There Are New Patches On Our Road !
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There Are New Patches On Our Road !By Bill Rowsome
As certain as geese flying south means winter is on the way, when our township roads get patched, brushed and widened there is an election on the way. Are you ready?
While only a handful of ratepayers may be running for mayor and 6 council seats in North Frontenac what can the rest of us do?
During the past 3 years I believe the present council has done an admirable job during the difficult transition period of amalgamating 3 former townships into one unit. It was not an easy task but the problems are not yet over.
How long can our taxes be maintained to marginal increases as they have been over the past years while we benefited from temporary provincial grants during the downloading process?
We need local representatives who will question and act on the provincial government's tendency to download every service imaginable, providing only a token grant to get a service up and running. In the near future the ambulance service will be a municipal responsibility. Highway 41 is presently being upgraded before being transferred to townships as Highways 506 and 509 were done 3 years ago. Our present council objected strenuously to taking over Hwy 41 at that time but the decision was only postponed. Social Housing is due to be downloaded by January 1, 2001.
The Province of Ontario is in trouble administrating education, health care, waste disposal, drinking water, air pollution, water pollution, and ground water. The tendency of politicians to quickly pass a controversial situation to the next lower level of government is not going to change. The promise of saving money by downloading is ridiculous. I have not seen a significant drop in taxes at either the federal or provincial level of government, nor have I received the provincial bribe of $200. That was the most disillusioning move yet, the very obvious price for my vote.
What has this to do with our municipal elections?
The buck stops at our mayor and councilors. They are our neighbours. They are accessible. They have to live among us. Therefore they have to be responsible. What have your ward councilors done over the past three years? It is your duty to find out. Have you attended any council meetings on the 2nd and 4th Mondays of the month? I am ashamed that I have attended so few. Councilors are human and need support and encouragement. Go to the meetings, it is the only way you can learn what is happening and to give support and evaluate the efficiency of your councilors. Granted the minutes are eventually placed on the Township's web site ( www.mazinaw.on.ca/northfrontenac) but how many have computers and of those who have how many know there is a web site or read it? Unfortunately The Frontenac News in the past has been very unreliable in keeping us informed of municipal political progress. Let us hope that the revised News will do better.
Will some civic-minded organization or our present council organize a local 'All Candidates Meeting'? With the breadth of our Township there should be at least one in each ward. Already the summer residents have returned to the cities without knowing of future issues and how prospective candidates plan to deal with them and they make up the majority of the voters, don't leave the permanent residents in ignorance also.
My perception of the future in the local political scene is that there will have to be some astute decisions made by all Municipal Councils during the next mandate or our property taxes will rise drastically.
In the long run it may be a good move to have the downloading process continue if there is a corresponding lowering of provincial taxes and if future municipal councils have the ability to handle the difficult decisions. The municipal taxpayers can have more influence but only if we are familiar with the issues and make our opinions known to our representatives.
