I had an interesting conversation with a voter today. He's unhappy with the incumbents for their (lack of) representation of the ward, but he also asked, "how are any councillors supposed to keep up when they don't get the agenda until a few days before the council meeting?"
Although I see his point about the need for agendas to be distributed earlier, I also know that this presents its own challenges with respect to getting delegations on the agenda, etc.
My response to/position on his question is simple.
When you run for City Council, you go in knowing that there will only be a few days between receving the agenda and attending the council meeting. If you're going to commit to representing the people, then you simply make the time to ensure you've familiarized yourself with the agenda.
That's it.
Now, maybe this is easy for me to say, as I've always successfully juggled several projects/responsibilities. I am constantly complimented on my time management abilities.
Right now, I'm a wife, a mother of a 5- and 3-year-old, a student, a teacher, and a volunteer. I make it all work. Going into this, I know that I will be required to attend meetings on Monday evenings, as well as some committee meetings and special events.
I know this, so I will make the necessary arrangements to make it work.
If one cannot fulfill their responsibilities because they are too busy, maybe they should think twice about running for Council.
Monday, October 4, 2010
More on urban farming...
On Friday, October 1, all candidates for city council received the following e-mail:
Good afternoon, candidates.
The Standard is preparing a "Hot Topics" election story for publication next week on the issue of urban farming in St. Catharines.
If you have an opinion on whether this is a practice that should be permitted in the urban area (i.e. the keeping of livestock such as chickens or rabbits), please send reporter Marlene Bergsma a short email before the end of the day on Monday, Oct. 4th, clearly outlining your views.
Please also include a phone number where you can be reached during the day, in case I need to seek clarification.
As many candidate comments as possible will be included in the story and in The Standard's online election coverage.
Thank you for your participation.
Marlene Bergsma
As I don't know which (if any) of my comments will be printed with the story, I've chosen - once again - to post my full response here:
Laura Ip to Marlene
show details Oct 1 (3 days ago)
Hi, Marlene
Here are my thoughts on urban farming:
Chickens are currently legal in St. Catharines. It is legal to keep them as pets, it is legal to allow them to run in the backyard during the day, and it is legal to eat the eggs that they produce. What is not currently legal is to keep them in a coop in the backyard at night, while they are sleeping.
It is estimated by one of the local feed stores that there are currently 60 or so families who keep chickens. Until coops were requested, the public heard no complaints from residents about those who were keeping chickens. I don't believe that most residents are very concerned about this issue, as it has not come up at all in my canvassing or other discussions.
The group that presented to City Council back in September has researched by-laws in several other municipalites and been in touch with humane societies in other municipalities. They've done their homework on this issue.
If there were issues with avian flu or any of the other public health related concerns that some people have raised, we would have been hearing about them, as Niagara Falls currently allows residents to keep up to 10 chickens.
I believe that the request for a by-law change, which is modelled after the by-law in Vancouver, is perfectly reasonable.
My phone number is 905-984-0741. If I don't answer immediately, please do leave a voice mail, and I will return your call within a few minutes, as I am monitoring my phone for calls even while in class, etc. (though I can't answer the phone in class and must leave to return a call, of course).
Thanks,
Laura
~~~~~
To add to this further, not a single resident in St. George's ward has raised this issue with me. Through all of the door-to-door canvassing, e-mails and phone calls, it hasn't come up once. Unless a significant number of people in my ward come forward in opposition to this, I have yet to be presented with any valid reason to vote against it.
Those who have made the request have researched their issue better than a great many delegations to Council do (in my experience), which is not to say that no one else does thorough research, but this group has been able to answer every question I've thrown at them and backed it up with reliable sources.
Good afternoon, candidates.
The Standard is preparing a "Hot Topics" election story for publication next week on the issue of urban farming in St. Catharines.
If you have an opinion on whether this is a practice that should be permitted in the urban area (i.e. the keeping of livestock such as chickens or rabbits), please send reporter Marlene Bergsma a short email before the end of the day on Monday, Oct. 4th, clearly outlining your views.
