Yoo..... Who ....what's another $70 thou

Last night was a committee meeting of Council. It was over in forty-five minutes.

I pulled  a Memorandum from the Planner  for discussion. It recommended approving $70,000
for  a Tertitiary Plan on the Community Improvement Plan which is  a Secondary  Plan included in the Official Plan .

I did not vote in favor of the Secondary Plan which is the Community Improvement Plan to provide funds for improvements like patterned sidewalks and street furniture and loans and grants to property owners needing to repair and maintain their properties. 

Street improvements are simply upkeep of existing service and operational in nature.

I do not favour taxing home owners  to help  business  property owners to maintain their property.

It's a matter of principle. 

I am therefore not in favor of spending another $70,000 on a study of how to accomplish the objective 
in a tertiary area of the downtown .

The funds are already in the budget. Which the Mayor has proclaimed  for all to know is a perfect example of prudent fiscal management. 

The vote last night not to spend $70,000  at this time was 5 to 3. Councillor Gaertner was absent.
Councillor Gallo was in the chair .I didn't notice how  he voted. Councillor Ballard and Pirri 
voted to spend. 

Councillor Pirri did not understand  the opposition. The  Director assured him the work would mostly be done by staff.  A traffic engineer  would be retained to advise on  traffic congestion.

I  did not understand why Councillor Pirri  did not understand why  $70.000 was needed  over and above salaries, if staff  did the work. 

Neither  did  I understand why hire a traffic engineer to solve a problem of our own making. 

In the last term,  millions were spent reconstructing roads in the north- east quadrant. Then 
 $220,000  were added , not on the advice of staff, to build an obstacle course to  prohibit  said roads from being used for the purpose intended; smooth and efficient movement of traffic. 

The plan was designed by a consultant who met with residents to determine their desires. The fee was $20,000.

This Council spent $59,000 to correct part of the problem and removed pesky chicanes. but did nothing about roads deliberately dead-ended to  keep the traffic on Yonge. 

Because people who like to live in the centre of things and enjoy all the  amenities but do not 
want to suffer the inconvenience of living in the centre of things and  at certain times  on certain days of the week, having traffic on their streets other than their own.

What traffic engineer would look at that situation and not immediately identify the problem and refrain from stating the obvious even if he was paid a fee  of $70,000 to do otherwise.