"Cowardice asks the question...is it safe? Expediency asks the question...is it politic? Vanity asks the question...is it popular? But conscience asks the question...is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but one must take it because it is right." ~Dr. Martin Luther King

Wednesday 23 January 2013

This Morning's Exchange

Dear Councillor Buck,
I'd like to share this report with you from the Ontario Government about the economic impact of the arts.  There were many reasons that the Town of Aurora should have been more encouraging of the August Jazz Plus Festival.  One of them was pure economics.  Restaurateurs, taxi's, musicians, music stores, bars, Go Transit etc.  all lost revenue from that weekend now that it is no longer here.
Saddest of all is the fact that a group of volunteers dreamed this up, passionately developed it and then had the rug pulled out from under them.  The reasons Council used to justify it held no merit.  It is unconscionable that Town Council acted so callously to citizens who were enriching our town life.  You all had an opportunity to stand beside them, embrace them and share in the glow of a successful resident sponsored event and instead you put up roadblocks.  In my opinion you've seriously drained your political collateral on this issue when you could have leveraged it for the positive event that it was.  Your loss and the Town's.
I'd like to think that as citizen groups come forward in future with ideas to enrich life in Aurora you'll now appreciate the valuable asset they are to the town.  They will bring ideas like new Tennis courts, sports fields, cultural centres, festivals, tournaments, runathons, trails etc. to Council and I'd like to see you welcome them and their enthusiasm for donating their time enriching civic life.  Unfortunately, the elected Town Council is often an unwelcoming place for citizens to look for support.

*****************
Good Morning....
Thank you for your perspective on this issue. You will not be surprised  to realise it is not shared.
Aurora has been a welcoming place for arts and culture long before your pet project  presented itself.
The Optimist  and  Rotary Clubs are witness to their intentions .
We have a different understanding of "volunteers" .
For they  are the Aurora  group, who provide the community with the magic of the theatre  and compete successfully  with  theatre groups  throughout  Ontario and  created  a  gem of a theatre out of a shabby little factory building provided to them by the town.  
They are the Arts group  who created a  first class  adjudicated annual art show in very short order. It  has continued  to grow  in excellence for fifty years with support from the town for all of that time.
They aehe Pine Tree Pottery who got their start in  space for kilns provided for them by the town. 
They are the passionate users and  supporters of  excellence in  library services who encouraged  the town to  provide  first class facilities.  Many cultural opportunities are offered  at the library as part of their mandate.
They are  members of the Optimists and  Rotary and  other service clubs who commit to the betterment of the community and regard  giving instead of taking ,as the meaning of volunteering. 
Mr. ... I have committed many years of my life in service to the community and I am extremely glad to have had the opportunity.
I am well aware of what constitutes an attractive quality of life.
Over the years, the town  has consistently enjoyed an influx of people choosing Aurora  as the  place to raise their families because of how they perceived it . The ultimate would be to live and work in the same place and not have to spend hours and a good part of one's income going someplace else to work.  
The people you so admire are not seen in the same light by others including myself. 
While I do not detect hostility in your communication it is certainly not short of criticism.  
I am  not inclined to accept that. You are not as well-informed as you think you are.
When the Ontario government puts out a report on economic advantages of tourism,  literally dozens of centres, including Toronto. Ottawa . Niagara, Stratford . Elora, Elmira  and a host  natural  areas like  Georgian Bay come to mind.  All have  spectacular attributes  necessary  to lure tourism . 
To speak of Aurora in the same category is to indulge oneself in fantasy.
I am not so  inclined and I am not inclined to accept a lecture from yourself.
Have a great day. It will not come again.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

A well deserved Whack at that critic. Everyone is heartily sick of talk about the Jazz Group. And we may not be done with them yet. Last year, Sher did not decide until March to hold that event. They are waiting & hoping no other outfit applies and will then pounce. This was made very clear in Councillor Gaertner's many comments last night trying to make sure that " fencing " did not get vetoed. " They really want that annual cash in-flow. Which, by the way, does not flow into the rest of the town as all food and product is confined behind the fencing.

Anonymous said...

In other words.... "Piss off. I know about culture and the St. Kitts are not it."

Anonymous said...

11:27 AM
I was wondering about that. She kept trying to narrow a general discussion down to the issue of fencing. Then glancing out for approval to her left.

Anonymous said...

Rather than lean on Councillor Buck as the person to blame for the demise of the festival, first ask the other councillors why they supported MS. Bucks initiative for other groups to bid for the same weekend. Ask the mayor. If the Jazzfest is as professional as it claims to be, why didn't the principals of the event address the mayor and council, and present their ideas for 2013 to council as requested, rather than use negative press to outline their intentions. Ask the vendors that don't support the dynamic duo anymore. Ask the volunteers that worked with the St. Kitts directly and why they don't help anymore. Ask the many folks that have attended in the past but say they probably wouldn't return. Get the whole story before you attack Councillor Buck.

Anonymous said...

Thank you, 12:14 PM. You can do good work.

Anonymous said...

It takes a majority of council to pass a by-law or to make a change so yes Anonymous 12:14 you are certainly right. And not to say the Aurora festival had it’s good moments but the negatives seemed to outweigh the positives. And yes, where was the Aurora Festival of Arts (the apparent group running the event)?

Now the event has been moved to Newmarket (still to be finalized & approved I believe) and there is now the “Arts Music Festivals York Region” another non-profit organization that will apparently run this event. The common thread though is Sher St. Kitts, she’s the face and persona behind the Jazz+ Festival. She stated that the Newmarket Festival “is new and not just the Aurora festival moved across the border” and yet their Newmarket jazz logo is just a copy of the same one they have used for Aurora and the Arts Music Festivals York Region logo is the same as Aurora Festival of the Arts except for a new dancer in the York logo. Perhaps it easier to do so and less costly. But I would have thought that you’d want to have a clean start. (And similar to the past, The Arts Music Festivals York Region website directly and blatantly advertises the St. Kitts Music company – read their “About” tab at the AMFYR site).

So what else will be the same and what will be different? (perhaps all the controversy will now just be shifted north). And where is the Aurora Festival of the Arts now? Where is the accounting from that non-profit?

My point – good luck to Newmarket with the “new” festival and the “new” Arts Music Festivals York Region. Time will tell if it is a smooth success but I think they should keep their eyes open as history can repeat itself. So Newmarket you are forewarned: “buyer beware”.

Anonymous said...

"Aurora festival had it’s good moments but the negatives seemed to outweigh the positives."

I agree. We don't need more political divisiveness in this town !

We have to learn from the past council term, be thankful for the current council term and move on.

Anonymous said...

7:53 AM....

Are you kidding? No really... are you kidding?

This council is as divided as the previous ones... nothing is changed.

I'll say it again... are you kidding?