Please also include a phone number where you can be reached during the day, in case I need to seek clarification.
As many candidate comments as possible will be included in the story and in The Standard's online election coverage.
Thank you for your participation.
Marlene Bergsma
As I don't know which (if any) of my comments will be printed with the story, I've chosen - once again - to post my full response here:
Laura Ip to Marlene
show details Oct 1 (3 days ago)
Hi, Marlene
Here are my thoughts on urban farming:
Chickens are currently legal in St. Catharines. It is legal to keep them as pets, it is legal to allow them to run in the backyard during the day, and it is legal to eat the eggs that they produce. What is not currently legal is to keep them in a coop in the backyard at night, while they are sleeping.
It is estimated by one of the local feed stores that there are currently 60 or so families who keep chickens. Until coops were requested, the public heard no complaints from residents about those who were keeping chickens. I don't believe that most residents are very concerned about this issue, as it has not come up at all in my canvassing or other discussions.
The group that presented to City Council back in September has researched by-laws in several other municipalites and been in touch with humane societies in other municipalities. They've done their homework on this issue.
If there were issues with avian flu or any of the other public health related concerns that some people have raised, we would have been hearing about them, as Niagara Falls currently allows residents to keep up to 10 chickens.
I believe that the request for a by-law change, which is modelled after the by-law in Vancouver, is perfectly reasonable.
My phone number is 905-984-0741. If I don't answer immediately, please do leave a voice mail, and I will return your call within a few minutes, as I am monitoring my phone for calls even while in class, etc. (though I can't answer the phone in class and must leave to return a call, of course).
Thanks,
Laura
~~~~~
To add to this further, not a single resident in St. George's ward has raised this issue with me. Through all of the door-to-door canvassing, e-mails and phone calls, it hasn't come up once. Unless a significant number of people in my ward come forward in opposition to this, I have yet to be presented with any valid reason to vote against it.
Those who have made the request have researched their issue better than a great many delegations to Council do (in my experience), which is not to say that no one else does thorough research, but this group has been able to answer every question I've thrown at them and backed it up with reliable sources.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Undervoting
I was out visiting voters the other day and ran into one of my opponents. We had conversations with the voters independently and together. Near the end of the conversation, he suggested to a voter that she only vote for him. This is called undervoting.
You are not required to mark two names for City Councillor on the ballot. You, of course, are able to, but you don't have to.
Vote for the candidate(s) that you feel is best for the job. Don't vote for anyone you don't think is good for the job, especially if you're only voting for them because you feel compelled to vote for two.
Having said that, there are downfalls to undervoting as well. If you like two candidates, but you vote only for one because you like them better, by undervoting you could end up letting one of the ones you don't like to slip through the count.
Whatever you do, vote, and vote wisely.
On September 23, 2010, Linda Crouch, a current Niagara Voice for the St. Catharines Standard wrote an article about getting informed and voting. The link to it is: http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2769991
Here is an excerpt of her article that is specifically about undervoting:
The good side to under-voting:
It's your right as a voter to under-vote;
Your ballot won't be discounted for an under-vote;
Hopefully only people worthy of elector's votes will be elected.
The downside to under-voting:
It's a shame when we get good solid voter turnout but so many potential votes don't get cast.
Yesterday (October 2, 2010), there was a great follow-up letter to the editor from Pete Morro. Here's the link to the letter: http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2783413
Here is an excerpt from his letter regarding undervoting:
Linda Crouch's term "undervoting" is important. We do not have any obligation to fill out all the spaces on the ballot. If you only feel one of the candidates is worthy of your vote, just vote for them.
We need to read the information gathered in this newspaper. If we are so inclined, attend candidates debates, watch them on TV, etc.
I already know who I'm going to vote for; I hope we will have a turnout of informed voters that will reflect their interest in our city.
You are not required to mark two names for City Councillor on the ballot. You, of course, are able to, but you don't have to.
Vote for the candidate(s) that you feel is best for the job. Don't vote for anyone you don't think is good for the job, especially if you're only voting for them because you feel compelled to vote for two.
