Aurora Citizen

News & Views from the Citizens of Aurora Ontario

New Town Clerk Arrives

Posted by auroracitizen on November 30, 2009

We have a new Town Clerk to replace Lucille King, but they won’t be called a Town Clerk — according to the Nov 24th Town Press Release he is the Director of Customer & Legislative Services. We are not really sure what that means and the Press Release wasn’t very clear, but he is definitely taking on the role of Town Clerk.

You will recall Ms King’s abrupt departure with 3 weeks notice after she released, in accordance with the rules of her position, the report from Mr Nitkin to Councillor Buck without the approval of Mayor Phyllis Morris.

Well her replacement has arrived — John Leach — a 20 year veteran, mostly in Vaughan. The interesting news is that Mr Leach was dismissed from his job at Vaughan. The Toronto Star reported this in November 2007.

As an aside, it would be interesting to hear Councillor MacEachern’s thoughts on this issue since she was the key proponent of the recount a numbers of years ago when the Town initiated some electronic voting. After spending approx. $10,000, the then Town Clerk was shown to have acted completely appropriately and the votes were confirmed as correct. Another total waste of Town funds on a personal agenda.

Now this hiring could be good news, since it could mean he stood up for what is right and paid the price. Or possibly he was following direction from Council and ended up as the fall-guy for their actions. We will probably never know, so let’s not jump to conclusions. Let’s evaluate his performance on its merits here in Aurora.

Hopefully, having a senior staff who has experience working with a dysfunctional Council will be to our benefit — time will tell.

Posted in Leadership, Staff Turnover, Town Council | 31 Comments »

Community Corner: Do the Friends of Councillors Get Special Treatment?

Posted by auroracitizen on November 25, 2009

To the Aurora Citizen

What seems to be missing in the debate (debacle?) around the November 10th meeting, is the fact that Walter Mestrinaro was making his second appearance before Council to get a decision on the bleachers overturned, because his company did not get the award.

Despite the fact that Mr. Mestrinaro was disqualified for the most of basic of reasons – he didn’t respond on time, he did not provide the proper certifications and his bid was more expensive – he appeared at multiple Council meetings to protest that he did not get the work, culminating in the Nov 10th meeting, where he impugned the town staff for not following procedure.

Mr. Elliot & Mr. Christopher both advised Council (at a previous meeting) that the matter was administrative, strictly within the purview of Staff. They advised Council again on the 10th. Yet, Mr. Mestrinaro was allowed to carry on, impugn town staff, with no input from Mayor Morris nor the sidekicks. Interesting, considering that Councilor Wilson had just recently professed his undying support/respect, etc., for town staff.

The other interesting point is that Councilor MacEachern was “sick” that evening – perhaps the “my friend is appearing a Council to whine about something, and I don’t really want to be a part of it” flu.

And, the kicker? Walter Mestrinaro is a member of the Committee of Adjustments: “The committee considers the merits of applications for land severance and minor variances to land, buildings or structure, in accordance with the Planning Act.” A PAID position.

Yes, good citizens of Aurora. You are paying for Mr. Mestrinaro to sit in judgment of merits of an application as it pertains to the Planning Act (a fairly extensive document) – and he can’t even follow the basic rules of tendering.

I would be concerned, but then I am not Mayor – at least not yet!

From Junius — belatedly and with apologizes added by Aurora Citizen 😉

Posted in Code of Ethics, Community Corner, Conflict of Interest, Leadership, Local Business, Town Council | 15 Comments »

And they’re off…

Posted by elizabethbishenden on November 25, 2009

With Nigel Kean tossing his hat in the ring as a mayoral candidate earlier this week, we are beginning to see what the November 2010 municipal election will be like in Aurora.

We’ll be enabling tabs on the “2010 Candidates” page  in the next while that will allow candidates to post their electoral message, but in the meantime, we’ll periodically make posts about the election here.

Let us know your interests and concerns!

Posted in Election 2010, Leadership, Town Council | 11 Comments »

Integrity Commissioner needed… but who should decide?

Posted by elizabethbishenden on November 18, 2009

 The article “Search Continues for Integrity Czar”  by Sean Pearce in the November 17 Banner states that the Town of Aurora is continuing its search for a new Integrity Commissioner (IC). 

