The Blue Agave Forum: The Blue Agave Forum -> The Mumpsimus Blog

I was surprised there was any debate let alone opposition, over the request to provide free parking downtown during the reconstruction of the main street, last Monday. After all, as nice as the revitalization will be when it's finished, the construction is having a massive impact on downtown businesses. No one can drive through the centre block, nor park on it. For the first two weeks, the fencing separated east and west sides of the street, which further dampened sales.

Council should be doing everything it can to relieve the pain we caused. The vote, while not close, was 7-2, with Deputy Mayor Cooper and Councillor McNabb voting against.

People have been staying away from the downtown, unsure if businesses are open or where to park. I've personally spoken to at least a dozen customers in my store who admitted that, since construction began, they'd stopped going downtown. So where are they shopping? Elsewhere - the malls, big box stores, or even going to Wasaga Beach and Barrie. The downtown is hurting.

And of course there's the recession. Despite governmental claims that it's over, it can still be felt here. I haven't found a single Collingwood business person who says sales have recovered to previous years' levels.

There is a...

A certain level of professional courtesy is required to keep things civil and fair at the council table. We should, in a perfect world, behave in a manner befitting of representatives of the public, defending our collective democracy, and not merely individuals or cliques spoiling for a fight, squabbling over territory and trying to make sure we gain the most advantage out of a meeting.

We should respect one another, even if we don't necessarily like one another. And we should respect the ideals of democracy and put them above personal agendas.

Should, not do.

Which is why I was deeply disappointed, Monday, when the mayor and his Stepford supporters refused to defer a motion put forward by the Deputy Mayor, even through she was ill, and could not be there to present and defend it.

Even though I quickly asked for a deferral, the mayor allowed the motion's opponents to speak at length against the motion, then vote against the deferral, and then vote against the motion.

In a political climate where civility, respect and courtesy reigned, the motion would have been deferred out of respect for the missing proponent. There would have been no procedural harm in waiting a week to hear it.

The motion as presented to council read:

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