Court dismisses councillor's request to appeal Toronto's decision on ward boundaries

Superior Court Justice Katherine Swinton said there was "no good reason" to doubt correctness of earlier decision contested by Councillor Justin Di Ciano and a local resident

Thestar.com
March 6, 2018
By Jennifer Pagliaro

A Superior Court judge has tossed the request from a city councillor to appeal the city's new ward boundaries.

The decision, which came in writing on Tuesday, ends Councillor Justin Di Ciano's nearly year-long endeavour to overturn a decision of the council he sits on.

The three-page decision came after the one-day hearing at Osgoode Hall concluded on Friday.

A Toronto lawyer representing Di Ciano (Ward 5 Etobicoke Lakeshore) and a local resident, Tony Natale, argued at the divisional court that the Ontario Municipal Board had erred when it affirmed the council's move to 47 wards from 44.

Council voted in November 2016 to increase the the total number of wards after the 47-ward option was recommended by independent consultants following review that took close to four years.

Di Ciano, another councillor, Giorgio Mammoliti (Ward 7 York West), and several private citizens appealed that decision to the OMB, a provincial tribunal that hears land-use disputes, last year.

In December, the majority of a three-member OMB panel sided with the city, agreeing there were "no clear and compelling reasons to interfere with the decision of council."

Di Ciano and Natale's lawyer were seeking the opportunity to appeal the decision in court. An appeal, heard by a panel of judges, can only be heard if there is a question of law.

A Superior Court judge has tossed the request from a city councillor to appeal the city's new ward boundaries.

The decision, which came in writing on Tuesday, ends Councillor Justin Di Ciano's nearly year-long endeavour to overturn a decision of the council he sits on.

The three-page decision came after the one-day hearing at Osgoode Hall concluded on Friday.

A Toronto lawyer representing Di Ciano (Ward 5 Etobicoke Lakeshore) and a local resident, Tony Natale, argued at the divisional court that the Ontario Municipal Board had erred when it affirmed the council's move to 47 wards from 44.

Council voted in November 2016 to increase the the total number of wards after the 47-ward option was recommended by independent consultants following review that took close to four years.

Di Ciano, another councillor, Giorgio Mammoliti (Ward 7 York West), and several private citizens appealed that decision to the OMB, a provincial tribunal that hears land-use disputes, last year.

In December, the majority of a three-member OMB panel sided with the city, agreeing there were "no clear and compelling reasons to interfere with the decision of council."

Di Ciano and Natale's lawyer were seeking the opportunity to appeal the decision in court. An appeal, heard by a panel of judges, can only be heard if there is a question of law.

A Superior Court judge has tossed the request from a city councillor to appeal the city's new ward boundaries.

The decision, which came in writing on Tuesday, ends Councillor Justin Di Ciano's nearly year-long endeavour to overturn a decision of the council he sits on.

The three-page decision came after the one-day hearing at Osgoode Hall concluded on Friday.

A Toronto lawyer representing Di Ciano (Ward 5 Etobicoke Lakeshore) and a local resident, Tony Natale, argued at the divisional court that the Ontario Municipal Board had erred when it affirmed the council's move to 47 wards from 44.

Council voted in November 2016 to increase the the total number of wards after the 47-ward option was recommended by independent consultants following review that took close to four years.

Di Ciano, another councillor, Giorgio Mammoliti (Ward 7 York West), and several private citizens appealed that decision to the OMB, a provincial tribunal that hears land-use disputes, last year.

In December, the majority of a three-member OMB panel sided with the city, agreeing there were "no clear and compelling reasons to interfere with the decision of council."

Di Ciano and Natale's lawyer were seeking the opportunity to appeal the decision in court. An appeal, heard by a panel of judges, can only be heard if there is a question of law.