"Cowardice asks the question...is it safe? Expediency asks the question...is it politic? Vanity asks the question...is it popular? But conscience asks the question...is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but one must take it because it is right." ~Dr. Martin Luther King

Saturday 7 November 2015

IN PLAIN AND SIMPLE TERMS

Oil O.@"Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "LET'S ALL GIVE OUR HEADS A COLLECTIVE SHAKE": 

I just read the last post by Christopher Watts in which he says that the town of Aurora, or whatever town, has to fork out a purchase price of $17,000 for the LAV3, a transportation and delivery cost of $10,000 (is this uniform across the country or is there a distance factor?) and finally $15,000 for a concrete pad and pedestal for a total of $42,000.

This is almost triple the figure that council committed to.

Is this part of the budget process to which you refer in your post following this?

This is blatant stupidity and bordering on a fraud perpetrated on the taxpayers of Aurora. 

Posted by Anonymous to  Our Town and Its Business at 7 November 2015 at 21:54

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It is not clear what Council committed to when they agreed to budget $15,000 in 2016 for a concrete dais to display war junk in the Aurora War Memorial Garden.

I never voted for a budget during the last two terms of Council. 

The Treasurer's concept of equity was never acceptable. 

That taxpayers in any given year should routinely pay more than required to provide services in order to relieve the  tax burden ten years down the road, failed to appeal to my sense of order. 

Municipalities  are required by law to budget to cover the cost of services. 

If the law  does not permit budgeting  for a deficit, for the same reason, the law does not permit budgeting for a surplus either. 

The  budget is legislated by Bylaw. Shifting items about after the fact like pieces on a chess board  
displays  a lamentable lack of comprehension of public financing and municipal legislation. 

People must pay for services rendered.  
No more. No less
Underpaid taxes cannot be collected from taxpayers who have left the municipality. 
Overpaid taxes cannot be refunded to taxpayers who have moved to another place. 

The idea homeowners and business large and small, should be routinely taxed over ten years to create reserves of $205 million is an outrageous abuse of authority, in my judgement. 

More than that, it is unjust, unprincipled and unconscionable. 

I am against it. 

A term of office is four years long.

No Council has authority beyond that time. 

3 comments:

Christopher Watts said...

I appologize for any misunderstanding with the costs outlined in my post: https://wattstrending.wordpress.com/2015/11/06/the-unremembered/

These are taken from slide #8 of the delegation made to GC October 6th, available as an add-on to that agenda on the town's website as: Delegation a-Corkery-QYR-Item 2-PR15-031-LAV at Cenotaph.pdf

To clarify

CanadaCompany is paying the $17,000 for the remains of the LAV3
the QYR and a donation are providing the $10,000 cost of transport & delivery

The town was asked and approved a $15,000 amount for concrete pad & pedestal, in addition to all costs going forward with respect to maintenance and liability

Anonymous said...

There was really no misunderstanding. Council has only approved $15,000 initially plus taking it under their wing forever.
I do hope they have considered the cost of insurance. That thing will be an accident magnet.

Anonymous said...

Im not sure just how far in advance, this council can commit councils to follow. We hear all the time about newly elected
representatives finding that the surpluses they were told existed do not , in fact, appear in the books. Or that a deficit might be greater than predicted. It seems unfair to tie those who follow with a bunch of commitments based on one man's
interpretation of the by-laws, The auditors might disagree with our treasurer, It's been known to happen. Just Saying.