Following months of review, Chatham-Kent’s elected officials will soon make a final decision on proposed changes to the municipal ward boundaries and a possible reduction of council composition.
During a council meeting on Monday, council will be asked to choose one of three options — expand the municipality into ten wards represented by 12 councillors and one mayor; increase the number of wards to seven with a council of 14 and one mayor; or keep the status quo of six wards represented by 17 councillors and the mayor.
In each of the options, the boundaries of all wards will be adjusted to represent adequate voter parity.
At the request of council, consulting firm StrategyCorp initially presented seven draft options for adjusting the size of council and the existing ward boundaries during a council meeting on November 4. According to the firm, each option was designed with effective representation in mind by examining the current population in each ward and the projected population growth over the next five years.
Those options were then made available to local residents as part of an online survey and two public engagement meetings to allow the firm to collect feedback. StrategyCorp has also conducted one-on-one meetings with councillors, CK’s chief administrative officer, and other senior staff.
Based on feedback received, all three of the options coming to council were adjusted to align Chatham ward boundaries with the practical boundary of Chatham and to keep all of Wallaceburg as one ward. As well, all boundaries are designed to avoid splitting neighbourhoods or dividing them from their communities.
Should council move forward with one of the proposed options, administration will be asked to return to the January 27, 2025 council meeting with a bylaw for council approval.
