Councillor McAlister claims his ward 'got shafted' by the rest of London after storming out of debate

An unexpectedly tense debate about adjusting London’s electoral boundaries saw Councillor Hadleigh McAlister leave mid-meeting and claim his ward is being carved up to satisfy the rest of London.

On Tuesday, the Strategic Priorities and Policy Committee (SPPC) met to consider a pair of maps prepared by a consultant that aim to redistribute London’s population more evenly between its 14 wards while not dividing neighbourhoods with similar interests.

Uneven population growth has resulted in a growing disparity between wards.

They range from 27,299 residents in Ward 2 (Argyle) to 49,914 in Ward 7 (Hyde Park).

It has led to uneven workloads for councillors and significant differences in “representation by population” during municipal elections.

There was generally support among members of SPPC for the consultant’s Option 1, but several motions came forward to make adjustments to the map.

McAlister told colleagues he intended to bring two motions forward to adjust the proposed boundaries for Ward 1.

Currently, his ward contains 28,798 residents, the second fewest.

It is made up of Glen Cairn, Fairmont, and neighbourhoods along the Hamilton Road corridor.

Under Option 1, the ward would grow to become the largest by population (42,267), and add the Old East Village BIA and part of the Carling Heights neighbourhood (south of Oxford).

A map showing Option #1 for adjusting municipal ward boundaries (Source: City of London)

McAlister proposed moving a triangle of land south of Gore Road and east of Clarke Road containing about 850 residents into the mostly rural Ward 14.

It would also prevent dividing an industrial area between the two wards.

“This area has more in common with Ward 14 and that's where [the residents] naturally align. It's not very populous and it's predominantly industrial,” he told colleagues.

But there was significant confusion about the exact boundary lines being considered.

His motion was defeated by a vote of 6 to 9.

McAlister then declined to bring his second motion forward for consideration.

He gathered the items on his desk and walked out of council chambers – not to return.

Later McAlister told CTV News via text message, “They were going to carve up Ward 1 the way they wanted and were never going to listen to me or my residents. The options were awful and because others got what they wanted, my requests were irrelevant. Once again Ward 1 got shafted to satisfy the rest of London.”

However, as the meeting progressed in McAlister’s absence, several motions were brought forward that would alleviate some of the population growth proposed in the new Ward 1.

A motion by Councillor Susan Stevenson would keep Carling Heights unified by moving 4,400 residents living south of Oxford Street into her new Ward 4.

A motion by Deputy Mayor Shawn Lewis would relocate the Rowntree Park neighbourhood (north of Victoria Hospital) and its 2,500 residents from Ward 1 into Ward 11 which includes Old South.

Both motions were supported by the committee and would effectively bring down the population in Ward 1 to the target population of 35,500 per ward.

“I am disappointed that an affected councillor isn't here to help advance the city business of [this] long-term project,” said Councillor Elizabeth Peloza after McAlister had left.

Following the meeting, Lewis was asked by CTV News about the impact McAlister’s absence had during a debate that largely centred on his ward.

“Given that Ward 1 was the only ward that was going to be really outside the population variance (target) under this new map, and this change brings it into the optimal range, I think that the Ward 1 councillor was probably going to be supportive of that. It does come to council next week, so he'll have an opportunity to weigh-in then,” Lewis responded.

The consultant will prepare additional information about the impact that the proposed adjustments would make to the overall political landscape and ensure there is no ‘ripple effect’ across the wards.

The additional information will be available next week prior to the final council meeting of 2024.

Council must complete the Ward Boundary Review and approve any changes by late-January in order to permit enough time for potential appeals to the Ontario Land Tribunal.

New ward boundaries in place by the end of 2025 would be utilized in the 2026 municipal election.