Should the Capital Region District be included in the Big City Mayors' Caucus of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities?
September 14, 2016
Recently, the Chair of the Capital Region District wrote to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) to request that the CRD be included in the Big City Mayors' Caucus (BCMC) of the FCM.
The FCM lobbies on behalf of municipalities across the country and the BCMC represents the interests of Canada's biggest cities. Currently, no municipality in Greater Victoria has a population large enough to qualify for inclusion in the BCMC, although the regional population places Greater Victoria as the 15th largest urban area in Canada (Census Management Areas, as defined by Statistics Canada).
The CRD consists of 13 municipal governments in Greater Victoria. The largest municipality (Saanich) has a population of about 110,000, while the smallest (Highlands) has about 2,000.
The multiplicity of municipalities in the small area most people know as “Victoria” has resulted in a dysfunctional system of local government. Under the Province of BC enabling legislation, the CRD is made up of appointments from these 13 municipalities (plus 3 unorganized areas).
At issue is the fact that these are appointments of mayors and councillors who are not elected to the CRD. This is a critical distinction with respect to their authority and accountability to represent the people of this region. The BC legislation sets out the mayors and councillors are appointed to represent the interests of their municipality at the CRD table, and not the region.
In Greater Victoria there is massive discontent with the current system of governance. In November 2014, after much public outcry for amalgamation, 8 of the 13 municipalities (representing 89% of the CRD population) agreed to place non-binding questions on the ballot. They could not, or would not, agree on the common wording of a question. But regardless of the variations, citizens voted 75% in favour of local governance reform or a study to that end. Since then the municipalities have not acted on this mandate.
The CRD is commonly characterized as completely dysfunctional. For example, Greater Victoria currently dumps its raw sewage into the ocean. Ten years ago, the Federal government ordered the CRD to build a sewage treatment plant. But more than $75+ million has been spent and no shovel is yet in the ground. Why? Because each CRD Board member had veto power over siting the treatment plant in their municipality, and NIMBY-ism is rampant. Board members do not think as a region. Earlier this summer, after much public outcry, the Province of BC rescued the project by appointing an independent project team to select a site and oversee the project, and finally the municipalities had no effective veto in the final decision.
Sewage treatment is just one example of the inability of local governments to work together. In Greater Victoria there are 91 mayors and councillors for a mere 368,000 population and each municipality operates in a silo. One wag recently described it as an "administratively pixelated" government. The problems are also manifested in the lack of transportation planning across the region, with no overall vision or approach to improving public transit and reducing motor vehicle dependency. The result is a horrendous daily gridlock of vehicles moving from the western suburbs into the city centre. Meanwhile a rail corridor languishes for lack of coordinated leadership to bring commuter rail to the region.
Local government reform is sorely needed in Greater Victoria, there is no question of that. Until such time as that takes place, either through amalgamation, or through the reform of the CRD so that the Board is elected by the people of the region, it is completely inappropriate that the CRD be included in the BCMC.
Furthermore, what would prevent other smaller municipalities banding together and demanding inclusion in the BCMC if a precedent was set by including the unelected CRD?
The importance and influence of the BCMC is well understood and appreciated, and BCMC members bring their electoral mandate to any discussions.
In the case of the CRD, there is no electoral mandate from the residents of Greater Victoria.
- Lesley Ewing
September 14, 2016
Recently, the Chair of the Capital Region District wrote to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) to request that the CRD be included in the Big City Mayors' Caucus (BCMC) of the FCM.
The FCM lobbies on behalf of municipalities across the country and the BCMC represents the interests of Canada's biggest cities. Currently, no municipality in Greater Victoria has a population large enough to qualify for inclusion in the BCMC, although the regional population places Greater Victoria as the 15th largest urban area in Canada (Census Management Areas, as defined by Statistics Canada).
The CRD consists of 13 municipal governments in Greater Victoria. The largest municipality (Saanich) has a population of about 110,000, while the smallest (Highlands) has about 2,000.
The multiplicity of municipalities in the small area most people know as “Victoria” has resulted in a dysfunctional system of local government. Under the Province of BC enabling legislation, the CRD is made up of appointments from these 13 municipalities (plus 3 unorganized areas).
At issue is the fact that these are appointments of mayors and councillors who are not elected to the CRD. This is a critical distinction with respect to their authority and accountability to represent the people of this region. The BC legislation sets out the mayors and councillors are appointed to represent the interests of their municipality at the CRD table, and not the region.
In Greater Victoria there is massive discontent with the current system of governance. In November 2014, after much public outcry for amalgamation, 8 of the 13 municipalities (representing 89% of the CRD population) agreed to place non-binding questions on the ballot. They could not, or would not, agree on the common wording of a question. But regardless of the variations, citizens voted 75% in favour of local governance reform or a study to that end. Since then the municipalities have not acted on this mandate.
The CRD is commonly characterized as completely dysfunctional. For example, Greater Victoria currently dumps its raw sewage into the ocean. Ten years ago, the Federal government ordered the CRD to build a sewage treatment plant. But more than $75+ million has been spent and no shovel is yet in the ground. Why? Because each CRD Board member had veto power over siting the treatment plant in their municipality, and NIMBY-ism is rampant. Board members do not think as a region. Earlier this summer, after much public outcry, the Province of BC rescued the project by appointing an independent project team to select a site and oversee the project, and finally the municipalities had no effective veto in the final decision.
Sewage treatment is just one example of the inability of local governments to work together. In Greater Victoria there are 91 mayors and councillors for a mere 368,000 population and each municipality operates in a silo. One wag recently described it as an "administratively pixelated" government. The problems are also manifested in the lack of transportation planning across the region, with no overall vision or approach to improving public transit and reducing motor vehicle dependency. The result is a horrendous daily gridlock of vehicles moving from the western suburbs into the city centre. Meanwhile a rail corridor languishes for lack of coordinated leadership to bring commuter rail to the region.
Local government reform is sorely needed in Greater Victoria, there is no question of that. Until such time as that takes place, either through amalgamation, or through the reform of the CRD so that the Board is elected by the people of the region, it is completely inappropriate that the CRD be included in the BCMC.
Furthermore, what would prevent other smaller municipalities banding together and demanding inclusion in the BCMC if a precedent was set by including the unelected CRD?
The importance and influence of the BCMC is well understood and appreciated, and BCMC members bring their electoral mandate to any discussions.
In the case of the CRD, there is no electoral mandate from the residents of Greater Victoria.
- Lesley Ewing