"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

Thursday 10 April 2014

The Community Interest Is Not Served

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "You Can't Fake It on Television":

Maybe tomorrow you could tell us why Rogers quit at 9:30 ? I figured a closed meeting at the end of the session but had to allow the possibility that they were as bored as I was. It didn't seem enough time to deal with what was on the Agenda.

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I did not know Roger's stopped  taping  at 9.30 p.m.

We had a meeting before Council to discuss  the acquisition of land for a post -secondary institute.  

We recessed  for Council at 7p.m. 

We recessed from Council  at 9.30 p.m. to go back behind closed doors to complete the discussion. 

I'm fairly sure had I not been opposed to  commitment  to spend  eleven million dollars , plus lots of other goodies, the discussion would have lasted a fraction of the time.

York  University is  desirous of establishing a  medical school. 

The information is already in the public domain. 

The final decision rests in provincial hands  because responsibility for post-secondary education is Provincial.

The  information is in the public domain. 

The  Province owns two  suitable  parcels of  land  within our municipality.

The information is in the public domain. 

Both parcels are  non-contributory in our ledger  for more  than a decade.

I find the proposal  our municipality should  contemplate a multi-million dollar site for a provincial function to be contra-indicated.

Without the Hydro Asset  Fund it would never be a consideration.

That we would gift the  asset to a provincial institution is utterly preposterous.

Studies  by various  universities contend millions of dollars  are contributed to a city economy by the existence of a university.

One wonders about the  reason for the studies

Recently  the  town contemplated  competing with development  industry for designated land  with service allocation for residential development for use as a community park.

The land  was appraised. Value was  established at $800,000 an acre. A purchase for town purpose meant forfeiting assessment  income revenue and development charges revenue in the millions. From a  corporate business perspective , a total liability.

In contrast , price contemplated for raw land  as a site for a post-secondary campus  is  25% higher.
Assessment income revenue and development charge revenue would also be forfeit.

Negotiations  for a purchase of property is allowed by law to be discussed behind closed doors for obvious reasons,

Council did  report out and recommended approval of a decision on Tuesday.

Substantial resources are committed  to  gifting land  to an external  institution without community  awareness or opportunity for input.

I am  but one of nine with authority to say, I do not believe the  community's interest is served







 



6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Of course studies would show universities contribute millions. Just like the Heritage Park study showed what a gift it would be to the community if we purchased the 3 properties on Yonge. Risk will always be shown as minimal, and a win-win situation will be concluded because that’s what you pay the studies to conclude.

Anonymous said...

All term we have heard about the need Not to rush into making judgements. Don't rush to use the Library lands for a multi-use building and badly needed parking. [ the Fab Lab might be coming ]. don't rush to use any of the land the town already possesses. ( Cllr Gallo claims that would tie the hands of future Councils ], don't rush to settle neighbourhood squabbles that escalate into turf wars.[ trees, cell towers & buses in driveways ].
But, of course, at the end of term rush into every damn thing available.

Anonymous said...

I thought any use of the Hydro funds HAD to come up for public debate. Seems as though that little factor being ignored. We keep hearing about grandiose plans already in the works with a rushed dead-line.

Anonymous said...

The dead-line appears to be the 17th. Hopefully from there the project will be in other hands and stop costing Aurora money just to get a bid onto the table.

Anonymous said...

" Somewhere is York Region " covers a lot of territory. and is apparently the area from which these ' bids ', which could be called something quite else, will come. I would love to be reading them over for York.

Anonymous said...

The " good news " is that York plans to decide around the middle of May. Hence no candidates will be able to run on the prospect or possibility of being involved with the project. It will be a reality or not.