Iveson takes lead as cities ponder support for Toronto council

Mayor Don Iveson used his Big City Mayors’ chairmanship Thursday to pledge full support for Toronto’s beleaguered city council, saying the Canadian mayors’ organization will seek intervener status to create a legal precedent against further interference.

He’s also calling on all orders of government to seek consensus on the role of cities in Canada, a now highly urbanized country.

“The economic success, the social success, environmental success of our country depends particularly on the success of our big cities,” he said in an interview. “When this kind of thing can happen, it undermines the certainty that we need, the legitimacy we depend on, to do our work and contribute to the country.”

Ontario Premier Doug Ford used the Canadian Constitution’s notwithstanding clause to introduce legislation to change the size of Toronto’s city council in the middle of an election campaign, a move Iveson called unprecedented. The bill passed first reading Wednesday during a chaotic session of the Ontario legislature.

Toronto’s city council has been looking at legal options. As chairman of the federation’s Big City Mayors Caucus, Iveson said mayors will find a way to stand with them.

“We’re all very interested in establishing the precedent out of this Toronto case with regards to the sanctity of elections.

“Provincial governments cannot interfere with an election that is already underway. Who would have thought that’s even on the menu?”

Earlier this week, a Superior Court judge found Ford’s plan to cut Toronto’s city council to 25 seats from 47 was unconstitutional.

Ford argued it’s necessary to streamline decision-making and save taxpayer money.

He said his government’s will should not be derailed by a “politically appointed” judge. Edmonton and Calgary are in the midst of renegotiating their own relationship with the Alberta government. The province established collaboration tables in the recent Municipal Government Act amendments, which formalizes a process for ongoing consultation on key civic issues.

It’s also in the process of negotiating a funding formula that would tie the revenue Edmonton and Calgary get from the province to the economy, said Iveson.

That way cities will be partners in prosperity and plan ahead, rather than seeing grants unilaterally cut back as has happened multiple times with the current Municipal Sustainability Initiative.

The Alberta New Democrat government committed in the last budget to legislate that formula so any change would happen publicly, with advance notice and debate.

“Alberta has been a leader in this,” Iveson said.

“There’s a consensus that I think crosses ... the ideological spectrum, that local governments are vital contributors to building Alberta and have legitimacy in their own right.”

Quebec has also taken a lead, he said, with all parties in its provincial legislature agreeing to a deal allocating a specific percentage of its sales tax directly to cities.

But cities in Manitoba are struggling and Ontario is clearly a flash point.