An Ontario Municipal Board challenge has been filed against Hamilton city council’s recent ward boundary adjustments.
Stoney Creek resident Mark Richardson says that by largely sticking with the status quo, council has ignored the professional advice of a consultant to whom it paid $270,000, and failed to provide “effective representation” to Hamiltonians.
Craig Burley, Richardson’s lawyer, says the centrepiece of his argument is the concept that some votes count more than others.
For example, Ward 7 on Hamilton’s central mountain has more than 62,000 residents while the councillor in rural Flamborough represents about 17,000.
Burley adds that his client recognizes the need to protect the character of rural communities, but believes it can be done without such “massive disparities” in population.