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Ontario Land Tribunal dismisses appeal against Guelph’s new ward boundaries

The Gummer Building and Hope House are among the four downtown structures added to the Illuminate Guelph expansion, made possible by FedDev Ontario. Nick Westoll / Global News

The City of Guelph says the Ontario Land Tribunal has dismissed an appeal filed against its new ward boundaries that were approved by city council earlier this year.

The decision means that the new ward boundaries will be in place for the 2022 municipal election.

The new boundaries keep Guelph at six wards but adjust the shape and size in order to redistribute the population more evenly while keeping future growth in mind, the city said in a statement.

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City council signed off on the new wards in June, but that decision was appealed to the provincial tribunal by a resident.

The appeal argued that the new wards split distinct neighbourhoods and that population by ward could be better distributed, especially in the growing south end.

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The city acknowledged that no model drawn up would be perfect but that the consultants they hired considered population, expected growth, communities of interest and natural boundaries.

In its decision, the tribunal said the community engagement process and expert analysis undertaken by the city and the consultant team “resulted in a ward [boundary] bylaw that achieves effective representation” and that the tribunal is satisfied that the decision of Guelph’s city council is “reasonable and appropriate, serving the best interests of its residents.”

The new ward boundaries can be found on the city’s website.

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