Councillors pan proposal for ‘at-large’ system

In the wake of sweeping recommendations from city staff, most council members in Brandon say they are in favour of keeping the current ward system in place.

There is, however, some appetite for reducing the number of councillors.

And some members say that increasing councillors’ pay would encourage more people to run in elections and would better represent the work they put into the job.

City administration on Monday presented council with recommendations on increasing pay for members and moving to an at-large electoral system with a smaller council.

“I’m all in favour of keeping the (wards) the way they are, and keeping the number of councillors at 10,” Coun. Glen Parker said on Tuesday.

The proposed system would see all councillors elected at large, with two members later appointed to represent one of four different wards. The number of councillors would also shrink from 10 to eight, while the mayor position would remain.

Parker (Ward 9) said the ward system gives councillors a chance to know their neighbourhoods and the issues that are important to constituents.

“If you went to an at-large system, I think it would be a total flop in Brandon,” he said.

“I think this has worked for the city and served it well, and 10 gives you more of an opportunity for diversity.”

Administration made the recommendation after looking at six similarly sized cities in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Those councils have either seven or nine members each, compared to Brandon’s 11.

Coun. Tyson Tame (Ward 10) said the proposed ward changes would be “a really bad plan.”

“I think we need to keep the ward system as it is,” Tame said in an interview.

The lack of a dedicated representative and difficulties of campaigning throughout the entire city were reasons he doesn’t want to see a switch. Citywide campaigning could also be daunting for new candidates, he noted.

Other reasons are that one ward representative could do the lion’s share of the work, and councillors could have opposing views on issues and make a cohesive ward voice difficult, Tame said, echoing what Ward 7 Coun. Shawn Berry said at Monday’s meeting.

“I don’t think the residents are served very well in that (system),” Tame said.

He said he has also worried that an at-large system could be taken over by a special interest group.

Mayor Jeff Fawcett after Monday’s meeting said he would like to see what wards would look like if the city moved to eight councillors. That change wouldn’t have much of an impact on taxpayers, he said.

Coun. Bruce Luebke (Ward 6) also said he would like to stay in a ward system, though he said he would like to go to eight councillors.

“If we want to bump salaries up … it’s a little easier to swallow if you get reduced by two councilors and save some money a little bit,” Luebke said.

“Ten seems to be an extraordinary amount for a city our size,” he added.

He said he doesn’t like the idea of appointing councillors to certain wards.

“If you’re going to do that, you may as well keep the ward system. Then residents know who they’re voting for to represent their area,” he said.

Coun. Kris Desjarlais (Ward 2) proposed a hybrid system on Monday with some councillors elected in wards and some at large. He didn’t respond to a request for an interview on Tuesday.

Renee Sigurdson, director of legislative services for the city, said the city is recommending an at-large system with appointments so Brandon doesn’t lose the “small-town feel.”

“It’s still having that designated representative without creating four electoral wards. That way, we gain the advantages of moving to an at-large system,” said Sigurdson, who also serves as the city clerk. “However, we still retain those feelings of having a designated representative and knowing who to call when needed.”

The administrative review listed several advantages, including heightened accountability, less voter confusion and more even representation among wards, among other things.

Drawbacks included loss of direct representation and making sure councillor workload remains even.

“This would just be another change that might have a few things to iron out the very beginning, but people would quickly see the benefits,” Sigurdson said.

“Strategically, Brandon is moving into a larger city, and the research does support that governance could be more efficiently run at an at-large system.”

Sigurdson said that she doesn’t see an issue with the ward system, and that whatever council decides would have little impact on how residents communicate concerns with councillors.

She added that council could vote to reduce the number of councillors while keeping the ward system if it wanted to do so.

The proposed system exists in some municipalities in Ontario, she said, though they weren’t part of the Brandon review.

A professor of political science and governance said the reasoning for going to an at-large system is “flawed.”

Brandon’s current system, with one councillor per ward, is the simplest system for voters, said Aaron Moore, who teaches at the University of Winnipeg.

He said it could be difficult for voters to figure out which candidates they should vote for, as there could be a lot to choose from.

“People struggle identifying individual candidates to vote for in those systems,” Moore said. “And even if, let’s say, you have 10 candidates running for eight positions, that’s still not a lot of competition.”

He said when wards are removed, different communities in the municipality also lose their representation. Ward councillors are also responsible to the constituents they serve, he said.

Moore said he generally supports municipalities having more councillors, adding that he wouldn’t be worried about Brandon potentially going down to eight.

Administration also recommended that the mayor be given three per cent raises every year until 2030. The mayor’s base salary currently sits at $105,271.

The recommendation said councillors would receive 30 per cent of the mayor’s salary. Councillors currently earn $24,533 each as a base salary.

Parker said councillors are underpaid, while the mayor is grossly underpaid. For councillors, he said moving up the salaries gradually would be better than what was proposed.

Councillor salaries would jump to $32,529 next year if council approved the recommendation.

“Everything should be done on a more gradual basis. Maybe that’s done over the course of a full term, and then in the 2030 term it’s up to the level where it should be. It’s a big pill for taxpayers to swallow,” Parker said, adding that it has been a tough year for taxpayers between school division and municipal property tax hikes.

Coun. Greg Hildebrand said at Monday’s meeting that councillors aren’t doing the job for the money, but more money would provide better voices and wisdom around the table.

“Are we here for the money? I think that’s pretty clear that we’re not. But would we be here if there was no money? Probably not as well,” Hildebrand (Ward 5) said.

Tame said for the city to be able to attract strong candidates, it needs to have salaries closer to the average among similarly sized cities.

Administration’s report found that Brandon’s mayor makes the lowest salary among the seven cities, and councillors make the second lowest salaries.

“It’s tough to attract people, especially if they knew what some of the time commitment was,” Tame said about the job.

“It’s a substantial commitment for people to make and to take away from the other activities and their families.”

Moore said the public never likes to see politicians give themselves a raise, but that comparisons show the pay bump isn’t “out of order,” especially for the mayor.

“This is the head of a large organization (with) a very large budget, and you want to ensure that they’re adequately compensated so you can attract the best people for that position,” he said.

“Cities struggle to attract people to run for office. Compensation does play some role in that regard,” Moore said about the councillor position.

Sigurdson added that the three per cent raise would bring Brandon to just under the average of the cities that were studied.

“I feel that three per cent is fiscally responsible, something that could be obtained without a significant budget impact, but yet provide a more appropriate compensation for councillors,” she said.

She added that the roles need to be valued adequately.

“I think that fairness plays a really big role into this, and that it should be considered that when someone’s giving their time to something that they should receive something fair in return,” Sigurdson said.

Council on Monday agreed to schedule a special meeting to discuss the matter further. Sigurdson said she’s planning to schedule the meeting for an evening next week, though a date is yet to be set.

For the ward changes to come into effect for the Oct. 28 election, they would need to be approved and bylaws changed by May 1.

» alambert@brandonsun.com