A Speedy Response

Anonymous said...

Maybe because I'm new to town I don't understand a lot of what you said.

But I do know I came to Aurora willing to pay higher taxes to get more undeveloped space.

Now I understand the issue. Thanks.

August 9, 2010 3:59 PM

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This has been on odd day. Last night we had a power interruption of several hours. I stayed up to turn the lights off when they came back on.

The computer was in darkness .I assumed it was off. But at 4.00 a.m,.it heralded itself open for action.

I came to turn it off and instead spent a couple of hours posting about how different perspectives are or should be represented in a Council.

I went back to bed at six o'clock a.m.

I started the Rumours post at 10.43 a.m. It was after three when I finished, looked up and realized how long I'd been here and a thunderstorm was in full thrust outside .

Within an hour, I had the above reaction to the post

I'm not sure I understand it completely .

I can take a stab at it though.

To someone who doesn't have to worry how high taxes are, any and all effort to stop development, wherever it might be proposed. is welcome and meets with approval. It's alright now for the town to simply be fossilised, like a bug in amber.

The lady is not alone The mindset flourishes . Mayor Morris and Councillor MacEachern know their clients and serve them well.

Anonymous expresses understanding and satisfaction with the issue and thanks me.

You are welcome. I'm glad I was able to clarify.

If you are confident your perspective is shared by the majority of town residents , why not attach your name ..

It might also be helpful to acknowledge bafflegab about protecting the environment for future generations is just that.

Nothing more noble is at stake here than serving the interests of a current generation of residents who have no concern about high taxes as long as they don't have to share the neighborhood with people who do worry about taxes and how to pay the mortgage and how to get the child care centre to open earlier than 7 a.m. so that they can drop the little ones off ,and get to the station in time to get free parking shelter for the car all day.

Child safe in an institution, ten hours a day. Car safe in a free parking garage.

All is right with the world.

A hundred acres of land safe from development and all those other massive chunks chewed out from the revenue base of an urban municipality, which depends on assessment revenue to provide services at a price ordinary people can afford and keep their taxes under control

Oops... sorry anonymous... that's not your problem is it?

Rumours Are Flying

Heard this morning, Councillor MacEachern is planning to register as a Mayoralty candidate on the last day .

Of course , we know rumor is just that. Some people delight in planting rumors.

Bobbie(Buchanan) and Dickie(Illingworth), little rascals in Lyle Glover's cartoons in The Banner years ago, did it for mischief.

They found merriment in how a planted story grew or changed from the original by the time it got back to them. Then they had to wonder if there was any truth to the story.

But this rumor engages. Registered as a candidate in 2003 ,incumbent Councillor MacEachern withdrew from the race at the last minute.

Councillor West had registered. As I did.

Councillor MacEachern promptly withdrew. She publicly stated she would rather spend time with her children than sit on a Council with the candidates who had just registered.

It was weird on two scores. It anticipated voters' choice and trashed it the same time.

What candidate in a democratic election, contemplates asking to be the voters' choice and at the same time trashes other potential choices.

Well.....they do.

I was offended.

Councillor MacEachern pursued her hostility. One of her last acts was to demand a re-count of the votes. She had expressed a lack of confidence in the machines recommended by the elections officer previously.

But first, she asked the runner-up to request a re-count.

I was less than a hundred votes ahead . After the re-count, it was still the same.

The runner-up had declared himself content with the voters' decision and privately added he had no stomach to serve on the next council.

Ms Morris had been re-elected with a favourable vote.The runner-up had served with her on a previous Council.

He graciously took his leave.

It was odd . I had not been on Council for fourteen years.

I was barely aware of the controversy over the Ann Bartley Smith lands, transferred to Heritage Trust in exchange for full assessed value in provincial tax relief.

I'm not absolutely sure how those deals go down.I know an appraisal is obtained.

I contacted an official of Heritage Trust by e-mail recently to discover the value of the exchange for the Ann Bartley Smith lands. She responded the Trust was negotiating a contract with the town, so she couldn't say.

Isn't that interesting?

Our deal with the trust is ,we take financial responsibility and liability for maintaining the land while having no authority whatsoever of how it will be used. Or that it can be used for any significant purpose.

The controversial arrangement of years ago was twenty acres of pre-serviced land with a development designation would be sold by the Trust , in return for which the Town would receive outright ownership, no strings attached, of the remaining acreage.

Councillor MacEachern lived on a street that would be completed as planned before the "gift" to Heritage Trust. The serviced area was proposed to be sold for development.

Sue Walmer and Guy Poppe lived on two acre estates with a marvelous view of the rolling hills of unspoiled lands.

With Ms.MacEachern in the lead. they formed an organisation and named it S.W.A.T. They battled the idea of twenty acres of land to be developed to a stand-still.

Now a Councillor, Ms MacEachern recently declared a Conflict of Interest when the maintenance contract was being discussed. Because of " previous involvement".

Accusations of skull-duggery galore were hurled at Council and the Heritage Trust during the battle.

They sounded highly unlikely but that's how it goes in politics. You have to take the bad with the good. John West and the others had weathered storms before.

I was going back and forth to Scotland at the time .My mother's long life was coming to an end.

So MacEachern's hostility when I registered as a candidate, was puzzling but not disturbing.

When a person appears to be steeped in spite, I think that's their burden to bear.

The rest of the story has been played out on the public stage over the past four years. Whatever it is that drives them , from my perspective, it is not the community's well-being.

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I heard another rumor. A follower of the St.Kitts woman is rumoured to be contemplating candidacy .

The Mayor was overheard advising against.

Tis said,she said; " I advise against it. You are better off as an appointee"

Supposing it's true. The woman is a supporter of the St Kitts. woman. Why would the Mayor discourage her candidacy?

Maybe the Mayor's slate is full. And all that remains is to discourage anyone who might siphon votes away.

Anyone has a right to organize and run in a slate of candidates. There's no rule against it.I personally like to maintain my options .

But I think, especially after our current experience, slate candidates should be open about their intentions. They shouldn't be sneaky or ashamed to admit they don't think they can get elected, if they only have themselves to offer.

After all, voters have a right to know what they are voting for ....

Right!!! Yea Right!!!!.. Absolutely ....

Like they did last time.

Turgid Prose in Miniscule Print

As The Lord is My Witness, I have tried.

I have plowed through twenty-five pages. There are a hundred .

I took a speed reading course once. One starts by reading the index of Chapter Headings

Then the pictures are scrutinized.

The first sentence of a paragraph tells everything in it. Anything written after supports the first statement.

