Local leaders react to regional facilitator expected by Sept. 11

With a regional facilitator expected to be appointed to Waterloo Region in the coming weeks, some questions remain, like who the facilitator will be and what they will be facilitating.

On Tuesday, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Steve Clark said facilitators will be named to Waterloo Region and several other upper-tier municipalities by Sept. 11.

“These facilitators will be tasked with reviewing the structures that are in place in these fast-growing areas to ensure that they’re up for the job in delivering efficient, effective and accountable government that residents both expect and deserve,” Clark said during a speech at the annual conference of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario being held in London, Ont.

Local leaders, however, have been left in a lurch as they wait for the province to provide more details and explain what the facilitator will be looking into.

On Wednesday, Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic said he is among those waiting to hear more.

“There's been no indication to me in terms of who that person might be,” he said.

The announcement the facilitator will be named within weeks comes almost a year after Clark initially announced the program.

In November, the province tabled legislation called the "Better Municipal Governance Act.”

“The proposed changes support our bold and transformative plan to get 1.5 million homes built in the next 10 years,” Clark said while introducing the bill.

Waterloo Mayor Dorothy McCabe said while she welcomes the announcement on Tuesday, there are still unanswered questions.

“I mean, while I was happy to hear yesterday that the provincial facilitator will be coming by Sept. 11. You know, until we have the terms of reference, and really know exactly the timelines,” McCabe said

Meanwhile, Regional Chair Karen Redman said she is looking forward to working with the province, but has made it clear she wants to see the region stay intact.

“So, I'm going to go back to what I said when they decided that they were going to change Peel and they were going to make it into two cities. From the beginning, I've said we're stronger together and I believe that we have a great track record,” Redman said.

While some see amalgamation as a possible end result, Vrabanovic said he is not so sure.

“To be very clear, I have not heard anything from any of the conversations I've had, that the province is keen on seeing – as some in the community are – some sort of wholesale amalgamation. I think what they recognize is that each community is different,” Vrbanovic said.

Vrbanovic along with Redman and McCabe say housing is a top priority.

“This is all about ensuring that we make the appropriate adjustments across a variety of areas that can potentially impact how quickly housing gets built,” Vrbanovic added.