I normally don’t comment much on municipal affairs but the issue of pay increases for city council that will come up Monday night bothers me no end and proves in my mind that those advocating it are in it for the money.I covered city council for about 30 years and of course pay hikes were always an issue at this time (before the next election). In the mid-90’s council was hung up on pay increases and wanted some way to justify them in relation to other communities our size. A group of citizens (which included Hughette Burroughs, who was later to become a member of council) spent months checking out the pay rates for mayor and council, comparing them to communities our size. When the matter came to council the rates of pay were approved and we were told the pay was similar to other communities.
The important part to the exercise was that future pay increases were to be adjusted to the cost of living so that sharp increases as those proposed Monday would not be necessary. This council is considering something that should not even be on the table. Council salaries were examined and increases equal to the cost of living have been given every year. Nothing more needs to be said or done.
And one more thing…have many people in the community received a pay increase? Even one tied to the cost of living? I doubt it unless they belonged to a strong union.
Council members may also want to take the job situation in the community into consideration. There is one report that the city gained 700 jobs in the last year and lost 600. That number may be correct, but how many of those replacement jobs were part time vs. full time? How many were minimum wage vs. a living wage? There was nothing said of that in the story. Again, another good reason to keep the increase to cost of living.
I ask council to prove that I am too cynical and refuse any increase greater than the cost of living. Better yet — shock the hell out of me and freeze salaries for the next 3 years (lol — that won’t happen).
Marc Pilote
Cornwall, Ontario
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Again I point out any raise approved will be for the incoming council in November, not the current council. But the proposed raise is obscene.
Marc good comments and well taken, come to council meeting on Monday eve ahead of the meeting.. You will hear my spirited comments.
I will be there in spirit and most likely just buzz around like a fly on the wall. This has to be mighty interesting. Jamie you should tape those meetings and post them. Most people today are only working part time and I see that in Ottawa and my daughter is one of them. There is no way in hell that one can survive without having other jobs and even then it isn’t enough. Bare Ass is a multi millionaire and doesn’t need to have such big income since he is wealthy. Yes these jerks are in it for the money.
The consultant is being getting paid . . . and going from community to community to recommend to councils to increase the salary of municipal administrations and elected representatives. There seems to be an ongoing racket across Ontario of consultants visiting communities to undertake studies and submit recommendations . . . . . and the Ontario ministry that oversees municipal affairs may be the party that requires that municipal councils hire (politically approved) consultants.
Jules….I don’t think Jamie attends city council meetings any longer. I think he watches i ton TVCogeco. And I don’t think they’d allow him to photograph the meeting, probably some obscure by-law that was put in when they earth was green.
Harry Valentine….quite a good gig for the consultants I’d say travelling from community to community recommending councils get increases and trying to justify the raise and justify the need for their services, I remember back when I worked for the federal government once a year we had to justify our units existence.
Hugger I still attend meetings and I still shoot video and photograph. The city actually has podcasts of the meetings and I get the agenda in advance.
To be honest I find this council so toxic that I tend to only go for special issues.
To say this council is toxic is being polite.
Hugger that will mean that I won’t know what is going on in those meetings. If only I can buzz in as a fly on the wall and be able to take it all in.
Yes Hugger you and I remember the consultants that we had in the federal government and they would be there in the room to see if we were needed. When Jean Chrétien came in in 93 that was the year that my mom died and most of the people that I worked with were transferred to the Vanier Towers and I think that many were let go. I had a short stint with an agency who sent me to the Vanier Towers to replace someone for a week and I ran into my supervisor’s supervisor who went in as a consultant and told me that “the animals that I worked with were working upstairs” those were the mail clerks that I used to joke with – what a bunch. LOL LOL.
Agreed Jules…consultants as a general rule are there for one reason…to pad their pockets. I hated having to spend weeks putting stats together to justify our units existence.
The new premier of Ontario has hinted at “selling off provincial crown corporations and related assets” to raise revenue for her debt ridden government . . . . . and they also plan to spend plenty.
Perhaps its time for the provincial and municipal governments to reduce their expenditures.
In the nation of Uruguay, that nation’s President (Mujica . . .pronounced Moo-hee-cah)sold off the government limousines and drives his old rear-engine VW Beetle. He apparently gives over 80% of his presidential salary to local charities . . . . and waits in line for medical treatment at hospitals.
Mr. Valentine can you picture our mighty corrupted and self centered politicians waiting in line for medical treatment. Some people witnessed Harpoon Harpo at the emergency at the Ottawa General Hospital with a little known nothing wrong with him and skipped the line. When my daughter and I were in our doctor’s office we noticed the MP Boudria skipping ahead of the rest of us and had no appointment with our doctor and was not his doctor. These are only a few examples. I have seen so much of the snobbery of people getting in with no appointments and did not belong to that doctor and using a cell phone in the office for private matters when there was not supposed to be cell phones being on. Even the snobbery of that Manley fellow in Ottawa who was an MP in the Liberal/Fiberal party you could lead his nose around with a leash it was almost touching the ground with his snobbery. What is Winnie going to do sell off parks, the government vehicle that she rides her keester in and have plenty of lay offs. I wouldn’t put it past her for what she will have to do in order to balance the budget but if she intends to spend then she can very well forget about it. Ontario is in very big trouble financially and no jobs. There is going to be a big financial crash coming soon.
