Ontario to dissolve Region of Peel which includes Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon, government sources say

Ontario will announce Thursday that it is dissolving the Region of Peel, which includes the municipalities of Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon, senior government sources say.

Mississauga and Brampton – some of the largest municipalities in the province – are set to become independent cities, but the sources did not say what would happen with the smaller municipality of Caledon.

The sources weren’t authorized to speak publicly.

Peel Region is responsible for services such as paramedics, health programs and recycling in the three municipalities.

Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie has been pushing for her city to become independent, saying it will save her municipality $1 billion over 10 years and make it more efficient.

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown has said he would welcome efforts to remove duplication, but believes Mississauga would owe Brampton under any separation because of the infrastructure residents have funded for Mississauga.

Another source with knowledge of the announcement said the province will be appointing a committee to look at the costs of separation.

Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Steve Clark announced in November that he would appoint facilitators to assess six regional governments – including Peel Region – and look at the best mix of roles between upper-tier and lower-tier municipalities with an eye to expanding “strong mayor” powers beyond Toronto and Ottawa.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said last week that he believed Mississauga and Brampton are large cities that can stand alone.

Ford said the goal of any changes would be to ensure the municipalities have equal or better service.

“If one region is taking more money than the other, we’re going to have to make sure that’s split equally,” he said last week as he hinted a decision on Peel Region was coming “very soon.”

“Mississauga, for the most part, almost, is built out. There’s still room for additional building there, but Brampton still has an opportunity to continue to grow. But they are not going to be shafted by Mississauga, or anyone else, I’m going to make sure they’re always whole and they’re always protected, all three regions.”