Then you train your eyes to lift an entire line off the page as opposed to reading from left to right

Some people taking the course, discover they've been doing that for years without realizing it

Success is measured by speed of reading and comprehension retained.

It spoils reading for pleasure. It's handy for documents. Even handier for discerning meaningless verbiage.

The first page of the draft of The Aurora Promenade Concept Plan is revealing. There's a Steering Committee. The Mayor is the Chair.

Chair of the Economic Development Advisory Committee is there. He is not elected.

A member of a defunct committee is there . He's not elected .There are others. None of them elected.

Half a dozen staff members are listed .

After squinting at the pictures, trying to recognize locations, then trying harder with a magnifying glass, I discover I'm looking at pictures of other places, like Quebec City.

Reading the brief history of the town's built places, I find a reference to the Aurora War Memorial and Peace Park.

Now that makes me angry.

The Aurora Cenotaph is our town's finest structure. As beautiful to day as the day it was completed. As it should be. Considering what it stands for.

Who in blazes is it, thinks they have authority to change the name?

It is not a memorial to war.

What fathead thinks there should be a memorial to war?

It is not a Peace Park.

How meaningless is that? When remains of young men barely out of boyhood are regularly being brought home to their families in caskets.

It is the Remembrance of Aurora, King and Whitchurch men, who did not return from two world wars.

Who have no resting place here, where they came from.

No place for a mother to visit on birthdays, to tidy up and lay fresh flowers .

The Aurora Cenotaph was carefully planned and designed with three communities involved. It was built in a space , surrounded by fields, with the torch held high to constantly remind of what had been lost and how.

Cenotaph means " a tomb or monument placed in honor of a person or group whose remains are elsewhere". The name was carefully and appropriately chosen.

A tree was planted for every man who died. As trees have died, they have been lovingly replaced.

The Aurora Cenotaph is not open for change or up for grabs.

The vision of Aurora Promenade Draft Concept Plan, steered by the Mayor and various unelected friends is seriously and offensively skewed.

Repetition abounds in the text of the document. Even pictures are repeated.

The first paragraph in the last Chapter entitled Implementation has this to say;

"This document outlines both broad approaches and specific methods to implement the goals of the Downtown Secondary Plan and The Aurora Promenade Urban Design Strategy. While far-reaching change is not likely to occur overnight, it is anticipated that demand for downtown development will continue to grow as public investments are made in the area."

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Think about that for a minute. Dwell upon the numbers of proposals for development on blighted sites in the downtown area and contemplate their fate at the hands of Mormac.

Two sites in the hollow are vacant and in the flood plain. .They have been idle and overgrown for forty years.They are in private hands. Development is unlikely.

We have a reserve fund of money taken from downtown property owners in lieu of parking.

Why has it not been used for the purpose ?

Eleven million dollars in a cash- in- lieu of parks fund and growing, while we passively wait to make public investment in improving amenities and complacently predict broad changes are not likely to happen overnight.

Broad changes didn't happen because we spent four years talking claptrap and pursuing witch hunts into the witching hours, week after week, month after month until four years have gone by with nothing of substance accomplished .

We paid $140,000 to lawyers to silence criticism. And didn't.

Outstanding decisions needed to be made. And weren't.

While money was available, to take whatever action was required.The Mayor pranced about presenting awards, posing for pictures and crowing about awards won, when nobody else was in the competition.

Pshaw!!!! !

I can't read any more of that garbage. It insults my intelligence.

Musicians et al

My husband was a drummer . For all the years of our lives together and beyond, he played gigs on Friday and Saturday nights. He helped provide music and sound effects to various productions of the Aurora Theatre and Christmas pantomimes at the Newmarket Theatre.

He wasn't a member of the musician's union. Like many of the incredibly talented people who perform in drama groups and small bands and provide entertainment as good as any in the industry , it is accepted among them , there is just not enough work for everyone to make a living doing what they love to do more than anything else in their lives.

So they go to work every day, at nine to five jobs and pay the mortgage, provide for their families and come to life for a few hours at the week-end to dazzle us with their magic and sustain their own souls in artistry.

If one among them breaks out and makes it, they all share the pride.

I have encouraged children and grand-children to aspire to make a living with whatever gifts they've received.It seems to me doing what you love to do is not work; it's vocation.There can't be a better way of making a living that by doing what you love and are blessed with the talent.

I know something of what it takes to mount a production of music or theatre; arrangements, plays, rehearsals, costumes, sets, maintenance, management, promotion and precious time.

A Disc .Jockey can make the difference between a memorable occasion or a lack-lustre event.

When Concerts in the Park started in Aurora, many years ago, the Toronto Musicians Union was responsible. A courtesy program was provided.

It was probably an idea for creating employment.

If it was, it worked.

A series of concerts in Aurora and elsewhere have been a regular feature of summer for years now.

Town staff are successful in obtaining sponsorships from local business to provide funding.

At this point, I don't know if the Musicians Union still has a hand in the programming.I've never thought to ask.

I do know the concerts are well received. The town park is thronged on a Wednesday evening.

There was never a reason to believe a Jazz Festival would not receive the same enthusiastic response.

Under different circumstances.

New Information On The Ad paid from a Surplus

Late yesterday afternoon, I received the following e-mail from the Town's Chief Financial Officer.

"Councillor Buck, the parade ad cost $255 and ran at the request of the Chair of LSAC. With my consent it was funded by the Parade budget surplus. The plans for the ad were withheld from Ms St. Kitts"

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My post yesterday provided information the ad was funded from the July 1st Parade surplus

Information on how it was authorized was still outstanding.

Because....the ad bore none of the usual identification of the Town of Aurora.

It presented as a message straight from the heart of the St Kitts woman.

It was beside, but not part of the Aurora Notice Board or on the same page.

Which is why I had to ask.

The Treasurer seeks to assure me. Despite recognized administration policy on disposition of surplus funds from a completed project, the Treasurer did approve surplus funds to be used for the ad.

The request came from Chairman of Leisure Services Advisory Committee.

Who is...none other than, Councillor Evalina MacEachern.

The "plans were kept secret from Ms St Kitts"

Councillor MacEachern has an extremely good relationship with The Chief Financial Officer.

Appointment of the Officer without a recruiting process or competition, a requirement of a town Administration policy, which in turn, is required by provincial regulation under the Municipal Act of Ontario was strongly supported by the Councillor.

The Councillor, who is Financial Controller of an Electrical Distributing Company expresses continued confidence by frequent commendations of The Officer in public meetings.

But there's a problem.

