I was privileged enough to meet with a group of people Dec. 13 who clearly cared about what is or is not occurring in our town. As the discussion progressed it became very apparent that, while not everyone in the group shared the same political viewpoints, we all wanted more financial transparency and more prudent financial decisions made with our tax dollars.
Here are some of the comments/themes I heard represented (although this is not a comprehensive list):
– All people present questioned why it seemed to be an automatic assumption that a tax increase would occur every year vs. aiming for a zero-per-cent increase target that did not include draining financial reserves.
– The group indicated they did not see enough detail in many areas of the town budget and/or questioned why there appeared to be a complete exclusion of information such as “consultation fees.”
– While everyone in the group readily acknowledged not being an “expert” in every area covered within the current budget proposal; all of the people present openly questioned some of the costs associated with proposed software purchases, costs of building bridges or building a parking lot.
– There was the concern of an apparent waste of money involved in doing high-priced “feasibility studies’ (some done multiple times) that are simply ignored after the studies are done.
– None of the people present wanted to give the impression of being confrontational towards town staff but everyone questioned the cost efficiency of some of the top-paid employees as well as wondering if there were possible savings through measures such as a hiring freeze, a reduction of staff through attrition or freezing wages during these tough economic times.
– There were numerous comments indicating that not enough consultation was being done by town and/or council members and/or that better communication about future planning was needed.
– All the people present reported feeling trepidation about future budgets, especially given the apparent lack of representation in the planning about many “big ticket” expenditures that our town was reported to be unable to avoid paying for in the future such as the sewage upgrades, water treatment costs, transportation upgrades and/or water licences.
– An observation was made about how some of the financial practices of the town seem to differ drastically from what would exist in your typical household and/or in private business. Ideas such as rewarding departments for staying within their budgets or using less than their allotted budgets were some initial ideas.
– All the people present were concerned about the draining of financial reserves and the massive ballooning of debt and what this could mean for our future; especially if tough times persist as is currently being forecasted by many financial experts. It was alarming to hear that further borrowing would be needed to complete the pool.
I would like to give special recognition to Mr. Brooks Tower for taking the initiative to bring together such a diverse and talented group of people and to Cochrane town Coun. Morgan Nagel for attending the meeting.
