78 replies to this topic

[G-Man]

^ That sounds like it would be interesting. I think Susan Brice has too much political baggage. Though she might be okay.

I think Matt MacNeill would do well still.

[davek]

...I'd say that having a libertarian hard right wing candidate is Mayor Fortin's dream.

It would HAVE to be a dream, since it could never exist in reality. Libertarians support gay marriage, prostitution, freedom of association, and drug decriminalization. We oppose censorship, national ID, and conscription. These positions are anathema to the hard right.

[manuel]

thanks for the correction DaveK - some readings on U.S. politics must have confused me even more than I normally am...

the basics of my analysis still seem to stand even with removing libertarian

[spanky123]

I don't know Paul Brown, but looking at his website it doesn't appear as though he is "hard right" to me. The only position up for grabs this fall will be Mayor unless some council memners announce that they will not run again. Beating an incumbent in a municipal election is next to impossible unless it is someone who has been polarizing like Fortin.

Paul Brown is smart. Every election the "business community" tries to front a candidate / slate to further their own agenda. The problem is that there are two or three versions of the "business community" who usually don't agree on what they want done and have difficulty finding someone to front them. By getting out ahead, Paul has created an interesting dynamic. If other business candidates are put forward, they could split the vote and let Fortin win again. If no other candidates are put forward then there is no guarantee that the "business community" gets what they want even if Brown wins.

[Ms. B. Havin]

^ Completely agree with you, spanky123.

[Hotel Mike]

Good analysis. I agree with you too Spanky.

[Bernard]

Vis a vis splitting the vote, I have not heard of a single serious person to the right of Dean Fortin that is willing to run or is even considering running.

The closest thing I have heard is that Geoff Young had a cocktail gathering at his home for some people

[Mike K.]

We've received another press release from Paul Brown.

PAUL BROWN CALLS FOR INDEPENDENT REVIEW OF VICTORIA CITY HALL’S BOOKS
“We cannot afford to let discussion of this issue be ignored until after the election.”

Victoria, BC - “It is becoming increasingly apparent that the City of Victoria is in an untenable financial position,” says Victoria mayoral candidate Paul Brown. “There are many alarming signs of this in the City’s 2011 budget and forecasts, and also in the audited financial statements from previous years.”

Brown is therefore calling for an immediate, independent financial review of the City’s books so that the public can see for themselves how critical the situation has become. He is also pledging to cut the Mayor’s salary by 10% if elected and calls on Mayor Fortin to do it now.

“The City approved a whopping 7% increase in residential property taxes for this year, while other municipalities kept theirs to less than 4%,” Brown says. “In spite of that, the City still had to slash services and increase its long-term debt in an attempt to balance its budget.”

For example:
o It cut 39% from the budget for grants to community organizations this year
o It slashed City department budgets
o It reduced the annual budget allotment for infrastructure refurbishment and replacement (a critical financial gap that now exceeds $500 million)
o It added significantly to the City’s long term debt (Victoria’s long-term debt is now four times that of Saanich on a per capita basis)

“The Blue Bridge replacement, optimistically budgeted at $77 million, will double the City’s long term debt from 2009.” Brown points out. “And the City’s own numbers show that interest payments on our long-term debt will double this year alone.”

“In addition, the Mayor’s 2011 budget has ignored the cost of several impending projects that will impact the City’s financial position over the next 12 months,” says Brown. “These include funding for the various community plans now being adopted by Council—the Official Community Plan, the Downtown Economic Strategy, and the Rock Bay District Plan, among others.”

“All this, and yet there is still no funding or plan in place to deal with the Crystal Pool, the curling rink or other key City assets that are now operating on life support,” says Brown. “Meanwhile, all Mayor Fortin wants to talk about is spending another $1 billion on a regional LRT system.


“I say it’s time for the Mayor to come clean on the numbers, put away the credit card and start dealing with the City’s deteriorating financial situation in a realistic and responsible fashion,” says Brown.

“I believe the situation calls for immediate action before we have no option left but even bigger property tax increases and deeper cuts to city services, he says.

“We cannot afford to ignore this issue until after the election,” says Brown. “I am therefore calling for an immediate, independent and public review of the City’s financial affairs and the implications of the current financial plan. The terms of reference for this review should require it to determine both the City’s current financial position and its deployment and utilization of financial resources.”
“I also believe it is important to lead by example,” says Brown. “And to make that point, I call on Mayor Fortin to cut his salary by 10% immediately. If he fails to do so and I am elected Mayor, I will do it myself.”

-30-

Paul Brown will be available to comment on this release in person or by phone. You can contact him directly at: (250) 385-0592

[Hotel Mike]

A one trick pony, I'm afraid. Yes, the City's books could undoubtedly do with some careful scrutiny. But Paul is running for Mayor not auditor. If you want to be Mayor of Victoria, better come up with some vision and new ideas, not just fiscal responsibility. That's not enough to convince people to vote for him.

[Sparky]

This may not be the appropriate thread for this topic, but I noticed yesterday that the city is repainting the lamp standards a new dark burgandy colour. 700 block Broughton.

Perhaps the lamp standards do need repainting, but usually a colour change requires extra preparation and cost.

