Whereas Section 218 of the Municipal Act requires regional municipalities to review for each of their lower tier municipalities, the number of members of their council that represent the lower tier within two years of the date the new Council is organized following the regular election in 2018;
Whereas if the region does not pass a by-law to change its council composition or pass a resolution to affirm, for each of its lower-tier municipalities, the number of the members of its council, then the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing may make a regulation changing the composition of Regional Council;
Whereas the Region of Peel organized itself on December 6, 2018 and has since missed the deadline to pass a by-law within two years of organizing itself as required under Section 218 of the Municipal Act;
Whereas the Town of Caledon consists of 56% of the land mass in the Region of Peel and represents communities of interest for small urban/rural villages, agricultural systems, aggregate resources, protected green spaces and a large portion of natural heritage features. In addition, the Town of Caledon’s complex land use planning is governed by multiple pieces of legislation including; Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe; Greenbelt Plan, Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan and the Niagara Escarpment Plan; and
Whereas in advance of the prescribed regional public process and public meeting on the composition of Regional Council, the Cities of Brampton and Mississauga on December 9, 2020 both adopted resolutions supporting the by-law related to the proposed changes to regional council composition not taking into consideration public input from the prescribed regional public meeting scheduled for December 17, 2020;
Now therefore be it resolved that the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing be requested to make a regulation regarding the composition of the Region of Peel under Section 218 of the Municipal Act taking into consideration; effective rural representation including size of geographic area, community interests, protection of environmental sustainability and prime agricultural land, and the largest growth trajectory in the province;
That the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing's regulation maintains Caledon’s five (5) representatives at the Region of Peel; and
That as a sitting member of the provincial government the Honourable Sylvia Jones, Solicitor General representing Dufferin-Caledon, utilize her status as cabinet minister to advocate within the government to ensure Caledon maintain its five (5) representatives at the Region of Peel.