We used to rise and address the chair. We did not have microphones. We were not on camera There were no audio tapes.
The Council chamber in Aurora was a big room. The County Council Chamber was bigger .
Standing to address the chair has a salutary effect. It called for focus,and organisation of one's thoughts. A person really needs to be prepared.
.
Sitting around a table, directing random questions at this director or that to help one firm up a position instills no confidence in the argument presented....if one is.
That's what debate is.
There were fourteen municipalities in the County each represented by a Reeve and Deputy Reeve.
Contribution to debate was optional. It still is
.
There were no consent motions to approve recommendations without discussion.
Standing committees recommended to council. Staff were not in the direct line of fire.
At County Council, a committee would rise and report. They would leave their seats and assemble at a table in the centre of the horseshoe with the appropriate director.
Challenges to a recommendation were from councillors to committee members. If a committee chair could not answer a question , only then was the director allowed to participate
Public display of dependence on staff to help one formulate a position, does not reflect favourably. It illustrates failure to prepare, absence of judgment or both
If a councillor has not done their homework or is incapable of comprehending the recommendation, best not put that on display.
"Better to be silent and thought a fool than open one's mouth and remove all doubt" Socrates.
At the head of our table conferencing is visible and constant between the presiding member , the Chief Administrator and the Clerk of the Municipality.
What we do in Aurora Council scarcely resembles formal debate. Being seated reduces formality. Creates a casual environment. Consistent application of the rules suffer as a consequence.
At the last Council meeting, the procedure bylaw was recommended for approval. I came prepared to debate. My points of dispute were clear, I hoped to illustrate how many and how significant they were and argue for postponement for further work to be done.
The presiding member directed each of my points to staff for a response. It was not my intent.It took far more of council's time than intended. And frankly I was extremely uncomfortable being steered into a process that I absolutely oppose.
But I believe the chair was well intended.
I stopped before finishing. The bylaw did not accompany the agenda. The item was referred to the next council meeting.
In my judgment,a formal council meeting is not the right place for work that still needs to be done.It's the place for debate and decision. I allowed myself to be sidestepped. It happens when lines are blurred and people are working at cross purpose.
Commenters are expressing frustration with the Mayor's difficulty with the rules.
Patience is not an option.
We needed to elect Geoff Dawe. He offered to serve. Learning in a fish bowl how to provide guidance and leadership to an eight member council, without requisite skills is not an easy task. It's not easy for a person with requisite skills. When it looks easy and things run smoothly, that's a reflection of considerable skill.
We knew that or should have, when we voted. What we need to do now is recognise it's not a one-man show. We need to work to-gether with due respect for the Mayor's responsibility.
If he succeeds , we all succeed. And vice versa
Tuesday 20 September 2011
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8 comments:
You reveal that you are anchored to the past.
Those days are gone.
Change is what our world is all about. Rapid change at that.
Certainly government, and politics are in grave need of change.
Transformation is essential to democracy!
Great for you Ev.
We look to the past to find a strength in our future.
There are many who want to extinguish our history to manipulate their version of the truth.
Would it help if you sat the Mayor in the middle,
with Abel on one side & Thompson on the other, &
whenever it is clear he has to act, one of them gives
him a touch on the elbow?
With respect to this post and the previous one, it is obvious that if Aurora Council had a speaker, the work on hand would be accomplished much faster, in accordance with the agenda for each meeting, and with far less acrimony.
I do not believe that time will improve the situation.
The more opportunity wayward councillors have the to play their stupid little games the more set in their ways they will become, and it will become impossible to bring them to heel.
Are there no long serving retired councillors or former legislators, either Federal of Provincial, with experience with the rules of procedural conduct who might be happy to work for a few hours each week within easy driving time of Aurora? Even at a princely figure of $100 - $200 per hour the cost would be repaid very quickly through Council efficiency and more rapid decision making.
I have read this blog for a long time and the continual theme is "this is the way it was; it's not like that anymore; I don't like it the way it is now".
There used to be an individual that posted here that ran afoul of the blog owner for citing "ageism" as one of her problems. I am not sure it is ageism per se, but I think in order to be an effective council member you must understand and appreciate that things change - not just the Town but how the Town operates.
Comparisons to Toronto is not fair. First of all, those councillors are full time professionals. Aurora's council is a part-time position. You get what you pay for. Apart from Ms Buck, the rest have jobs to attend to - the reliance on Staff is the only way to ensure due process.
I also see that almost a year into their terms, the public is not happy with their leaders. Every day in The Star there are pages of slagging of the Ford administration. You read here that the public does not like the way things are going at 1 Municipal Way. Would these people be happy with the alternative? Probably not. You can't please everyone.
You need to embrace the present, minding that the past is the past. Things don't always change for the worse.
"Certainly government, and politics are in grave need of change"
This is nothing but the truth and for the Transformation so desperately needed all one needs to do is look backward , Think about it , back to the day when politicians were not afraid to speak their minds, back when common sense and logic ruled the day , back when politicians made all of us stand on our own two feet, Back when a hand shake was golden in the political arena, Yes indeed Evelyn is firmly anchored in the past, Values like hers are sadly Long Gone !
AGENDA OF GENERAL COMMITTEE meeting September 20, 2011
Agenda Item 3. Why the increase from $46,000 to $73,000?
Agenda Item 5. Why the increase from $50,000 to $80,000?
Agenda Item 9. Street-scape Planting on Wellington Street for $465,000. What is this?
I would rather spend $100K on sending all members of council to a retreat where they learn the contents of the procedural bylaw and expectations for discussion/debate until they know them thoroughly, than continue to watch and listen to meetings that display lack of knowledge,order, control and consistency. Council members should then write a test to prove their knowledge and understanding of the rules that should govern council procedures. I would even go as far as to say that they should not be allowed back at the table until they have passed that test. Perhaps then we would get business done with some preparedness (for some) and solid, sensible debate and decision making. This issue also existed during the previous term where more time was wasted asking inane questions than in constructive debate and members flailed under ignorance of rules and procedure.
I am sure it wouldn't take long to recoup the $100K from shorter, more efficient meetings that would require less paid staff time.
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