Mayor believes details of regional review coming in November

Results of the province's regional government review are expected in November, Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic says mayors have been told.

Vrbanovic told CBC Kitchener-Waterloo's The Morning Edition that Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Steve Clark has told mayors he hasn't received the report yet but he expects it in the coming week.

But during a discussion at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario's annual meeting last week in Ottawa, Clark didn't actually say he'd release any information in November when asked about the report.

During a panel discussion on Tuesday, Clark said he hopes to have a "path forward this fall."

"I did not expect to have such a robust consultation," Clark said in answering a question about the regional government review.

He said there were 8,500 submissions and some were " very technical."

He has not yet received the report from the province's special advisers, Ken Seiling and Michael Fenn.

Once he receives it, Clark said, "I want to take my time."

He said he'll present the findings to his cabinet colleagues as "confidential advice" before deciding whether to make the details public.

"I'm very hopeful that we'll have those recommendations and the path forward this fall," Clark said.

• Read more about the regional government review

Last July, the province announced its plans to review all regional municipal governments, impacting Halton, York, Durham, Waterloo, Niagara, Peel, Muskoka District, Oxford County, and the County of Simcoe.

In January, Seiling and Fenn were appointed as the special advisers. It was anticipated in January that their report would be delivered to Clark in the spring.

You can watch the panel discussion from Tuesday's AMO meeting below: