Transition Board’s ‘recalibrated scope’ will transfer key Peel services to Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon: Housing Minister

While the province’s plan to split Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon from the Region of Peel has been indefinitely scrapped, the Transition Board hired to oversee the break up will now work to move vital regional services to the individual municipalities.

The updated mandate comes in a letter from Ontario’s Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Paul Calandra and outlines the board’s “recalibrated scope,” with a focus on accelerating the construction of homes in Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon to increase the housing supply.

But the letter obtained by Insauga.com also instructs the board to advise the region on the transfer services currently provided by the Region of Peel to the City of Mississauga, the City of Brampton and the Town of Caledon.

Those services include regional land use planning, water and wastewater (including stormwater), regional roads and waste management.

When the province first announced plans for the break up in May, questions were raised by councillors and regional staff about the future of regional services and Peel Public Works.

The province backtracked on that decision in December, leading to more questions about what role the Transition Board would play in Peel’s future.

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown was opposed to the dissolution, raising concerns about the plan which he called a “financial train wreck” due to an estimated $1.31 billion cost to the city and a massive tax hike, pointing to shared services like water treatment, waste disposal and emergency services.

In reaction to the new mandate letter, former Region of Peel Chief Administrative Officer Janice Baker said she’s not convinced downloading regional services to the municipalities will be a money saving measure.

“Hard to think splitting it now will cost less,” Baker said in a post on social media, adding the updated mandate “looks like a political agenda to get rid of Peel Public Works.”

The break up of Peel was championed by the province as a way to reduce the bureaucracy in municipal and regional governments to speed up housing projects, and the letter doubles down on those mandates of “reducing duplication and removing layers of bureaucracy from the administration of services” and “ensuring the continuity of services for local residents.”

Mississauga Coun. Dipika Damerla thanked Calandra for providing clarity on the future of the Region of Peel ” and says she’s looking forward to hearing the board’s recommendations.