Having said that, there are downfalls to undervoting as well. If you like two candidates, but you vote only for one because you like them better, by undervoting you could end up letting one of the ones you don't like to slip through the count.
Whatever you do, vote, and vote wisely.
On September 23, 2010, Linda Crouch, a current Niagara Voice for the St. Catharines Standard wrote an article about getting informed and voting. The link to it is: http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2769991
Here is an excerpt of her article that is specifically about undervoting:
Knowing that, there is a pattern in voting that is both good and bad. It is called undervoting where a voter casts fewer ballots for an office than one is eligible to cast. It applies particularly here for regional councillors and school trustees, as we can vote for six of the former and four of the latter.
What is undervoting? You can vote for six people running for regional council, but let's say you don't know six good candidates. So just vote for the ones worthy of your vote
The good side to under-voting:
It's your right as a voter to under-vote;
Your ballot won't be discounted for an under-vote;
Hopefully only people worthy of elector's votes will be elected.
The downside to under-voting:
It's a shame when we get good solid voter turnout but so many potential votes don't get cast.
Yesterday (October 2, 2010), there was a great follow-up letter to the editor from Pete Morro. Here's the link to the letter: http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2783413
Here is an excerpt from his letter regarding undervoting:
Linda Crouch's term "undervoting" is important. We do not have any obligation to fill out all the spaces on the ballot. If you only feel one of the candidates is worthy of your vote, just vote for them.
We need to read the information gathered in this newspaper. If we are so inclined, attend candidates debates, watch them on TV, etc.
I already know who I'm going to vote for; I hope we will have a turnout of informed voters that will reflect their interest in our city.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Integrity in Communication
There's an old campaign strategy whereby candidates or their volunteers go door to door and - if they don't catch you at home - they leave a brochure with a hand-written "sorry I missed you" note.
Here's what bothers me, and I know that it's a relatively small thing in the grand scheme of things: those "sorry I missed you" notes shouldn't be written unless the resident's door was actually knocked on.
I saw it during the 2006 campaign, and I've seen it more during this campaign, where I end up canvassing in the same neighbourhood as the volunteers of one of my opponents, and those individuals are dropping flyers in mailboxes with the hand-written note. They haven't knocked on the resident's door and tried to catch them at home; they've simply dropped a brochure in a mailbox and moved onto the next house.
I've had residents tell me that they can't figure out how they missed other candidates when they were home all day.
Candidates shouldn't be pretending they were at someone's door. If they just want to drop brochures quickly and keep moving, then do so, but don't imply that you tried to speak to them personally when you didn't actually try.
If I write "sorry I missed you" on a brochure, it will be because I actually tried to catch you by knocking on your door. That's what I consider to be integrity on communication.
Here's what bothers me, and I know that it's a relatively small thing in the grand scheme of things: those "sorry I missed you" notes shouldn't be written unless the resident's door was actually knocked on.
I saw it during the 2006 campaign, and I've seen it more during this campaign, where I end up canvassing in the same neighbourhood as the volunteers of one of my opponents, and those individuals are dropping flyers in mailboxes with the hand-written note. They haven't knocked on the resident's door and tried to catch them at home; they've simply dropped a brochure in a mailbox and moved onto the next house.
I've had residents tell me that they can't figure out how they missed other candidates when they were home all day.
Candidates shouldn't be pretending they were at someone's door. If they just want to drop brochures quickly and keep moving, then do so, but don't imply that you tried to speak to them personally when you didn't actually try.
If I write "sorry I missed you" on a brochure, it will be because I actually tried to catch you by knocking on your door. That's what I consider to be integrity on communication.
Business Background for Councillors...Necessary or Not?
Some candidates in this election campaign are heavily touting their business background and insisting that it is a must-have in order to be an effective councillor/decision-maker for how tax dollars are spent.
I am not going to argue that business experience isn't important or relevant. I have some business experience, as I teach management/business courses for Niagara and Canadore (on-line) colleges, and I have taught these courses on-line for Humber college as well. Additionally, I owned and ran my own small event planning/public relations business for five years, which saw continual growth until I decided to close it so that I could pursue other interests.
