So it's a done deal, or is it?

The Cobourg Community Centre saga just drones on and on like the Energiser Bunny - with a life of its own. Yesterday the resolution to approve the project was put and voted upon. The result was a 5-1 win for the "four dead white men". Councillor Mutton was convinced that financing the Municipal portion of it, over twenty five years at a fixed rate with money we don't have yet, was a good idea and she went along with the majority. Councillor Frost, still objecting to the lack of details, voted against the process not necessarily the project. He is still stating, with all of his professional experience, that the project is bound to over-run its costs without seeing a detailed scope of work that Council should approve.

It is an amorphous piece of work. Council approves the idea and then shops out all the details to "the best Project Managers we can find" and then sets up committees to liaise with the PM to actually build the box with two rinks. CAO Robinson told me yesterday that the scope is in the report that outlines the project that was issued in June, so what's the problem. The Director of Works tells me that the scope is limited because the building is designed to be so flexible it can be a convention centre one day, a Seniors' centre the next and at the same time can host a basketball tournament. He didn't use those words but says, "The key to this building is its flexibility, no one group will have a piece of it, All will share it" It appears that the word "scope" has two meanings: one - Frost's (the traditional PM definition) where the costs and uses are fully outlined so that one can see future risk and potential over-run and the rest that say "These guys we hired will build it for $27 million and eat the over-run. But the danger in that is when over runs or rework or increased material costs happen the building will be redesigned to accommodate it and we won't get what we thought we would get. However as the next stage of the process is the issuing of the RFP Council will then get to see what we think we will get at the end. That's why the process drones on and on, Council can still get out of it by not issuing the RFP. But the philosophical differences in this debate can be summed by by watching a huge beast of a man - Cllr MacDonald rising to the full height of a bull elephant fulminating with condescension and disdain as he rose to rebut Frost, he was ready to speak at the start of the debate, and could hardly wait to knock Frost's arguments. Speaking with much pomposity and arrogance, as only he can, proudly declared, "As all the scope is outlined in the report I can only assume that the Steering Committee's work, on which you have a seat, will be complete by 2010, and we have have two professionals (Peacock and Robinson) who, in their considered opinion, say it can be done." So there you have it folks we don't need a Council to take ownership of the project send it off to unelected committees and let Councillor MacDonald concentrate on serious matters - points of order and other picayune points of procedure that Cllr Mutton may cause that offend his senses of parliament!

As to the problem of the Lawn Bowling Club going into the building on public money that will solved because the bowlers can't agree on moving. Especially if they have to pay full market value for the privilege.

In other Council news, revealed by the coordinators' reports, Cllr McCaughey told the world that some of our public trees are bug infested, and Cllr Mutton revealed that the Committee for Art in Public Spaces could not find any local takers to carve the tree stump in Victoria park so an invitation will be sent to esteemed out of town tree carvers to produce a work of art from a limbless stump, albeit a thirty foot high stump.

Monday Morning

Not much fodder for thought in the agenda for the Council meeting tonight. The only contentious item is the Community Centre resolution.
Wondering if great leadership had happened during the week, after two members of Council voted against the project for two different reasons, wherein the leadership had tried to mollify the concerns of the dissident councillors by working out solutions to their concerns, as opposed to just going ahead because the majority prevailed, I made a couple of calls. Discussion, with the DM has taken place but not enough effort obviously because Councillor Frost is still more than a little peeved. Stan Frost has been a professional Project Manager for most of his career and has never gone into a project not knowing the scope of work until now. "Unless the scope of work is defined over-runs will always ensue, and I see no difference here". The $27 million project has been green lighted with the details of the scope of work missing and that makes Cllr Frost a man with a cause - he wants Council to sit down and define the details, not allow a Steering Committee (which has no mandate to report back to Council but liaise with the Project Manager) to do it on an ad-hoc basis. "Council has to take ownership of the project" he says as he watches unelected and yet to be appointed unknowns do the task.
If as it is feared and the dissenters stay on the No side, for reasons that can be avoided by a little wordsmithing of principles that all concerned agree on then the Town motto is just another fancy piece of script not a credo to live by - "Our strength is in our unanimity"

Last week this pic appeared on facebook, some strange equipment is sitting on top of the Epstein building on the corner of King and Division, and the submitter wondered if they were cell phone antennae. My concern and perhaps the LACACers who read the board could comment, is ; "Have these attachments been submitted to the heritage people for approval?" Heritage guidelines are a mockery if such effort goes into the selection of paint and the regulation of signs when monstrosities such as antennae can be allowed in a Heritage District, (this will be followed up with a call to the heritage regulators and the results reported)

Update: 0915 Monday. The Town of Cobourg's building department tells me that discussions are underway, led by the Director of Planning, with Bell Canada, who is believed to have placed them up there. Bell claims that Federal Communication policy trumps Heritage guidelines and we will have to wait for a week to interview Mr McGlashon, as he is on holiday!

