Item - 2026.XV6.1
Tracking Status
- This item was considered by Nominating Panel - Toronto Local Appeal Body on June 12, 2026 and was adopted with amendments. It will be considered by City Council on June 24 and 25, 2026.
XV6.1 - Appointment of Public Members to the Toronto Local Appeal Body
- Decision Type:
- ACTION
- Status:
- Amended
- Wards:
- All
Confidential Attachment - Personal matters about identifiable individuals who are being considered for appointment to the Toronto Local Appeal Body.
Panel Recommendations
The Nominating Panel – Toronto Local Appeal Body recommends that:
1. City Council appoint the following candidates to the Toronto Local Appeal Body for a term of office beginning on July 17, 2026, and ending on July 17, 2030, and until successors are appointed:
Ron Kanter
Trevor Kezwer
Gerald Swinkin
Decision Advice and Other Information
The Nominating Panel - Toronto Local Appeal Body:
1. Directed that Confidential Attachments 1a, 1b, and 2 to 4 to the report (June 3, 2026) from the City Clerk remain confidential in their entirety as they relate to personal matters about identifiable individuals being considered for appointment to the Toronto Local Appeal Body.
Candidates' biographies
Ron Kanter
Ron Kanter obtained a law degree from the University of Toronto, and an LLM from Osgoode Hall Law School. He served as a Toronto City Councillor and MPP, and directed a provincial study on development and environmental protection. Ron practiced municipal and planning law at Toronto firms for more than 30 years, representing applicants, objectors, and public bodies.
Ron currently mediates, adjudicates and arbitrates disputes about land use, construction and new home warranties. He looks forward to presiding at Toronto Local Appeal Body hearings, and writing decisions that are fair for all parties and participants.
Trevor Kezwer
Trevor Kezwer obtained his law degree from the University of Windsor. Trevor also holds a Master's Degree in International Relations from McMaster University. In addition, Trevor holds a Qualified Mediator designation from the ADR Institute of Canada. Trevor has experience working for a municipality, including working with planning staff, and preparing for hearings before the Ontario Municipal Board (now known as the Ontario Land Tribunal). As a resident of Toronto, Trevor appreciates the impact that planning decisions have on local neighbourhoods.
Gerald Swinkin
Through a legal career spanning from his call to the bar in 1979 to the present, Gerald Swinkin has been a public servant, an advocate in private practice and a Provincially and municipally appointed adjudicator of land use planning disputes, an arc whereby he has left his mark on many communities, and led what he believes to have been a fulfilling life.
Origin
Summary
The Nominating Panel - Toronto Local Appeal Body will conduct interviews and recommend three candidates to City Council for appointment to the Toronto Local Appeal Body.
Background Information
https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2026/xv/bgrd/backgroundfile-287659.pdf
Confidential Attachment 1a - List of Eligible Candidates, Qualifications, Confidential Diversity Information Summary, and Applications for Appointment to the Toronto Local Appeal Body
Confidential Attachment 1b - List of Ineligible Candidates, Qualifications, Confidential Diversity Information Summary, and Applications for Appointment to the Toronto Local Appeal Body
Confidential Attachment 2 - Diversity Information Summary for Current Public Members of the Toronto Local Appeal Body
Confidential Attachment 3 - Toronto Local Appeal Body - Completed Assignments from Applicants Selected for Interview
Confidential Attachment 4 - Interview Schedule for June 12, 2026
Motions
That the Nominating Panel - Toronto Local Appeal Body delete recommendation 1.
Recommendation to be deleted:
1. The Nominating Panel - Toronto Local Appeal Body recommend three public members for appointment to the Toronto Local Appeal Body for a term of office beginning on July 17, 2026, and ending on July 17, 2030, and until successors are appointed.
and adopt instead:
That City Council appoint the following candidates to the Toronto Local Appeal Body for a term of office beginning on July 17, 2026, and ending on July 17, 2030, and until successors are appointed:
Ron Kanter
Trevor Kezwer
Gerald Swinkin