Province to review Waterloo Region and over 80 other municipalities

Ontario will be reviewing 82 municipalities with an eye to cost cutting.

The move comes after the Progressive Conservative government slashed the size of Toronto's city council nearly in half last year.

The government has tapped two experts to conduct the review of Halton, York, Durham, Waterloo Region, Niagara, Peel, Muskoka District, Oxford County, the County of Simcoe and their lower-tier municipalities.

Municipal Affairs Minister Steve Clark says in a statement that the aim is to improve how regional government works, make better use of taxpayer money and make it easier for people and businesses to access services.

Clark said regional governments have been around for nearly 50 years so it was time for a fresh look.

One of the questions the experts will consider is whether two-tier structures are appropriate for all of the municipalities.

Michael Fenn, a deputy minister and founding CEO of regional transportation agency Metrolinx, and Ken Seiling, who recently retired as Waterloo Region chair, are set to give their recommendations to the province by early summer.

Here is what Fenn and Seiling will be reviewing:

• Opportunities to make it easier for residents and businesses to access municipal services
• Processes to deliver efficient and effective local services that respects taxpayers' money
• Methods to make municipalities open for business
• Possibilities to cut red tape and duplication, and save costs

The mayor of Kitchener welcomes the review.

“I think this is a great opportunity for us to discuss how to best serve the residents and businesses of Kitchener and Waterloo Region.” Berry Vrbanovic told 570 NEWS. “We have one of, in my view, one of the best run regions in the province and through this process I'm confident we'll be able to share some best practices with others across the province.”

with files from KitchenerToday