Why is there only one villain in a strike? As we sit and wait for the Union, in the Toronto Garbage Strike to make an announcement about leaving the bargaining table, I wonder why in these cases there is rarely more than one party taking the blame. The classic example is that of the VIA drivers who went on strike two and a half years after the contract expired. That meant these parties had three years to get a deal. In fact they got a half-assed resolution hours after going on strike. Obviously Management had made a decision something it failed to do in three years prior. But the drivers got all the blame!

Another law suit for an online writer, this is no surprise but the way the lawsuit has been dealt with is. This is a copy of a service document on Ezra Levant for comments made online, and only online. The long arm of libel law has caught up with the miscreants of cyberspace, and so it should! Just because we are writing online doesn't make responsible editions immune from their responsibility to be lawful.

The memory of an older person

What a memory shaker this is. Had to go to the Liquor Store to get some feminine drinks - vodka coolers, and thought that I would treat myself to an exotic beer, something more than my usual buck a beer. The LS doesn't sell Dos Equis any more so I picked up some Stella. At the checkout I did a triple take and closely examined the can for authenticity; there were piles of "Tiger Beer". Last seen by this thirsty guy 40 years ago on the Malayan Peninsular. Rumour had it that because the beer was so potent it couldn't handle the climate change and consequently never ventured past Egypt. Many a 'squaddie' has killed many many brain cells with this stuff. It came straight from the brewery into the canteens in quart bottles, sold on the streets in Singapore. Hong Kong and all Garrisons East of Cairo. One the finest sites I ever saw was when we had just come out of a ten day jungle exercise back to the 'bivvies' on the beach, there was the biggest pile of beer crates ever assembled just for the drinking. Never happen in this day of PC armies, and dry bases. Modern soldiering has lost all the fun. Tiger beer was a large part of my youth and to see it almost 40 years to the day was a wonderful flashback. Anyway bought some, drank it, and the taste is still the same. Must confess I have to holdback though as the largest part of the beer was its potency and I'm damn sure I can't take that at this stage of my life.

I can't wait to see the other pics

Here is an "Educator of the Year" and the anxiety and trepidation shows, Well done Rob.

On Friday 24th of July, at the "Canadian New Media Awards 2007", in Toronto, Professor Robert Washburn, of Loyalist College in Belleville, Ont. was awarded the "Educator of the Year". This mention appeared on Rob's facebook this morning and it appears to be old news but still very significant due to the industry moving on so much in the last two years. Seen clutching the award, he was probably more worried about a change of underwear, when this pic was taken. Having worked to create the curriculum of "New Media" the topic has exploded this year when traditional news outlets scrambled for new funding models and practices. Rob has pioneered many of the teaching and curriculum changes that the industry needs for the future. Well done. Personally; knowing Rob as a great supporter of this "hyperlocal news outlet" I want to thank him for the support. And with the changes coming in the future he will be in the thick of it all.

Some people say dumb things

Yesterday I delivered a load of hazardous waste to an out of Town Company and in the course of conversation I asked if they were busy, "Yes and No. The recycling is doing well but the transportation side isn't."
"How many drivers do you have out today?" I asked. "Twelve but normally it would be thirty five". When a local gravel hauling company tells me that the plans are made for the year and nobody else is being hired (and gravel moves first in the construction season) you know that the economy is knackered.
So where does the Governor of the Bank of Canada get off by proclaiming, at a nationally televised news conference that the recession is over? Tell that to the thousands of EI exhaustees who will flood the economy in the next three months. Tell that to the bankruptees who have held on waiting for stimulus money, tell that to the local bridge builders who are not working on the Burnham St. bridge because a company from Newfoundland is. It doesn't make sense!

And some people say there is no need for hyper-local news!

I beg to differ and enter into evidence this online submission from Bob Owen of "Cramahe Now". He has been pursuing, like a bulldog, the goings on in Colborne over a Farmers' Market. Never mind the fact that here is only one farmer and never mind the efforts of an officious bylaw officer whio seemed determined to take the market out, the twenty year old market was officially reinstated this week. Read about it here, because this is another small, but significant, story that only hyperlocal people tell. Another knock against the MSM.