Even without a Code of Righteousness, there is a standing rule in all democratic institutions; staff will only accept direction from Council as a Whole.

In addition, Clause 4 of the Code of Righteousness states:

Members of Council shall acknowledge and respect the fact staff work for the Town as a corporate body and are responsible for making recommendations that reflect their professional expertise and corporate objectives without due influence from any individual member.

In addition, Members shall acknowledge and respect the fact staff carry out directions of Council as a whole and administer policies of the Town. A member of Council shall refrain from using their position to improperly influence members of staff on their duties and functions or to gain advantage for themselves or others.

Members of Council shall refrain from publicly criticizing individual members of staff in a way that casts aspersions on their professional competence and credibility.

Clause 7 says:

Members may only use Town property or services for activities connected with the discharge of official duties or associated community activities having the sanction of Council or permitted by Town policies.


Now....what do you think of them apples?

Here's what I think:

If I believed there is merit in a Code of Righteousness for Councillors over and above the Oath of Office;

If I believed such a Code would be respected by the Mormac Cult ;

If I believed the Code was anything but alternate methodology for people without the rudimentary political skills to compete in a political arena even at the lowly local.

Boy..... would I have an iron-clad complaint to file to the integrity commissioner of the cult's choosing, against a member of the cult.

I wouldn't need to pay $50,000 taxpayer dollars to a lawyer to "investigate" a colleague; direct him to listen to tapes of Council meetings, read blog postings and letters to the editor, all of them open and transparent to the public and amenable to their judgement

All I would need is a copy of the e-mail I received yesterday from the town's vacationing treasurer.

Grist for the Mill... Commitment Unmet.

An ad appeared in the small edition of The Banner earlier this week. It was a page length column message from the St. Kitts woman citing appreciation for every individual who had anything to do with the July 1st Parade.

Except the people who paid for it, the taxpayers. Absent also was the name of the person Council authorised St.Kitts to appoint as her assistant.

The Ad was on the face page to the Town's Notice Board which meant it was an extra cost.

I called Communications Department, who are responsible for placing ads for the town . to determine if we had placed the ad and was it authorized.

Turns out, money was left over in the July 1st Parade budget and St Kitts decided to use some of it to place a Thank You Ad.

There's a problem with that:

A budget was approved for the July 1st Parade. Within it, St Kitts received $2,000 and authority to hire an assistant . It's not clear how that was accomplished.

Council were assured no part of the money would be spent without strict control and authorization every step of the way.

I am an elected Councillor. I have no authority to spend public resources.

Even as Chairman of a Council Committee, I would have no authority to spend money for any purpose, let alone funds surplus to needs in an approved project.

Were I Director of a Town department. I would not have authority to spend funds surplus to needs for an approved project.

When the July 1st Parade budget was struck,without even seeking it, Council were assured no part of the moneys would be expended, except with tight administrative control.

Except....it has ......with St. Kitts as the only authority named from beginning to end.

Decision Pending

Some people think I should be a candidate for the Office of Mayor.

If I were twenty years younger, I would do it without a second thought. I registered as a candidate for Mayor in 2006 and changed my mind. I switched to Council and was re-elected.

There is a strong impetus for change in the town.

In terms of knowledge and experience, I would certainly qualify. But the job requires more.

An election calls for a huge outlay in finances. Don't have that.

If you believe in something, you should be able to do what it takes.

I've never had the chutzpa to ask for money to fulfil what I think is essentially a personal ambition.

The campaign and the office both call for tremendous physical stamina.

Last term, there were derogatory comments about the Mayor spending all his time cutting ribbons and getting his picture in the paper.

You have to be Mayor, to understand what it means to people to have you in attendance on important occasions. It's part of the job and much appreciated.

Having the Mayor wearing the Chain of Office, cutting a ribbon for a new business venture is like a talisman. So much is at stake. The Mayor brings good vibes and much-needed attention.

A fiftieth wedding anniversary or a hundredth birthday or school graduation ceremonies call for similar ceremonial.

While they have nothing to do with the business of the municipality. They have everything to do with community.

People want the Mayor to be there. The symbol matters..

From an intellectual level, the ideal combination for a candidate is sound knowledge of the job and endless energy. Manners and style are valuable assets in the town's chief official.

A town does have character and personality.It's chief elected officer has a large role to play in its projection.

A significant aspect of elective politics which should never be underestimated, is intuition.

The vibe that passes between candidate and voter. It's real. It's powerful.

More than anyone , I have drawn attention to the shortcomings of the current administration on a steady and consistent basis. It was always a risk. Candidates are generally wise to let somebody else do the dirty work.

I think the strongest critic should be the challenger. the obvious reaction in any contest is;

" If you think things are so bad, tell us what you would do differently ?"

or

"Choose your weapons. Be prepared to die."

Figuratively that's what happens.. Only one can win .

I'm not afraid of that. I've done it before. Being publicly rejected hurts.

It is very personal for the recipient. But it's not lethal.

Our situation is serious. We've been taking in water for four years.Any progress seen has happened in spite of the Mormac crew not as a result.

Principles and precedents that normally guide a municipality forward are literally in tatters.

All this Queen's horses and men tore it apart, they can't be the ones to put it back together again..

Change is desperately needed.

The ideal candidate for the office is a person of vigour, style, personality, proven experience and accomplishment.

Well of course that's me. But some qualities I have more than others. I believe in conserving my energy. That could be a problem.

I have encouraged Geoff Dawe to be a candidate .

I worked with him on the library board for seven years. He is intelligent, conscientious, successful in private business . He is responding to the call. He has many supporters and financing for a robust campaign.All he needs to do now is persuade Aurora's voters, he is the best alternative.

He has one substantial obstacle. He has never served on Council . Aurora has never elected a person to the Chief Magistrate's chair without experience on Council. In all our history, we have been a very practical Presbyterian town. It has stood us in good stead.

On the other hand, we did elect one who held office for several years, with neither interest or ability to learn anything from experience, with catastrophic consequences .

Actually, the election was a fluke. The person elected , did not have support from the town's majority.

Candidate registration closes on September 10th.

I am on guard. Hoping for a positive community response to Mr. Dawe's candidacy.

My commitment is to the town's re-building and well-being in the next four years.

There is currently and has been throughout this term, a crisis of confidence which has spread far beyond the town hall.

Resources need to go where resources can bring the best result.

AURORA DESERVES THE BEST.

The Answer Didn't Fit The Question

Sean Asked:

1) First of all, I understand there were some tall fences erected around the town park. Who authorized and paid for them? Why were they there?

