THE TIME IS NOW

THE TIME IS NOW

Another term for the LSAC Municipal Council has elapsed and the Electorate are preparing to vote on Oct 16 for division representatives. While it is often difficult, if not impossible to grab the attention of our elected officials while they are in office, Election Day provides voters the once-in-four-year opportunity to pass judgment on promises kept or not kept during the term of this Municipal Council and an opportunity to make a change if warranted.

This year there are two open council seats with the unfortunate death of Dwight Davidson and the resignation of Robert Kohn. So there is hope for some fresh new faces, new ideas and a needed new direction for our council after Oct 16. It was truly a travesty that these positions were not previously filled as the lack of representation in two divisions was proven to be unwarranted and not appreciated by the Ratepayers.

The remaining five councillors, most of whom have served multiple terms, have all indicated their intention to SEEK RE ELECTION and let the voters pass judgment on their performance in true democratic fashion. Don’t get us wrong, these senior folks are all nice people but after several tries in political office voters have to decide if they are the right choice for our community going forward. For the most part LSAC’s economy, transparency, lack of two- way communications and council camaraderie and relations with surrounding municipalities is in worse shape than it was four years ago. Do voters want more of the same?

As we listened to the many speakers in the forums, the common theme was that there is simply not enough tax money to pay for the services our ratepayers are demanding of the county. You hear of the inevitable tax increase because of the "Zero Increase last year". The alternative would be, the need for cuts, reduced budgets and service. Very little has happened in the past to grow our economic base to create more jobs that will pay the needed taxes to afford the services we all deserve.

To be frank, LSAC council and administration have done an inadequate job of growing LSAC’s economy and maintaining our infrastructure. Yet we keep voting the same people back into elected office time and again. It defies logic that voters keep repeating the same mistake thinking they will get a different outcome.

During this campaign we have heard a long list of generic political statements, previous promises repeated which were not kept, and yet more to come. We do NOT NEED FLUFF!

“We need better roads”, "We have to maintain the bridges”, “Complete the Tower projects”.  

THAT'S WHAT WE NEED!!!

Well folks, these are all things that the MSI Funding was to be utilized for but current council voted to use ALL MSI Funding for the NEXT FOUR YEARS to pay for the borrowing of the County Administration Building Loans. 

In the term or terms of current council (4 to 12 years experience) we have had a Complete EROSION of our Infrastructure including but not limited to Roads, Complete EROSION of Relationships, Complete EROSION of communications and ultimately a lack of trust in overall governance. 

One of the common denominators in all of the New Candidates platforms during the forums was for Better Communications with the ratepayers, More Transparency, a better look at Economic Development and Accountability. 

Most all Incumbents had no mention of these items as they felt they were doing a great job excepting Lorne Oslvik who clearly stated at the Onoway forum that the last 4 years has been a nightmare when it came to council working together to reach common goals and communication. His hope is that the next 4 years is much better.

What is more astonishing are the comments published in the incumbents campaign brochures and reiterated in the forums for some. 

One of the incumbents (Division 7) writes and also stated in the Forum October 11, 2017 about “Jealousy” and “Day to Day Jealousy”.  We are completely baffled by this statement.  He does not quantify the meaning of this so we do not know where this comes from. He states he is “but one vote but I can work with anyone”. 

Well, in contradiction to this statement, in the past 4 years all relations with the surrounding municipalities have eroded to the state that the Municipal Affairs hired a mediator to come to the table to try to find some common ground to work together. 

Division 2 incumbent states in his Webpage (Hegy.ca) “ Let’s continue the momentum of the past four years with a structured Council, practical business sense, and sound fiscal governance that considers the needs of all residents". 

As per Lorne’s comment, we believe you can not trust that council is “structured”, the constant decisions to “short term” borrow does not make practical business sense and Fiscal governance rarely has council themselves issuing a governance review of one of their largest decisions.

One of the biggest challenges of next council will be to rebuild the relationships between Council themselves, Administration, Ratepayers and ultimately the Neighbors of our County. 

However, if nothing changes, nothing will change. If you don’t clean up your front yard, no one wants to play in your back yard. 

The Oct. 16 municipal election is your chance as a voter to make a positive change in the community in which you and your family live. Let’s put some fresh faces on our council with fresh, bold, modern ideas and a new vision for our community. After all, our youth are our future and they deserve a strong voice and representation on our path forward.

The Lac Ste. Anne County Electorate has spoken with record numbers of Candidates, Public Participation and Interest in this Election! Let's not waste those efforts by NOT VOTING!

Please show up at the Polls on Monday October 16 and SHARE this Post with everyone you know! 

THE TIME IS NOW!!!