By Chad Ingram

Highlands East council is supporting the service delivery and governance review the County of Haliburton is having performed making it the fourth and final of the county’s four lower-tier municipalities to do so.

Councillors were visited by County Warden Liz Danielsen and the county’s chief administrative officer Mike Rutter who explained the process.

The study will look at the delivery of services in particular which tier is best suited to deliver which service opportunities for consolidation of services etc. and may also lead to recommendations to change the local governance structure itself such as the possibility of an amalgamated single-tier government.

Initially it was thought that report would be completed by next fall. However new municipal modernization funding the province has made available is a perfect fit for the project. A caveat is that in order to qualify for that funding the study must now be completed by June.

Rutter has estimated the process will cost $150000 but has added on a number of occasions this estimate may be conservative. The upper tier of the county would fund half the cost each of its lower tiers at 12.5 per cent although a successful grant application for modernization funding would mean costs borne by the province.

Council supported the review and paying its share.

“It’s something that needs to be done for the benefit of all people in Haliburton” said Deputy Mayor Cec Ryall.