The Regional Municipality of Peel (less formally Peel Region or Region of Peel, also formerly Peel County) is a regional municipality in the Greater Toronto Area, Southern Ontario, Canada. It consists of three municipalities to the west and northwest of the city of Toronto: the cities of Mississauga and Brampton, and the town of Caledon, each of which spans its full east–west width. The regional seat is in Brampton.
With a population of about 1.5 million,2016 Census Peel Region's growth can be credited largely to immigration and transportation infrastructure: seven 400-series highways serve the region and most of Toronto Pearson International Airport is located within its boundaries.
Mississauga, which occupies the southernmost portion of the region with over 700,000 residents, is the largest in population in Peel Region and is overall the seventh-largest lower-tier municipality in Canada. It reaches from Lake Ontario north to near Highway 407. Brampton, a city with over 600,000 residents, is located in the centre of the region, while in the north lies the town of Caledon, which is by far the largest town in the area and the most sparsely populated part of the region.
History
The area was first settled in the early 1800s after being divided into townships in 1805; some of the townships came into existence later (to 1819). County of Peel was formed in 1851. It was named after Sir Robert Peel, the nineteenth-century Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
The townships that would eventually constitute Peel were initially part of York County in the Home District, and were designated as the West Riding of York in 1845.
In 1867, Peel officially separated from York County. Peel County was dissolved in 1974.https://peelarchivesblog.com/about-peel/, The History of Peel Region, Ontario, Canada
Brampton was virtually a village in 1834. The only building of consequence at the corner of Hurontario (now Main) and Queen Streets, today the centre of Brampton, was William Buffy's tavern. In fact, at the time, the area was referred to as "Buffy's Corners". All real business in Chinguacousy Township took place one mile distant at Martin Salisbury's tavern. By 1834, John Elliott laid out the area in lots for sale, and applied the name "Brampton" to the area, which was soon adopted by others."Brampton's Beginning" in Brampton's 100th Anniversary as an Incorporated Town: 1873-1973, Brampton: The Corporation of the Town of Brampton and the Brampton Centennial Committee, 1973, originally published in Ross Cumming, ed., Historical Atlas of Peel County, n.p.: Walker and Miles, 1877.
The Region of Peel was created by the government of Bill Davis in 1974 from the former Peel County, and was legislated to provide community services to the (then) rapidly urbanizing area of south Peel County (now Mississauga and Brampton). Most of Peel Region boundaries are the same as Peel County. Portions of the former Trafalgar Township in Halton County west of present-day Winston Churchill Boulevard to Ninth Line and south of Highway 407 to Dundas Street became part of Mississauga (forming western parts of Erin Mills and Meadowvale West, as well as Churchill Meadows from Town of Milton).
Government and politics
Senior administrators The senior administrators of the region are: Nando Iannicca, Regional Chair Gary Kent, Chief Administrative Officer Sean Baird, Commissioner of Human Services Nancy Polsinelli, Commissioner of Health Services Davinder Valeri, Chief Financial Officer and Commissioner of Corporate Services Kealy Deadman, Commissioner of Public Works Patricia Caza, Commissioner of Legislative Service and Regional Solicitor
Notable government decisions
In 2005, Peel Region approved without tender a $557 million waste management contract commitment lasting 20 years that can potentially allow it to dump garbage in Ontario landfill sites if Michigan bans Canadian trash.Toronto Star, October 21, 2005 In 2004, Peel Region began a more than $600 million waterworks expansion by conducting invited public tenders, one of Canada's largest in water and wastewater infrastructure.Brampton Guardian, July 7, 2004
Seat assignment controversy
Seats on Peel Regional council are not assigned to member municipalities according to population or tax contributions, and this has produced considerable controversy within the region.ontla.on.ca
Mississauga currently comprises about 62 per cent of the region's population and says it contributes 66 per cent of the taxes, but had been assigned 10 of the 21 council seats (or 48 per cent) distributed among the municipalities, with Brampton receiving six and Caledon five. In June 2005, the provincial government passed legislation that will revise the composition of the council. Beginning in the 2006 municipal elections, one additional seat will be assigned to Brampton and two additional seats will be assigned to Mississauga, giving Mississauga 12 of the 24 seats assigned to municipalities. These numbers do not include the regional chair, who is appointed by council members.
