If Council is concerned about people in the community undermining their credibility, they shouldn't - they are doing a good job of it themselves.
Conducting the budget review and cutting services that the public needs and/or enjoys, while at the same time adding to budget lines that are not the priority of the public (events reserve), does not endear the voters.
In today's SP (Aug. 24/11) I read that park services were reduced. Maybe I shouldn't be concerned as most of the public land around my neighbourhood is already weed-infested and unkempt. Thus I agree with the parks manager's comment that this cut would not see a "significant impact" on upkeep. So why have we been spending the $120,000 a year if it wasn't necessary?
Thanks you Myles Heidt for arguing to keep the tree root clearing. In older neighbourhoods roots grow into the pipes and block the sewer drains. It is the city trees that cause the problem and citizens are not allowed to tamper with those trees.
The best line of this review meeting goes to Councillor Dubois during the park services reduction debate - "We can't lead people astray. . . We have to be honest with people."
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IMHO that is one of the most intelligent quotes from Councillor Dubois.
ReplyDeleteIt's an absolute joke, Atch paraded in front of cameras and basically called out Dayday without providing any rebuttal to what Dayday said. More of the "trust us" garbage they've been saying for years as they ruined our finances.
ReplyDeleteI cannot believe that in meetings to cut the budget they actually ended up over the course of yesterday with a net gain to the budget. They just don't get it.
Also laughable was the quote about there is "no fat to trim". Someone should show them the budgets from a decade ago and then explain that on a day-to-day level nothing has improved in Saskatoon (in fact maybe even declined), so start cutting whatever has been added and not contributing.
Council has done a great job ... of pulling the wool over our heads. The budget discussions are so convoluted that there is no way one can get a grasp of where money is being wasted inside departments. Line by line evaluation is the only way we will be sure we are getting value from those public employees. There will need to be cuts and they will be deep. How about starting with the pay raise Council gave itself over the last three years.
ReplyDeleteDidn't Heidt promise to keep tax increases below 2% in the last election and then vote for increases of 4% each of the last two years? So why should we believe him now?
ReplyDeleteIf he is unwilling to make cuts, how does he expect to trim $7 million from the budget to meet his 2.5% target?
Talk is cheap....
Saskatoon's budgetary problems start with individual departments not even being held to their budgetary targets, those are just goals or targets in the City's eyes.
ReplyDeleteSimilarly, Department heads are not asked nor encouraged to prepare detailed and accurate budgets.
Saskatoon in much of what it does is stuck in a small community mentality. The reality is we are growing into a big city. Everything from drivers who intentionally tie up lanes to prove a point, to how City Hall handles business needs to be rethought (for another example, the recycling process has been basically a small town deal where the City is doing whatever it can to usher the contract to Loras at any expense, likely because they have a facility here- not sure why a private companies assets should have such an impact on any decision, but I digress).
We have a bunch of self-centered small town Councillors who would rather pat each other on the back and support each other's projects as long as theirs get supported. Dysfunctional.
I never thought I would utter the words, but I long for the days the Mistress was on Council.
I can't wait for my Councillor (Clark) to knock on my door next election. In no uncertain terms I'll explain to him my concerns and it will be great to listen to him explain why he deserves another term on Council.
ReplyDeleteWow! Anon 9:43 you have taken insult to a new level - and a double header at that. Not only did you get to zing Council but me as well - and in one swoop.
ReplyDeleteI hope Darren Hill runs for Mayor, he is the only Councillor I have seen who gives two licks about the public.
ReplyDeleteThe media has done their best over time to push him down to the ground and ridicule him. By and far the most competent person at the meetings.
Clark is a dolt. In making a career of living off public funds he has forgotten that people pay taxes to afford his programs.
Atch consumes the City's money like he consumes pancakes for breakfast (fast and with little regard of consequences)
Penner is just past his best before date. He has little regard for anyone not sharing his views.
I could go on and on, bottom line... ELECT HILL FOR MAYOR 2012
I hope Hill runs for mayor too. I would love to see him clobbered even more than in his attempt to unseat Trost.
