As he neared the end of the regular routine of his mayor’s report at Monday evening’s city council meeting, Mayor Jack Mussallem made a surprise move, and asked council members to consider taking the bylaw route, rather than a referendum, for a new emergency services building in Prince Rupert .
That seems so typical of how this Mayor prefers to operate. He would rather avoid a process that encourages public discussion and permits citizens to vote on an issue through a referendum.
By way of background, under the Community Charter before a municipal council can borrow money they must pass a bylaw that does not come into effect without the approval of the electors. The issue is put to the electors at a referendum. In this case a referendum could be combined with the next election, which is not far off (in December), probably with little additional cost. That seems to have been Mr Howie’s advice.
Instead the Mayor wants to follow the ‘alternate approval process’, which is a process where the council passes a bylaw to borrow the money and the bylaw comes into effect unless before a deadline more than 10% of the electors oppose the decision through sending in electoral response forms, which are made available at city hall. The process is spelled out in section 86 of the Community Charter.
This town seems to have gone from having a long serving mayor who would talk to anyone he met on the sidewalk, to a mayor who (like him or hate) was always affable and approachable, to the current Mayor who seems to operate out of a bunker somewhere in city hall.
[quote=“BTravenn”]That seems so typical of how this Mayor prefers to operate. He would rather avoid a process that encourages public discussion and permits citizens to vote on an issue through a referendum.
By way of background, under the Community Charter before a municipal council can borrow money they must pass a bylaw that does not come into effect without the approval of the electors. The issue is put to the electors at a referendum. In this case a referendum could be combined with the next election, which is not far off (in December), probably with little additional cost. That seems to have been Mr Howie’s advice.
Instead the Mayor wants to follow the ‘alternate approval process’, which is a process where the council passes a bylaw to borrow the money and the bylaw comes into effect unless before a deadline more than 10% of the electors oppose the decision through sending in electoral response forms, which are made available at city hall. The process is spelled out in section 86 of the Community Charter.
This town seems to have gone from having a long serving mayor who would talk to anyone he met on the sidewalk, to a mayor who (like him or hate) was always affable and approachable, to the current Mayor who seems to operate out of a bunker somewhere in city hall.[/quote]
Yep, the whole attitude down at City Hall seems to be that the taxpayers/electors are just a bunch of folks who just wanna get in the way!
Sadly, a referendum on an emergency services building is almost a moot point. At the very least we will be building a new building for the RCMP. They have been complaining for years that their building isn’t up to standards. If I understand it right, ultimately they can build the building themselves and send the city a bill. It’s a process that can take years, but they are well along already.
I don’t know if the city has such a one-sided contract with the RCMP, although I have heard some rumblings along those lines.
However, if there was a real panic over the issue, why hasn’t it been discussed at a public meeting since last fall, when Mr Howie made a report? The topic was not even on the agenda for last night’s meeting. This doesn’t appear to be a situation where if the city does not act with speed it will be overtaken by events.
The council cannot borrow money for a new building without either holding a referendum or following the alternative approval process. That’s the law. If a referendum is deferred until the next election that is only a few months off. Doing so might save enough money to pay for their next trip to Ketchikan to celebrate 4th of July or whatever.
If they don’t want to wait, they can pass a bylaw, and either give at least 6 weeks notice for a referendum vote or at least 30 days for citizens to oppose the bylaw under the alternative approval process. The differences in timelines are not worth talking about.
The only conclusion that can be reached is that he is talking about using the alternate approval process, not because it is faster, but because it is less hassle than taking a proposal to the people and asking for their support at a referendum. Democracy in action Jack Mussallem style.
Just a data point, before the City increases taxes again…
I’ve just paid both Prince Rupert and Terrace property taxes. I’m not kidding, and it’s not hyperbole to say that the taxes in Prince Rupert are literally twice what they are in Terrace. And Terrace includes its garbage, water, and sewer in its taxes.
And now what’s happening? The Mayor wants to borrow money using the “fast track” method? Really?
A couple of questions to ponder: how much is Citywest worth? How much does Citywest pay in property taxes?