Stephen Vance, Editor
I hope at least some of our seven members of council take Meaford’s Treasurer up on his offer for them to ride along for a shift with one of the municipal snow plow operators. The experience would no doubt be a valuable one, and perhaps they shouldn’t stop there.
Just as I believe that upper management types in the private sector can benefit greatly by spending time experiencing the tasks and challenges experienced by those who are lower down on the corporate organizational chart, there would likely be a huge benefit found by councillors being woken up at 2:30 in the morning and shortly thereafter hopping up into a chilly snow plow truck, and heading out for a shift.
Such an experience would give councillors a first-hand look at the challenges of maintaining several hundred kilometres of municipal roads in those sometimes nasty winter months, and it would give councillors some insight into just how bad those rural roads can get before they are cleared of that much scorned white stuff. With any luck they might also hit a big pothole or two to remind the councillors of the huge, looming infrastructure crisis that could very well cripple small communities like ours in the coming years.
I think that if councillors spent a shift in the cab of a plow truck they would develop a greater appreciation for the staff who operate those trucks, but they would also quite likely walk away with a greater appreciation for the concerns of residents. Not every street or road is easy to plow, not every snowfall impacts all areas of the municipality equally, but that can be difficult to fully comprehend without some first-hand experience.
I really do hope that our councillors accept the ‘walk in our shoes’ offer from the Treasurer, and I have some other, similar experiences I think our councillors should consider having in order to really develop a full appreciation of how their decisions can impact residents for the good, and the not so good.
Some other experiences councillors should consider having:
-
Spend an afternoon with a senior trying to figure out how they’re going to absorb a tax increase when their pension doesn’t increase as well. And I’m not talking about a large, obnoxious tax increase: let’s say something around two or three percent. The kind of increase that politicians love to put the word “just” in front of when trying to convince their constituents that the increase won’t hurt, and if it does, you must be some sort of loser. They don’t say that of course, it’s all in the eyes.
-
Spend a day with a resident who doesn’t have a vehicle to see just how walkable the community is. Meaford, meaning those that call the shots, elected or otherwise, have made no secret of the fact that when it looks in the mirror it sees itself as a healthy, environmentally responsible community. That’s why terms like “walkable community” get thrown around when developing policies, and making grandiose statements about how wonderful we are. But are we actually a very walkable community? Year round? Are you sure, Councillor? Come take a walk with someone with a walker or a cane in the winter. We boast of being a walkable community, a retirement community at that. Trouble is, for those that actually have no choice but to walk, it’s mostly empty words.
-
Spend an evening with anyone over the age of 50 who hasn’t had the benefit of municipal staff tutelage who is trying to find information on the municipal website. I build websites. I’ve built dozens of websites using the very same platform that the municipal website is built on (as is The Meaford Independent). I consider my website abilities to be above average, I live and breathe municipal politics, and I still can never find the damned live stream video feed for council meetings without a ten-minute search while muttering to myself about how frustrating I find the municipal website. Don’t get me wrong, it’s much better than it was a couple of years ago, and overall, it’s a pretty good website, but I do find that some aspects of the current website frustrate me, and I have certainly heard from more than a few residents who also have had difficulty finding some information on that site.
-
Experience a day at a local mechanic’s shop to see first-hand what potholes do to automobiles. Have the mechanic provide an education session (they’ve been popular over the past year) about all the things that can be broken or damaged when a vehicle finds itself bouncing over a pothole. Perhaps even whip up a few practise estimates to take home and hang on the fridge.
-
Spend a winter weekend at a rural farmhouse on a Class 5 or 6 road during an average snowfall. That should help councillors determine how long is too long before roads are cleared. I say the weekend, because who needs the pressures of also having to get to work if the road has yet to be cleared, though perhaps there could be an ‘extreme experience’ during the week for particularly brave councillors. That isn’t to say that such an experience should necessarily cause a councillor to push for a change in policy, but at the very least a councillor who lives in the downtown area could have an understanding of why a resident might become frustrated about things like clearing snow.
I do hope winter ends soon, I seem to be getting a little cranky.
