At its April 22 council meeting, Brighton politicians responded to a declaration by the Ontario government, which bestowed strong mayor powers on Mayor Brian Ostrander.
The provincial government granted 169 municipalities strong mayor powers on April 9, including Trent Hills, Brighton, Cobourg, and Port Hope.
Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Rob Flack outlined the powers in a letter to council as:
“Heads of council in strong mayor municipalities can:
- Choose to appoint the municipality’s chief administrative officer.
- Hire certain municipal department heads, and establish and reorganize departments.
- Create committees of council, assign their functions, and appoint the Chairs and Vice-Chairs of committees of council.
- Propose the municipal budget, which would be subject to council amendments and a separate mayoral veto and council override process.
- Veto certain by-laws if they are of the opinion that all or part of the by-law could potentially interfere with a provincial priority, such as housing, transit and infrastructure. Bring forward matters for council consideration if they are of the opinion that considering the matter could potentially advance a provincial priority.Â
- Propose certain municipal by-laws if they are of the opinion that the proposed by-law could potentially advance a provincial priority. Council can pass these by-laws if more than one-third of council members vote in favour.”
The discussion was in response to correspondence on the agenda from multiple municipalities opposing the new strong mayor powers, which are set to take effect on May 1.
The mayor said a letter will be released to the public explaining what is going on. A notice of motion will be brought before council shortly to allow further debate as politicians work to determine the impact of the changes.
Hear the mayor’s response and concerns raised by councillors about these new powers and what they will mean to the municipality. You decide what this means for your community.
Continue to follow Consider This Northumberland in the upcoming weeks as it explores the implications for local municipalities.
The podcast is part of a new series titled “In Their Words.” The segment aims to give people who would not usually attend a council meeting a chance to hear their political representatives at work. No spin. No opinions. No one is telling you what to think. Just what was said.
