The amalgamation journey between Sundridge, Strong, and Joly in the Almaguin Highlands has taken a surprising twist.
A private citizen is offering to give Joly money to pay for a further study on the issue after Joly town council opposed using any more local tax dollars to fund the process any further. All three municipalities shared the cost for an initial amalgamation study in 2024.
But at the Feb. 11 town council meeting, members of the Joly council refused to contribute their share for a second study to help determine actual amalgamation costs.
Council’s main reason not to fund another study is that most Joly residents oppose amalgamation. “The people don’t want it according to the people I’ve talked to,” said Mayor Brian McCabe.
McCabe told his council and also Strong Mayor Tim Bryson, who appeared at the town council, that he’s fed up with the entire amalgamation process. McCabe added the Joly constituents have told him to end the process.
The second study will cost about $41,500 and as the smallest community, Joly’s share is 10 per cent making its contribution $4,150.
In a surprise move, Bryson, who chairs the restructuring committee, said he would personally pay for Joly’s share as a private citizen.
Bryson told Joly council he got an opinion from integrity commissioner Michael Maynard of ADR Chambers saying there was no issue with Bryson paying for a study as a constituent.
Maynard is Strong’s, Joly’s and Sundridge’s integrity commissioner.
Bryson told council the study doesn’t force Joly into amalgamation; rather, it answers whether there are benefits or not to merging the three municipalities.
He told council he wants Joly to remain involved with the restructuring process to ensure its voice is heard.
Bryson also told council that even if it withdraws from the process and Strong and Sundridge amalgamate, he said under Section 173 (17) of the Municipal Act, Joly could be forced into the newly amalgamated municipality.
McCabe and Coun. Budd Brown said they took this as a threat from Bryson, to which Bryson said it wasn’t a threat, but rather what can happen under the Municipal Act.
Coun. Chris Nicholson said a forced amalgamation by the Ontario government is not something he agrees with, adding it’s the forced or rushed amalgamations that result in problems.
However, he told his colleagues that at the very least the discussions on amalgamating would continue whether Joly is at the table or not, and despite how he personally feels about the matter, "The study will go forward whether we’re there or not.”
Additionally, Nicholson notes he would be nervous if discussions continue on restructuring and Joly is not part of those talks.
Council directed staff to investigate whether it can legally accept Bryson’s cheque to cover its share of the study.
Nicholson said he too has reservations about spending Joly taxpayer money on a process that it appears the majority of Joly residents oppose.
But if Bryson’s money can be legally accepted and used as an alternative source to pay for Joly’s share of the study, Nicholson said, “I say go for it and we should keep sitting at the table.”
However, McCabe remained opposed, saying his “vote is not for sale.”
McCabe did not vote in a roll-call vote which passed 4-0 to determine if the municipality could use private money to pay for its share of the study.
The costs to amalgamate can be tremendous. Here's how each of the provincial candidates feel their party could help with transition costs.
Graydon Smith, the MPP for Parry Sound—Muskoka and the Progressive Conservative candidate, said the “PC team recognizes each of our communities has its own unique needs” and as the MPP for the riding, Smith said he would “continue to work hand in hand with municipalities who know their regions best to most effectively strengthen the communities they serve for years to come.”
New Democrat candidate Jim Ronholm, who is also a Strong town councillor, says there is a benefit to the province to deal with fewer municipalities. Ronholm says it makes sense “that a provincial government would provide both administrative and financial aid” to help bring about an amalgamation.
But Ronholm says this support would only be for the transition costs, like merging all three Official Plans and creating conformity with all the zoning bylaws.
He says the provincial aid should not be used for ongoing costs following the restructuring, adding any new municipality “should be able to stand on its own afterward.”
Brandon Nicksy of the New Blue Party says he understands the “significant financial implications of such transitions for small municipalities.”
“Our platform is designed to support local governance and ensure that any decision to amalgamate is made with full consideration of financial implications, backed by provincial support where needed but not dictated by it,” Nicksy said.
However, Nicksy also notes that a New Blue Party would reject forced amalgamations. “We believe that municipalities should decide their own fate, but if they choose to amalgamate, we would assist rather than impose.”
The candidates for the Green Party, Ontario Liberal Party and Ontario Party did not respond to the amalgamation question by deadline.
Rocco Frangione is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter with Almaguin News. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.