New study asks did amalgamation save us anything?

Many people in Greater Sudbury have opinions on what amalgamation has brought. More services, fewer services, higher costs, budget savings: opinions run the gamut.

During the Common Sense Revolution days under then premier and Ontario PC leader Mike Harris, many communities were forced to amalgamate with promises of better services for less money.

But is that the reality?

Tomorrow the Fraser Institute is releasing a report highlighting the economic impact of municipal consolidation in the 1990s.

"Municipal Amalgamation in Ontario builds on the plethora of research about the shortcomings of amalgamation in the province's big cities," the institute said in a news release this morning. "The study examines the experiences of some of Ontario's rural communities to see if cost savings were achieved and efficiencies realized when these smaller municipalities were brought together."

NorthernLife.ca will report on the report and provide a download link to the document when it is released tomorrow.