Residents can comment on Georgina ward boundary changes by Sept. 4

YorkRegion.com
Aug. 29, 2017
Heidi Riedner

Residents have until Sept. 4 to register their comments on proposed ward boundary changes that would take effect for the next municipal election in 2018.

Consultants Watsons & Associates conducted a 17-month review and recommended redrawing Georgina’s political map to address “significant inequalities in ward-to-ward populations, which is expected to be exacerbated through the ongoing development planned in Keswick.”

Two options were presented to council in February that included either carving up the municipality’s five wards in entirely new configurations or adding a sixth ward.

Currently, Ward 1 has a population of 15,950; Ward 2 has 11,210; Ward 3 has 8,160, Ward 4 has 10,685; and Ward 5 has 7,660.

Based on a population and housing forecast for the 2016 to 2022 period generated by consultants that would cover the next two municipal elections, more than half (54 per cent) of Georgina’s population would reside in Keswick.

In addition, the majority of an expected seven-per-cent increase forecasted by 2022 would be concentrated primarily in the southern portion of Keswick (specifically in Ward 1) with some growth in Sutton (Ward 4).

Redrawing the boundaries or adding a sixth ward in Keswick would create “more fair” representation, according to the consultants.

Council, however, voted in favour of a third option presented in a staff report Aug. 9.

A key factor in that decision was the fact that the third option retained the lakefront, rural and urban components that exist in each of the five current wards, despite the fact it was the opinion of consultants that “balance” has “disappeared”.

If approved, slight boundary changes would be made in wards 1, 2 and 3, with no changes to wards 4 and 5.

Wards 1 and 2 would be reduced in geographic size, with an increase in size for Ward 3.

The changes result in Wards 2, 3 and 4 all containing approximately the same number of residents (10,000); Ward 1’s population slightly reduced (14,433) and Ward 5 remaining the same (7,660).

The last time the town conducted a review was in 1996, which resulted in a reduction from seven to five wards for the 1997 election.

Contact the clerk’s office for more information or to register a comment on or before Sept. 4.