File #: 16-105    Version: 1 Name:
Type: Staff Report Status: Administration Staff Report
File created: 3/7/2016 In control: Committee of the Whole
On agenda: 4/11/2016 Final action:
Title: Draft Capital Region Amalgamation Study Guidelines and Process
Attachments: 1. Draft Amalgamation Study Guidelines, 2. 2014 Election Results re Non-Binding Referendum Questions, 3. Amalgamation Yes letter, 4. City of Victoria letter, 5. Letters with Province, 6. Public Comments
REQUEST FOR DECISION

DATE: March 23, 2016 Report No. ADM-16-007
TO: Laurie Hurst, Chief Administrative Officer
FROM: Anja Nurvo, Director of Corporate Services
SUBJECT:

Title
Draft Capital Region Amalgamation Study Guidelines and ProcessEnd

RECOMMENDATION:

Recommendation
That, following the receipt of public input, Council:
1) finalize the Capital Region Amalgamation Study Guidelines and direct staff to forward the Guidelines to the Province for consideration; and
2) provide comments to Minister Fassbender on the draft Framework for Discussion.
Body

RELEVANT POLICY:

Local Government Act
Community Charter

STRATEGIC RELEVANCE:

This Request for Decision relates to relationships with our neighbours and other levels of government.

BACKGROUND:

At the Committee of the Whole (COTW) meeting on April 20, 2015, Council reviewed the letter from Mayor Helps dated February 17, 2015 and the letter from Tony Heemskerk, Chair, Amalgamation Yes, dated January 7, 2015, together with draft proposed Capital Region Amalgamation Study Guidelines. The COTW discussed several revisions to the draft Guidelines. As directed by the COTW at that meeting, staff wrote to Minister Oakes, the Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development, regarding the Governance Review process and advised that Esquimalt will be conducting further public consultation prior to Council making a decision and addressing the proposed Guidelines for the Study.

The draft Guidelines, revised in accordance with the COTW discussion, were reviewed by Council at its meeting on May 4th, 2015. At that time, Council directed staff to schedule at Town Hall meeting in the Fall in order to obtain public input into the draft Guidelines. The Town Hall meeting was postponed pending release of a report on amalgamation by Professor Bisch, which was expected to be released by the Fraser Institute early in 2016.

The Township received correspondence from Minister Fassbender, the new Minister of Communit...

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