Jason answered

The fencing was required under the Ontario Liquor License Act. The area where the Rotary Club was selling alcohol needed to be clearly defined and separated from the unlicensed area by at least a 36-inch (0.9 metres) high separation. They were paid for by the festival organizers.

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The fencing was by some estimates six feet high. It surrounded and separated the park.

Not the beer garden.

My contradictions should not be taken as disrespecting Jason Ballantyne.

Assigned the questions, he too must seek out the answers.

This week,the Chief Building Official who is also grand pooh bah in charge of Bylaws is on vacation. As is Manager of Bylaws.

As is the Chief Administrative officer. As is the Treasurer. As is the Municipal Clerk.

Still another Director is on bereavement leave.

The Mayor is supposed to be on vacation since July 14th, the day after the grand debacle of a meeting that continued until 12.40 am. on that day. However, she appears to be still on hand.

It's a comedy.

The Mayor circulated an e-mail announcing her vacation and Councillor Mc Roberts would be in charge or "another" Councillor would take his place.

After a few days Councillor McRoberts, circulated a frantic e-mail that he is working full time, teaching in Markham. He could not handle all the stuff that was coming through.

I hear St Kitts was in full spate. The E-mails were a deluge. Sixty-five. I heard in one batch.It's not uncommon.

Between you and me, I think the mass exodus(except for one) from the town hall was everyone in free flight, to get away from the Virago. HI-tailing out of town was the only escape .

Similarly to the Market, I hear she has muscled her way into Church St School. You know,the only facility anyone, including non-resident commercial operators, gets to use without paying a user fee.

Except for the museum of course.

We're gittin' our dose of culture. Like it or not. And paying for it too.

Be that as it may, Jason Ballantyne can only provide answers he receives for the questions asked.

If they can be contradicted , it's like....Duh....that would be Jason's fault.

He's the fall guy.

The Mayor is free and clear and not required to answer for the town.

It will be the first time a catastrophic emergency hasn't been conjured to deflect attention from the real issue commanding attention.

It will be interesting to see how the administration responds to the situation in the Town Park last Friday and Saturday.

The organizer was formally notified, public access to washrooms must be maintained at all times.

Security guards hired by the organizer blocked the amenities.

Accommodation for people to snack in the park was provided by the town.

The organizer ordered them out.

The organizer showed pictures in the Council meeting of illegal market vehicles in the park.

During the Jazz Festival, guess what? Vehicles in the park.

How does an administration deal with gross disregard for the rules and abuse of town residents.

Apart from a press release publicizing prosecution and a news photo of Chief Magistrate standing in newly plowed field in flip-flops, I can't imagine a different scenario.

May we, I wonder, anticipate a resolution which will ensure the problem is never allowed to happen again?

Bulletin on The Aftermath of The Jazz Festival.

An e- email from Mr.Ballantyne received by Councillors yesterday has information to contribute to the ongoing discussion. I thought I would share.

Hi everyone,

I received a few questions this morning from Sean Pearce at the Banner regarding this past weekend's jazz festival.

I know the festival has generated some media coverage and, as such, may be one that prompts residents to ask you questions about it. Because of this, I wanted to provide you with the answers I sent to Sean after getting the information from staff in both Parks and Bylaw.

The questions are in black, my responses are in blue.

-Jason

1) First of all, I understand there were some tall fences erected around the town park. Who authorized and paid for them? Why were they there?

The fencing was required under the Ontario Liquor License Act. The area where the Rotary Club was selling alcohol needed to be clearly defined and separated from the unlicensed area by at least a 36-inch (0.9 metres) high separation. They were paid for by the festival organizers.

2) The organizer, Sher St. Kitts, had a delegation request to ask for a waiver of fees, but then didn't do it. Were the fees waived then? If so, how much was waived and how was it done?

The fees were not asked to be waived by Ms. St. Kitts, nor were they subsequently waived.

3) I've also heard there were some issues related to the farmers' market patrons and other members of the public having trouble accessing the public washrooms at the band shell. Is that true? What action did the town take to remedy the situation?

Prior to the festival, the town communicated to the organizers that the public washrooms needed to be accessible to everyone, not just those who paid to attend the festival. Saturday morning town staff were made aware the fencing was blocking the public from using the washrooms. Staff attended shortly after and the fencing was moved to allow open access.

4) How smoothly did the festival go overall? Were there any incidents either between it and the farmers' market vendors or others? Any problems/complaints?

To date, the Town hasn't received any complaints from residents or vendors about the festival. It also hasn't received notice from York Regional Police about any complaints received on its end either.

5) The festival was billed as a non-profit event and sponsored by the town. Does it have any obligation to provide an accounting to the town?

I am not aware of any advertising that referred to the event as "non-profit." The Town committed to co-sponsoring the event at a cost of $2,000 and was one of 10 recognized sponsors. The funds associated with the sponsorship were taken from the Town's operating budget allocated for corporate promotional activities. This account has traditionally been used to fund corporate economic development and tourism projects/advertisements.

As part of its mandate to promote local economic development and tourism, the Town regularly supports and/or sponsors community-oriented events such as the Home Show, the Street Festival and the Business Achievement Awards. Participating in these type of events allows us to both increase the Town's profile and support local economic development and tourism.

The Town--as one of 10 recognized co-sponsors--will not be asking for an accounting. To put this in context, the Town has not asked in the past for accounting of sponsorship fees for events like the Street Festival, Home Show or other events it has sponsored.

6) I'm wondering what sort of arrangements does the town make for the annual ribfest? Are there fees waived there? Fencing put in place?

Ribfest is an official Town of Aurora event. The park is a Town facility being used for a Town event and admission is free. Participants pay premium rates to the Town to take part. Fencing is put in for the Rotary Club beer garden. The setup and takedown of fencing is paid for by the Rotary Club.

Jason Ballantyne
Manager, Corporate Communications

I learned few things myself from the communication.

As noted in a previous post,I was the Councillor, who received the complaint on Saturday morning. It's normal for a resident to call a Councillor with a concern. Anyone can call the Town during off hours and a voice mail will give instructions to leave a message. The on-call staff member quickly calls back, gets particulars of the problem and does what needs to be done.

The message I received was that individuals were blocking access to the public washrooms to anyone not wearing the $5. admission bracelet,

The fence wasn't blocking access, people were.

I knew beforehand ,the festival organizer had been notified by the town, they had not paid for the washrooms and they must be accessible to the public at all times.

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The Mayor followed up Sean Peirce's e-mail with a question of her own.

