One of the most common things I hear at the door has nothing to do with a policy position. It's the frustration of not knowing who to call. A pothole, a flooded corner, a speeding problem, a rezoning notice. Neighbours tell me they phoned two or three places, got passed along each time, and gave up before anyone wrote it down.
That isn't a small thing. When getting an answer is that hard, people stop asking, and the problem stays put.
Four layers of government shape daily life in Ward 6: federal, provincial, Halton Region and the City of Burlington. The last two are both municipal governments, with Halton the upper-tier regional government and Burlington the lower-tier local one. Here's who does what.
Who Does What
Federal: Canada as a whole
Ottawa is responsible for country-wide matters.
- National defence
- Foreign affairs
- Immigration and citizenship
- Criminal law
- National taxation
- Employment Insurance and the Canada Pension Plan
- Banking and currency
- National transportation, including airports, railways and ports
- Fisheries and oceans
- Indigenous affairs
- Telecommunications, including internet and cell service
- National environmental standards
Telecommunications is the one that catches people out. Internet service is federally regulated and delivered by private providers, so City Hall does not set it.
Ontario: province-wide systems and standards
Queen's Park sets the standards and funds the systems that work the same way across the province.
- Healthcare and hospitals
- Education
- Provincial highways
- Driver licensing and the rules of the road
- Ontario Provincial Police
- Provincial courts and the administration of justice
- Provincial housing policy
- Child care
- Social assistance
- Labour and employment standards
- Natural resources and provincial parks
- Electricity policy and regulation
- The laws that set what a municipality can and cannot do
That last item carries more weight than it looks. The Province decides what powers a municipality has, which is why a Minister's Zoning Order can lift a land-use decision out of a city's hands.
Halton Region: the services four municipalities share
Halton Region serves Burlington, Oakville, Milton and Halton Hills together, and it owns more of your week than most people expect.
- Drinking water treatment and supply
- Wastewater treatment
- Waste management
- Regional roads
- Public health
- Paramedic services
- Halton Regional Police
- Regional planning
- Affordable and community housing
- Homelessness services
- Children's services
- Long-term care
- Emergency planning
- Regional economic development
Here's the part worth knowing before you vote. Every Burlington ward councillor is also a member of Halton Regional Council. Whoever is elected in Ward 6 sits on both councils, so this ward's representative has a vote on that Regional list too.
City of Burlington: the street you live on
This is the layer closest to home, and it's where a ward councillor spends most days.
- Local roads and sidewalks
- Local traffic and parking
- Parks, trails and recreation
- Community centres
- Libraries
- Local planning and zoning
- Development applications
- Building permits and inspections
- Local by-laws
- Local economic development
- Municipal facilities
- Stormwater management and local drainage
- Local cultural programs and heritage
- Burlington Transit
- The municipal portion of your property tax bill
Roads
The word road doesn't tell you who owns it
This is where the confusion bites hardest, because a road being in Burlington does not mean the City is responsible for it. The major arterial roads generally belong to Halton Region, while the local streets belong to the City, and Burlington's Official Plan makes that distinction directly.
Halton Region: the regional roads
- Regional Road 1: Guelph Line
- Regional Road 5: Dundas Street
- Regional Road 7: Derry Road
- Regional Road 18: Brant Street
- Regional Road 20: Appleby Line
- Regional Road 22: Tremaine Road
- Regional Road 24: Milburough Line
- Regional Road 38: Upper Middle Road
Six of those touch Ward 6: Dundas Street, Appleby Line, Upper Middle Road, Tremaine Road, Derry Road up in our rural north, and the stretch of Guelph Line along the ward's southwest edge. Brant Street and Milburough Line sit in other parts of Burlington. If your concern is on one of the six, it goes to Halton Region.
City of Burlington: the local roads
The City looks after the local network across Burlington, including roads such as these.
- Walkers Line
- Mainway
- Fairview Street
- New Street
- Lakeshore Road
- Rebecca Street
- Plains Road
- North Service Road and South Service Road
- Harvester Road
- Kerns Road
- Burloak Drive
- Waterdown Road
- King Road
- Mountain Grove Avenue
- Headon Road
- The neighbourhood streets through Alton Village, Millcroft and Headon Forest
There are many more local streets than that. The point is the jurisdiction, not the list: these sit with the City rather than with Halton Region.
And the highways
Highway 407 cuts straight across Ward 6, and the QEW runs along the ward's southern edge. Those, along with the 403 and Highway 6, are provincial highways. National transportation, meaning the airports, railways and ports, is federal.
So a pothole on Appleby Line is Halton Region's to fix. The same pothole on Headon Road, or on a street inside Millcroft, is the City's. Same complaint, different desk, and nobody tells you that when you pick up the phone.
Why I'm putting this in a newsletter
Know who is responsible, and you know who to ask. Residents tell me the tiring part of raising a problem isn't the problem. It's being passed along. Knowing which government owns which file saves you that, and it makes it harder for any of them to point at each other.
It sets a fair standard for me too. If you ask about something the City controls, you should get a straight answer about what I'd push for. If it belongs to the Region, the Province or Ottawa, you should get a straight answer about that as well, and about who I'd bring to the table.
One caveat worth stating plainly. Some responsibilities are shared or jointly funded, and the division between them is set by federal and provincial law. This is the plain-language version, not the legal one.
Over to you
Is there something in your neighbourhood you've tried to get an answer on and couldn't find the right desk for? Tell me what it is and where it is. I'll find out who owns it and come back to you.
Upcoming community meet-ups
I'd love to meet you in person! Through September, you'll find me at Fortinos, 2515 Appleby Line, on Thursdays from 6 to 7 PM and on Saturdays from 9:30 to 10:30 AM. Come by, introduce yourself and tell me what you've been trying to get sorted.
You can find more details on our events page.
Osob Adus
Candidate for Burlington City Council, Ward 6