The Opportunity & the Responsibility

The municipal issue of our time is inner-city decay and densification accompanied by sprawl. Somewhere between here and Athens, Greece there is a municipality ready to throw in the towel and re-invent itself in a model appropriate to the electronic communication age. Let's prepare London for e-democracy by cultivating an engaged and better informed electorate in appropriately sized wards..

Mircro wards are a throw-back to the horse-and-buggy era. In the geographic lexicon communities are broader than neighbourhoods. It follows that "communities of interest" encompass neighbourhoods. Neighbourhood issues are mainly NIMBY. Petty issues will always be there; let's not multiply them. Better that Council cope with regional competiveness, infrastructure and tax containment than internal combativeness.

Toronto, the country's financial capital, is not a model. Being locked into 44 neighbourhood sand-lots and lacking a cohesive financial directorship, it is forever in turmoil. There is movement towards reduction of wards, i.e. bigger wards and also creation of an elected-at-large executive committee led by a "strong mayor." See:

Council need not be panicked into doubling wards while making a token reduction in total council members. Look beyond the self-serving easy-out of 14 mini wards for 14 incumbent councillors. Even if it means debating a seven ward "strong mayor" council next term, the legacy could be exemplary municipal governance for the rest of the Century.

Election Issue # 2 -size

How many does it take to change a bulb in council chambers of Mississauga vs. London?
Mississauga: One to turn the bulb + ten to hold the ladder.
London: One to hold the bulb plus 1.5 dozen to turn the ladder.

Mississauga, with nearly twice London's population, manages well with 11 council members. Ditto for Windsor.

London voters asked for a downsized council at the last election; by a 9-7 recommendation on May 17, members opted for preserving the backward-looking status-quo; full council will decide on June 13th whether to protect their jobs with 19 positions, consider expansion to 14 NIMBY wards, ...or consider a 7-ward re-alignment based on broad commonality of economic interests. In any case, voters capable of envisioning the benefits and possibilities change offers, will note the "status-quo" holdouts or expansionists...and take appropriate action at the 2006 polls.