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History of the Regional Municipality of Waterloo Origins, Political Boundaries and GovernanceDesign element only following page title - no link  print friendly icon
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History

In 1970, the Fyfe Commission recognized the need for area-wide planning in the Waterloo area and recommended a major overhaul of its local government to meet challenges of future development, service delivery and urbanization.

The Regional Municipality of Waterloo officially came into being on January 1st, 1973 pursuant to the legislative provisions of Bill 167 of the Province of Ontario. This Bill, also known as the Regional Municipality of Waterloo Act, reduced the number of local governments in the area from 16 to 8 and established a two-tier system of local government. The regional tier being the Regional Municipality of Waterloo and the local tier being comprised of the 7 area municipalities, namely, Cambridge, Kitchener, Waterloo, Wellesley, Wilmot, Woolwich, and North Dumfries. The Region was to be generally responsible for sevices and programs that cross municipal boundaries while the local tier was to be responsible for services and programs that were community specific and local in nature.

Coat of Arms

The Regional Coat of Arms was redesigned in 1993 and draws strongly from the original County emblem. It incorporates the old County motto "Peace. Prosperity". The motto is graphically portayed by the Lion and Lamb sitting peacefully together. The 7 Trillium represent the Region's 7 member muncicalities and the Province of Ontario. The Blue mural coronet on top is a traditional symbol for municpalities and the gold maple leaves represent Canada.


Governance: Regional Chair and Council

Regional Council is the policy-forming and decision-making body of Regional government. The Regional Chair is the head of Council and is directly elected at large in the community. Prior to 1997, the Chair was "elected" by the members of Regional Council. Ken Seiling has served as Regional Chair since 1985.

There are 16 members of Council - the Regional Chair, 8 directly elected councillors (4 from Kitchener, 2 from Cambridge and 2 from Waterloo), and the mayors from the 7 area municipalities - the cities of Cambridge, Kitchener, Waterloo, and the townships of North Dumfries, Wellesley, Wilmot and Woolwich.

Regional Council uses a Standing Committee system to review staff recommendations and formulate policy. There are three Standing Committees of Council: Community Services, Planning & Works and Administration & Finance.