The CCC getts a 4 - 2 approval rating

You don't give a figures man no figures and you don't give the process lady no process! That's what the fifty minute debate about the Cobourg Community centre boiled down to yesterday afternoon.After two amendments were voted down, the main resolution - to approve the building of the CCC and finance the Municipal portion with funds from the development charges account, passed in a recorded vote without much ado.
The debate kicked off with Councillor Frost asking that the project be made more specific and that private clubs, especially the Lawn Bowling club be left out of the project unless they pay a full rate. "The June report spoke about a club house for the Lawn Bowling Club, we should not be using public money to relocate private clubs." When the gang of four made it abundantly clear that they were not going to support his motion, quote Councillor MacDonald, "This motion is redundant, the Steering Committees will decide this" Frost tried to persuade the rest of Council to tighten up the proposal, in Council chambers, the majority were quite happy to let unelected and as yet unknown members of the steering committees decide the nuts and bolts of the build. So having kicked Stan in the goolies the gang of four then put the boots, in due process, to the other dissenter of the group.
Councillor Mutton wanted to know why the Council was funding the Municipal Portion of the build, $6 million, out of the development charges fund and not use the "playmoney" from the Holdco and Northam park dividends because when debentured the $6M goes to $8M. When asked the reason CAO Steve Robinson said, "It' a philosophy thing, do you want the taxpayers in the next 25 years paying for the facility or do you want present taxpayers doing it?" So she made a motion to the effect that other funds be used as well as development charges used to finance the debt - it lost. After that she wanted the resolution split in two parts so that she could vote for the project but against the financing details. It never happened so she voted against the resolution because of the financing arrangements. For his part Councillor Frost was incensed "We have met three times on this issue and we have never had a discussion about what it is! Council must settle down and say what it is we are doing."
Apparently that is something they will not do now because at the same meeting they decided to hire a Project Manager to fill in the details, with the steering committees, and run the project. BTW that decision cost us $310K.

Who says that the Private Sector can do it best? Putting their faith in owning and operating their own piece of equipment Council bought a boat. A dredger to be precise. Cobourg spent $123K last year on dredging the harbour and it is an annual chore. If Cobourg wants a harbour it has to keep the entrance open by dredging. Buying a boat for the sum of $688K and paying for it over ten years we save 46K alone on our own costs. If we rent it out at $566 per hour we make more money, and there are customers already waiting for it. A good deal for all and it came about because this was a job that the private sector couldn't do, or didn't want to do, properly!

Sorry folks, the comments are late.

Keep the comments coming in and I promise to check the comment moderation page more often - I have missed some timely comments as blogspot appears not to be emailing them directly to me

If the local candidate is only worth 5%?

If the local candidate in any election is only worth about a 5% increase or decrease in the final numbers (and this is a bedrock of belief amongst pundits and pols alike) how can a story like this gain traction? This story, published in the "Hill Times" quotes spokespeople from Harris-Decima as saying, "The next election will be fought on a riding by riding basis." Kinda of a contradiction. Fighting the election riding by riding assumes that local candidates will be important to the election. Not!

If local candidates are going to be important let's look at what we have here in NQW. An incumbent who has been pasting the riding with cheques and cut ribbons and costing us a fortune on nonsensical free flyers - "householders", that arrive on what seems to be a weekly basis and two parties that have not announced who their candidate is going to be. The Libs have a nomination race with two no-names announced so far and a couple more in the wings, but nobody with "gravitas" yet. It appears that this will be a nomination fight by proxy - who can snag the biggest endorsement; round one to a man who lives in the riding but teaches in Kingston. Andrew McFadyen, from Warkworth, has been endorsed by someone who the average voter may have trouble remembering - Christine Stewart, an ex Chretien Minister. The Dippers haven't had a press release yet to announce a replacement for Russ Christianson, it is believed to be Will Lambert from Port Hope, but he had better start to get out this summer to the BBQs just to introduce himself.

Down to the nitty gritty - the CCC decision

First of all a hydro outage at my house yesterday, rewiring the panel, and the need for a couple of days off today and tomorrow may mean sporadic posts.

OK here it is: the Community Centre project and it's up for the first real vote on Monday. A thick memo lays out all the details, and the bottom line is that this project will be built without hitting the taxpayers for an extra dime. But you say what about the operating costs? They're in the report but obviously based on best estimates from the Staff. Without a breakdown of the revenues one cannot argue the figures but the report says that total revenues from all three rinks and the revamped Memorial Centre will net a combined loss of $318K. The current loss for two rinks is $126K. So the real operating cost to the taxpayer of Cobourg will be about 1% increase in taxes to pay for the Community Centre which will be built without a tax impact. Look at it in the real world and without bias and it appears to be a good deal.
The devil is in the details and those are to be worked out by three steering committees: fundraising, building and operating. But the absolute bottom line is that $2,733,00 has to be raised from the public - 10% so joe public show your stuff if you want this place pay up if not be vocal in your opposition.

The Corcoran affair has taken a life of its own. Started in an online publication, travelled to the National Post and then carried by the local paper, now it has travelled back into cyberspace where some hardline views are being expressed. But for an depth reasoning of the way Mr Corcoran has approached this issue, and he says the problem is systemic in the parish - that of an unaccepting congregation against changes being implemented by a Parish Priest one should read his blog here. Here is a list of the places in cyberspace that emerge when you "Google" Corcoran and the Church: Socon or Bust, Box Turtle Bulletin, Michael Coren and the National Post, The Shotgun Blog, try them.

Another nail in Obama's coffin. The linchpin of organised labour's support for Obama was the imposition of a new union organising regime, called the "The Employees' Free Choice Act" the mainstay of this bill was a process called the "card check" where employees could get a union if a majority signed union cards, hence the term "card check". Now in this story it looks as though the card check, the major symbol of Obama's reform agenda is biting the dust. Sad; but predictable.