11779 replies to this topic

[spanky123]

Council voted to approve the role of COS for the Mayor at a reduced salary of $90K plus benefits. Given that few (if any) of the council members have ever had a job that paid them close to $90K, I think that they took offense to the Mayor's suggestion that nobody good would work for that amount of money! 

 

Helps used the example that she had a call planned with the Minister of the Environment and got to speak with the Minister's COS. She felt that she needed someone at the same level who could act on her behalf. 

 

I think that describes Helps' intent with this role perfectly. She is speaking to the COS because the Minister doesn't want to waste her time talking to Helps about having Venezuela pay for our use of fossil fuels. The Mayor wants someone similar to deal with council members and members of the public that she views as wasting her time or not worthy of her attention.

Edited by spanky123, 18 January 2019 - 10:56 AM.

[Nparker]

Does Helps really believe her responsibilities as the mayor of a city of 87,000 people and a geographic area of less than 20 km² are equivalent to that of the Minister of Environment for the province of BC? If so, she's more delusional than I had imagined.

Edited by Nparker, 18 January 2019 - 11:25 AM.

[rmpeers]

It does sound like she had someone in mind for a reward. Her attitude on this reeks of a sort of pompous, out of touch sense of entitlement.

[Nparker]

...Her attitude on this reeks of a sort of pompous, out of touch sense of entitlement.

On this and pretty much everything else she espouses. She comes across as incredibly condescending towards opposing viewpoints.

[Nparker]

In reference to possibly not hiring a Chief of Staff for the mayor's office, you've got to love this subtle self-serving comment from the CoV's most outspoken communist. 

...Isitt said there are alternatives if Helps is looking for someone who, like a deputy minister, can speak or operate on her behalf. Some municipalities appoint a councillor to act as deputy mayor, he said. If one of the eight councillors had the confidence of the majority to be a deputy mayor that person could act in lieu of the mayor. “That could actually be more accountable,”...

https://www.timescol...ayor-1.23605636

Someone's wasting no time in getting their 2022 mayoral campaign started. Heaven help us all.

[spanky123]

^ Actually most munis designate rotating councilors as the deputy Mayor. I don't think that Ben's comment is out off line in that regard.

[Rob Randall]

Credit where credit's due, I like everything Isitt says in that article.

 

There may be some confusion about the concept of deputy mayor. As mentioned earlier there is an existing rotating system of randomly chosen councillors that is scheduled a year ahead of time (eg: June: Dubow, July: Isitt, August: Loveday etc). It is not just for ceremonial duties, that person sits in the mayor's chair during meetings and makes decisions as they see fit.

 

What I think Isitt is describing is a permanent or semi-permanent position for a councillor. Which I'm not sure about because it almost sounds like that person would be like a Vice President or "Super Councillor" with potentially more power or influence.

 

It seems to be this job description overlaps with a lot of things done by a regular old deputy mayor and the City Manager or department head. 

[Victoria Watcher]

It seems to be this job description overlaps with a lot of things done by a regular old deputy mayor and the City Manager or department head. 

 

yes. if need be the city manager can delegate more to department heads to free up time for this role.

[Rob Randall]

Yeah, if I'm with a community association and need to have a meeting about a crucial bike lane or what have you, I want to talk to the mayor, or the head of engineering, not some flunkie. 

 

Remember, the primary role of a chief of staff is to insulate the boss from distractions in order for them to focus on the important stuff. You may recall the stories of Trump CoS John Kelly shutting down the revolving door to the Oval Office and filtering out the newspaper and magazine clippings that made their way to Trump's desk in order to limit the influence of the wackos and grifters.

 

I don't like seeing this model applied to Victoria City Hall. 

Edited by Rob Randall, 19 January 2019 - 11:36 AM.

[Rob Randall]

What I think Isitt is describing is a permanent or semi-permanent position for a councillor. Which I'm not sure about because it almost sounds like that person would be like a Vice President or "Super Councillor" with potentially more power or influence.

 

 

Which is an important distinction that needs to be cleared up. Vice President Pence speaks on Trump's behalf--Deputy Mayor Thornton-Joe speaks for the City when speaking to the press and for herself when she is chairing a council meeting. 

 

This new position--where would their loyalty lay?

[Nparker]

^ Actually most munis designate rotating councilors as the deputy Mayor...

And the CoV already has such as system. Rob describes that above.

...What I think Isitt is describing is a permanent or semi-permanent position for a councillor...it almost sounds like that person would be like a Vice President or "Super Councillor" with potentially more power or influence...

I think this is precisely what he is advocating and I am fairly sure who he thinks would win the support of the rest of council for such a position. 

[Nparker]

...You may recall the stories of Trump CoS John Kelly shutting down the revolving door to the Oval Office and filtering out the newspaper and magazine clippings that made their way to Trump's desk in order to limit the influence of the wackos and grifters...

Leaving the biggest and worst whacko and grifter to make his decisions all on his own. I can't imagine a more potent argument not to employ a CoS in Victoria.

Edited by Nparker, 19 January 2019 - 11:55 AM.

[Greg]

And the CoV already has such as system. Rob describes that above.

I think this is precisely what he is advocating and I am fairly sure who he thinks would win the support of the rest of council for such a position. 

 

Probably advantageous to make a run for Mayor as the sitting Deputy Mayor.

[spanky123]

The context of Ben's comment was that he made his statement after Mayor Helps indicated that she needed someone to perform the Mayor's role when she wasn't available. Ben then suggested that the deputy Mayor should be able to do that. I don't believe that there was any further clarification of what he meant and if he was suggesting a full time role or simply that whomever was rotating through that position step in.

[Mike K.]

Might the mayor be concerned that given the makeup of council her absences could present an opportunity for the TV slate to one-up the mayor on policies or agendas?

[Mike K.]

And I’m sure I don’t need to say this but Helps needing a helper to help Victoria has a cute ring to it

[rmpeers]

Or, if the job is too much for her to handle, she could step down.

[Nparker]

The context of Ben's comment was that he made his statement after Mayor Helps indicated that she needed someone to perform the Mayor's role when she wasn't available...

But the CoV already has that function with the current rotating system.

[Rob Randall]

But the current deputy mayor system usually only kicks in when the mayor is out of town or on vacation. This hypothetical new position would place a deputy in situations where the mayor is double-booked and can;t attend, or maybe just an event the mayor can't be bothered with or wishes to avoid.

[Nparker]

Such a position has never been necessary before and it is not needed now.