Jason

Re # Q / A #3$

What time Saturday morning were town staff made aware the fencing was blocking the public from using the washrooms?

And what time was the fencing moved ?

I was there at 11:15 am and it was fenced properly then

Thank you

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Me talking now.

I was home writing a post. I wasn't there. I didn't need to be there. It is a staff function to take care of problems. The problem was promptly resolved as I knew it would be. I received no more phone calls.

I didn't hear until later about people enjoying a small repast at picnic tables arranged by staff for their convenience, in the ball diamond area, being ordered out of the area by the Mayor's best friend and Jazz Festival organizer,Ms St Kitts.

I guess people enjoying a coffee and breakfast on a bun at the tables, didn't know they had a right to be there. Ms St. Kitts certainly did.

Some of Mr. Ballantyne's answers were a surprise to me:

The Aurora Home Show held annually in the Community Centre is organized by the Aurora Chamber of Commerce.

The town has a couple of promotional booths in the show.

We do not sponsor the show. Nor should we. It is a strictly commercial event.

The Annual Street Sale is a Chamber event. Like the Home Show, it is a commercial event which adds colour and excitement . The town and its various agencies have booths to promote their various activities. Which is, as it should be.

There is no sponsorship.

The Chamber holds an annual black tie dinner . Tickets are usually $125. The town pays for awards presented to businesses for excellence in some degree or other. The Mayor and Councillors get free tickets

I don't agree with paying for awards. I think we are awash with awards.

I pointed out once $125 is more than a low income family's food budget. after they have paid more than half their income for fire trap accommodation.

Which is the reason for food banks.

The Chamber Awards are the only hand-out I know about. I would not describe that as a
"sponsorship" of the Chamber's Annual Dinner. The patrons pay for their own dinner.

To argue, forking out $2,000 of taxpayer's money to the Jazz Festival is the same principle is bafflegab in the extreme. .

Furthermore, I do not believe the idea was staff initiated.

The Culture Centre

I don't know where to start with this issue. It's a long story. It is tedious and tortuous.

Current status is maybe a good beginning.

No part of the building will be used as a museum.

Management is by a board independent of the town.

Except.... the town provides a budget of $340,000 for staffing and all maintenance for the building. heat light and cleaning. Annual budget for that is $134,000.For a total of $474.000.

Staffing does not include a curator.

The board pays no rent .

The agreement requires a financial report to Council quarterly.

The paperwork for the first quarter was submitted on April 18th , 2010.

Council hasn't seen it .

Discussions are taking place for a date to present the second quarter report in September. Maybe

The town spent $2.3 million dollars to renovate the building.

During the last term, The Historical Society had a fund-raising drive for renovations and raised $750,000.

A quarter of a million dollars short of the estimate for the renovation.

The Historical Society and the Town signed a legal agreement to protect their financial investment in the building before expending their funds.

The museum collection was stored in boxes at the Hillary House, while the building was renovated.

The Historical Society was to have control of the building and operate a museum.

The Curator of the museum retired while the collection was stored ..

The town had provided a grant of $50,000 for twenty-five years to help cover the curator's salary. The grant continued.

A new curator was appointed by the Historical Society. She was staff resource on the Arts and Culture Steering Committee

With her professional expertise, a grant of $750,000 was obtained for a heritage building and museum.

It was used to provide a new HVAC system and interior storm windows.

In the last term, on the basis of the Historical Society's commitment to operate the museum, I moved a resolution to provide sufficient funds to cover the shortfall between what they had raised and what was needed to bring the museum back where it belonged.The museum and the curator had provided a very valuable and much appreciated service to the town for twenty-five years.

The amount needed was thought to be $250,000 .

Turned out to be $2.3 million.

The Historical Society had already commissioned and paid for plans for a State of The Art Museum.

They were presented and adopted by Council.

Subsequently, Helen Mc Roberts, president of the Historical Society, appeared before Council and withdrew the Society's commitment to operate the museum.

The new curator left. The Mayor's friend, Ken Whitehurst, who was a member of the committee, was appointed to take her place as resource person to the committee of which he was a member at a rate of $60. an hour.

Helen Mc Roberts wrote a letter to the editor testifying to his eminent suitability for the job.

Ken Whitehurst is a journalist by profession.

Renovation was completed in accordance with the plans.

Previously, a business plan had been presented by a consultant . The Town would finance the operation at first; the Board would wean itself from town financing by $100,000 a year.

The Arts and Culture Steering Committee. I wasn't named.. Nor Councillor McRoberts,nor Councillor Collins Mrakas, both members of the Heritage Committee Councillor McRoberts is a life-long resident of Aurora and second generation member of the Aurora Historical Society.

Councillors Gaertner and Grainger were members.I'm not sure about Councillor Gallo.

Ken Whitehurst was also a member as noted.

Eventually a Board was created. Ken Whitehurst is a member of the Board. Helen McRoberts is also a member. Susan Morton Leonard as well.

The agreement is entitled; Purchase of Culture agreement.

Until the board was created, the building was the Heritage and Culture Centre. At some point and without explanation ,the name was changed to the Church Street Culture Centre.

Opening was delayed for months. The only activity in the building were town staff meetings and a town Christmas party . They had to play musical chairs.

Events were advertised. I kept looking for indices of revenue . None. Questions went unanswered.

Purchase of a grand piano was announced;with opportunity for keys to be purchased at
$2,000.a piece. I calculated the piano cost $25,000.

Then..... use of the piano for practice was advertised at an hourly rate.

I asked in Council, when is the museum was going to be back in it's rightful place. No answer.

I inquired elsewhere. Seems space to store the collection is provided in the basement.

Society members are allowed time and space in the building to catalogue the collection.

They will also be allowed to mount four or five or six displays annually.

The curator appointed by the Historical Society is now known as curator for Hilary House which is not a town museum. But the town is still paying a grant of $50.thousand for the salary.

The museum will not be accommodated at Church Street School. Because a museum does not provide revenue.

A Garden Story.

If politics and only politics is your gig, this post is not for you. Sometimes I'm afraid the post is running into information overload .

Like this week-end . This morning I took my coffee to the deck instead of the computer desk.

The bird feeding tube is still on the table. It's half full of black niger seed which the birds, for reasons best known to themselves, are not eating. I brought it from the hook by the bird bath.

Yellow finch and chickadees take samples and leave. I decided to change the supply.

Last Thursday, my youngest son Andrew noticed a wasp inside. He thought it was trapped and took the top off to let it go. He casually mentioned he didn't believe in killing wasps. They are part of things he said, just like we are. My son is the father of a teen..

