Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Check Out Provincial Government Statement on Econo...":
Snip that library budget, Ev!
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Every year there's anxiety about the library budget. I can't see why. It's the simplest, least complicated of all budgets.
Seventy-eight per cent is staff. They are out there in full view of the patrons, always busy, always at their service.
Library service is essentially books, technology, staff and a building. The service is governed by the Library Board Act. Three councillors serve on the board and council appoints the rest.
The town grows, revenues increase, use of service increases. I get a lot of satisfaction from seeing the library abuzz with people. Especially children and students.
It's a beautiful facility full of cheerful ambience.
During hard times,library staff see a marked increase in demand for service.
Same as the police. In hard times.crime increases. Especially domestic occurrences. Hardship, and inability to provide, puts great stress on families.Dependence on food banks, inadequate housing cannot be anything but destructive to relationships. Children suffer most.
Every year of the last term, there was pressure on the library to decrease the budget.
At the same time, on Wednesday June 10th, 2009, a town media release marked signing of the agreement with the new Culture Centre Board to hand over a multi-million dollar facility for a dollar a year to a board which self-appointsand accounts to no-one for spending tax dollars. with annual increments of 3% with no questions asked.
The only requirement to receive the quarterly installment is to submit a quarterly financial statement to the town treasurer. He has no option but to release the next installment without obligation to report anything at all to his masters.
Town staff have provided guidance and support to the Culture Centre Board. Members have expressed their appreciation.
The full page ad in The Auroran recently was a salvo from this board in a political campaign to maintain the status quo. Their previous letter-writing campaign fizzled out with about four letters.
I'm not sure what the blue sign on Highway 400 , is about but it also costs money. How much I have no idea. Certainly it contributes nothing to "Aurora Culture".
Every year, notwithstanding the fact we have no museum, we have provided a grant of $50,000. to the Historical Society. Until last year, they had a membership of fifty-nine. One,I don't know who, persists in reminding us we do not own the museum collection.
There was no museum. We didn't own the collection. Why were we handing over $50,000 of taxpayers' money to an organisation with fifty-nine members who voluntarily withdrew from their commitment to operate a museum at a critical time and at the same time surrendered protection for their own substantial investment in the facility.
$50,000. is Aurora' s share of annual tax revenue from six; average homes.
At one time, at the same time they were withdrawing commitment to operate the museum ,the president suggested we should provide the Society with a budget like the Library.Lord only knos where that idea came from. But it was apparently well received.
The same individual was a member of the Culture Centre Board when we signed that sweet deal.
We pay Aurora Legion's share of regional; and education taxes,while forfeiting any contribution to our expenditures. They have two buildings on their property receiving all municipal services including fire protection and policing and they pay zilch. We pay their taxes for them.That's a regional decision.
We hand over $100,000 to the Aboretum group to spend as they will. If the parks department asked for $100,000 extra in their budget, imagine the hullabullo that would raise.
Councils have happily handed over your money in every direction, while nickeling and diming library service to look like they are protecting your interest.
I could extend the list of elite groups receiving free use of town facilities and services. They know who they are. There's no shortage. All of them prepared, at the drop of a hat, to engage politically if their special interest is threatened.
Right now, I'm defending the library.
On the side of the angels for a change.
Wednesday, 11 January 2012
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18 comments:
The Aurora Public Library:
Aurora's "original" cultural centre.
Someone is trying to divert your attention, Evelyn. It
further illustrates that pressure is being felt when they think Aurorans would target the Library. Only a select few weirdos would expect that to work. Didn't they try to clobber the Library near the end of the last term ?
Leave Libraries alone! They Generate money! The Public Lending Commission calls up 7 libraries at random every year and authors are paid a bit for every "hit". We
need that money as royalties go down the drain when publishers close. It isn't much but always a nice surprise.So leave the libraries alone and try not to damage any books. We need them to remain intact.
No, Matt Maddocks, that honour probably goes to the Mechanics Hall (SE corner of Victoria & Mosley Sts).
there you go again bad mouthing the special interest groups, their hand so deep in our pockets, doing so much for everyone in this community , when are you ever going to learn that going against the grain and beating that common sense drum of yours clear out of its skin is never going to work , You are in Aurora the land of freebies and give away's , get with the program Evelyn!!!
Only thing wrong with our Library is that the parking lot is always full of the vehicles of those bimbos from the Culture Vultures and hopefully that will end soon.
"One,I don't know who, persists in reminding us we do not own the museum collection."
Which you just as persistently - and wrongly - tried to slough off as a 'canard'. You must admit that those reminders were the truth.
@11 January, 2012 7:58 PM
The parking lot is full of Cultural Centre patrons, eh? Gee, whatever they're doing at the place must be popular with folks here in town.
10:04 PM
Nope, not 'patrons'. Staff [paid by us] and assorted
sycophants. Check it out for yourself. One lady said her vehicle was less likely to be scratched at the library as she
ignored the fact that her car was making my kids and me walk through a large puddle.
Interesting that some historians are weighing in with facts.
Interesting that the reason we do not have a museum is a split that was caused within the Historical Society.
You cannot support two building with one pot of resources.
That is how things fell apart.
That is a historical fact.
9:59 AM
So ? That's like rehashing old elections. It matters not how it happened. It matters how we set about fixing the situation so that it reflects the history. And the history is totally supportive of the Museum. The Culture Centre has no history and has given up earlier promises to work with the Historical Society.
So, as you correctly point out, you cannot support two in one building, the current tenant must vacate.
Love the logic !
Anonymous at 12:06 said...
"So ? That's like rehashing old elections. It matters not how it happened"
Are you new? That is what these boards are all about.
"So, as you correctly point out, you cannot support two in one building, the current tenant must vacate."
Good luck on that... I think you will piss off an equal amount og people that feel that the current tenant is supposed to be there.
This is a no win situation.
Personally, the amount of "history" or "culture" in this Town worth showing off could fit into a broom closet at the Town Hall anyways.
The interesting point made was about supporting two buildings.
I think the two buildings are Church St.School and Hillary House.
The split was the Historical Society Board members divided between which building gets the most attention.
This allowed the Culture Vultures to prey on the weak.
The past council knew this and made a clearer path for the scavengers to have a new playhouse for the elite.
1:47 PM
" People think the current tenant is ' supposed ' to be there. " What kind of reasoning is that ? We are 'supposed' to have a Youth Centre, and you plead the case for subsidized day care for a posse of
well-to-do women. There are plenty of families who would take exception to your priorities.
We also need basic things like parks. There will be no Ontario grants to hold up the treasury, It will be up to Council to draw that line and I have been hearing that they are aware of the dangers of letting this thing drag on.
Of course, the public relations' fiascos of the Cultural Centre have earned them no friends. There is derision in town mixed with growing anger. How a small group could alienate so many is astonishing.
Speaking of historians, Jacqueline Stuart is giving another talk next week at the Cultural Centre. It is part of the heritage programming that happens there.
To 10:15pm
Have you noticed that these talks pop up when the heat on the Cultural Center is hottest.
It dose not take a genius to see that long time members of the Historical society have sold out.
If they had not then they would have been screaming when their museum and funding disappeared..
10:15 PM
How very gracious to allow her to speak in the building designed for her Museum. We will have made progress when she invites one of your experts to speak to the town. Of course the ticket money you would demand would reduce the attendance drastically.
Sprite
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