Clearview says no to county restructuring

A contentious bylaw to reduce the size of Simcoe County council has failed to win the support of Clearview.

Currently, county council is composed of two representatives from each of the 16 member municipalities, with a warden chosen from among those 32. A bylaw passed at the county in April would reduce that number to one representative per municipality, plus a full-time warden, beginning with the next term of council.

Clearview Mayor Doug Measures says the issue is complicated. Under the new structure, any person registered to vote, who is not sitting at county council would be eligible to become warden. They would have to apply, then there would be an open vote by council to make the selection.

Measures thinks it’s a bad idea. “We can’t have an unelected representative who doesn’t have a mandate from the voters become warden for four years.”

Another concern for Measures is the weighted vote provision, which he feels gives too much control to larger municipalities.

At a March 25 meeting of county council, 17 councillors voted in favour of an amendment that would have separated the issue of weighted voting from that of council restructuring, while 15 were opposed. However, once the weighted vote was tallied, the nays outnumbered the yays 80–68, and the amendment failed to pass. Following a break, the 17 councillors who had voted in favour of the amendment did not return to council chambers, and the warden was forced to adjourn the meeting for lack of a quorum.

At Clearview Township’s June 23 meeting, in a recorded vote, only John Broderick was in support of the county bylaw, with Measures and the five remaining councillors opposed. In order to carry, the county bylaw will require the approval of a majority of member municipalities representing a majority of electors. If this is not obtained by Jan. 1, 2026, the bylaw will die on the order paper.