A search of the Town website and re-reading of the Code of Conduct by-law and Town postings reveal no reference as to  who actually decides who the IC should be, what their credentials are to be, and how the person will be chosen.

Neil Garbe, the town’s CAO is quoted in the article as saying that the town is looking for “a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada, who has practiced in some sort of a judicial capacity”.  The candidate could have experience as a lawyer or a justice of the peace, the article states.  So, are we in the situation where only legal eagles need apply?

The article later has information from Mayor Morris.  It’s up to staff to determine candidates, Mrs. Morris said, adding she’s not aware who is under consideration.  Council will not be involved in the process until a report is brought forward, she said.

Statements in the article about Mr. Garbe’s comments also indicate that the hiring will be done without a job competition.

Since the first and only complaint to the first IC involved the interaction between a councillor and staff, it seems incongruous that the new IC will be hired by council from a list of staff-recommended candidates.  Both council and staff are now implicitly involved in the failure of the first Integrity Commissioner.  Can we citizens entrust them with hiring the next Integrity Commissioner?

Perhaps when the Code of Conduct was formulated a better system of choosing the IC should have been decided and adhered to at the same time as the key to all of this would appear to be who “rules” as IC and who can hire and fire that same person. There are predictions that a bigger mess of this whole situation is still to come.

The whole program seems to lack, let us say, integrity.

Posted in Code of Ethics, Conflict of Interest, Integrity, Leadership, Town Council | 58 Comments »

Media Release from York Region Police

Posted by elizabethbishenden on November 18, 2009

Please see below.  In order to prevent the spreading of incorrect information, we will be posting very few comments on this matter.  If you have information, please contact the York Region Police.

Deeds Speak
WITNESSES SOUGHT IN ASSAULT REPORT IN THE TOWN OF AURORA York Regional Police is investigating the report of an assault on a 14-year-old girl in the Town of Aurora and are actively seeking witnesses to the incident.On Thursday, November 12, 2009, at approximately 5:40 p.m., police responded to a report of a missing youth in the area of Wellington Street West and Community Centre Lane. Numerous police units searched the area with negative results, however a short time later police received a call from a friend of the youth who indicated she was at a residence nearby. 

Police responded and at that time the youth indicated she had been assaulted by an unknown male. She was treated for minor injuries.

Investigating officers have made an exhaustive canvass of the area in the last few days but are seeking further information and witnesses. Investigators are appealing to anyone who was in the area between 5:15 and 6 p.m. to come forward to speak with police.

Investigators do not believe this was a random attack, however further investigation will assist police in determining the events leading up to the time of the incident.

York Regional Police is reminding residents of these safety tips:

  • Always be aware of your surroundings
  • Whenever possible, travel in pairs
  • Travel in well-lit and populated areas, especially at night and do not take shortcuts through trails or parks
  • Carry a cell phone
  • Trust your intuition.  If something tells you a person or situation isn’t right, it likely isn’t
  • Never wear a headset while running or walking
  • Call police immediately if you see anyone or anything suspicious

Anyone with information is asked to call 1-866-876-5423, ext. 7923, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-tips, leave an anonymous tip online at www.1800222tips.com or text your tip by sending TIPYORK and your message to CRIMES (274637)

Prepared by: Sergeant Laurie Perks

09-288773

November 17, 2009
  

Posted in Community Corner | 2 Comments »

Is There An Alternate Motivation

Posted by auroracitizen on November 14, 2009

Apparently the Mayor has requested that members of Council provide their New Business to the clerk/secretary in writing in advance of meetings. It’s being positioned  “to provide assistance to staff”. This is a significant change in policy from previous Councils. Staff in the past have not found dealing with New Business to be a concern.

We are unaware of any motion or procedural by law amendment planned to effect this change.

The worrisome implication is that the Mayor and her “advisors” have not implemented this change to benefit staff,  but rather so that  they are able to prepare strategy and potentially augment the Morris spin if a contentious issue is being brought forward.

Remember, we are now in election mode.

How timely that this process is being proposed when we are celebrating the sacrifice of others to ensure freedom of speech.

