With no end goal in sight, Georgina votes to keep 2-tier government

Resolution to keep makeup passes unanimously

Yorkregion.com
May 30, 2019
Amanda Persico

As municipal councils across Ontario wait for an impending announcement on the fate of regional governments, Georgina is making its position clear.

Town council recently passed a resolution in favour of the current two-tier system, keeping the status quo.

The lack of direction or defined goals from the province still has some councillors on edge.

“We don’t fully understand what the province is looking at,” said Ward 3 Coun. Dave Neeson. “We don’t know what the end goal is.”

Georgina joins a number of other municipalities passing resolutions calling on the province to leave well enough alone.

Georgina’s resolution, which passed unanimously, cites the number of municipal reviews conducted at the local level, first with the formation of York Region in the early 1970s that amalgamated 14 municipalities into the current nine setup and with the town trimming its own makeup from seven wards to five.

The resolution also mentions a laundry list of efficiencies found by collaborating services such as waste collection, animal control services, audit services and insurance coverage with the northern six municipalities.

Instead, the town wants to see a review of provincial and municipal powers and authority listed under the Municipal Act, especially when it comes to planning approvals.