Ontario may sell off some of its agencies, etc. But it will only sell the unprofitable ones, not the profitable ones like the LLBO, etc. And if you’re waiting for liquor / beer to be sold in corner stores you’ll be waiting for a very long time, it isn’t going to happen.
Hugger. I agree that the LCBO shouldn’t and wont be sold off. However, the foreign owned Beer Store monopoly should be tossed.
Salaries for all levels of governments continue rise. Austerity on a provincial level is merely another word in the dictionary. Locally municipal pensions are gold clad and salary increases are entitlements not merit based. Funny how there is always money to provide raises when all one simply has to do is eliminate some of the simple things taxpayers should be able to enjoy like a small neighbourhood wading pool. It was with great sadness that I watched recently the elimination of the wading pool on the upper end of Sidney St. knowing that our city staff, council members etc were taken care of was of little or no comfort.
Please one and all get behind someone that understands the basic taxpayers dilemma, realizes that austerity measures are necessary but has a grip on the fact that living within your means does not mean doing without. These wading pools were for our communities children and our children are our future. There are better ways to find money for raises than eliminating very basic neighbourhood services. For instance do we really require sidewalks on both sides of the street? Please vote in the next municipal election and give that vote serious thought.
Hugger they have been talking about putting liquor and beer in the stores for a long time now and even not that long ago but like you said it is hard to fathom that now maybe some years from now who knows. If we want beer and liquor in the stores all we have to do is hop over the bridge to Gatineau but we never go over there at all. I haven’t been to Gatineau since I used to work over there on assignments.
Mr. Oldham it all depends on which streets that those sidewalks run on. If those sidewalks are on the main streets of Cornwall then I would say yes but if they are on little side streets then I would say that they are not needed and they sure are not needed on completely residential areas. We live on residential streets where my building is like you see in Riverdale and other places and we have no sidewalks on these small streets and only if I go out onto Jefferson Street or Heron and Walkley Roads and other such main arteries do I find sidewalks on both sides. You do have a good point in what you said. Kids need the pools and I remember taking my kids to the wading pools and Clifford Bowey used to offer swimming lessons on Kitchener Street but no more and it is a school for disabled children and that was a good place to go. That sure was a long time ago when my kids were little. If there are no recreational facilities for the kids then they resort to the streets where they can get killed by the traffic. Swimming is very healthy and a healthy body is a healthy mind.
David OLdham….in regard to the elimination of wading pools it had more to do with maintenance or more better put lack of maintenance. The wading pools were not properly maintained over the years and it would have been cheaper to replace the pools than to fix them. But without proper planning and preventative maintenance the pools fell into disrepair and the city took the cheap way out.
In regard to sidewalks on both sides of the street I agree with you, is it really necessary on a lot of streets? Nope. That money could be spent on better projects, I see a lot of streets with sidewalks on both sides and wonder “why?”
Sad to think that we have to waste our tax dollars like this ,anyone else would have been fired for the undermining work they do.
silentfrancoamerican: we get our chance to fire these “clowns” in October.
I agree with Jules….it depends on the street. On main thoroughfares yes sidewalks on both sides are needed. But on the two small residential streets I’ve lived on in Cornwall no they are not needed. Cornwall really needs to do some planning and stop wasting OUR money on useless projects.
Travel down St Felix from the north end of Guy St. and you will find no sidewalks on either side. The first street on the right off (west) of St. Felix is a crescent and lo and behold sidewalks on both sides. Planning ?
David Oldham….That’s one of the streets I was referring to.
Excuse my expression but so much is done “half assed” and no wonder taxes are so mighty high when you have a completely and totally incompetent mayor and council. Bare Ass has to be put out to the glue factory and the sooner the better. Only streets that are the main streets should have a sidewalk or two like Pitt and Second (2 sidewalks there) and on smaller streets like 3rd can have only one. Small residential streets do not need any sidewalk at all. I live in a residential area and there are no sidewalks except for one street that has one sidewalk and the rest are without. Like I said yesterday it depends on the street. The main arteries should have 1 or 2 but small residential streets do not need a lot of sidewalks. Water Street should have one, Montreal Road two because of the businesses. Nobody should have neglected those pools in the park or anything. When you neglect things then it gets a great deal worse and the cost would be enormously high. Cornwall isn’t just for a few rich people and the hell with the rest. We are all mighty fed up of Bare Ass and his gang of shisters and they all must go IMMEDIATELY.