I smiled secretly. Killing or hurting anything for the sake of it was always verboten.I may or may not take credit but it pleased me to hear it.

When he took the top off the tube to let the wasp go, a shape fell from the tube top on to the seeds.Two tiny white orbs were in place in compartments that formed a sphere.

I thought, well that complicates things. How do I get rid of the seeds now.

Yesterday I noticed the wasp was back. On top of the sphere. It seemed to be just lying there without much color or energy.

This morning ,things have changed again. The wasp is bright and shiny and busy. What had been a perfectly rounded shape is now irregular . It flew laboriously to the tube top several times but couldn't quite make it. Three times he fell down with the weight he was carrying before giving up and going back to work on the sphere.

This is a single small insect barely an inch long.

I watched a bit longer.

Incredibly, a built structure the size of a walnut, is being transported, piece by piece, back to its original location underneath the rounded metal tube top.

The orbs are the size of small grape seed. As the honeycomb compartments are reduced , more orbs appear.

Of course, it means I will have to buy a new bird feeder as well as a fresh supply of seed.

Response to The Post "Treasure"

It is sad when someone like Guy; who I actually believe is an intelligent man,goes ahead and defends a group of bullies.

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From his feverish activity on the Aurora Citizen Blog and various attempts on this Blog,I'd say M. Poppe is a willing recruit by Mormac to fulfill a particular role in their campaign strategy

He is presenting as an authority with facts and figures to support his contentions.

It 's not clear if he is being provided with false information or making it up.

He argues the Citizen Blog's obvious role is to bring down the Mayor and Council, who are doing a fine job in his view.

The Citizen argues the Blog is open for the Mayor and Council to refute inaccuracies. They never do that.

They just snarl and bare their teeth (my words).

I recall, when the town's new communications director was appointed it was stated he would read newspapers and blogs and other news carriers and correct misinformation wherever it might be found.

Since that hasn't happened, it would seem none has been found.

Or since he started, the job has changed.

Staff in departments with Advisory Committee were just marshaled to write reports to Council of all their accomplishments during the term.

The Mayor was very complimentary when they were received.

She publicly noted however, it was heavy reading and wondered if it could be put into pamphlet form.

Wouldn't that be useful in an election campaign? A considerable advantage, with the town doing all the work at public expense.

It's not the only transparent technique of Mormac politics They regularly marshal free and devoted service from people like Guy Poppe to defame political opponents.There's was a grande parade at the June and July Council meetings.

Then of course, spending $124,200. of taxpayers money on lawyers for the same purpose is also a matter of public record.

There is no law to restrict a Councillor's freedom of expression. So they wrote one.

George Rust D'Eye . $16,200 for consultation and advice .
.
John Mascarin. $50,000 "investigation " of a Councillor and compiling

complaint under the customised Code of Conduct

Mr. Nitkin, $28,000.
Integrity Comm.

David Tzubouchi $30,000 to the present.
Lawyer and Integrity Comm.

The Mayor publicly stated Mr. Rust D'Eye wrote the Code of Conduct. That was after I received invoices from the Treasurer for his initial services. He was also on hand for press conference to assist the Mayor and to write press releases. That would add another five g's to the bill at least.

Mr. Tzubouchi is still on the payroll ,although it's not clear he will be doing anything at all with complaints coming forward prior to the election. The cost will continue of course until at least a month after a new council takes office.It will be a minimum of $15,000.additional.

$140,000 of taxpayers' money that we know about was spent during the term by Phyllis Morris and the ever-lovin' five, to stop a Councillor from keeping an election commitment.

I have exercised my authority as a Councillor . Under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, I have kept people informed.

Now, over and above the financial cost and all the efforts of all lawyers to stop me from doing that, we have Mr. Poppe, also a lawyer, working like a little beaver to convince people that what I do is mis-inform.

To add insult to injury, he claims my efforts to fulfill my commitment, are nothing more than a personal vendetta against his friend Councillor MacEachern and the Town's Mayor.

Despite the evidence and the public aspect of town affairs and deliberations, he reduces and dismisses all to a case of personal antipathy?

What Judge would accept that in the face of all the other evidence?

I Just Can't believe It Happened

The delegation was listed on the agenda . The reason was noted. It was a request for the user fees to be waived for the bandshell for two days.

Then she came forward at public forum and said she wasn't feeling well. She would not follow through with her request for delegation status.

She never raised her eyes. She looked down and sideways throughout.

I concluded she lost the nerve to make the request.

How wrong I was . A hand-out of $2,000 from the Town had already been provided.More than enough to cover band shell and park user fees. No wonder the request was withdrawn.

It's not even an Aurora business. Pays no taxes here.

The Culture Centre provided free use of that facility as well.

But what I can't get past , staff gave her that money while Council was neither consulted nor informed.

I hate to think some members of Council may have known and others not.

I do not doubt the Mayor's approval was sought.

The significance of it blows my mind.

How many other hand-outs of public money have there been, we don't know about?

There's another possibility. The Chairman of the Economic Development Committee isn't even a Councillor. Did he authorize it ?

A few weeks ago, a staff person indicated concern about staff having to take direction from advisory committee members. I didn't ask for details.It wasn't a new complaint. Has it become a new area of concern?

Has it happened before? Chris Ballard is chairman of that committee. He is also a candidate for Council. Has he directed staff to pay out funds to anybody and everybody?I don't know how he could...I don't know why he would. He would have to be out of his mind.

These are serious questions that need answers. The Berlin wall between Mayor Morris and her majority of votes, is not likely to allow answers. We don't even have the opportunity to ask until the third week of August.

There's also the business of a town facility, managed by a "board" with half a million dollars of taxpayers money, providing free use of the facility to a commercial operation which is not even an Aurora business.

No other facility owned by the town provides free use. Everybody pays a user fee.

A small school parent group asked for a waiver of an $85. fee for the use of picnic tables and garbage bins and clean up of the park before and after a small anniversary celebration.

They were refused.

Nowhere that I know, is there a record of Council direction to pay that money out of public funds.

It has apparently been categorized as similar to Chamber of Commerce Awards.

We have had our say about that in the public domain.

Though not lately come to think of it.

Was that fixed so there wouldn't be any controversy about those awards, thereby allowing other hand-outs to slip under the radar?

But it hasn't, has it?

Oh My God!!!! Wait until Michael Evans hears about this !!!!

I just thought about something. Last year, days earlier than this, the Mayor was out of the country. An almighty effort was being made to get the Mascarin complaint against me filed with the Integrity Commissioner before she returned.

