Today the Conservative mess we call government announced the biggest ever single year deficit in Canadian history.
At the same time, Cornwall Ontario, a small city of just over 40,000 people with a tax base of less than 15,000 awarded a contract to a Whitby firm for $1, 367,500.00 to design a rink that hasn’t been funded yet.
Details haven’t been released but it seems boggling that the city would spend any monies until funding for the project is in place and so far; unless someone knows something; the funds have yet to be announced.
Today the group led by Scott Lecky 
kicked off their fund raising with a breakfast and announced $525,000 in pledges.
L I N K The Group also has its own website.
You can’t pay contractors or consultants with pledges.
Kingston failed to raise the same $2 Million dollars that Mr. Lecky’s group is trying to raise. ( L I N K )
In this current financial climate, and in a small city like Cornwall loading this arena onto the public purse will hamper growth. It will hamper jobs, and could well push the city backwards.
I love hockey, but the people who want this arena have to write the cheques to pay for it and not just give out pledges; and frankly I don’t think the city should be writing cheques until there’s at least 10% of the cost to local taxpayers on the table and maybe not even then.
Cornwall needs jobs and those jobs are going to be hard to create with the high city taxes we have. We need money to attract business to Cornwall; to attract doctors to Cornwall; and to attract things that will help grow Cornwall.
We need dollars to help the people who are already here too and if the local tax base ends up paying for this project will there be any dollars for the things we truly need?
The clock is ticking.
What do you think Cornwall?
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Many people state that we need the money for the proposed arena to create jobs? I would like to see one person explain how that would happen. If I cut a cheque to the city of Cornwall for 30 Million dollars how would jobs then come to Cornwall?
If this project proceeds this guy, itinerant, has it right. He posted on the Freeholder webpage article “$580K for new arena” Thursday, May 28, 2009 and I quote
“The Si Miller has been condemned on the north side so why not all of it? BTMC has had roof issues since I played there some 40 yrs ago.
If decommissioning the old sites is part of the plan it would minimize operating costs as newer equipment would be more efficient.
We could also eliminate some city jobs as there is less need for operators and shall we say rink rats. That would create a fair amount of available tax money that could be relocated to other infrastructure needs.
As for people not affording this venture, take a real close look around next time you are out and about n the city. You will not see any old beaters driving around, in fact there are more pick ups and SUVS then there has been in the past. Real estate is on the rise; in speaking with one of the agents this fellow sold 5 homes in excess of $250,000”
I could add to that, walk into Wal Mart on the weekend and see the endless lines of people shopping, no money for a rink, I highly doubt that.
If you want industrial economic growth Kilger and his cohorts must go, first and foremost. Was it not Kilger that did not want the pellet company building in Cornwall’s industrial park? Europe is using this technology and looking for suppliers. Currently we cannot produce enough to meet domestic needs. This company would have been a gold mine for the city. I believe the reason it was denied had to do with the food manufacturing company and health concerns. Yet we have a PCB recovery unit directly across the road.
That mentality could be compared to our past economic decisions with out question. How many other companies were not given the right to open in Cornwall because they would drain the trades or reduce the work force? Redpath is one that I can recall, one other opened in Cardinal.
We loose growth and are in held back only because our leadership is nonexistent.
30 Million dollars cannot fix stupidity
We have a high tax base because our infrastructure was never maintained or done so poorly; also we are growing new subdivisions. They require services and unfortunately we all have to pay them, personally I think the subdivision owners and future home owners’ as well provincial government should provide the growth money. However as these subdivisions form it raises the price of our homes as well. So there is a small trade off.
Build the arena we do need it. One for revenue and also so other communities can bring their families here for sporting events and see how not to live.