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Wayne Hollohan issues invitation to all candidates to see Council at work


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#1 Wayne Hollohan

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Posted 05 November 2008 - 12:14 PM

Please join me at City Hall tomorrow November 6th, at 9:00 am. Victoria City council has just broken a previous record in number of pages for its Committee of the Whole agenda. The previous record -- 700 pages -- set just a few months ago, will be shattered this week with a agenda of 794 pages. Zoning and land-use matters account for 566 of them.

"If you want to see your tax dollars at work, come and see council work through these 794 pages." Then you decide on November 15 if this is the this the best use of council and staff time."

You will see first hand if my statement that council spends over 60 per cent of its time on zoning matters is true, and by doing so has creating 596 personalized zones in the city of Victoria in the last few years, compares this to the city of Vancouver's total of just 63.

I can't understand how at every all-candidates meeting mayoral candidate and current councillor Dean Fortin defends the amount of time council spends on rezoning, saying it is required, and how he voted for a motion that would postpone updating community plans for another three years.

If council put landuse plans in place, it could reduce the time it spends on rezoning to 15 per cent. This is the very reason I want to see all council meeting broadcast live to engage the public & ensure efficiency, accountability & transparency at city hall."

Hope to see you there for a "real" all candidates meeting

Wayne Hollohan

#2 Ms. B. Havin

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Posted 05 November 2008 - 02:54 PM

Wouldn't at least some of that bulk be due to the fact that zoning applications will include pages and pages of diagrams and drawings?
When you buy a game, you buy the rules. Play happens in the space between the rules.

#3 G-Man

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Posted 05 November 2008 - 04:33 PM

Land use plans do not allow for variation to be debated at a public forum which I think is important.

#4 Rob Randall

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Posted 07 November 2008 - 08:02 AM

Wouldn't at least some of that bulk be due to the fact that zoning applications will include pages and pages of diagrams and drawings?


You are correct.

I attended yesterday's meeting (as I have most of the CotW over the past couple years). Wayne and I were the only Council candidates present. In fact, I rarely see any other candidates inside City Hall, at Council meetings or otherwise, with the exception of Community Association people like Tim, Pieta and Wayne.

The agenda was several hundred pages.

There was page after page of photographs of a beautiful old house on Academy Close that was asking for heritage designation.

There was page after page of letters of support from neighbours endorsing the 601 Herald condo project at Herald and Government, along with all the architectural drawings, landscaping plans and other documentation includijng letters from the DRA Land Use Committee regarding the many meetings we've had with the development team over the last year. They are asking for some minor and very reasonable variances in order to get permission to build.

There was page after page detailing an extensive report the City commissioned to get public input into the Upper Harbour lands. The entire report has now been released to the public and it was contained in the CotW agenda. I was one of the people that attended the "outdoor workshop" along with several other community minded people. We went on a walking tour of the Upper Harbour area and made detailed observations on how we envisaged the evolution of the remaining land and how it could be made more vibrant and inviting for pedestrians, businesses and residents while retaining the most desired aspects of a real working harbour. I was proud to be part of the process and happy to see the report in the agenda, even if it took up a large part of it.

There was page after page of architectural drawings photos, reports and other documents for the Bayview condo project in Songhees. These changes were the direct result of community consultation where the architects and developers altered the massing, opening up more view corridors and sightlines, and making the buildings taller and slimmer.

Yes, it was an unusual amount of information. But I would never suggest any of it was unworthy of inclusion. Are you against community consultation?

#5 Sue Woods

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Posted 07 November 2008 - 09:30 AM

In fact, I rarely see any other candidates inside City Hall, at Council meetings or otherwise, with the exception of Community Association people like Tim, Pieta and Wayne.


I'm sure you don't mean to convey that other candidates besides those mentioned lack interest in, or knowldege about, civic matters and the workings of Victoria City Hall.

Among us are successfull business people, young minds, PHd's, Government employees, Grad students, journalists, a mediator, etc etc.... Personally speaking, I covered every council/committee/ and sub committee meeting at Vancouver City Hall for many years. Along with Parks/School board, GVRD, Union of BC Municipalities, and provincial/federal politics as member of the broadcast media.

Everone running brings along new ideas and experiences from a number of areas - which I beleive are equally worthy of note. Sue

#6 ted - 3 - dots

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Posted 07 November 2008 - 10:23 AM

I'm sure you don't mean to convey that other candidates besides those mentioned lack interest, or civic knowldege, because you have not seen them at City Hall.

(snip - snip ) by ted...

We all bring along ideas and experiences from a number of areas - which are equally worthy of note. Cheers, Sue



------- I have to agree with Rob . -----------------

Many times , I've gone to City-Council of the Whole . and A PHD in social-science or the Humanities doesn't help you understand WHY I'M THERE ...!!!!!!

The only thing that helps is HISTORY... ie: IF YOU'VE SEEN ME BEFORE AT CITY COUNCIL, you know I have a huge knowledge about homelessness , and the CRIMINALIZATION of being poor ...!


---- Rob is right --------

We don't need to be RE-INVENTING THE WHEEL every-time there is an election ,,,
and knowing the history help's to bust down the "log-jam" that seems to happen every four years ...! ( in my books that is )

We need a PROGRESS that is built on the past .


-------- History ----------

I've been watching the City trying to outlaw poverty for a very long time. In 1989 the city tried to outlaw panhandle-ing. ( by-law stuck down because it violated the Canadian Human-Rights charter) it was tried in Winnipeg and Winnipeg lost ...!

I was there in 1992 , when the City tried to Out-Law homeless people's baggage.
(ie: no resting your bags on a side-walk , in the down-town core of Victoria )

( again the legality of the law was challenged )


Yes , as Rob says ...! You have to be there,

or as I say , you have to had been there,

" other wise ,,, we'll wind-up re-inventing the wheel every four years ... "

( ie: end-less circles for no real reason ...!!!!! ) circles that are predictable and change-able

;{-

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.
.
( just my thoughts ) I'll be give-ing more today @ noon ( centenial-square ) or,
2pm. @ the court-house on burdet st...


ted...

#7 Rob Randall

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Posted 07 November 2008 - 11:40 PM

^I agree completely. I said it more out of puzzlement than anything. Once the new Council is elected they are going to be immediately hit with some pretty complicated projects that have been in the works for a few years, like Bayview and the final phases of the Hudson and Dockside Green and that's the tip of the iceberg. It would be a big help for the candidates to watch these meetings to get a feel for the issues in every neighbourhood and the state of the various initiatives like the harbour walkway for example. And sitting in on committees is valuable too. When you're a Councillor, the mayor will assign you a portfolio (like youth, parks or heritage) and it's good to sit in on a meeting to get a feel for how it's run, who the members are, how they operate, what the main issues are etc. I know a lot of candidates are busy with jobs and family so it's difficult. I haven't attended any APC or ADP meetings for the last couple months at least.

 



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