Port Colborne isn’t waiting around to see who the Ford government picks as the next Niagara Regional Chair before pushing ahead with an agenda to reduce the number of local politicians.
Port Colborne is asking the province to authorize a plan to shrink the size of Port Colborne’s city council from its current nine members to seven, with three wards each represented by two councillors plus a mayor, rather than the current four-ward system that is currently in place.
While municipalities can usually go ahead and make changes to council’s structure on their own, the deadline for municipalities to do so under the Municipal Act has passed, meaning any change in council’s composition would require authorization from the province.
The change is based on recommendations made by a consultant report, prepared for the city back in June 2025. The report offered two final recommendation options, with three wards and six councillors being one of them.
The report’s recommendations, authored by Watson & Associates Economists Ltd., Dr. Robert J. Williams and Dr. Zachary Spicer, were not acted upon back in 2025 after they were presented.
Port Colborne Mayor Bill Steele released a statement expressing his support for reducing the size of council.
“There’s an important conversation happening across Niagara about governance, efficiency, value for taxpayers, and the number of elected officials serving our communities,” said Steele. “Port Colborne is taking a practical step by supporting a smaller council while continuing to ensure strong local representation.”
“With a population of 22,000 residents, a seven-member council is both reasonable and efficient, and would align with the governance models of similarly sized municipalities.”
A six-member council plus the mayor is in line with changes that were advocated by former regional chair Bob Gale before his resignation earlier this month.
Under the proposed model, designed by the consultant team engaged by the council earlier this term, two wards would represent the city’s urban neighbourhood, while a third ward would represent the rural area of Port Colborne. All three would be similar in population size.
If the province were to authorize Port Colborne to move ahead with a new seven-member council, the new ward structure and council size would take effect following October’s municipal elections, which would occur via the new ward boundaries.
Jay Goldberg is the Canadian Affairs Manager at the Consumer Choice Center. He previously served as the Ontario Director at the Canadian Taxpayers Federation and a policy fellow at the Munk School of Public Policy and Global Affairs. Jay holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Toronto.
