Recreation Centre Crisis

WE ALL HAVE A LOT TO LOSE WITH RECREATION CENTRE CRISIS - MOB RETRIBUTION ISN’T THE SOLUTION - FORENSIC INVESTIGATION IS ONLY COURSE OF ACTION

There is only one way to diffuse the anger building in our community, following news of the alleged Recreation Centre kick-backs, reported yesterday in an “above-the-fold,” front-pager, published in the Toronto Star. By the way, we owe the Star thanks for providing transparency on an issue many ratepayers had been complaining about for months.....without any real critique back from council, other than the most basic frosting-over, to give us the opinion the grand opening would be well worth the expense and the months of delay. Won’t it be delightful! Not now! That bitter pill of truth is, like they say, hard to swallow.

The details of a debacle, in the making, are all presented for our perusal, and more than a few of us hometowners were gnashing our teeth......in part, because the critics of the project, our watchers in the woods, had suspicions early-on, the cost of the project was out of control. Many ratepayers, although supportive of the plan for the new pool, and new recreation services, were pissed about the problems associated, the delays, and the ever-increasing excuses and justifications for the new costs associated. I suspect the most oft-heard remark yesterday, was the statement; “I told you so!” Or “What did I tell you?” The next most important question was, “Say, do you have any newspapers left?” “Sold out!” was the reply!

There is a mob-anger growing out there which had its wick, and fuel enriched, by at least seven years of poor governance, before this present council term. They got the ball rolling on this recreation centre re-vamp. They’re the same folks who got us a brand new town hall we couldn’t afford, and gave away the old town hall at taxpayer’s expense. Those council years.....that I hope councillors then don’t forget, saw our community spend well beyond its means.....and those we hoped would bring sensible proportion to council, rarely found a soapbox to stand upon, to let us know about objections and opposing opinions. It was pretty much, this is the way we’re going to do it.....so shut the hell up. At least that’s what ratepayers believed was happening. Reporters got to see what was transpiring at council and committee meetings but didn’t get those one-on-one interviews, where questions were the privilege of the press. Can we blame the press for not requesting these interviews, particularly from those who showed contempt or general disapproval for certain matters of council business? Or should we be looking at councillors in general, who disagreed with the whole demeanor of council but refused to let the public know their true feelings.......that they may not have wished to present during a council meeting, but would have disclosed in a personal, no holds barred interview?

Very few councillors, if any at all, took a reporter aside, and offered to do an full interview about their disdain for the system that existed. Just because an objection at the council table didn’t change a particular vote, didn’t mean a councillor couldn’t take an objection to the public via the local media. While I understand matters of confidentiality and council’s legal obligations with certain information, being a councillor is not the same as being a disciple in a cult. There were many opportunities to vent objections but very few extended past the council forum. The same holds today. Toronto councillors are pretty savvy when it comes to venting. Why not here?

The problem now is that new councillors are being unfairly dumped into the previous council’s quagmire. While it’s logical that these recently elected councillors knew the poop was about to hit the fan, one can sympathize with them, knowing full well how bad it was going to look on the town generally. I would rather have had the Mayor and Council let us know an investigation was inevitable, but I understand the difficulty, in legal terms, of approaching such a complicated situation without legal advice. As for adopting the latest tax increase, it’s unfair to suggest council at large has committed a dastardly deed. What choice did they have? We needed a budget passed, and regardless whether we got hosed or not, we have to accept that this will be a retrospective year to remember.....and that a majority of the crisis, and budget numbers, are directly proportional to the handiwork of a previous council. Here is the group that will be grilled by investigators. I’m getting the impression a few former councillors feel it’s the burden of the new council. Well, that is true. But what don’t they understand about the word “forensic,” and how it will be applied in the future, when it comes to a complete audit of this......and possibly a few other restoration projects that might require a guiding light. As for the taxpayers, if money is owing to us, we want it back. As soon as possible. Before the next budget deliberation.

My advice is that councillors past and present offer the co-operation and insight that is required, to get to the bottom of this unfortunate situation. It is impossible and unnecessary, at this point, to place blame on one person, one group, or an entire town council. It is necessary for the citizens of this town to demand a full enquiry, and welcome all intrusive forensic investigation, to uncover the root cause of the present crisis. It is this co-operation of present and past municipal staff, and elected officials, we are looking for, as ratepayers, to show us the respect we deserve. Whether as some critics claim, it is the present council at fault, for not informing us sooner about the suspicions they had, early in the term, .......in my years of experience as a reporter, I would never be so shallow as to believe, the present council proceeded with any attempt to deceive the ratepayers a crisis was about to spill its banks. I think instead, they were holding the handle of a tempest, and understandably nervous about the implications on a battle-weary community,........ of the painful and embarrassing truths of a milestone community project crashing around them. Those council members re-elected from previous council terms, do face more scrutiny and that’s to state the obvious. In all, my concern now is that transparency be the operative word.....so that we, the stakeholders in this town, have a clear view of all that went on with the recreation centre revamp. Not that we don’t like the Star but we’d like our municipal residents to address us, in person, and let us know with no uncertainty, they are willing to shoulder the full responsibility for correcting what problems have occurred in the past. If ratepayers sense that there is an unwillingness to address these issues, in a public forum, just as the downtown revitalization was handled, then we know something needs to be changed at town hall. I’m pretty sure, in this case, the citizens would be looking for numerous resignations.

Like many other folks in this town, which I adore, our family will pay the tax bill. We will grumble and fuss like every other year. This year we will feel entitled to vent a little more and a little louder, because of the $1.8 million dollar add-on from the recreation over-run. What we will end our rant with.....is simple and non-aggressive. “We want this fixed. We want restitution to be made to the taxpayers. We want those responsible held accountable.”