Have your say on Brampton leaving Region of Peel at town hall event

There are many questions when it comes to Brampton leaving the Region of Peel, but residents can hopefully get some answers and give their feedback on the plan at a town hall event this week.

After months of speculation, the province announced the break-up of Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon by dissolving the Region of Peel so the three municipalities can stand on their own.

The transition will take years, leading to questions around access to utilities and services currently provided by the region, the impact on property taxes, and what will happen to the approximately 7,000 Region employees, among others.

The City is holding a virtual town hall forum this Thursday (June 8) to discuss “what a fair dissolution means for Brampton” and for residents to give their feedback on the split. That input from the public will help form Brampton’s asks from the province’s yet-to-be-formed Transition Board.

The City says it will also highlight “how Brampton residents have supported Mississauga’s growth” at the meeting, through the Region of Peel since 1974, and outline the costs and expenses the City expects will be reimbursed through the dissolution process.

The break up of the Region has been likened to a divorce, with Caledon Mayor Groves saying that Caledon is “the child in this marriage” compared to their significantly larger “parents” of Mississauga and Brampton.

And while news of the breakup was welcomed by Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie, she and Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown have been in a war of words over hypothetical payments for water and police services despite having no word from the province on how maintaining services during the split will be handled.

The Region of Peel is responsible for services such as paramedics, police, health programs and recycling in the three municipalities and will reportedly study the costs associated with the dissolution of the Region of Peel and come up with a solution that is fair to all three municipalities.

Mayor Brown will be at the meeting on Thursday along with Coun. Michael Palleschi and City staff. You can register for the virtual town hall by visiting www.letsconnect.brampton.ca.