MidlandToday welcomes letters to the editor at [email protected] or via the website. Please include your full name, daytime phone number and address (for verification of authorship, not publication).
I wish to submit my thoughts on the Tiny Township new building issues and Council’s Citizen Code of Conduct proposal.
I have been following Tiny Township’s new building project since the last election. It’s proposed initial cost grew from $6M (January 2017 per Executive Summary of Burnside report) to its current price of $28M. Tiny has zero money to apply to this “over the top” project and needs to borrow the full amount. The payback of the $28 M LOAN will include INTEREST (rate not yet known); bringing the total PROJECT taxpayer cost closer to $50 million. The township’s taxes have increased by 26% over the last three years combined. And that does NOT include any of the $50 million.
The township Council, along with residents who are concerned about the appropriateness of the new building plans/cost, have been at odds for over a year now, with some heated, emotional and heartfelt exchanges from both sides during Council meetings. I wish to clarify that the INTENT of the group that is objecting the build is primarily due to the desire to scale back and consider less expensive options; on behalf of the township’s homeowners who are on limited income and are already struggling financially with the 26% tax increase and rising costs on most things (primarily for seniors on pensions, who make up more than 50% of Tiny’s residents, young struggling families etc).
Not everyone receives cost of living increases while costs of EVERYTHING keeps going up. There comes a point where household budgets just can’t stretch anymore without serious negative implications. Yes; prices go up all the time and so do taxes, but we are in serious economic times, in a post COVID world and facing multiple other township funding pressures, such as costly deteriorating assets.
Members of the group that is against proceeding with the build, are looking to Council to be more understanding, more compassionate, more realistic and to consider other less expensive approaches. But Council repeatedly comes across as not caring and not listening, moving forward way too fast, with no public understanding of “why”. In addition, not having a “clear” mandate to proceed with such a huge, opulent, expensive building. This has resulted in the acceleration of anger, frustration, despair. Council’s actions/decisions have played into the current volatile situation just as much as residents.
To add fuel to the fire, the development of a very prescriptive and harsh Citizen Code of Conduct ‘proposed’ policy, added to the February 4th Committee of the Whole agenda, will likely further escalate the angst, frustration and concerns surrounding this project.
I feel that the way Council has handled this project from day 1 – i.e. lack of transparency, lack of fulsome disclosure, unwillingness to listen/acknowledge concerns being raised and the lack of a clear mandate to run full steam ahead with an over the top, unaffordable, unneeded, unjustified, building along with an unwillingness to discuss the project and to listen to residents, or to take deputations seriously is at the root of the current reality. Dismissing concerns being raised, as well as some Council member’s unjustified and targeted behaviour, in my opinion, has stirred the pot to the current undesirable and disrespectful atmosphere for both sides. “It’s moving ahead no matter what” and “NO to a petition” to canvas residents’ support, approach/attitude from Council is driving the on-going frustrations that have spilled over into less than ideal behaviour from BOTH Council and residents.
And now, with the recently announced US tariffs, Canada’s retaliation plan and the resulting impacts will no doubt crank up more fear and anxiety for this unwanted debt.
I do not give Council a pass on their behaviour and actions on this project. I fervently believe that it was never about “attacking” Council members, as has been accused. It’s about accountability to taxpayers on the single most expensive, unfunded project the township has ever tackled and which lacked a clear mandate to proceed with a project of this magnitude and cost.
Germaine Muller
Lafontaine
