Bradford is getting strong mayor powers whether the they want them or not.
Mayor James Leduc said he has no plans to use the powers, noting they came as part of package deal which allowed the town access to Ontario's Building Faster Fund, when council committed to meet the province’s housing targets.
“My job is to bring a consensus to this table,” he said. “We need to work together as a group.”
Despite the mayor suggesting the town stick with the status quo for procedures, the potential to use the new powers required an explanation in a report from Geoff McKnight, chief administrative officer (CAO), and Tara Reynolds, clerk, which was accompanied by a presentation from John Mascarin of Aird & Berlis LLP, during the regular meeting of council on Nov. 7.
Appearing virtually, Mascarin explained the province introduced the powers to further its priority of building 1.5 million new homes by Dec. 31, 2031 and implementing and maintaining the infrastructure to support housing, including: transit, roads, utilities and servicing.
Those new powers fit into three categories including administrative, legislative and financial.
The administrative powers can be delegated to council or in some cases the CAO and include:
- Directing staff unilaterally without the consensus of council
- Hiring or dismissing the CAO or heads of departments (with some exceptions)
- Determining the organizational structure of the municipality
- Appointing the chairs and vice-chairs of committees of council
The legislative powers can only be exercised by the mayor and only to further the stated provincial priorities. They include:
- Requiring council to consider matters at meetings
- Proposing a bylaw which could pass with the support of only one-third of council plus one
- Vetoing a bylaw, which council could override with a two-thirds majority vote
To propose or veto a bylaw, the mayor is required to provide written notice, and staff have prepared templates for this purpose.
The financial powers cannot be delegated and require the mayor to propose the budget for the municipality each year by Feb. 1. The mayor must share the proposed budget with each member of council and the municipal clerk, and make it available to the public, but it does not need to be tied to provincial priorities.
Council then has 30 days to propose amendments which the mayor could veto, but council could also override that veto.
If the head of council does not propose the budget by Feb. 1, council must prepare and adopt the budget.
Several councillors objected to the potential implications on the democratic process.
“I categorically hate the minority rule one-third notion. That’s entirely anti-democratic,” Ward 2 Coun. Jonathan Scott said, adding council wasn’t elected in 2022 with a mandate for strong mayor powers.
Scott also noted the irony in having the powers roll out to 18 municipalities across the province at a time when the province is walking back some its bolder moves, like changes to the Greenbelt.
“This premier and this government are showing us the warnings of using power without careful consideration in advance,” he said, noting that strong mayors will need strong councils, residents and fifth estates to keep them in check.
Those sentiments were echoed by Ward 3 Coun. Ben Verkaik who doesn’t expect the mayor would abuse the power, but also questioned the benefit.
“Municipalities don’t build houses; private enterprise builds houses. We’re not delaying anything,” he said, pointing, as an example, to the property at the north-east corner of Holland Street West and Professor Day Drive, which has sat undeveloped for decades.
Ward 4 Coun. Joseph Giordano worried about potential to “erode democracy,” but also saw “immediate value” to the Bradford residents. And Ward 7 Coun. Peter Dykie said “there’s always ways of trying to do better,” while expressing concern about the powers interfering with councillors’ ability to represent residents.
Deputy Mayor Raj Sandhu acknowledged that it’s normal to be afraid of new things, but trusted all members of council to do what’s best for residents and noted that since the last election, council has found consensus on most issues.
Sandhu also noted the importance of working with the province to realize projects important to the town, such as the Bradford Bypass and the 400 employment lands.
“Give it a chance,” he said.
Leduc again reiterated that “it’s not one person who leads this community,” and “it’s nine of us who make those decisions and it will always stay that way.”
As a result of the changes, staff prepared flow charts to show all the twists and turns both the budget and bylaw veto processes could take.
In order for the town’s budget process to continue as it has in the past, the mayor can issue a mayoral decision that directs staff to draft a budget for presentation to council, and while that would serve as the “Mayor’s Budget” it would be subject to the typical deliberations that are set to occur in January.
Staff plan to work with the mayor to develop administrative steps that replicate the current authority of CAO and council to hire and dismiss senior staff.
The modified approach would allow the CAO to continue exercising general control and management of the affairs of the municipality while reporting to the whole of council. Any requests to staff from the mayor or council to carry out actions would continue to be directed through the CAO.
If the office of the mayor is vacated, council cannot appoint a replacement and a by-election must instead take place, and a deputy mayor cannot exercise strong mayor powers.
Staff plan to create a website to host general information and act as a repository for all mayoral decisions.
While provincial bills 3 and 39 initially granted strong mayor powers to Toronto and Ottawa in September 2022, they were proposed for Bradford on Aug. 21, 2023 and granted Oct. 31.
To see the province's full explanation of strong mayor powers, visit their website.
