow, Bowron told NRU the consultant team will set a target year for optimal population distribution. While the target year has yet to be established, 2022 is being considered.

“If something works for 2022, in terms of effective representation, then it will still work in 2026,” said Bowron. The consultants will make recommendations on the best boundary options for the period between 2018 and 2026 municipal elections.

The team is presently collecting data so it can generate a list of options for ward configurations considering the size of each ward, the location of communities of interest and geographic boundaries. The first round of public consultations, comprising an online survey, public meetings and interviews with councillors and school board trustees, will launch in June.

“We’re hoping to get an idea of how [the public] ranks the options and whether or not they have suggestions for refining any, or all, of them,” said Bowron. The consultants are anticipating feedback about how the proposed options effect the city’s communities of interest and natural and physical boundaries. “The [residents] and members of council will be particularly in tune with the communities of interest in Vaughan.”

The consultants will report back to council with a preferred option for boundary reconfiguration after the first round of consultation. The final report is expected in January 2017, following a second round of consultation on the preferred option.

Vaughan last considered its ward boundaries in 2013 when a group of local residents petitioned council to add a sixth ward and adjust the existing ward boundaries accordingly. Council did not proceed with a review process and a group of resident initiated their own ward boundary review process.

The residents had proposed creating a sixth ward comprising Kleinberg and the approximately 1,000 rural residents that live within the city’s boundaries. While development was anticipated in this area, a staff report noted that relative population parity would not have been achieved by the 2014 election. When council decided to maintain its current structure and hold off the residents’ group appealed the decision to the Ontario Municipal Board.

In November 2013 the board ruled that Vaughan should maintain its five-ward structure and that there was no clear and compelling reason to create a sixth ward. In its ruling the board supported the city’s decision to conduct a broad-based review ahead of the 2018 election.

The ward boundary review is in the early stages and the consultant team has not yet determined the options that will be brought forward to the public. Bowron said they are unsure if adding another ward will be on the table or not.

“There is growth in Vaughan, but we won’t really know [if] that necessitates another ward until we’ve done the work,” said Bowron. “We’re looking at the data in terms of the population projections and development approvals.”