GuelphToday has received the following letter from a citizen who is concerned that the mayor and city council members are not following their own advice to citizens.
The mayor and city council challenged citizens to look at the ‘big picture’, strive for civility in public discourse, and above all else, train a fiscally responsible lens towards any investment of our hard-earned money.
In the context of curtailing spending, the Mayor and Council continue to express grave concern for our economic stability and our collective well being, particularly those of us impacted the most by the Covid-19 crisis.
Actions speak louder than words.
I’m glad that the Baker Street and South End Recreation projects made progress this week. If you can call it that. We are still years away from ribbon cutting. Regardless, I am appalled by the incoherent process and hostile discourse that got us here. Observing our elected officials congratulating themselves for fiscal piety or pitying themselves for the self-inflicted damage of ugly political warfare - was something to behold.
In the interest of fairness, I’m all but certain that this chronic chaos and infighting are the outputs of a seriously flawed approach to decision making and overall governance. This, of course, cannot be solely attributed to one Mayor or one Council. But this isn’t the same as having no responsibility for it. In my experience, the main reason why people shift blame to others is that there’s only one other choice.
Our City seems to be seriously deficient in the areas of strategic planning; neutral oversight; and measurable, objective goal setting. All of this is required for growing a complex City. Unless the underlying problems are addressed - any Mayor and any City Council will be continually distracted by the trees instead of our growing forest. We cannot afford to squander more time, political capital and public money on popularity contests and investments that aren’t finally approved. This is no way to build a City.
In the meantime, a seriously flawed system combined with rudderless governance tends to produce seriously flawed results.
In the interest of practicing the fiscal responsibility so often preached, but rarely practiced, will the Mayor and Council look for ways to achieve actual, immediate relief for all of us? Things like hitting pause on all but essential investment, zero (or near zero) levy increases and keeping user fees static? No, these are not popular or meme-friendly initiatives. But it’s what mature and responsible Cities do. And no, it’s not as simple as filibustering one highly political project to appease some constituents. Or characterizing private investment and developer fees as magical Get Out of Taxes Free Cards. We know it’s not that simple.
Everyone in this Community, of all political stripes, social identities, and lived experiences is worried about the Pandemic and their pennies. Not enough of them know that public service is a difficult, often thankless, and yes – a full-time job. That’s something I do know a lot about.
But make no mistake, none of you are bystanders. If you are feeling hurt and exhausted from your epic meetings this week – good. That’s a start. Imagine how we feel.
David Gibson
Guelph, ON
