A long time advocate for the amalgamation of the City of Duncan and the Municipality of North Cowichan says he’s pleased to see the councils and senior staff have found the courage to ask the public about the issue in a formal referendum.
Roger Bruce is nearing the end of his first term as a councillor with the City of Duncan and he is disputing reports that there will be no cost savings to amalgamation.
Bruce, who is also a Financial Advisor, says the technical report done by Urban Systems on the question of amalgamation is just a snapshot in time and doesn’t consider the longer term.
For example, he says once the population of Duncan hits the 5,000 mark, policing costs will go up by one million dollars, and the City is only about 50 people shy of that number now……
The municipalities are planning to roll out an education campaign when it comes to the issue of amalgamation ahead of the referendum which is set for June 23rd.