[Mike K.]

A one trick pony, I'm afraid. Yes, the City's books could undoubtedly do with some careful scrutiny. But Paul is running for Mayor not auditor. If you want to be Mayor of Victoria, better come up with some vision and new ideas, not just fiscal responsibility. That's not enough to convince people to vote for him.

Why not? What ideas, exactly, are current elected officials acting on that previous councils and mayors didn't act on and future candidates won't act on? It's the same merry go round, election after election.

Paul is at least coming out and acknowledging that before we come out with "ideas," whatever they may be, we better figure out our finances and a fiscally sound way to move forward.

Right now, great ideas on the go or not, we're in financial trouble. And until this situation is resolved all ideas and pet projects should be shelved.

[Bingo]

I noticed yesterday that the city is repainting the lamp standards a new dark burgandy colour.

Does the colour match the rust?

[Yippy Ki A]

A one trick pony, I'm afraid. Yes, the City's books could undoubtedly do with some careful scrutiny. But Paul is running for Mayor not auditor. If you want to be Mayor of Victoria, better come up with some vision and new ideas, not just fiscal responsibility. That's not enough to convince people to vote for him.

Paul has certainly added to the long list of reasons to vote against Dean Fortin. Now that Fortin has announced that he will be running in November it's time to get the message out loud and clear what fortin and his council has/is doing to Victoria.

[G-Man]

I would say that unless there is a populist mayoral candidate that has a lot of public profile already, Dean Fortin will be re-elected.

[Hotel Mike]

I believe G Man is correct, unless a strong candidate surfaces.

The problem is that real community and business leaders aren't interested in seeking the mayoralty. Why take all the abuse, when it's easier to get things done behind the scenes? There is pretty much no such thing as a "business candidate" anymore. Business in the city is fractured and struggling to keep their heads above water. The left, on the other hand, has no problem organizing behind their candidates.

[G-Man]

I think that a major issue (realize this is getting off topic) is that people think that it will either be a "business candidate" or a "social candidate". Why can't there be an average joe centrist candidate?

[Bernard]

I think that a major issue (realize this is getting off topic) is that people think that it will either be a "business candidate" or a "social candidate". Why can't there be an average joe centrist candidate?

How would you define a centrist candidate in terms of the City of Victoria election?

[Mike K.]

Since newly elected Toronto mayor Rob Ford came into power he's been able to shave some of the fat at City Hall but drastically changing the fiscal imbalance will require face-offs with institutions that aren't about to loosen their grip over their share of tax revenues.

The alarming truth about waste at City Hall
By Margaret Wente, The Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobea...article2104136/

Please shed a tear for your friends in Toronto. Our city has fallen on hard times, and no one knows where it’ll end. If the barbarians at City Hall have their way, there’ll be no more petting zoo, no more flowers in the parks and no fluoridation in the water. Our children’s teeth will rot and fall out of their little heads.

That, at any rate, is the dire picture painted by opponents of our portly mayor, Rob (Stop the Gravy Train) Ford, who assured us he would cut the waste and fat at City Hall, no problem. Except there is a problem. According to a detailed KPMG report commissioned by the city, waste and fat are very hard to find. Serious cost-cutting will require a sacrifice of bone and muscle.

So, who’s right? The truth is, there really is a lot of waste and fat. But getting rid of it is really hard.

Come with me on a brief tour of our lovely city. It may not be so different from your lovely city. Up the street from us lives a little old lady who has chest pains every month or so. Someone calls 911, and a million-dollar fire truck screams up, manned by four beefy guys with axes. They hold her hand until the ambulance arrives. The firefighters and the EMS workers really ought to merge, but that’s impossible, because they hate each other. The politicians don’t want to touch the redundancy in the system, because somebody might die.

[J Douglas]

Since newly elected Toronto mayor Rob Ford came into power he's been able to shave some of the fat at City Hall but drastically changing the fiscal imbalance will require face-offs with institutions that aren't about to loosen their grip over their share of tax revenues.

I see Ms Wente is up to her usual intellectual standards. Let 'em eat cake seems to be her personal view, and why let journalistic standards get in the way of personal viewpoints?

A 911 call in Victoria may also bring a firetruck to a medical call. The reason why this is so is not because of duplication, but the very limitations on spending advocated by those on the right, for which Ms Wente is a cheerleader.

At peak times, ambulance resources may be stretched beyond a reasonable limit, with emergency calls awaiting the next clear unit. If one truly is having a heart attack, or emergency of a similar gravity, then a 30 minute wait is a world of difference away from a 5 minute wait. Under those circumstances, 911 dispatchers will send the fire department, if the information available seems to warrant it. Firemen can provide life-saving support, such as CPR or oxygen. In some cases, attendance by an ambulance crew is still the best option for the patient, hence one will see multiple units at a scene.

If it were your mom having that heart attack, would you be ticked off by the cost of rolling that fire engine, just so it could get to the scene 10 minutes before the ambulance?

As for fire and ambulance being better off merging, well yes, probably so. But it wouldn't change the fundamentals. You could paint all the ambulances red, or put medical insignia on fire engines, and there would still be the same number, and they would be dispatched by the same 911 operator.