Town of Essex Council and Ward Structure Review Public - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Town of Essex Council and Ward Structure Review

Public Consultation Open House Ward Boundary Review July 2017

1

Introduction

 Watson & Associates Economists Ltd., in association with Dr.

Robert J. Williams, have been retained by the Town of Essex to conduct a Council and Ward Structure Review

 Multi-phase assignment which commenced in late 2016 with

anticipated completion in August 2017

 The first phase of the Review (completed in May 2017)

addressed:

 How to fill the position of Deputy Mayor  The composition of Council  How to elect members of Council (i.e. ward-based or at-large)

 The second phase of the Review (in progress) will identify

plausible ward boundary arrangements in which to elect members of Council – Ward Boundary Review

2

Study Process

• Data Collection and Research
• Technical Analysis on

Population Trends and Growth

• Interviews with Mayor and

Members of Council

• Public Consultation (Round 1)
• Interim Report
• Seek Council Direction on

Election of Deputy Mayor, Council Composition and Electoral System

• Develop Preliminary Ward

Boundary Options

• Public Consultation (Round 2)
• Finalize Options
• Final Recommendations Report
• Presentation of Options to

Council

• Adoption and Implementation

through By-law

Phase 1 Phase 2

3

Study Process (Cont’d)

 The Review incorporates a comprehensive public

engagement component

 Purpose of public engagement:  To inform residents of Essex about the context and

reasons for the review, key considerations

 To engage residents to provide input to development

and design of wards

 Based on feedback from Round 2 of public consultation,

the Consultant Team will prepare a final report with recommendations.

4

Context

 Town of Essex: January 1, 1999 through the

amalgamation of the Townships of Colchester North and Colchester South, Towns of Harrow and Essex

 Council presently comprises of a Mayor and six

Town Councillors elected in four wards based on the pre-amalgamation municipalities

 One ward Councillor elected Deputy Mayor by

secret ballot of Council

5

Context (Cont’d)

 Municipal Act, 2001  Section 217 authorizes Council to establish

the number of councillors and to determine whether they “shall be elected by general vote

• r wards or by any combination of general

vote and wards”

 Section 222 (1) authorizes a municipality “to

divide or redivide the municipality into wards

• r to dissolve the existing wards”

 No Provincially-prescribed process or

principles

6

Considerations for Review

 Four “layers” of decisions to be implemented for

2018 Municipal Election

 First three addressed through Phase 1:

1. Determine the method of election for the position of Deputy Mayor (to be elected at-large) 2. Agree on the “composition” of Council (five Councillors) 3. Determine whether to retain a ward system (maintain ward system)

 These three questions were addressed by Council

• n May 15, 2017

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Considerations for Review (Cont’d)

• 4. Since wards are to be used to elect five

Councillors (not six) and the ward boundaries have not been reviewed since amalgamation, it is necessary to initiate a review of the boundaries to ensure that the wards constitute an effective and equitable electoral arrangement

8

What is a Ward Boundary Review?

 What is a W.B.R.?  A task designed to develop units of

representation that reflect the distribution of the inhabitants of a municipality for electoral purposes

 Why are periodic W.B.R.s important?  Electoral arrangements need to be reviewed

regularly to ensure that representation remains consistent with democratic values

9

Present Wards in Town of Essex

Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Ward 1 7,445 2 3,725 0.84

O-

8,430 2 4,215 0.90

O-

Ward 2 4,425 1 4,425 1.00

O

4,440 1 4,440 0.95

O-

Ward 3 7,525 2 3,765 0.85

O-

7,545 2 3,775 0.80

O-

Ward 4 2,710 1 2,710 0.61

OR-

3,070 1 3,070 0.65

OR-

Optimal Population per Councillor

4,420 4,695

Total

22,100 23,475 *Includes permanent and seasonal population.

Ward

2016 2026

Variance Variance

10

Criteria for a Ward Boundary Review

 Terms of Reference and Guiding Criteria for the

W.B.R. in Essex adopted October 2016 (Clerk’s Report 2016-009)

 “The review will have regard to the following

guiding criteria, subject to the overriding principle of "effective representation" set out by the Supreme Court of Canada in Reference re Provincial Electoral Boundaries”

11

Guiding Principles

a) Representation by Population

 Wards should have relatively equal population

• totals. However, a degree of variation is

acceptable given differences in geography and population densities, as well as the Town's characteristics

 The Town of Essex has an estimated 2016

population of 22,100 with about one-third located in Essex Urban Centre

11

12

Guiding Principles (Cont’d)

b) Population and Electoral Trends

 Consider anticipated population

increases/decreases so that ward sizes will be balanced for up to three terms of Council

 Town population forecast to increase to

23,475 by 2026, an increase of 6% from 2016 c) Means of Communication and Accessibility

 Group existing neighbourhoods into wards

that reflect current transportation and communication patterns

12

13

Guiding Principles (Cont’d)

d) Geographical and Topographical Features

 Use geographical and topographical features

to delineate ward boundaries while keeping wards compact and easy to understand e) Community or Diversity of Interests

 As far as possible, ward boundaries should be

drawn around recognized settlement areas, traditional neighbourhoods and community groupings - not through them

13

14

Guiding Principles (Cont’d)

 “the overriding principle of ‘effective

representation’” (from the Carter decision 1991)

 each resident will have comparable access to

their elected representative and each Ward Councillor should speak in governmental deliberations on behalf of the same number

• f residents

 it may be necessary to apply some principles

less stringently in order to better satisfy what may be viewed as other, more desirable, principles

14

15

Preliminary Options

Implications of May 15 Council decision:

 the present ward format (4 wards: 2 wards

electing 2 Councillors each, 2 wards electing 1 Councillor each) is no longer workable

 Council did not “pre-determine” a revised ward

format

 new ward boundaries will be consistent with the

guiding criteria accepted by Council in October 2016

15

16

Potential Directions for the W.B.R. in Essex

• 1. Number of Wards (District Magnitude)

 how many wards will be used and how will the

Councillors be distributed among them?

 present four-ward system not symmetrical (two wards

elect two Councillors each, two wards elect one Councillor each). Questions to consider:

 Is a mixed format preferred for Essex? Is such a

format equitable?

