Report Card – Year One

City council has been in office for almost a year so it is time for their annual report card. It has been a busy year, marked by a few controversies, some squabbles as old and new councillors settled into their roles. It has been a year of fiscal balancing, a tightrope act that saw the reservists hold sway in most cases. It was a year of change, a year of some steps forward and some perhaps backward or side-stepping moves that no doubt have some scratching their heads.

Whether you give them a passing or failing grade, this council has two more years before they face re-election. You might be tempted to score individual councillors on the report card but it is the whole of council who are the measure of the city. For instance, in the category of Public Image, Mayor Vic would score very well, whereas some councillors seldom appear in support of causes and events and might not get a passing grade. Here are a few highlights for you to measure and score council in their first year:

1. The Sale of City Properties: Did you approve of this new policy that involved Pinewood parkland; Janey Street; Ethel Street; CN abandoned rail lands, and the Otter Lake property? If you have any conflict of interest, do not mark this section. If you have property abutting a laneway, do not mark. If you live near subdivision “parkland”, do not mark.

2. Casino / Racetrack: If you believe there is no difference between betting on a horse race or playing blackjack or buying lottery tickets you may mark this section. If you think having a racetrack in North Bay is much better than a regional Casino in Callander, you may mark this, or if unable to decide, call your friends and hold a referendum.

3. Relations with Others: Cooperation with regional municipalities ( see Casino above); relationship with MPP Monique Smith, Smitherman and Bartolucci, regarding four-laning Hwy 11, the proposed hospital and the water filtration plant. If you live at CFB North Bay you may not mark on the city’s relationship with DND. Ignore all comments concerning Sudbury.

4. North Bay Mattawa Conservation Authority: Enough said, mark now.

5. Heritage Festival and Airshow: If you think volunteers ought to be held accountable (feet to the fire) for financial losses and that council has no fiscal responsibility other than complaining about budget, mark now. If you think that the Festival nets millions of dollars for the city coffers, check your figures before marking. If you like air shows you may defer this section until next year.

6. CP Rail Lands: If you are tired of hearing what a bad deal the former councils made, deduct 10 marks. If you think the Dalron project is being held up because of unreasonable MOE standards, deduct another 10 marks. Now mark council on how well they are doing with the overall development. Do not assign extra points for the work done by Rod Johnston.

7. New Development: Measure how you feel this council is doing in attracting new business to North Bay. Do not consider any projects that were in the works from the previous council. Consider whether the new Economic Development initiative has improved over the former. Have the GAP office and the $1.00 per acre been fruitful?

8. Roads: How happy are you with the work done on Lakeshore Dr and Widdifield Station Road? If you live on Jane Street consider that this street will be resurfaced when the Hospital project begins. If you are one of the hundreds who are daily hung up in traffic at Gormanville and McKeown / College Drive remember that this will be solved with traffic signals when the new hospital is opened in 2009. If you are the employee who synchronizes the lights on McIntyre St. give yourself 10 points.

9. Water Supply and Distribution: If you live on Airport hill or at the CFB and have had to boil your water a number of times this year, you may deduct 10 marks even though this is not a problem of the current council. If you believe there is a direct correlation between the amount of water used in households and the concerned capacity of the waste water (sewage) treatment plant you may mark this question. If you are a former volunteer member of the Water Resources committee, you must skip this question.

9. Garbage and Recycling: How does this council score on their environmental awareness? Are they so concerned with cost that they have missed the larger picture? Please ignore the Mayor’s flip flop on the dollar a bag issue early in his first term since he was unaware of administration’s annual floating of this issue. Give 10 points if you believe all of council know what the 3 R’s stand for.

10. Human Resources: You may consider the following when marking council on their relationship with employees, volunteers and ABCs: Has the firing or dismissal of employees, Committee and Board members improved the operation of the City and the ABCs? Do not take into consideration any lawsuits or severance payments as you may not know what has happened ‘in camera’. Consider the increase in your taxes due to contract settlements that exceed the cost of living or include increased benefits. You may not mark if you are a city employee or a member of an ABC or North Bay Hydro.

11. Public Image and Decorum: Has the deportment of members of council as seen on TV, at City Hall or in the print media made you proud of your selection of council in the last election? Ignore gratuitous photo ops and grandstanding. Would you feel comfortable in making a public presentation before this council? Is there any comparison between Dr Phil and the Mayor as he tries to keep order?

12. Fiscal Responsibility: In measuring fiscal responsibility you may want to consider the following examples: Granting bus passes to Veterans; Saturday downtown parking; GST rebate for YMCA; advance water surcharge for filtration; building of reserve funds; savings from not attending association meetings; capital budget planning; Ski Hill and Heritage Festival funding. Do not look at your previous year’s tax bill for comparative purposes.

13. Create your own question and mark according to any bias you may have.

Finally, after you have totalled your report card, give your favourite elected official(s) a call. Congratulate them if they have passed, but remember to be constructive and encouraging if they have fallen a little short of the mark.