- by John A. Tamming
I wrote a lot of letters to the editor. I was possessed of some strong opinions. So I left the peanut gallery, tossed my hat in the ring and ran for city council. That was four years ago. Of those councillors elected, I placed middle of the pack. Not terrific but not bad either.
Madame Justice Morneau swore us in at a ceremony held at the Roxy. We all gave little speeches. I was struck then and now by the commitment of all councillors to their
jobs and to the civic good. I have come to know some terrific public servants. I count these years as being some of the most interesting and varied of my life.
COVID-19 hit the province a year into our term. Eighteen months of virtual meetings are a very poor substitute for in-person. It affected both our personal relations and our efficacy as a council. I believe my colleagues would concur.
From Five Hundred Feet Up
We sold an airport which was closing in on an operating deficit of $300,000 per year. We voted for a beautiful riverfront upgrade, most of which was funded by someone else. We hired an outstanding city manager (who for a time actually ran Vaughn). I count these as our best accomplishments.
(Though well built, I don’t count the Giche-name-wiikwedong Bridge as an “accomplishment”. An engineer tells you that you need a bridge, you source some quotes, you unanimously vote for the thing and you monitor its completion. That was easy.)
Council resisted funding a climate change coordinator, rationalizing that our residents are already funding similar initiatives at the county level.
This ticked off some people.
We took the same position on housing - the county has already spent a ton for housing the precariously sheltered within city limits.
This also ticked off some people.
I was also on the losing end of a bunch of proposals.
I think policing has to change and, in an admittedly audacious move, suggested we cut their budget by 30%. I intended to provoke a discussion of how to approach mental health calls with less expensive civilian windbreakers rather than police uniforms. The tactic backfired badly and this discussion went nowhere. Lousy execution on my end.
I don’t know how we can afford the escalating costs of conventional transit in a time of largely empty buses. I voted against renewing the busing contract. “Let Uber reign and provide some subsidies to the most needy”, was and remains my thinking. If memory serves, only one other councillor agreed. Another loss.
We have some of the smartest and committed of senior managers. But there are simply too many people at city hall. My impression is that we are staffed for a city the size of Guelph. A third party "service review"(euphemism for "exploring efficiencies" which is a euphemism for staff cuts) is pending. This could be a transformative moment for our operating budget but not much is likely to happen until next council term.
I voted against the last budget, along with two other councillors. Neither of them gave any reasons. I thought that odd but, then again, maybe they know something about the political game that eludes me.
Closer Impressions
In no particular order, I offer my impressions as a novice politician.
You have no way of knowing how you are doing. Ever. There are no polls, only random comments at parties, random emails, random front porch visits to my law office. On October 24 candidates will receive the election results on their IPhones and only then will incumbent councillors find out what the electorate thinks of them. It is weird to make decisions in such a vacuum but also somewhat liberating.
Municipal councillors are in a way the most honest of politicians. We don’t spend money we don’t have. We are prohibited from running any kind of operating deficit and our debenture room (capital borrowing) is capped. You want to vote for an expensive program? Our head of corporate will tell you precisely the hit for the average rate payer. It keeps us honest.
Some residents seem to suffer from BDS (Barry's Derangement Syndrome). No one company has done more to preserve our built heritage (shuttered schools and a hospital). No one company has done more to enhance our downtown core (Frog Pond, Milk Maid, Rocking Horse). Few have done more to support the poor (OShare). When I ask those who complain of special treatment for particulars, without exception I have heard crickets.
Overall, our residents are fair minded people. I have not received nearly the amount of angry or vicious emails or voicemails which I feared I would, though there have been some. It was my practice to invite all upset correspondents for a coffee. Only one ever took me up on it.
The Tom should be funded by both the city and our immediate neighbours - just like its sister cultural icon, our library. Gallery patrons do in fact live west of the car dealerships and south of Greenwood Cemetery. I don’t see why they should not be asked to kick in towards the Tom's budget.
We must get better at dialogue. We have microphones which permit zero over talk. This sounds good but it is not: whether committee or council meetings, we have to pause Every. Other. Moment. while one councillor's mic is stopped and another's activated. We also have a rule that each councillor can generally speak to an issue only once. This often results not in dialogue, but rather the exchange of pre-formed opinions.
Process can suffocate. People want to deal with police costs or homelessness or downtown improvements or lax property standard enforcement but as a council we don’t do a good job at setting the table for such discussions. Instead, our agendas are too often cluttered with formalities as we get mired in talk of strategic plans, official plans, stakeholder engagement, whatever. Next term, may more special meetings be a thing: One topic on the agenda followed by one action plan.
A Final Plea
Permit me one lament.
For years, we have no editors or local columnists of any standing. Our paper of record has not published an editorial on any local issue for the better part of a decade. You cannot name a regular city columnist because no one exists – whether in these pages, those of The Hub or the Sun Times.
As such, we are bereft of someone who might sift through city reports and committee meetings, someone who might then curate our ideas on what would make a good city – whether that be transit or development or taxes or culture.
Our little polis is the worse for it.
I regret in many ways that I am not in a position to run for council again. I am thrilled that we have a lot of candidates for all council positions. It has been an absolute honour to serve and I wish the new council well.
