Windsor Independent - January 2016

ROSE CITY POLITICS
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Kieran McKenzie
Political activist/organizer with a
passion for social justice issues. A
lifelong Windsor-Essex resident, Kieran
McKenzie holds an honours BA in
political science from the University of
Windsor and has been campaigning in
both elections and on issues since he
could walk.
Main takeaway...our budget process
is deplorable.
There are many choices I could
point to that are questionable as
well but I want to focus exclusively
on process and how our process
facilitates participation and
promotes transparency and
accountability.
Or more precisely—how it
undermines these important
elements of any well functioning
and healthy democracy.
Let’s start with the Budget
meeting itself scheduled less than
a week before the holidays
and adjourning a whopping
(nearly) 8 hours after coming
to order. How are citizens
expected to be able to
participate with an agenda that
is so jammed?
I’d like to see Council look
at breaking this up a bit
perhaps—separating the
Capital and Operating Budget
sessions.
But most egregiously is this
disturbing (now common)
practice of the (literally) last
minute tabling of something
called the “Enhanced Capital
Budget”.
Scribbled onto a piece of
paper the ECB listed several
projects/commitments that
Council would prioritize over
the 2016 fiscal year. There
was no report, no analysis, no
notice...just a take it or leave
it $10 M list of some specific,
some vague spending that
Councillors had plopped in
front of them at something past
11 pm.
How in the world is this ok?
With city council having approved the 2016 municipal budget and
enhanced capital budget, we’ve asked Rose City Politics to weigh in
and provide their thoughts
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Don Merrifield Jr.
Fourteen years as a Windsor realtor,
musician, father of one son Miles, politicsrun
financially conservative yet socially
liberal. Merrifield Jr. was a candidate in
last municipal election in Ward 3 for city
councillor, a cigar aficionado, motorcycle
enthusiast and lover of travel.
Windsor has come out with another
zero per cent tax increase budget. It’s
hard to complain when, in theory, our
property taxes will not be going up. Is
it a real no tax increase budget? I guess
it depends on the definition you use.
This is the part I believe Windsor
needs to get away from. That being
the politics involved in the budgeting
process.
Every candidate, including the Mayor,
campaigned on more transparency
and consultation with the public,
yet we see again how politics enter
the allocation of taxpayer dollars.
The hospital levy, $10,000,000 in
last minute spending, all thrown at
council at the last minute is completely
contrary to transparency, and give
the public no time to consult with
their councillors. In the end seeing
where the proposed extra $10,000,000
is going to be spent, it’s not hard to
notice if you’re on side with the Mayor,
there’s a little something extra in your
paycheque.
This in the long run helps certain
councillors re election down the road,
and hurts the councillors that don’t
“play ball”.
At some point in time Windsor is
going to have to decide if we’re going
to conduct city business like a real
city would with proper processes for
the use of taxpayers dollars, or if we’re
going to keep running things like a
small town where budget proposals
are done on the back of a napkin.
Operating the city the same as kids
act in a schoolyard is petty and small
minded.
The taxpayers deserve better. Can’t for
once we all be the “cool kids” and do
what’s best for everyone?
It’s not—and frankly it’s pork
barrel politics at its worst.
The ECB is a pure vote
buying exercise that
circumvents process,
disregards planning and worst
of all is fiscally reckless.
Compounding the problem is
its divisiveness—it’s a political
tool. One meant to reward and
punish.
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Doug Sartori
Doug Sartori is a technology consultant
in Windsor/Essex, a partner at Parallel
42 Systems and the President of Windsor
Hackforge. He tweets about lots of things
including politics, video games and history
As a slogan, “hold the line on taxes” is
pretty good. It summarizes a complex
set of assumptions and policy ideas
into five words. It’s memorable. Over
the past decade we’ve seen it deployed
at the provincial and municipal level
to identify a candidate or office-holder
as a fiscal hawk whose first loyalty is
to the taxpayer. At their best, slogans
illuminate a political agenda.
When Eddie Francis promised to
hold the line in 2006, Windsor’s tax
rate was seen as uncompetitive. High
city taxes were a barrier to economic
development and job growth.
“Holding the line” was a prescription
for renewal, a path to prosperity.
In 2015, after seven years of holding
the line, the story is different. In all
but one category, Windsor municipal
taxes are below the provincial average
for comparably-sized cities. It’s hard to
argue that high taxes are holding the
city back economically. The situation
has changed, but the slogan stays the
same.
This year, the old Francis-era slogan
was deployed differently. Instead of
illuminating a policy agenda, “hold
the line” served to obscure the cynical
use of the “enhanced capital budget” to
deliver political spoils to supporters,
and to stifle important debate about
the priorities of our community.
With “hold the line” we’ve reached the
point at which a political catchphrase
stops illuminating debate and starts
obscuring it. It’s time for a renewed
discussion about the direction of
our community, and time to retire
the played-out political slogans of
yesterday.
12 JANUARY 2016 Vol. 04 | Issue 01