The province changed the rules for municipalities in year 2000, and now, for municipalities in Ontario the size of Dryden, steering the municipal ship is a full-time job. We needed to change from the village model, where individual councillors are involved in day to day operating decisions, to the corporate model where Council's role is to set budgets and policy, strategic planning, relationships with other agencies,leadership. Steer the ship, and let your staff supervise the guy shovelling coal into the boiler. 

 

Dryden did not do a good job of making this change away from the village model, and perhaps that is why our city is not doing as well as we might wish. We have hit some sandbars. We need to do more steering, less stoking.

 

That makes this election very important, and makes it doubly important that we all get out and vote. Fortunately we have a good selection of excellent candidates. We need to pay attention as to whether each candidate is focused on steering the ship, or supervising the stoker.

 

Is he/she focused on the big picture, long term direction of the town, steering the ship, or is he focused on details, such as whether the kitchen is using the right spices, or whether the guy washing the deck has the right soap? 

 

Incidentally, everybody is for lower taxes, that is a given. The real question is, what is the best way to keep taxes low? Is it good management to just cheap out, do no maintenance? So we become like the householder who refuses to replace his shingles until his leaking roof has ruined his house; or who buys the cheapest paint only to find it disappears when he tries to wash the wall, or who sells his truck with a noisy engine at a discount, rather than fix the engine?

 

Is confrontation and posturing toward senior governments, and local stakeholders such as the mill, the best way to keep our taxes down? Or is it cooperation and mutual support to maximize grants to the city? 

Our tax and debt levels are what they are, how they got there is all in the past. Focusing on the past, blaming and pointing fingers, is of little value - what we need to do is look to the future.

 

Candidates who only talk about taxes and debt, without offering solutions or proposing concrete actions (other than whipping that guy shovelling coal) are focused on the past. They would steer down the road by looking into the rear view mirror. We need leadership, not nostalgia. 

 

Here are some thoughts about voting strategically, once you have decided who you think will do the best job of steering the ship. If there are only one or a few individuals you really want to get elected, vote only for those individuals. You do not have to vote for six, and voting only your favourites will give your vote more power (six times as. much, if you only vote your favourite!). Conversely, if there is one or a few you especially do not want to get elected, vote for six others to maximize your vote against that one. But the real pitch is, get informed, and vote!