North Cowichan Mayor Jon Lefebure says council will continue to work on mutual projects with their Duncan counterparts even though voters rejected amalgamation of the two municipalities.
On Saturday, voters in North Cowichan voted 59 per cent to amalgamate with their southern neighbours.
For the amalgamation process to proceed, more than 50 per cent of citizens in each municipality had to vote in favour of the proposal.
In Duncan, 68 per cent of voters were against the initiative, killing the idea.
“We got here today because the majority of voters from both municipalities indicated that they were interested in exploring the idea of amalgamation during the 2014 municipal elections,” Lefebure said. “Both councils honoured the voters' wishes, but we were frankly surprised that people were interested.”
The two municipalities convened a Citizens’ Assembly to study the idea, with a final recommendation to proceed with a referendum, which took place on Saturday.
“We believed that there were some real benefits to amalgamating,” said Lefebure, who has been mayor for the past 13 years.
Amalgamation would streamline council and some services, leading to money freed up to spend on infrastructure projects in the future.
“On our side of the line, it was easy to see us reuniting,” he said. “We didn’t see amalgamation as a question of surrendering autonomy or identity."
Prior to 1912, Duncan, with an area of almost 2.1 square kilometres, and North Cowichan, which covers 194 square kilometres, were a single municipality.
The two municipalities currently share water services, sewage treatment and the cost of some recreational facilities in the district.
“The positive side to the vote was that we had a good turn out to decide on the proposal,” said Lefebure. “We will continue to work together with our counterparts in Duncan — just as we have for decades.”
