In the fall of 2014, an unprecedented number of candidates stepped forward to run for a position on Niverville’s town council during the municipal election campaign. From the ten candidates, four councillors were elected.
Two months after the election, the Niverville Chamber of Commerce (NCoC) met with council to make a recommendation for increasing the number of council seats to better serve our growing community. Today, we still have only four council seats, with one seat vacant as John Falk moves on to run as the Liberal candidate in the coming provincial election.
Mayor Myron Dyck admits that council is putting it off for now, ready to address it closer to the next election period in 2018. The Manitoba Municipal Act permits a council to change the number of councillors by bylaw. This must be done 180 days or more before the next general election. At present, council’s focus has been more on capital projects than council expansion.
“A community that’s in management phase might not need as many council members as one that’s in growth phase,” says Dyck. “We are in growth phase when simply looking at building permits.”
He adds that an argument can be made for adding an additional councillor, but the demands on a councillor’s time aren’t as great as they used to be. Between 2004 and 2006,
council members acted as liaisons to many community committees, such as the Arts Council, Clipper Ice Sports, the NCoC, and Services to Seniors.
“The busiest time between ‘04 and ‘06 was 20 evenings that I was booked in one month for meetings,” says Dyck, who was a town councillor at the time. “When you’re doing that kind of output, you can see that we need more people.”
When Greg Fehr was elected mayor in 2006, his strategy was to make council more of a policy-making board, freeing up council’s time to write bylaws and set up the framework by which committees could function more autonomously. With this approach, council members were no longer expected to attend the various committee meetings. Committee heads were encouraged to bring their concerns to Jim Buys, the town’s chief administrative officer, or to other staff members who in turn would make their presentations to council at scheduled council meetings.
“One thing that I’m learning in my leadership is that you can put full trust in these volunteer committees and leadership boards,” adds Dyck. “I trust them wholeheartedly. I don’t question what they’re doing.”
He recognizes, though, that council could be more purposeful in taking an interest in committees, which is why more councillors could be a good thing.
“Right now, as four councillors, we are handling what we need to handle. I believe that it’s being done adequately. With a fifth councillor, could we do even more? Obviously.”
He says the cost of another councillor is something council would need to take a hard look at, to determine whether the benefit would outweigh the expenditure.
Mayor and councillor salaries are decided upon by each council. The mayor of Niverville currently receives about $17,000 per year, the deputy mayor between $12,000 and $13,000, while councillors make between $10,000 and $11,000 plus deductions. The number of hours invested falls between 15 to 20 per week on average.
On determining council salaries, Dyck says, “Too much and people are just in it for the money. Too little and people aren’t willing to make the sacrifice to volunteer what needs to be done in order to do it.”
John Falk, former councillor, suggests that the proposal to add more councillors should be put back on the table.
“There is an awful lot of work going on on council,” says Falk. He adds that some councils, like the one in Morris, has added a student representative to the mix to provide input from the younger generation. Student reps are appointed by the local high school, involved in all of the discussions though they cannot vote on proposals.
Morris has 2,000 residents for six town councillors. Niverville, on the other hand, is pushing 5,000 residents.
“We have debated a lot about the correct number [of councillors] and there is no clear answer,” says Gavin van der Linde, mayor of Morris. “I believe that four councillors are adequate for the work at hand. However, things can get complicated for a number of reasons.” Van der Linde cites the loss of a councillor to another job or extended sick leave. He also suggests that there are times when councillors might disengage themselves from certain issues or discussions for a variety of reasons. With more councillors, you have a broader diversity of skills and input of ideas.
“With six councillors there is more of a buffer to help manage any of [those] situations,” he says. “Four can be a little tight and less forgiving.”
A 2013 provincial government survey revealed that 53 percent of municipalities outside of Winnipeg have less than 200 residents per elected official. 23 percent have 200 to 400 residents per official, and 24 percent have over 400 residents per official. Niverville’s ratio is currently around 950 residents per elected official.
To put this in perspective, Steinbach, a city of 15,000 residents, has six council members (2,500 residents per official) while Brandon, a city of 50,000, has ten (5,000 residents per official). According to Steinbach mayor Chris Goertzen, out of the 137 municipalities in Manitoba, only Winnipeg employs councillors on a full-time basis.
As to losing Falk as a councillor, Dyck says town council may look at a by-election to replace him.
