Fox in the Henhouse

Council was lively last night. Lots of clucking and plumage ruffling.At one point I could swear I heard the Mayor indicate to Councillor MacEachern she intended to" call the police in a minute".

Four residents from the Mosaics complex came to commend the Mayor and council for that crazy agreement with Canadian Tire .There are sixty families apparently in the complex .If they were all taken in by that assinine scheme, there is not much that can be done for them.

Councillor MacEachern did her usual amazingingly convoluted interpretation of the facts. She stated the fault lay with town staff in the planning stage of the development because they did not make the easement a public right of way. In Councillor MacEachern's book, town staff are always to blame.

Good planning dictates that a residential development will always have a second access for emergency purposes. In the event of a traffic accident blocking the single entrance to a development, access must be provided for fire and ambulance. Such is the easement running down the side and owned by Canadian Tire. It is intended for the safety of the residents but not the way they have perceived it.

That they used it as a direct path home from the bus stop is understandable. That they had a right to demand Canadian Tire keep parking lots lights burning after business hours was not. They had a tri-party agreement with Canadian Tire with many pages of dispute resolution mechanisms. It was apparently something they did not choose to utilise. Why bother when St. George at the town hall is ever ready to slay a dragon and has unrestricted access to the town treasury.

The scenario reminded me of budget night when parents of the Minor Baseball Association came to council. They had learned that once again a staff recommendation had been rejected for the purchase of land suitable to provide desperately needed accommodation for their growing numbers .Money for the purchase was on hand.It had been collected from developers for precisely this purpose.It could not be used for any other purpose.

To take it and not use it is beyond comprehension. . Furthermore, that money is taken from new home purchasers in the price paid for their homes. They paid in advance for the facilities which would be needed by their residence in Aurora.

But Evalina and the Mayor were determined . Staff advice would again be ignored. The money would not be utilised. Repeated explanations about why it had to be utilised for the purpose it was collected fell on deaf ears

Didn't matter how many different ways the Treasurer explained it, they just couldn't get it.

But the night the baseball parents came, the Mayor gave a breathtaking performance of bafflegab . She ended with a flourish and directed The Director of Leisure Services to start a plan the following day.

The parents laughed . They cheered and applauded .They left the chamber convinced the Mayor had heard their plea, was on their side and their problem was solved.

Alas it was not so.

Incidentally during budget discussions the Director frequently referred to suitable land that was available for purchase and would unlikely continue to be available. It was not suggested then, as was done in council last night, that proposed property acquisition needed to be discussed behind closed doors to protect the town's interest.

Last night the Mayor called upon the Director of Corporate Service to offer that explanation to justify two property matters on the closed session agenda.

I am no longer confident that advice from staff is untrammelled. A chill hangs over the town hall. Any staff member who dares to exercise authority is quite likely to find himself hauled before a quasi tribunal and cross-examined like a felon. Behind closed doors of course.