4 Ontario municipalities turn down strong mayor powers

Now, four municipalities -- Newmarket, New Tecumseth, Norfolk County and Haldimand County -- have given a straight-up no thanks.

TORONTO _ Several Ontario municipalities have turned down the province’s offer of strong mayor powers because of concerns either with housing targets the government has tied to them, or worries that the powers would lend themselves to a “dictatorship.”

The Progressive Conservative government has assigned housing targets to 50 municipalities — their portion of the 1.5 million homes that Premier Doug Ford has promised to get built by 2031. Ontario is currently well behind the pace needed to accomplish that goal.

As long as the municipality formally commits to their target through a housing pledge, the province will grant them strong mayor powers, which include allowing the head of council to propose housing-related bylaws and pass them with the support of one-third of councillors, override council approval of certain bylaws, and prepare their city’s budget, instead of council.

The province has framed the powers as a way to get more housing built quickly.

But some of the mayors with those powers have vowed not to use them, such as in Toronto and Ottawa, and several others received them with a lukewarm welcome, predicting they would only be used in extraordinary circumstances.

Now, four municipalities — Newmarket, New Tecumseth, Norfolk County and Haldimand County — have given a straight-up no thanks.

Newmarket was the first out of the gate, with Mayor John Taylor telling the province there was no way the town could build 12,000 homes in 10 years because the municipality doesn’t currently have the sewage capacity to serve more than a couple thousand more homes.

“You can’t commit to something that is literally impossible,” he said in a recent interview.