News Article Shed Light on Opera House Roof Delay

THE WEEKENDER PUBLISHES INFORMATIVE UPDATE ABOUT CONDITION OF OPERA HOUSE ROOF - A DELAY ENCOUNTERED

NEWSPAPER ARTICLE CLARIFIES PROBLEMS UNCOVERED BELOW LAYERS OF OLD ROOFING

     HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF A LOCAL POLITICIAN BEING RUN OUT OF THIS TOWN ON A RAIL? LET ME KNOW IF YOU HAVE. BUT MY RESEARCH SHOWS WE HAVE NEVER DONE SO. THUS, WE MUST ALSO HAVE A WELL DESERVED REPUTATION, OF BEING PERPETUALLY FORGIVING TO POLITICIANS. THIS IS FACT, AND YOU KNOW IT! SO WE JUST "ELECT" AND THEN HOPE FOR THE BEST. WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO FUSS AND FUME OCCASIONALLY, BUT WE HAVE ROUTINELY HANDLED BAD NEWS RATHER WELL. IT SMARTS TO BE TOLD THERE HAS BEEN AN-OVER BUDGET EXPENSE…..ON NUMEROUS PROJECTS RECENTLY, BUT TO MY KNOWLEDGE, ALL THE COUNCILLORS WE ELECTED ARE STILL COMFORTABLY AROUND THE TABLE AT TOWN HALL. EITHER THEY'RE HIDING BENEATH IT, AND WE'RE NOT VERY GOOD AT HIDE AND SEEK…..OR MORE LIKELY, WE UNDERSTAND THE STRESSES OF ELECTED OFFICE, AND WE CUT SLACK WHERE IT IS NEEDED.

     I SUPPOSED I'VE EARNED THE NAGGING RIGHTS, OF BEING SOMEWHAT CORRECT…..OKAY, A LOT CORRECT,  ABOUT THE DELAYS IN THE RE-ROOFING PROJECT, CURRENTLY UNDERWAY AT THE GRAVENHURST OPERA HOUSE.  PUBLISHED ON FRIDAY, THE WEEKENDER OFFERS A TERRIFIC INSIGHT-ARTICLE, ABOUT THE DISCOVERIES THE ROOFERS HAVE MADE, THAT HAVE CAUSED AT LEAST SOME OF THE DELAYS WITH THE AUTUMN SEASON REFURBISHING. ALL UNDERSTANDABLE OF COURSE, CONSIDERING IT HAS BEEN A LONG, LONG TIME SINCE THE WHOLE ROOF WAS REPAIRED. THERE HAVE BEEN NEW LAYERS OF SHINGLES AND PLYWOOD, PRESUMABLY ADDED SINCE THE MID 1990'S, BUT NOT THE KIND OF FULL SCALE OVERHAUL IT'S BEEN GETTING SINCE EARLY SEPTEMBER.

    VERY FEW CITIZENS OF THIS COMMUNITY, WOULD BE PERTURBED ABOUT THE RECENT DISCOVERIES, OF TOO MANY ROOVES ON ONE BUILDING. WE'RE A PRETTY AMICABLE BUNCH, WHEN WE'RE PROVIDED WITH THE INFORMATION WE NEED, TO FORMULATE OPINIONS. IT'S NOT LIKE WE'VE BEEN LINING UP THE COUNCIL FOR A PUBLIC FLOGGING, BECAUSE OF THE SUBSTANTIAL DELAY IN GETTING THE SHINGLES BACK ON THE OPERA HOUSE. THE PROBLEM, WHICH BEGAN ABOUT A MONTH AGO, WAS A RELUCTANCE BY OUR COUNCIL, TO LET THE PUBLIC KNOW, JUST WHAT WAS HAPPENING, THAT CAUSED, INITIALLY, A WEEK AND A HALF CLOSURE OF THE OPERA HOUSE. THEY LET US SPECULATE ABOUT WHAT WAS GOING ON, BUT IT WAS PRETTY OBVIOUS, THE PLYWOOD CHUNK ON THE SOUTH SIDE, OF THE PEAKED ROOF, HAD BECOME A PORTAL, LETTING OUTSIDE LIGHT IN, AND INSIDE WARMTH OUT. WHILE I'M NOT VAIN ENOUGH TO THINK THAT, AS A COUNTRY BLOGGER, I'M GOING TO BE ABLE TO PULL THE STRINGS OF OUR LOCAL COUNCILLORS, BUT I DID OFFER THEM SOME COMPELLING REASONS, WHY COUGHING UP THE INFORMATION…..UNDER THE ACKNOWLEDGED GOOD AND DEMOCRATIC GRACES OF TRANSPARENCY, WOULD GO A LONG WAY TO APPEASING CONSTITUENTS WHO HAD SOME LEGITIMATE QUESTIONS, ABOUT THE WELL BEING OF OUR MOST HISTORIC LANDMARK.