Posted in Election 2010, Leadership, Town Council | 38 Comments »

Who Will Be The Next Treasurer

Posted by auroracitizen on November 12, 2009

The position of Treasurer for the Town of Aurora is currently occupied by Dan Elliot. Mr. Elliot was appointed to a six-month term, which is shortly coming to an end.

Has anyone seen an advertisement or posting in the paper for this position? Does that mean that Mr. Elliot is getting the position by default or will Council simply extend the contract?

Our guess is that they will use the excuse that to change Treasurers in the middle of the budget process would be irresponsible. Didn’t a former Ontario politician (and Minister of Education) famously get quoted about creating a crisis so they could implement what they wanted?

A better question might be — why wasn’t the position posted immediately upon hiring Mr Elliott so the process of finding a new Treasurer would have already been underway. That would have shown forethought and good planning.

Will there not be a competition for this significant position in our community or will this be another hand-picked appointment?

Posted in Leadership, Staff Turnover, Town Council | 41 Comments »

Rights We Take For Granted

Posted by bhogg on November 8, 2009

I understand this story is true, but it bears a significant message regardless. This paraphrase is drawn from a 2007 speech by Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee about a teacher in Little Rock, Arkansas and referenced by him at the Republican National Convention.

In September 2005, on the first day of school, Martha Cothren, a social studies school teacher at Joe T. Robinson High School, did something not to be forgotten. On the first day of school, with the permission of the school superintendent, the principal and the building supervisor, she removed all of the desks out of her classroom. 

When the first period kids entered the room they discovered that there were no desks. They obviously looked around and asked, ‘Ms. Cothren, where are our desks?’ 

She replied, ‘You can’t have a desk until you tell me how you earn the right to sit at a desk.’ 

They thought, ‘Well, maybe it’s our grades.’ 

‘No,’ she said. 

‘Maybe it’s our behavior.’ 

She told them, ‘No, it’s not even your behavior.’ 

And so, they came and went, the first period, second period, third period. Still no desks in the classroom. 

By early afternoon television news crews had started gathering in Ms.Cothren’s classroom to report about this crazy teacher who had taken all the desks out of her room. 

The final period of the day came and as the puzzled students found seats on the floor of the deskless classroom, Martha Cothren said, ‘Throughout the day no one has been able to tell me just what he/she has done to earn the right to sit at the desks that are ordinarily found in this classroom. Now I am going to tell you.’ 

At this point, Martha Cothren went over to the door of her classroom and opened it. 

Twenty-seven (27) War Veterans, all in uniforms, walked into that classroom, each one carrying a school desk. The Vets began placing the school desks in rows, and then they would walk over and stand alongside the wall. By the time the last soldier had set the final desk in place those kids started to understand, perhaps for the first time in their lives, just how the right to sit at those desks had been earned.

Martha said, ‘You didn’t earn the right to sit at these desks. These heroes did it for you. They placed the desks here for you. Now, it’s up to you to sit in them. It is your responsibility to learn, to be good students, to be good citizens. They paid the price so that you could have the freedom to get an education. Don’t ever forget it.’

More details can be found at Snopes.com

Each of those young students and fellow staffers also learned a lesson about leadership and the power of storytelling that day. As can we.

It would be great to share similar stories you have heard.

Posted in Leadership | 21 Comments »

Budget… what’s worth it?

Posted by elizabethbishenden on November 6, 2009

The old saying goes “nothing’s sure but death and taxes”…

Soon Aurora Town Council will be looking at the Town’s budget…  and the residents will be looking at their tax bills.  It’s the time of year when we all start defending the programs we love and asking questions about the ones we’re not so crazy about.

Here are some questions going out to readers of this blog:

  • Where are tax dollars being spent well in Aurora? 
  • What seems like an utter waste of tax money to you?  
  • What would you like to see your taxes paying for that the town doesn’t already provide?

Posted in Budget | 10 Comments »

Sure Hope it’s Not Our Money!

Posted by auroracitizen on November 5, 2009

Hmmm, spotted an interesting testimonial from Mayor Phyllis Morris (Scroll down to second picture in left column).

Let’s just hope that this is a contra deal in exchange for the testimonial  — and the town isn’t being dinged for Limo rentals so she can attend functions.

Nice idea to use a “green” car — but really — renting a limo to attend functions seems a bit ostentatious?

Posted in Leadership | 17 Comments »

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