It's the last General Committee meeting before the summer recess.
There are 28 items and 295 pages.
I am going out to sit on my deck .. do some sewing ... and enjoy the summer afternoon.
Agenda Item 14 is worth reading. Six pages long,. it's about the color green for parks trucks.
The administration said it costs more. I said it doesn't.
There should be no argument. But there is. Six pages of it.
There are also several million dollars worth of contracts to award.
I haven't tallied them yet but I will.
Saturday 16 June 2012
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3 comments:
I do believe they want Council to blow all their energy on the colour of trucks and then sit content with themselves while a few ' little house-keeping ' items slip past. Really glad not to be in your shoes. Do take care.
Your post brings into sharp focus this week's national and provincial political ineptitude, to accompany that of Aurora.
We have seen, those of us who could stay awake or who had the stomach to watch, our national elected officials conduct themselves as stupid, sometimes possibly inebriated and falling over, debaters of what is called an "Omnibus Bill." Ostensibly it is the nation's budget, but at well over 400 pages and transmogrifying into all sorts of inappropriate areas that are properly the subjects of their own legislation, it was passed by our "majority" government. Many have stated that this bill is unlawful, but now as a consequence of our august legislators, that is not the case.
In Ontario the minority Liberal government has threatened to call a snap election because the NDP has apparently reneged on what had been stated to be a firm and binding agreement. Always looking for just a little bit more, politicians have to grandstand for the folks at home, wherever they might be, and show that their commitments are no more worthy than those of carnival hucksters.
And here in Aurora I have often wondered whether it would not be financially advantageous to taxpayers to look at employing ALL Council members on a full time basis. The mayor is the only full time elected member, receiving about $50,000 from each of the town and the region. What if we paid an additional $50,000 from the town so that we could anticipate having reasonably intelligent people as our "bus driver." And members of Council, instead of receiving about $25,000 should be paid $85,000 so that we might be able to attract better people, ones who would have to devote their full time and attention to the taxpayers' business.
The extra cost to the town would be about $530,000, about equal to the money we throw at the Centre.
It strikes me as ludicrous that there is a ten page report on the colour green for parks' trucks. Who prepared this report, how much time did it take and what did it cost?
As for an agenda of 28 items occupying 295 pages, is this Aurora's version of the federal "Omnibus Bill?"
Once again, who prepared this, how much time did it take and what did it cost?
It's a good thing we live in a "paperless" world or there would not be a tree left standing
I am sorry but when I see this sort of agenda item come up it makes me furious.
Does the colour of a vehicle make any difference in how it functions? As a rule, the colour of a vehicle does not impact the price (unless you are going for some special colour/finish). Having said that, I could care less if the trucks were green, blue, white or pink. To actually involve council on this debate is even more silly.
I know that there is this implied tradition - I read it in the Letters to the Editor from the former Town employee; I read it in Mr Watts' piece. It should not matter.
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