What I also have that others may not (or may not have as much of) is experience working with and for government, particularly in municipal government. Additionally, I have Municipal Administration certification. I understand how both the politics and the bureaucracy work.
Further, I have been extensively involved in the community with both small and large organizations.
I would argue that a candidate who is well-rounded in their experience - business, community, government - is a more valuable candidate than one whose focus is strictly business.
I am not going to argue that business experience isn't important or relevant. I have some business experience, as I teach management/business courses for Niagara and Canadore (on-line) colleges, and I have taught these courses on-line for Humber college as well. Additionally, I owned and ran my own small event planning/public relations business for five years, which saw continual growth until I decided to close it so that I could pursue other interests.
What I also have that others may not (or may not have as much of) is experience working with and for government, particularly in municipal government. Additionally, I have Municipal Administration certification. I understand how both the politics and the bureaucracy work.
Further, I have been extensively involved in the community with both small and large organizations.
I would argue that a candidate who is well-rounded in their experience - business, community, government - is a more valuable candidate than one whose focus is strictly business.
There is no east St. Catharines...?
I was having a conversation with a voter in St. George's ward a couple of weeks ago. She's lived in the ward all her life, and she is engaged and active in her community.
We were discussing a number of things that are going on in St. Catharines, when I made a reference to "east St. Catharines". She plainly said to me, "Laura, there is no east St. Catharines." I know that I looked at her quizzically, because I didn't have to say anything before she continued, "in St. Catharines, you hear about Port, the north end, downtown, south St. Catharines and west St. Catharies. You never hear about east St. Catharines."
This was reiterated to me by a woman with whom I spoke yesterday. She has never voted, because she feels that no one cares about east St. Catharines. She promised me that she will be voting in this election.
So, I ask you: Can you relate to this? Do you feel like east St. Catharines is forgotten about? What have your east St. Catharines (St. George's ward) councillors done for you?
I have been told by residents that the current councillors are not responsive to concerns. Is this true? I've never had a reason to call them.
Both of the incumbents have been on Council for a number of years. Are they doing their job effectively?
Think on it, comment if you would like, and then vote on October 25.
We were discussing a number of things that are going on in St. Catharines, when I made a reference to "east St. Catharines". She plainly said to me, "Laura, there is no east St. Catharines." I know that I looked at her quizzically, because I didn't have to say anything before she continued, "in St. Catharines, you hear about Port, the north end, downtown, south St. Catharines and west St. Catharies. You never hear about east St. Catharines."
This was reiterated to me by a woman with whom I spoke yesterday. She has never voted, because she feels that no one cares about east St. Catharines. She promised me that she will be voting in this election.
So, I ask you: Can you relate to this? Do you feel like east St. Catharines is forgotten about? What have your east St. Catharines (St. George's ward) councillors done for you?
I have been told by residents that the current councillors are not responsive to concerns. Is this true? I've never had a reason to call them.
Both of the incumbents have been on Council for a number of years. Are they doing their job effectively?
Think on it, comment if you would like, and then vote on October 25.
Active Transportation Niagara Network Focused Municipal Election Questions
Active Transportation Niagara Network is suggesting that voters ask candidates the following questions during the election campaign.
I've decided to post my answers here.
1. What streets are the least safe and accessible to those aged 8 to 80 for walking and cycling? What would you do to make them safer and more accessible?
To begin to name all of the streets that are unsafe for walkers and cyclists is difficult, as the list is so lengthy. Some obvious ones come to mind: Welland Avenue, Bunting Road, Grantham Avenue, Geneva Street, Lake Street, Glendale Avenue, Glenridge Avenue, Pelham Road, etc. There are others, of course.
I firmly believe that we need to open our city up to more accessible modes of transportation, whether residents are using them because they choose to (lifestyle, environment, etc.) or are forced to (financial, etc.).