ReplyDeleteDarren Hill attempted to ban citizens from videoing PUBLIC meetings in order to make sure that there would be no record of what the city's representatives actually told the public. A massive violation of the rights of citizens to hold the government to account. It was only due to the timely intervention of a quick 'undercurrent campaign' organized by Marjaleena Repo that Hill and Lorje found themselves on the short end of the stick.
ReplyDeleteTalk about not understanding the changing world of technology and communications! Hill and Lorje would only allow government certified news organizations to record any part of a public meeting. They knew that the media only comes down for a few shots of most meetings but interested citizens might record the event from start to finish and that would be a danger to controlling the information.
They may have lost that battle, but they certainly didn't distance themselves from the desire to see the ban put into place.
Bottom line: a councilor's first priority should be to respect the rights of citizens.
I am reminded, as I watched the Mayors rant,of that scene from Blazing Saddles. "Gentlemen, a round of self righteous harumphs,we must do what ever is neccessary to protect our phoney baloney jobs!I can not believe that with the combined value of the capital projects, bus barns/ civic yard, art gallery and the Taj Weighill that enough could be trimmed to offset all of targeted reductions. Appears to be much easier to go for the low hanging fruit and attack the vulnerable and or marginalized individuals.Truly a lack of leadership that has manifested itself into apparent contempt for the ratepayers of Saskatoon
ReplyDeleteLets just go back to the days when there was no interest in development in this city and we can bring back Dayday, Maddin, Birkmaier, Hnatyshyn, Swystun, ..... I could go on and on with names of council members that have done very little while they were on council.
ReplyDeleteThis current council has helped to keep our city moving forward. 2.7% population growth, 3.9% GDP, cranes in the skyline, international companies setting up head offices, the best affordable housing strategy in Canada, etc etc. Are they perfect? By no means. However, this city is moving forward at an unprecedented pace and council and administration are doing a good job managing that.
Does not matter what this council does. The majority of the people on this blog will continue to complain because that is simply who they are. It takes so much courage to post anonymously!
I have seldom agreed with the Mistress as I find her posts to be continuously negative and bitter and simply a regurgitation of other media sources. But I will give her credit for one thing and that is that she attaches her name to what she writes!
But I will give her credit for one thing and that is that she attaches her name to what she writes!
ReplyDeletesays Anon 753AM!
Anon 7:53 are you clueless?
ReplyDeleteYou credit council with moving things forward and helping our city grow? A pack of monkeys could have done the same job.
The growth in population and gdp is a direction correlation with the booming industry in an around the city, specifically the light source synchotron on campus (which draws scientists in from all over) and the resources industry.
If anything, the current council has failed to capitalize on the benefits of the growth and foster it into smart development and investment.
Think about it, with all the money coming into the city we are going to have an art gallery we didn't need (and one I can't recall many even asking for) an olympic sized pool and a bridge. Oh and bells and whistles police station for our police force that can't bring us out of the top 2 worst violent crime cities in Canada.
To top it off, you say we have "the best affordable housing strategy in Canada"? You can't be serious, have you been paying attention lately?
I'm half convinced that Anon 7:53 is the snaky Darren Hill coming here to pump his own tires again.
What gets me about Anon 7:53's comments is that they take shots at others for posting anonymously and yet does it themselves. This poster is obviously part of the administration/council that have put us in debt we are today. If they truly believed the situation the city is in is the best it could be they would not have hidden their name. I think the Mistress's main point is that every councilor will have those that want them gone and that happens every election and should. But to try to squash opposing views takes me back to the man in front of the tank in Tiananmen Square and that is definitely what some councilors would love to do.
ReplyDeleteAnon 7:53 a.m. Slam me if you want, but why drag in other former councillors/mayors who are not participating in this blog?
ReplyDeleteAs for regurgitating news, the point of the blog is to comment on the news. Thanks to those who do.
I appreciate the mistress' blog and the discussions....If you dont like it, go find another discussion blog. It is her blog, so really she can say whatever she thinks...
ReplyDeletea blog fan
Hey Mr. Anonymous, Next time u complain about people posting anonymously - put your name in - goof!
ReplyDelete