THERE IS ONLY ONE PROTOCOL WHEN IT COMES TO SOMETHING LIKE THIS…….LET THE TRUTH SET YOU FREE

     I find that Gravenhurst constituents are, when treated with respect, habitually easy to get along with, and forgive situations like increased taxes, rather gently, compared to other municipalities. I have yet to see a mob of protestors encircling the town hall, and in all honesty folks, this council hasn't faced the wrath of the townsfolk more than one tenth its potential strength. Which is why it is so hard to understand, why there is obvious trepidation about what we will do with adverse information. As a regional historian, I've never once heard or read about any public lynching of a politician in all of Muskoka. It hasn't happened. There hasn't been any will to do anything more than occasionally complain, and in the case of The Bog……we never even got to the stage of chaining ourselves to the birches in the adjacent woodland…..before there was a negotiated settlement. So if councillors fear massive protests, crowding into town hall, on some contentious issues, geez, that's just strange fiction. I won't say we're all lovers of status quo, but by golly, that's what always disappoints us….the average citizen, who voted for the candidates of choice, and counted on the election promises to mean something after the swearing-in ceremony. The expectations? That our councillors will represent us responsibly. Remember "Responsible Government" studies in high school history? The Rebellions of the 1830's in Upper and Lower Canada. It was to achieve a more accountable form of governance. So when we read the election news, and see some of our candidates elected, we feel pretty good about leaving our town in their capable hands. That's why it is so annoying, and frustrating, to find, time and again, the transparency issue is manipulated…..using town policy like a pair of stretch pants, to cover the body up to the neck and beyond. It's obvious, there are times, councillors seem willing to play with the interpretation of transparency to suit their needs. Maybe they fear they're going to get yelled-at, or impeached. I don't think we can do that in Canada.

     Point is, we all could watch a major roofing project in trouble. We weren't blaming the roofers, and we weren't placing blame on the town either. For those of us with a little experience in roofing and the inherent problems of upkeep on old buildings, lots of passersby, knew there was a much more serious problem. Most sensible roofers wouldn't dare head into the late fall with a naked roof. Unless it was an emergency situation. So regardless, whether the town chose to let the public know the intimate details of the roofing delay or not, most of us were drawing our own conclusions. If you archive back in my blogs, regarding the Opera House delays, the simple request of each editorial, was for our councillors to reach out to the electorate…..as they did banging door to door for votes, two years ago, and tell us, through the media or a public meeting, what was happening to our heritage building. It wasn't a complicated request or one that demanded they bend any rules or protocols to tell us. Speculation is the end result of being kept out of the loop. What many of us believed, was that if the town was concealing information about such a high profile and visible project, with an apparent hole punched through into the house, then what the hell else was being withheld of even greater importance. It's something we learned in childhood…..or at least I did, from multiple sources, about telling the truth, and the perils to the conscience, of allowing mistruths to grow unabated.

     I was delighted to see The Weekender article, and on the front page too. It helps us understand the circumstances, and formulate more informed opinions, and that is good for us and for council.

     I must sign-off early this evening, as Suzanne is ready to go to the Vinyl Cafe Christmas Show, at the Opera House. She is so darn happy, thanks to the kindness of a benefactor, who offered her a ticket this week. I will let you know tomorrow how she enjoyed the show. Stuart McLean is a great entertainer…..so the review, in advance, will begin with the words….."It was a great show….thoroughly entertaining."