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Wednesday, February 22,2006 Ofono Weekly Times - 9 "V, ■ '»;.•/> m •***>; v»-*' f 1 v, TV '*»% it Z#*7r; .<•' »■ - ■* -• •■' •;• ;• -••sluf. %Cy;> •• / - 1 - t. r ".1?'*****-,Kv* k **'"'*■ ^ : 'T^ ' * '■'■?■ " " •. 'SÉSê -• É| «Ss* • sasps-^-- • >x*. piiiii • ; : v' ' '■., ■ Z .,- ,,* W&, s- ■ - ^ w • ' „*•** ' ...; : £ -- ' <" : V - SSîë While strong winds prevailed Friday afternoon, the swells on Lake Ontario'at Newcastle were not of sufficient enough to get surfers up on their boards. It's your garbage. What do you want us to do with it? We need your ideas unities' garbage issues. Join us and voice your opinion. Re: Regional Chair Refendum motion dies at Region Public information sessions will be held from 5:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 7, 2006 Wednesday, March 8,2006 Thursday, March 9,2006 Cannington Ajax Community Centre Courtice Community Community Centre HMS Room . Complex Hall A 91 Elliot Street 75 Centennial Road 2950 Courtice Road North Township of Brock Town of Ajax . Municipality of Clârington For details regarding the public information sessions please visit www.durhamyorkwaste.ca or call 905-668-7711 ext 3731. There will be no referendum referendum question on the munici- ' pal ballot this November. The mayors of Ajax and Osliawa put forward a motion at Wedensday's Regional Council meeting to-add the question, "Should the.Chair of the Region of Durham be elected by general vote?" to the ballot at the next municipal municipal election. The Regional Chair is' elected by. the 28 Regional Councillors who are themselves themselves elected representatives of their municipalities. The matter of how the Regional Chair is elected, comes up for debate every year at Regional Council. When the latest motion was defeated on Wednesday in a 14 to 13 vote, Chairman Roger Anderson said, "This will-be the last time we. deal with if this year." Prior to the motion getting on the Regional agenda for .last Wednesday's meeting, it was dealt with at the eight lower tier municipalities. The councils of Ajax, Pickering and Oshawa voted in favour n; J of the referendum question 1 appearing on the next municipal, municipal, election ballot. When presenting the motion for a referendum question, question, Ajax Mayor Steve Parish . said, "We have three municipalities, municipalities, whose combined pop-., illation are in access of fifty per cent of the electorate in the , Region of Durham, deciding that this ballot question should appear on thé ballot." Parish said, there are many valid reasons to have the Regional Chair elected at large, "principle among them, the electors will have opportunity opportunity to debate regional issues every three years," he stated. "People who pay the bills should have a say in the way, we select a Regional Chair," Parish said. Mayor John Mutton told Regional Council' that while tie was torn on the issue his council have .voted against placing the referendum ques- . tion ' on the ballot. "It's , a waste of money," stated Mayor Mutton, "we know were the public stand on this issue." At the January 16, 2006. council meeting, Clarington Council voted unanimously not to endorse the Ajax referendum proposal, At that time Mayor Mutton mentioned that the issue was a personal one with some members members of Ajax council, Two years ago, in March of 2004, Mayor • John Mutton introduced a motion at Regional Council calling for future Regional Chairs to be elected at large, rather than from within the ranks of Regional Council. It was decided at that meeting to table the motion for six weeks to allow local area municipalities municipalities to comment on the matter. matter. At that time, four of the Region's eight munciplities: Scugog, Brock, Uxbridge and Whitby indicated they were not supportive of changing the way the Regional Chair is elected. Clarington council voted unanimously at their: April 26, 2004 council meeting meeting to support the resolution to elect future Regional Chairs at large... A ..'VI• After a long debate at the May 26, 2004 Regional Council meeting on the issue of how the Regional Chair should be elected, Councillor Marilyn Pearce, Mayor of Scugog, put forward a motion to table the matter since there was insufficient support to • carry it forward. Her motion carried. Mayor Mutton, claims he is still in favour of electing the Regional Chair at large, but gainst holding a referendum. • >,.> At : last -■ Wednesday's Regional Council Meeting, Uxbridge Mayor Gerri Lynn O'Connor stated, "I've seen them come and I've seen them go, yet I've never seen a Regional Chair that wasn't doing their best for the Region." . According to O'Connor, thé mariner in which the Regional Chair is selected was never an issue till 1997. That was the year Roger Anderson ran for the Mayor of Ajax, was defeated and became Chair of thé Region. "Some people in' Ajax , were incensed that somebody ran for Mayor, was defeated in their community, and ends up'. as Regional Chair," stated O'Connor. "People are more concerned concerned about their taxes, roads and the health care system; than who is sitting in the Regional Chair," O ' Connor I said. "It's time we bury this." Councillor Jim Schell of . Clarington said he felt the current current arrangement was perfect, and the matter was a personal one against Chair Anderson.' "If it ain't broke, why do we want to fix it," he said. "There is nothing to fix in my mind." According to Parish, Wednesday's Regional Council meeting was the last possible date for council to . deal with the matter prior to November's election. As his resolution was not adopted, the matter should be closed for the rest of this term of office.