Time to disband Niagara Region?

RE: NIAGARA MAYORS READY TO PLAY ROLE IN GOVERNANCE REVIEW, FEB. 8

This may be a good time to discuss restructuring government in Niagara. The answer is simple, disband the regional tier completely.

The logistics will undoubtedly be more complicated than the answer, but this may be the only logical solution. Municipal government is the most accountable to its constituents. I have not experienced any savings financially or otherwise since the Region was formed. If this is incorrect I would like someone to present some factual information to the contrary.

I wonder if there has ever been a comprehensive study to this end. We are currently looking at a 5.15 per cent increase in our water bill. We are also looking at a similar increase to the regional portion of our taxes

Could the Region use some of the hundreds of millions of dollars it has in reserve as reported some months ago to avoid these increases? After all, this is our money. We have far too many elected and non-elected officials at the Region for a population of just under a half-million people. It is time for a change in our political landscape not our geographical landscape.

I live here because of the way it is. I do not want to live in big city Ontario. Let’s reduce our government. Let’s not grow our population. It is time to realize that growth does not translate into progress or a better life.

Vince Turner

Welland