"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 1 April 2015

A SLIP OF THE FINGER

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "WHEN ALL IS SAID AND DONE": 

As much as I'm happy that Gallo was not elected. I'm not happy that Dawe is mayor either. I appreciated Gallo throwing is hat in the ring. It took a lot of time and money. It also made some take note of Mayor Dawe' intentions for the next 4 yrs. That wouldn't have happened if Gallo was not in the race. 

Posted by Anonymous to  Our Town and Its Business at 1 April 2015 at 16:24

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Auroran is up - you can vote on composting

Anonymous said...

Oh, my ! The mayor's blissful report on the Complex appears to have hit the wall !

Anonymous said...

No composting for us - we have foxes, coons & the occasional coyote. Not to mention the usual rodentia.

Anonymous said...


RENOVATING

The Aurora Family Leisure Complex re-opened recently after a much longer than originally anticipated period to undergo some renovation and an addition - for youth, supposedly.

From a letter to the Auroran last week and two this week one can read a list of appalling short-comings and some downright dumb, really dumb, decision making in the planning and execution of the work. I'm not going to list all of them here, but will mention a few.

After Mayor Dawe stated recently that Aurora had "just added 8,000 new residents, one letter writer asks how the number of shower stalls in the old change room had gone from nine down to three in the new change room? The clothes lockers are very small and many of the number plates on them are already discoloured and all the numbered keys do not match the numbered lockers, so where is security?

Another letter writer complains that the fitness room is not too small but rather there are too many machines crammed into the space. No soap holders in the showers in the men's Fitness change room nor towel racks in the shower area. Again, lockers are minuscule and one has to carry one's street-wear and gym bag with one.

There are some more serious observations and it almost would appear that it will be necessary to RENOVATE THE RENOVATION, or a good portion.

What is upsetting is that the project cost more than 10% over budget, maybe even more, as I do not know what the original figure was, and it was completed many months later than it was supposed to be.

What is even more worrisome is that the Joint-Ops Centre, at a current budget of some $24 million could also come in five or ten percent higher. Now we're looking at up to $2.5 million and who knows what time-frame? This project is supposed to have a full-time site supervisor representing the town's interests, but who is this person and what are the qualifications and authority? To whom does this person report, the CAO or the Mayor, neither of them know a damn thing about construction?

If we had a full-time professional engineer with some architectural experience on staff to take on the responsibility of supervising construction projects involving new buildings, or renovation on existing buildings or appraising and analyzing buildings that the town might contemplate purchasing, that person's salary would have been prepaid for three years with the cost overrun on the Leisure Complex, and we would not own that cesspool we recently bought for $500,000.

The more I see of our town's management, both staff and elected, the less impressed I get. As Mayor Dawe likes to say, "run it like a business." If it were some of those at the top would be unemployed very quickly.

Anonymous said...

19:26 that is why Town hired experienced and very knowledgeable project manager for JOC for approx $75K for 1/2 year and apparently he is very good and if he continues to be good he is going to have a job. Probably someone's friend again.

It's a joke!!!

Anonymous said...

Who was the friend to the SE designation consultant? At the largely attended Town Hall discussion the consultant brought in a speaker from Goderich.Funny that was the previous Town he advised....El -stinko.

Anonymous said...

The new councillors must be pretty upset, They are getting calls and e-mail about stuff they were never told about before the election.