George Dunfield, who some will remember as a past Mayor of Almonte and generally wonderful guy, said , “Everyone should take their turn” referring to municipal elections and participatory democracy. So if you’re considering running, please do. I would but I have to keep working.
I worry that as councillors stay in place they become more and more bureaucratized or governmentalized (is that a word?) to be “successful”. I think the pressure is on them to help make procedure smooth and well managed from a provincial perspective. The province is the “boss” and not the local citizens in a funny way. The creative chaos of small-town initiatives sort of makes things messy and may be squelched even with all good intention. We lose the secret sauce.
I worry that the effort to make departments operate on a cost recovery basis may hurt the projects that are marginal in the small town market. We have a building permit fee structure in Mississippi Mills (used in LARGE municipalities and not everywhere) that would appear to be based on Toronto Bay Street costs. Budgets are estimated by a formula and can be 6-8 times actual cost and fees are based on the inflated estimation. This is a town where friends help friends build a deck or fit up a fledgling commercial space to do things as cost effectively as possible. Favors are called, materials are recycled, “shabby chic” is still in fashion or even the elegant efforts are made with less expensive labour. The higher fees are a deterrent to the efforts in a small market that often make a place special. We lose the secret sauce.
As we grow and become more complex as a town let’s remember that it’s important for local government to create fertile ground for grassroots ideas and initiatives to germinate and avoid as much as possible the tendency to standardize for expedience. It’s the uniqueness of the town that attracts and nurtures those already here.
Anyway, my rant for the day. Run for office if you can, get out and vote regardless.
Stephen Brathwaite
