Midland council is placing the fate of its ward boundary system in the hands of the electorate.
The public is being asked to participate at Wednesday's council session to voice their opinion around the need for ward boundaries going forward.
A resident has already submitted his outlook via letter, which is included in the meeting's agenda.
"Keeping the ward system allows for true local representation and makes it much harder for outside influences or influential people to control the council body," writes former town councillor Bob Jeffery.
"Presently, the council is made up of a majority of members, who at one time or another were mentored by or are now mentored by a person or group for whom they do their bidding at the expense of the majority of ratepayers in Midland. A no-ward system could mean a full council of these people, but for sure always a majority around the table."
The letter concludes with a warning.
"Midland was making strides into the future; a non-ward system would put us back to the '50s with even more backroom deals!" writes Jeffery.
Other council-related matters include a discussion around whether meetings should continue to be conducted virtually or in-person.
A staff report says that since the pandemic was announced, meetings have continued to be televised and recorded for the public to access later. The public has been given the opportunity to continue to participate in meetings via telephone, Teams or Zoom for making presentations and deputations. Meetings that are not recorded by Rogers will be live streamed.
As an alternative, staff suggests council could choose to conduct its meetings in-person while ensuring compliance with physical distancing requirements as laid out by public health officials. At this time, in-person meetings will be limited to a maximum capacity of 50 people or however many can safely physically distance inside town hall. In addition, all people in the public space will be required to wear face masks.
However, staff does not recommend this option to help limit the potential spread of COVID-19.
The council meeting begins at 6:15 p.m. with a closed session, moving into a public session at 7 p.m. and will be aired on Rogers TV as well as online.
