How Could That Happen?

Checking out the Auroran for something this morning, reminded me of something I found in last week's publication when  I wasn't even looking..

Scott Johnson had a column . He usually does  the weekly cartoon. The column was about related funds to the Victoria Street projects.

He referred to proceeds from the sale of our hydro corporation being  $34.5 million . Then he went on to state the nalance in the reserve fund  is now $33 million  after  the funds  being invested for seven years.  

He had some less than complimentary comments about that

I found that interesting. How could he have been so sure of figures that plainly made no sense.  So sure, he felt sufficiently confident to be  critical.

We kno he is not unintelligent. So what's the explanation?

I would call it bias. A closed mind. An exceedingly narrow perspective. Like inborn prejudice.

How could $34.5 million become $33 million after seven years of investment?  How could he be content that he had it right?

Why did he not ask himself the obvious question?

There is something wrong here? Either a significant sum has disappeared? Or these figures are not  accurate.

Which, of course,  they were not .. How could he not have realised that? It is a puzzlement.

Who was doing the proof reading? Why wasn't it caught?  Is the competence of municipal administration in such low esteem  the figures were not immediately seen to be  severely distorted..

Proceeds from the sale of our  Hydro, as I recollect,  were $24.5 million

We used $2.3 million to renovate the Church Street School for a state of the art museum

We had been receiving  revenue of a million dollars a year from hydro when it was  a town-owned corporation. We decided to continue taking the amount, reducing it by one hundred thousand a year, to wean ourselves from dependence. 

We currently have, after six  years  $33 million in the Hydro reserve fund. Municipalities are not free to play the market with public resources.

Richmond Hill sold their hydro to Power Stream before we did. I believe they realised an asset of $125 million. Don't hold me to that. I wasn't paying close attention.

Richmond Hill Arts Centre on Yonge Street  was built with part of the money. I believe  a generous  contribution was made  to York Central Hospital as well. I understand they still have residual being carefully managed. I haven't paid close attention but I know they did some good stuff. Like we should.