York Regional Council
York Regional Council is the political body for the Regional Municipality of York in Ontario, Canada. Created in 1970, it consists of 20 elected representatives plus the Regional Chair. The elected members are the mayors of each of its nine municipalities (Aurora, East Gwillimbury, Georgina, King, Newmarket, Markham, Richmond Hill, Vaughan, and Whitchurch-Stouffville), as well as an additional eleven Regional Councillors from the more populous municipalities—four from Markham, three from Vaughan, two from Richmond Hill and one each from Georgina and Newmarket. These members are elected via double direct election.
The Regional Chair is elected at large by the members of Regional Council at their inaugural meeting and serves a four-year term. The chair was appointed by the provincial government for its first two terms upon creation of York Region.[1]
Regional Council usually meets on the third Thursday of each month at 9:30am. Meetings are held at the York Region Administrative Centre offices in Newmarket.
Members (2010-2014)
The chairman and CEO of York Regional Council is Bill Fisch.[2]
| Municipality | Representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Mayor | Regional councillors | |
| Aurora | Geoffrey Dawe | None |
| East Gwillimbury | Virginia Hackson | None |
| Georgina | Margaret Quirk | One - Danny Wheeler |
| King | Steven Pelligrini | None |
| Markham | Frank Scarpitti | Four - Jack Heath, Jim Jones, Gordon Landon, and Joe Li |
| Newmarket | Tony Van Bynen | One - John Taylor |
| Richmond Hill | Dave Barrow | Two - Brenda Hogg, Vito Spatafora |
| Vaughan | Maurizio Bevilacqua | Three - Michael DiBiase, Gino Rosati, and Deb Schulte |
| Whitchurch-Stouffville | Wayne Emmerson | None |
Members (2014-2018)
The chairman and CEO of York Regional Council will be elected once members are sworn in on December 1, 2014
| Municipality | Representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Mayor | Regional councillors | |
| Aurora | Geoffrey Dawe | None |
| East Gwillimbury | Virginia Hackson | None |
| Georgina | Margaret Quirk | One: Danny Wheeler |
| King | Steven Pelligrini | None |
| Markham | Frank Scarpitti | Four: Jack Heath, Jim Jones, Nirmila Armstrong, and Joe Li |
| Newmarket | Tony Van Bynen | One: John Taylor |
| Richmond Hill | Dave Barrow | Two: Brenda Hogg, Vito Spatafora |
| Vaughan | Maurizio Bevilacqua | Three: Michael DiBiase, Mario Ferri and Gino Rosati[3] |
| Whitchurch-Stouffville | Justin Altmann | None |
Regional Committees
There is no executive committee, rather ideas are brought forth in regional committees and voted upon by the council.
- Accessibility Advisory Committee
- Audit Committee
- Community Services and Housing Committee
- Environmental Services Committee
- Finance and Administration Committee
- Planning and Economic Development Committee
- Transportation Services Committee
Boards, Subcommittees and Task Forces
- Canadian National Exhibition (CNE)
- Character Community Foundation of York Region
- Don Watershed Regeneration Council
- Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA)
- Greater Toronto Marketing Alliance
- GTA Agricultural Action Committee
- Housing York Inc
- Human Services Planning Board
- Humber Watershed Alliance
- Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority
- Markham Stouffville Hospital
- Rouge Park Alliance Executive
- Royal Agricultural Winter Fair
- Southlake Regional Health Centre
- Toronto and Region Conservation Authority
- York Region Abuse Program
- York Region Community Partnership Council
- York Region Rapid Transit Corporation
- York Regional Police Services Board
Services
Services under the region's scope include:
- Children Services
- Community Planning
- Construction
- Corporate Services
- Economic Strategy and Tourism
- Emergency Medical Services - York Region EMS - downloaded from the Province of Ontario
- Environmental
- Financial Department
- Forestry
- Housing
- Infrastructure Planning Branch
- Legal Services
- Long Term Care and Seniors
- Public Health and Safety
- Real Estate
- Planning Services
- Regional Property Taxes
- York Region Tourism
- Transportation Services - regional roads only
- Sewers
- Employment and Financial Support
- Transit - York Region Transit and VIVA
- Water - water source via Toronto Water
- Waste management (garbage, recycling, hazardous waste; excludes curbside collection)
- Policing - York Regional Police
Regional Chairs
The Regional Chair is the CEO of the Region and serves, ex officio, on all Committees. The position replaced the former Warden of York County (1850-1970) and is selected by the other members of Regional Council.
| Regional Chair | Term of Office | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Garfield Wright | 1971-1978 | Former Town Councillor (1958-1961), Deputy Reeve (1961-1962) and Reeve (1964-1969) of East Gwillimbury; Former Warden of York County (1968-1970); Appointed Regional Chair by Lieutenant Governor in Council |
| Bob Forhan | 1978-1984 | Former hockey player and high school teacher; Town Councillor and Mayor of Newmarket (1971-1978); CAO of York Region (1978-1996)[4] |
| Tony Roman | 1984 | Regional Councillor and Mayor (1970-1984 and 1988-1992) of Markham, Federal Member of Parliament for York North (1984-1988). Died 1992. |
| Eldred R. King | 1984-1997 | Chairman of GO Transit, member of the Markham Township School Board and councillor on Markham Township Council, member of Whitchurch-Stouffville Township Council and Mayor of the Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville. Died 2011. |
| Bill Fisch | 1997–present | Lawyer, formerly practicing in Thornhill, Ontario (1976-1997); Former Councillor, Ward 7 (1988-1994) and Regional Councillor (1994-1997) for Markham |
Former Regional Councillors
| Regional Councillor | Term of Office | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ronald Moran | 1972-1991 | Former Deputy Mayor of Markham;[6] Died 2013 [7] |
| Donald Cousens | 1994-2006 | former mayor of Markham |
| Tony Roman | 1971-1984 and 1988-1992 | former mayor of Markham and Regional Chair, Died 1992. |
York Region Administrative Centre
York Regional Council main operations are located at 17250 Yonge Street. The four floor complex was designed by Canadian architect Douglas Cardinal and opened in 1992. It features an organic building shape with various towers located at the end. The main entrance features two clock towers.
Before 1992 it sat at 50 Eagle Street now home to the Newmarket Courthouse.
References
- ↑ Carter, Terry (13 May 1970). "Towns to win in regional land 'stakes". The Era. pp. 1, 17. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
- ↑ "York Region Chairman and Chief Executive Officer". York Regional Council. Retrieved 2012-11-12.
- ↑ City of Vaughan 2014 Elections: Local and Regional Councillors (unofficial results), City of Vaughan, October 28, 2014.
- ↑ "Changing Faces: York Region Governance from 1792 to the Present" (PDF). york.ca. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-11. Retrieved 2014-05-02.
- ↑ "Meet sports Class of 2010". Yorkregion.com. 2010-07-09. Retrieved 2014-05-02.
- ↑ "Markham civic centre showcased on 20th anniversary". Yorkregion.com. 2011-08-25. Retrieved 2014-05-02.
- ↑ "Grassroots politician’ remembered for role in city’s Civic Centre". Yorkregion.com. 2013-02-01. Retrieved 2014-05-02.