If she had succeeded, it would have been done during Councillor McRobert's watch.

Instead, it was repudiated by Councillor McRoberts and Councillor Collins Mrakas.

July 13th Council Meeting

I left the meeting at ten minutes past eleven. At the point Councillor Gaertner objected to my choice of a word from the English language.

It was the last straw. Four hours and ten minutes of continual turmoil. Much of the town's business agenda still to be completed. The meeting threatening to grind to a halt once more over a Councillor's right to use a word of her choosing.

Provincial regulations require a municipality to adopt a Procedural Bylaw. It's the first item of business in the term. Council meetings are to start at 7.00 .pm, the business agenda of the municipality is to be completed by 10.30pm. It's required to be publicised. It's what people have a right to expect.

But not in the Land of Mormac.

Meetings almost invariably start late. Councillors can be in their places and the Mayor will announce at ten minutes past seven, "the meeting will begin shortly."

Or, everyone else can be seated and the Mayor appears at ten minutes past seven from somewhere else in the building.

Time means nothing to her.

It does to me.

I'm sure it does to staff who should be, where they have a right to be, at home with their families by 11 p.m. in the evening .

Yet the tardy start and midnight sojourns are a minor irritant compared to how time is occupied in between.

I had a call from a resident after the Meeting on July 13th. I was informed the meeting lost quorum at 11.25 pm.

Councillor Gallo was not in attendance. I left at 11.10pm. .Councillors McRoberts and Collins Mrakas exited the Chamber during receipt of specific reports which they had opposed being on the agenda.

The Mayor, Councillors MacEachern, Gaertner, Granger and Wilson remained.

Councillor Mac Eachern had previously declared "an interest" in the reports and stated she would not participate in the discussion.

No matter, her presence constituted a quorum.

At 11.25 pm. Councillor Mac Eachern left the Council chamber.

In accordance with Bourinot's Parliamentary Rules of Order, that was the moment of adjournment.

When a meeting falls below quorum, it is unnecessary to declare adjournment

It is established by the loss of quorum.

A meeting of Council cannot begin without quorum . A meeting cannot continue without quorum.

If the Chair vacates during a meeting, business ends immediately.The meeting cannot be re-convened. Council cannot appoint a replacement for the chair.

The consequence ? .... no decisions made beyond the point of adjournment are valid.

That the time was an hour after adjournment and continued for yet another hour, does nothing to ameliorate the problem.

The Clerk does not agree with my analysis.

He cites a difference in the length of the absence.

It matters not a whit.

He cites no business was conducted .

GIVE ME A BREAK.

Kingdoms have been lost for want of a horse.

Governments have fallen for loss of quorum .

All decision made after quorum was lost can be challenged.

They did it in public. It's all on tape.

The whole disgraceful mess.

A Treasure

Her foot has been re-attached . She is back in her place. It's never really been safe. When the clothes line had to be shifted she was even less secure. She was always within reach of little hands. Somehow, they seem to sense how fragile she is and they just look.

There is no other place for her. I need to see her. Moving my chair might be an option. But I can see every corner of my garden from my chair. As well as the shade, the chair is against the wall and half under the eaves. If it rains, I can stay out for twenty minutes without getting wet. Sometimes there can be a shower and all I feel is the faintest, lightest, gossamer touch on my bare arm.

I've thought of a canvas awning over the deck. But I wouldn't be able to look up into the leaves and watch the movement. or catch a glimpse of the red-headed wood-pecker running up and down and around the trunk,stopping occasionally to peck frenetically.

She is so precious . I recognized her the minute I saw her at the Bradford Greenhouse.

I had few childhood possessions. We didn't have books..

The kids next door did. They had Sunday clothes as well. Their Dad, Wee Donald McNab,had a trade and worked steady at the shipyard. They were Protestants. Apprenticeship papers didn't say you couldn't be an apprentice if you were Catholic. They just said you had to be Protestant.

I didn't know that then.

So they got books at Christmas . Margaret had a lovely plaid pleated skirt and white blouse with a hosiery cardigan , shiny shoes and nice knee high socks for Sunday.

We didn't have books. Neighbors on the other side gave us the daily paper when they had finished with it. We spread it out on the floor and read the comic strips and the adventures of Rupert the Bear.Sometimes my brother had a comic. Hotspur or The Dandy was a new one

The only possessions I remember were little cards from Players cigarette packets. Vaguely remembered also are tiny, shiny little silk flags from the packets. There were marbles and conkers(chestnuts) If I ever got my hands on one of them, I didn't get to keep it. Somebody else always wanted it. I was youngest in the house until I was six.

I would be five when I got my first school reading book. The Fairie Queen Mabs was illustrated. I don't remember if there was a story or a poem. It's the memory of the picture I treasured.

Then I found her. She's in my garden. She is exactly how I remember her.Now I must
create a place, where I can see her all the time and she can be absolutely safe.

My garden is sixty-three feet wide and fifty feet deep. I have neighbors on every side. That's alright. When I was child living where I was born, at 22 Friar's Croft, Irvine, Ayrshire and had no possessions, the McNab's door wasn't more than two and a half feet away from ours. That was alright too

I am not like Guy Poppe .

I don't need to know the hundred acres of rolling land I see from my window, but don't own, will never be shared with anyone else. I don't need to convince myself, the wealthy woman who planned how her estate would be shared, really meant the land was for me.

I don't share his passion to control everything in his view.

Frankly, I don't have a lot of sympathy to share for Guy Poppe and what he represents.

Add a Few Names

Comment to The Rogue Council Post;

Ev Just think about the lost business opportunities, the lost professionalism , the lost leadership , the loss of direction and the loss of character when the Town lost former CAOs Jay , Marc, Larry , Scott, and John, boy would it ever be interesting to be a fly on the wall in a room where these fine men were congregated when the word Aurora is mentioned

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I would add David Nitkin , Integrity Commissioner, a few lawyers who shall be nameless , and a Planning director to provide a broad base focus for the conversation.

Loss of the town's institutional history is perhaps the most serious.

Individuals can apply knowledge and skill to any problem. Navigating a municipality without a trace of its history is like launching into a great lake or an ocean with no sense of the depth, underwater hazards, currents or undertow .

Not only are the dreadful duo totally ignorant of it and place no value upon our institutional memory, for the past four years they have been intent on wiping it out completely.

To cover the damage wrought , they would prefer people to believe, there was no Town of Aurora before they got here.

This week-end there are only two directors on hand. One with fifteen or more years background in town affairs and one with barely a year.

