There was a little bit of confusion at last week’s Essex County Council meeting when it came to the issue of how the upper tier will represent individual municipalities at annual Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) conferences.
Essex Mayor Sherry Bondy brought forth a notice of motion that would have required county administration to bring a report to council prior to the conference and that issues regarding delegations would be discussed to see if there was a consensus on what the priorities were.
“Tonight, we can have a conversation and see what we want,” said Bondy.
Recently, the Town of Amherstburg teamed with the county administration to present to the Ministry of Health to find ways to ease the lack of after-hours health care availability in the town. At a recent county council meeting, Bondy felt that it was a county-wide issue and that all municipalities should have input on issues that affect all communities.
“The role of the county councillor is really evolving, it’s changing and we have a lot more accountability to the public,” said Bondy.
CAO Sandra Zwiers said that the county should be picking specific issues that help advance the region as far as what it is laid out in the Strategic Plan.
It was noted during Wednesday’s meeting that 95 per cent of what the county lobbies for at the AMO conference is to seek funding.
Kingsville Deputy Mayor Kim DeYong supported Bondy and also wanted a report to come to council prior to the AMO conference and county council should have the opportunity to discuss what will be presented.
“I didn’t disagree with what the county delegated for, but I didn’t know about it. I’m a member of this table. If the county is partnering with a lower municipality (in this case - Amherstburg), it indicates it is a county-wide concern,” said DeYong.
After a tied 7-7 vote, Bondy’s motion was defeated which was followed by LaSalle Mayor Crystal Meloche who tweaked Bondy’s motion by saying that a report prior to the conference on what the county will be doing is necessary but having county council discuss it is not required.
Meloche said that when she goes to the AMO conference, she wants to be prepared in advance on what the county is delegating for and to what provincial ministry.
Ironically, Bondy seconded Meloche’s revamped motion which was passed.
“I don’t need to tell the warden or experienced staff what needs to be said. It is a good idea to know in advance, not what they are going to say,” said Amherstburg Mayor Michael Prue.
County councillors to have more info prior to AMO conferences
By Fred Groves
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