Should Vancouver municipalities become a megacity like Toronto? No way.

How about a ward system in local towns or cities? Possibly.

Those are the key findings of an online postelection survey which asked voters whether Metro Vancouver should amalgamate, and if a ward system should be implemented.

“It was certainly surprising, especially when you look at the animosity (toward amalgamation) outside of the two main cities,” said Mario Canseco, vice-president of public affairs at Insights West, which conducted the survey.

Canseco said that while they knew Surrey and Vancouver wouldn’t be happy with the idea, opposition was much stronger in other municipalities.

In the online survey of residents who participated in this month’s municipal elections, three-in-five (60 per cent) disagree with the notion of all Metro Vancouver municipalities amalgamating into one, with 30 per cent agreeing and 10 per cent unsure.

While residents of Vancouver and Surrey are equally put off by the prospect of amalgamation (56 per cent each), the proportion climbed to 64 per cent among residents of other municipalities.

Support was the same in Vancouver and Surrey at 32 per cent, compared to just 27 per cent in other municipalities.

Rejection of amalgamation was strongest among females (63 per cent versus 56 per cent for males) and similar among all age groups.

The cool response from smaller municipalities shows people are “really happy” with the way things are now, said Canseco.

“There’s a high level of identification with their council and mayors and I think there’s a worry that if they amalgamate, then they lose control of their city. When you factor in the idea of having one city for the entire Lower Mainland for taxes, better services, they look at it as losing their own identity.”

Implementing a ward system for city council elections — an idea that was discussed during the Surrey campaign — is a more complex issue for residents, who were more amenable to the idea.

While 37 per cent within all of Metro Vancouver would agree to have wards in their municipality, 27 per cent disagree and 35 per cent are undecided.

Supporters of a ward system outnumber opponents by 52 per cent to 19 per cent in Vancouver, and 43 per cent to 23 per cent in Surrey. However, in the rest of the region, just 24 per cent support wards, with 35 per cent opposed and 41 per cent undecided.

“We see a high level of support in Vancouver and Surrey and a bit of indecision when you look at other municipalities,” said Canseco. “One reason is they’re smaller and the areas they cover are also smaller. So you do have that level of identification with your council or councillors if you’re in Port Moody, Port Coquitlam or North Vancouver.”

According to the poll, 71 per cent of voters in Metro Vancouver feel they had enough information about candidates and parties to cast all of their votes in this election, while only 26 per cent disagreed with this statement, including 38 per cent of those between the ages of 18 to 34.

bmorton@vancouversun.com

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