Guess who's in charge?

Rogue Clause...Section 3

I am smarter now. If the pesky computer quits again , I can only lose part of the story.

During the last term, we contracted the services of Scott Somerville as Acting CAO due to a seven month failure to replace former CAO Larry Allison.

We sold our Hydro asset during that time. The deal was not done by the end of his contract, so we extended the contract to allow for the deal's completion.

In the interim, we persuaded John Rogers, now a former CAO of Aurora, to leave East Gwillimbury and join the Aurora administration.

Mr. Rogers had not applied for the post when it was advertised. We invited him to look us over and consider the opportunity.

When John Rogers made the fateful decision and joined Aurora, Mr. Somerville moved over and became interim treasurer, a position also vacant for some months. He was also assigned the task of re-writing the Procedural Bylaw. It was acknowledged by consensus of all parties familiar with such Bylaws, as possibly the worst ever written.

You know the joke about an elephant being a horse designed by a committee.

By the time the review was completed , there had been an election and the proposed amended Bylaw was presented to the new Council.

Among other changes, the offending clause was recommended to be removed.

Alas, it was not to be. The Morris clique were successful in the election with enough new members to create a majority. By the time they finished with the reviewed Bylaw it was worse than it was before and I suspect some of them had a hand in the previous one.

Councillor Mac Eachern, as usual, led the relentless arguments.The offending clause was retained. Though it wasn't said, obviously there wasn't much point in having control of committee membership, if you can't control who might be able to participate in the debate.

We added a new wrinkle to the Advisory Committee set-up.

Non- elected members may now preside as chairs of committees. Said Chairs have the right to give direction to staff and present reports to Council.

So...the elected and administrative authority of the town is further dissipated and made subject to the non-elected. Who may well be best friends and under control of the Mayor and Councillor Mac Eachern.

Did I entitle post this Rogue Clause?

Rogue Council might be more appropriate .

It's a sad story. Thanks for sticking it through to the end.

Rogue Clause ...Second Section.

I had this post finished but my computer cut out and I lost the second half.

It's weird but when I have poured my thoughts out and edited them repeatedly, it's like they have been poured from a jug. Having to re-write is means re-calling them in order, put them back into the jug and pour them out again.

I don't have an option. The story is obviously only half told.

So six hours after the start:

I was saying about that clause. It's not only disrespectful of a councillor's authority, it is not in accordance with provincial regulations.

In a proposed amendment to the Procedural Bylaw last term, I moved removal of the offending clause .

In the debate, Councillor Vrancic demurred. He said; "No chairman would dis-allow a Council member the right to speak"

I responded . " It has happened Councillor "

Former Councillor Betty Pedersen was seated at the press desk .

I noted the Councillor had not only been refused the right to speak, she had been ordered to remove herself from a seat at the committee table. I added further, Councillor Vrancic had been the chairman who so ordered.

The debate ended at that point . The amendment was approved to be recommended to Council. But....... it was a divided vote. The Morris clique including Councillor Keane was opposed.

Former Councillor Ron Wallace was not in attendance .

Subsequently the recommendation came before Council, Councillor Wallace's negative vote defeated it.

That was the night of infamy . I laboriously traversed the circle on my cane and ruffled the hair of his head with a particularly thin edition of his own newspaper publication.

Ron Wallace and I are friends of long standing acquaintance. Like forty years.

This Just In

Just received a phone call from a market vendor. The St. Kitts woman has several people at a gate she erected at the town park, denying people from the Market access to public washrooms.

The Acting Chief Administrator,informed me earlier this week, the jazz festival organizer has been notified by the town, the public washrooms are to be open to the public at all times. The fee does not give control of the amenities.

I have called on- call service to report the problem on a priority basis. It's a voice-mail service.

It's not a good situation.

What a b--- h.

Just got a call, a parks person is going over there right now to sort things out.

Just got another call, the fence has been moved to provide an opening for people to get through to the washrooms....probably a long way round.

It's still a b---h.

A comical foot-note:

Alison Collins Mrakas called. "Is it true", she asked

'What" I said

"She cut off access to the washrooms"

"Yes" I said "Where did you hear about it?"

"In your blog" she said without adding "Idiot"

"Oh...Yes... Right" I said

Another footnote; not comical

On- call staff are paid for "standby" They have to be available to respond to problems.

If they are called out , they are paid for their time. . It's a long time since I knew exactly what that is. But it is not less than an hour and many years ago the rate was time and a half.

So.... the problem created by the private enterprise organizer of the Jazz Festival, who was notified by the town she could not block public access to public amenities, who has already cost us $2 thousand dollars for a half sponsorship, plus free use of the Church Street Cultural Centre and Heaven knows what else we don't know about, just added another unnecessary item to the price tab.

To say nothing of the aggravation and possible discomfort of the public.

The Rogue Clause

A Comment to the Post:

“An illegal clause in the procedure bylaw discourages Councillors from attending meetings. It is there at her insistence.”

How convenient.

Would you be able to post the wording of this clause?

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This story starts at the beginning of the last term with the General Committee debate on committee appointments..

Councillors are asked to provide first,second and third committee choice to the Mayor. Who works with the Clerk to accommodate members choices, avoid scheduling conflicts and submit a report to Council for approval.

My choice was the Economic Development Committee.

I didn't get it. Morris's clique had hogged the committees. Morris had three

I expressed my dis-satisfaction.

Morris said....." tough"......or words similarly disrespectful, hostile and out of order.

I responded ; "No matter.... Councillors are entitled to attend and participate at all meetings"

Councillor Keane enjoined. He said ..."no, they are not"

I cast an inquiring look towards the Chair. He moved the meeting along.

In my previous incarnation, standing committees were the order. Membership was three for the purpose of a majority report to Council. Any member of Council had the right to attend and participate, ask questions of staff, express an opinion, but not vote.

Committee recommendations had to reflect a majority decision.

Since then and I am still doubtful of the new concept,. advisory committees have taken the place of standing committees. Committees have more non-elected members than elected. And the new clause in the procedure bylaw.

It qualifies a councillor's authority.

It states:

26.2 Councillor Members who are not Committee Members shall be entitled to attend all
Advisory Committee meetings, including any in-camera portion of the meeting, and shall be entitled to speak , at a meeting upon recognition from the chair, but
shall not be entitled to vote....

It seems innocent . Rules of order require recognition from the chair to allow any member to speak.

But this clause refers only to a Councillor who is not a member of the committee. It was Councillor Keane's reference when he challenged the right of this Councillor to participate.

To be continued.