Look what’s coming now…
The following post is by Mike Cluett. Please visit Mike Cluett’s Milton blog site here:
Town council was told recently by the budget department of Milton that an 8 percent increase in taxes for 2008 and a further increase of 5 percent in 2009 will be needed in order to sustain existing service levels.
8%?? Thats not a small increase now is it? Back in 2007, taxes only went up a minimal 2% but that was just before a municipal election. We are now close to a year into the term and this comes up for discussion…
To continue reading this column, go to Mike Cluett’s Milton Blog.
July 28th, 2007 at 9:59 am
Bang on again Mike.
Its a shame you didn’t get elected in November. You seem to have a common sense approach that’s needed at town council.
July 28th, 2007 at 10:00 am
Great post Mike.
Milton is at the point where yes, we need to communicate with each other and our councillors. Things are happening so fast and most of us are so busy with our day to day lives that we just sit around and trust our councillors will do the ‘common sense’ thing (and I’m as guilty as anyone). Then you hear about Jan Mowbray and you wonder….
I also agree with Mike on the transit issue. I wait for a GO Bus every morning and watch several empty Milton Transit buses go by me… Yes, transit is important, but again, before spending this kind of money, some studies should have been done - my thought is that we probably could have waited a few years to upgrade to the larger buses - I don’t see a large number of people using them at this point. Milton, because of its rural location, means that most residents get around by car. I think that money could have been saved for now…
Anyways Milton - it’s time to question our councillors and make them accountable. Make sure they’re doing the job YOU hired them for.
July 28th, 2007 at 10:00 am
Shame on you, Jan Mowbray.
July 28th, 2007 at 10:02 am
Its something that is taken for granted it seems at all levels of government. Communication is needed from both sides.
Councillors need to make an effort to communicate with the voters in their wards. Only a few councillors have websites and even fewer use them as a tool of communication.
We as voters need to speak out when we dont agree with the direction things are going. Its either that council is doing an amazing job and no one has any issues or people arent paying attention.
There needs to be an in-depth discussion on Milton transit and should we or shouldn’t we have it. I am a believer that Milton does need a reliable transit system and that people would use it. The only problem is right now, not many people are. Buses are regularly running empty or with only a few riders.
Ill try to find some ridership stats and blog about it at a later time. The commitment that Milton’s made to increase the number of buses while not knowing the full picture on ridership numbers shows that council is making decisions based on theory and not actual practice.
July 28th, 2007 at 1:24 pm
I think it’s a great idea for Councillors to at least have some kind of bare bones website or a blog to keep their constituents in the loop. Just an update weekly to let the people know what topics are coming up for discussion and allow people to leave comments so the Councillor can get an idea as to what his/her Ward is thinking…
As someone who commutes into Toronto for work, has two young children and all of the demands that go with them as well as other side projects in my ’spare time’, I think it’s more likely to assume people aren’t paying attention rather than council doing an amazing job.
A councillor who has a website or blog updated regularly is sure to have an advantage with voters I would think.
July 28th, 2007 at 1:25 pm
Jan Mowbray has a website that she updates quite often. http://www.janmowbray.ca I think it is. During the election campaign some candidates started up websites, saying that they would continue to update them to keep people informed and a quick glance of them all (you can google their names if you like) none of them have been kept up to date. So much for pre election talking and post election action.
These days its hard to find anyone without a computer or some form of internet access. Will blogs and websites change the way elected representatives interact with voters? Someday it will. Maybe on the higher levels it might, but on the local level its more difficult.
In the bigger cities you have councillors who use these tools and they find them to be quite helpful.
Town councillors are part time positions in the town of Milton. It becomes a full time job when you are a regional councillor like Barry Lee and Colin Best. Its not too difficult over the course of the term in office (now 4 years) to pick a weekend, pick a neighbourhood, and go out and talk with people. Communication is a two way street and right now we have both sides saying to themselves “no ones listening.” Its time to make some noise then.