These changes are the result of a provincially appointed impartial arbitrator who noted:
Mississauga council, led by former mayor Hazel McCallion, has argued that Peel Region is an unnecessary layer of government which costs Mississauga residents millions of dollars a year to support services in Brampton and Caledon. Mississauga council unanimously passed a motion asking the Province of Ontario to separate Mississauga from Peel Region and become a single-tier municipality, arguing, among other things, the need to keep property tax dollars within the city of Mississauga for the good of the future of the city..
Opponents of Mississauga's position, including former Brampton mayor Susan Fennell, have argued that from the 1970s through the 1990s, Mississauga was the chief beneficiary of Peel's infrastructure construction projects — funded by taxpayers in all three municipalities — and it is now Brampton's turn to benefit, as it is growing faster than Mississauga, which is mostly built-out. As well, they have argued that common infrastructure, such as waste and water services, would be more efficiently managed at a regional level.
Attempted dissolution On May 17, 2023, information leaked that Ontario premier Doug Ford intended to dissolve Peel Region and make the three lower-tier municipalities independent. Calls for Mississauga to be an independent city have existed for many years, including most notably by Mayor Bonnie Crombie, who called for that city to become a single-tier municipality since running for the position of mayor during the 2018 Mississauga municipal election. The following day the government officially announced their intention to dissolve the region.
Subsequently, Municipal Affairs Minister Steve Clark tabled Bill 112, the Hazel McCallion Act, which would dissolve the region on January 1, 2025. The bill was fast-tracked through Parliament, bypassing the committee stage and going straight to third reading. This was criticized by the opposition, claiming that it prevented proper consultation with Peel Region residents. The bill was passed in June 2023. To prepare for the dissolution, the Ontario government convened a 5-member transition board tasked with providing recommendations on winding down the operations of the regional government.
Brampton mayor Patrick Brown was resistant to dissolving the region, claiming that it would leave the city underfunded and interfere with municipal housing priorities. Brown had also demanded that Mississauga pay compensation to cover lost regional funding, which he claimed was critical to ensuring that an independent Brampton could function properly. Caledon mayor Annette Groves was completely opposed to the dissolution, claiming that Caledon was the "child of the divorce" and that they did not have the resources to function without regional funding. New Democrat MPP and municipal affairs critic Jeff Burch proposed having the rural areas of Caledon transferred to Dufferin County.
It had been proposed that some regional services, such as paramedics, public health and police, continue to be shared among the single-tier municipalities after the dissolution. However, there were disagreements over how the services would be funded. Crombie has pushed for them to be funded using a pay-per-usage model, while Brown wanted them to remain under the current assessment formula model.
After the transition board reported that the dissolution would cause heavy increases to municipal property taxes as a result of lost regional funding, the Ontario government announced that they would not continue with dissolving the region.
Climate
Factors that influence the climate The region's climate are influenced by various air masses and weather systems from other locations, proximity to Lake Ontario, topography and elevation (e.g. Niagara Escarpment, and Oak Ridges Moraine), and urban and rural land uses. The air masses and weather systems are the major factors in influencing the climate of the region. Being located in Southern Ontario, it is located between the Arctic, subtropics, and the Atlantic Ocean; consequentially, it is impacted by air masses from different origins. In general, the air masses that affect the region are continental polar, continental arctic, maritime polar, and occasionally continental tropical air masses in summer. During winter, cold and dry air masses predominate (continental arctic and maritime polar) although warmer, moister air masses may move north during this time, leading to milder temperatures and potential for heavy snowfall/freezing rain/rainfall. The most severe snow and freezing rain events occur when warmer, moister air masses move northward to the region and meet colder air. During winter, a common type of storm is known as the "Alberta Clipper" which affects the region in which moist Pacific air moves east of the Rocky Mountains to the region, bringing snow that is often followed by the influx of cold continental air afterwards (leads to colder temperatures). Spring and autumn are characterized by variable weather and rapid alternating air masses. This leads to frequent cloudy conditions, rain, and occasional thunderstorms. In summer, the air masses that influence the region are predominantly maritime polar air masses from the Pacific Ocean, and tropical air masses from the Gulf of Mexico, the latter being responsible for bringing heat waves, high humidity, and intense rainfall events. Towards late summer and early autumn, the remnants of tropical storms and hurricanes may bring strong winds and heavy rainfalls to the area. During autumn, Arctic air masses become increasingly common, leading to colder conditions.