With proper planning (having some foresight and being proactive), we can work towards are more accessible community. For some of the roads that require better accessibility, it's as simple as painting lines on the road, as they're already wide enough. For roads that are not currently wide enough, we need to be coming up with appropriate solutions in the meantime and when those roads come up for reconstruction projects.
We also need to work more effectively with the Region to ensure that these projects get done on their roads in our City.
2. What infrastructure changes to support walking and cycling as forms of transportation are needed in your community?
Cycling lanes, properly sloped curbs (that are also in good repair) at all intersections, ensuring access to parks along paths and in other areas, removing fencing or narrow gating, where it's not necessary to allow access; and ensuring that paved paths into parks don't suddenly end for those using assistive devices or with strollers.
3. In your role as Councillor / Mayor, how strongly would you prioritize principles of walkable and bikeable communities in the planning of new developments and changes to existing infrastructure?
This is a priority for me, along with being proactive about planning for what we know will come a few years later. We often know years in advance that a new project will be carried out in an area of the city. Somehow, though, we continue to do work on the roads in the area, etc. without taking that upcoming project into consideration, which leads us to undertake further and sometimes repetitive work on those roads that could have been done the first time around.
The Active Transporation Niagara Network believes these questions are important as they will allow candidates to show voters their commitment to designing neighbourhoods where people can walk or bike to many places. Being able to walk to school, work, stores, parks and restaurants is good for people, the environment and the economy. When people can walk more and rely on their cars less, communities become healthier and more vibrant places. Research shows that most car trips are short trips that can easily be walked or biked if there is infrastructure in place such as sidewalks or bike lanes. For more information about the importance of designing communities that make it easier for people to walk and cycle, visit www.iCANwalk.ca.
I've decided to post my answers here.
1. What streets are the least safe and accessible to those aged 8 to 80 for walking and cycling? What would you do to make them safer and more accessible?
To begin to name all of the streets that are unsafe for walkers and cyclists is difficult, as the list is so lengthy. Some obvious ones come to mind: Welland Avenue, Bunting Road, Grantham Avenue, Geneva Street, Lake Street, Glendale Avenue, Glenridge Avenue, Pelham Road, etc. There are others, of course.
I firmly believe that we need to open our city up to more accessible modes of transportation, whether residents are using them because they choose to (lifestyle, environment, etc.) or are forced to (financial, etc.).
With proper planning (having some foresight and being proactive), we can work towards are more accessible community. For some of the roads that require better accessibility, it's as simple as painting lines on the road, as they're already wide enough. For roads that are not currently wide enough, we need to be coming up with appropriate solutions in the meantime and when those roads come up for reconstruction projects.
We also need to work more effectively with the Region to ensure that these projects get done on their roads in our City.
2. What infrastructure changes to support walking and cycling as forms of transportation are needed in your community?
Cycling lanes, properly sloped curbs (that are also in good repair) at all intersections, ensuring access to parks along paths and in other areas, removing fencing or narrow gating, where it's not necessary to allow access; and ensuring that paved paths into parks don't suddenly end for those using assistive devices or with strollers.
3. In your role as Councillor / Mayor, how strongly would you prioritize principles of walkable and bikeable communities in the planning of new developments and changes to existing infrastructure?
This is a priority for me, along with being proactive about planning for what we know will come a few years later. We often know years in advance that a new project will be carried out in an area of the city. Somehow, though, we continue to do work on the roads in the area, etc. without taking that upcoming project into consideration, which leads us to undertake further and sometimes repetitive work on those roads that could have been done the first time around.
The Active Transporation Niagara Network believes these questions are important as they will allow candidates to show voters their commitment to designing neighbourhoods where people can walk or bike to many places. Being able to walk to school, work, stores, parks and restaurants is good for people, the environment and the economy. When people can walk more and rely on their cars less, communities become healthier and more vibrant places. Research shows that most car trips are short trips that can easily be walked or biked if there is infrastructure in place such as sidewalks or bike lanes. For more information about the importance of designing communities that make it easier for people to walk and cycle, visit www.iCANwalk.ca.
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