 Is a one councilor per ward format a preferred

• ption?

 Public feedback from first round of consultation

identified no clear preference

17

Potential Directions for the W.B.R. in Essex (cont’d)

• 2. Ward Boundaries

 Present wards not suitable to elect five Councillors  To provide “effective representation” possible

alternatives needed to “redivide” the municipality based on an evaluation through the established “guiding criteria”

18

Preliminary Options

 Preliminary options developed based on four-

ward and five-ward model:

 Four ward model (one ward electing two Councillors,

three wards electing one Councilor each)

 Preliminary Option 4A  Preliminary Option 4B  Preliminary Option 4C

 5 ward model (Five wards electing one Councillor each)

 Preliminary Option 5A  Preliminary Option 5B  Preliminary Option 5C

18

19

Preliminary Option 4A

19

Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Ward 1 7,445 2 3,725 0.84

O-

8,435 2 4,220 0.90

O-

Ward 2 4,715 1 4,715 1.07

O+

4,730 1 4,730 1.01

O

Ward 3 4,555 1 4,555 1.03

O

4,895 1 4,895 1.04

O

Ward 4 5,390 1 5,390 1.22

O+

5,420 1 5,420 1.15

O+

Optimal Population per Councillor

4,420 4,695

Total

22,100 23,475 *Includes permanent and seasonal population.

Ward

2016 2026

Variance Variance

20

Preliminary Option 4B

20

Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Ward 1 8,350 2 4,175 0.94

O-

9,325 2 4,665 0.99

O

Ward 2 3,945 1 3,945 0.89

O-

3,965 1 3,965 0.84

O-

Ward 3 4,525 1 4,525 1.02

O

4,865 1 4,865 1.04

O

Ward 4 5,280 1 5,280 1.19

O+

5,325 1 5,325 1.13

O+

Optimal Population per Councillor

4,420 4,695

Total

22,100 23,475 *Includes permanent and seasonal population. 2026

Variance Variance

2016

Ward

21

Preliminary Option 4C

21

Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Ward 1 7,750 2 3,875 0.88

O-

8,730 2 4,365 0.93

O-

Ward 2 4,550 1 4,550 1.03

O

4,565 1 4,565 0.97

O

Ward 3 4,580 1 4,580 1.04

O

4,620 1 4,620 0.98

O

Ward 4 5,225 1 5,225 1.18

O+

5,560 1 5,560 1.18

O+

Optimal Population per Councillor

4,420 4,695

Total

22,100 23,475 *Includes permanent and seasonal population.

Ward

2016 2026

Variance Variance

22

Preliminary Option 5A

22

Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Ward 1 3,105 1 3,105 0.70

OR-

3,365 1 3,365 0.72

OR-

Ward 2 4,640 1 4,640 1.05

O

5,365 1 5,365 1.14

O+

Ward 3 4,920 1 4,920 1.11

O+

4,930 1 4,930 1.05

O+

Ward 4 4,275 1 4,275 0.97

O

4,620 1 4,620 0.98

O

Ward 5 5,160 1 5,160 1.17

O+

5,195 1 5,195 1.11

O+

Optimal Population per Councillor

4,420 4,695

Total

22,100 23,475 *Includes permanent and seasonal population.

Ward

2016 2026

Variance Variance

23

Preliminary Option 5B

23

Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Ward 1 3,285 1 3,285 0.74

OR-

3,540 1 3,540 0.75

O-

Ward 2 4,460 1 4,460 1.01

O

5,190 1 5,190 1.11

O+

Ward 3 4,555 1 4,555 1.03

O

4,565 1 4,565 0.97

O

Ward 4 5,845 1 5,845 1.32

OR+

6,240 1 6,240 1.33

OR+

Ward 5 3,965 1 3,965 0.90

O-

3,940 1 3,940 0.84

O-

Optimal Population per Councillor

4,420 4,695

Total

22,100 23,475 *Includes permanent and seasonal population. 2026

Variance Ward

2016

Variance

24

Preliminary Option 5C

24

Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Population # of Councillors Population Per Councillor Ward 1 3,005 1 3,005 0.68

OR-

3,265 1 3,265 0.70

OR-

Ward 2 4,440 1 4,440 1.00

O

5,170 1 5,170 1.10

O+

Ward 3 4,420 1 4,420 1.00

O

4,435 1 4,435 0.94

O-

Ward 4 4,680 1 4,680 1.06

O+

4,720 1 4,720 1.01

O

Ward 5 5,560 1 5,560 1.26

OR+

5,890 1 5,890 1.25

O+

Optimal Population per Councillor

4,420 4,695

Total

22,100 23,475 *Includes permanent and seasonal population.

Variance Variance

2026

Ward

2016

25

Issues to Consider in this Review

 What, in your judgment, are the strengths and

weaknesses of the present wards that should be considered in an alternative ward system?

 Which principle(s) should be given the highest

priority in designing an alternative ward system?

 Which of the Preliminary Options do you like/

dislike? Why?

25

26

Next Step in the Study Process

 Based on feedback from public consultation and

further refinement, the Consultant Team will:

 finalize ward boundary options; and  prepare Final Report and Recommendations (mid-

August 2017)

 Recommended ward boundary alternatives to be

presented to Council on August 21, 2017

27

Thank you

 Questions/Comments