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June Articles

When we thought

it could not get worse in Parliament, sleaze and unethical behaviour continues to be revealed. Both the Liberals and the Conservatives wallow in the dung as one maneuvers to maintain power while the other lusts after it.
 6/8/05 Read More.

Fads and shortcuts

do not work in a public education system. Yet we spend millions on them. Premier McGuinty would force students to stay in school. McGuinty believes such students will miraculously become literate, bursting with numeracy skills and demonstrating surprising new study habits.
6/15/05 Read More.
 

Sandy Donald

wants the Kincardine Centre for the Arts (the former Kincardine Town Hall) delisted from being a heritage building. Sandy should come clean.
 6/22/05 Read More.
 


by Fred Kirby                                  June 1, 2005 

$74,891.44 is spent for local advertising. Is anybody minding the store? It’s too bad council does not have to pay the bills. They might think twice if it was their money. The advertising is untimely and covers the wrong population area. Before you advertise a product you should make sure the product is in good shape. Otherwise customers are left with a bad taste in their mouths and the money spent on advertising is wasted and, indeed, harmful. 

Last week I wrote that council should put its house in order and move into the 21st century, ridding itself of the family compact mentality. Now I look at another aspect of putting its house in order. 

One of the first sights a visitor might notice on approaching the town centre is the water tower and the emblematic picture painted on the tower. Unfortunately, the visitor will notice the paint is fading, suggesting a community losing its prime. The fading figure is symbolic of council’s continued failure to maintain what assets it has. If it were not for Kincardine’s wonderful, industrious volunteers there would be little worth advertising. 

Are the broken water fountains fixed yet? Will the debris I found in the lake front parks last summer be removed before the hordes of tourists flock to the parks and beaches? Are the park signs freshly painted? They were not last year. These are a few of council’s responsibilities that they failed to carry out. 

As important as the above responsibilities are, a greater obligation is to our historic municipal buildings. Two come to mind: the former town hall and the old post office.  Both need considerable restoration work. There is no reason why the town hall cannot become a true home for theatre and art, and a review of the leasing arrangements for the post office could result in creative and attractive uses of this historic building. Does council care a wit? Their actions do not show it. 

And in case it is not noticed, the streetscapes are not in place, so why the rush to advertise? 

Council needs to get its priorities straight. Before advertising, get the product right.



 
 

Mayor Glenn

Sutton wants to move forward. That is his response when councilor Maureen Couture asks that council apologize to the staff for the juvenile and insulting behaviour of Tiverton residents at the December 7, 2004 meeting in Tiverton.  
 6/29/05 Read More.