November 30, 2009 - 11:59 am |
Posted by Jonathan Ross
These kinds of protests might be saved exclusively for Vancouver, while guerilla marketers and those wishing to make a buck might focus their efforts solely on Richmond and Whistler.
Last week, Vancouver City Council propoed amendments to 10 components of the the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games bylaw, all of which should pass tomorrow at their regularly schedule bi-weekly meeting.
Now in terms of credit, one must give an acknowledgment to Chris Shaw and Alissa Westergard-Thorpe who brought forth a court challenge to protect their Charter rights.
But with Vancouver out of the way regarding fears that Charter rights and freedom of expression would be impinged on, the focus must now turn to Richmond and Whistler.
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November 26, 2009 - 4:20 pm |
Posted by Jonathan Ross
The petting zoo is on its way out, and in consideration of what could have been cut, it makes complete sense.
As most readers are well aware, yesterday the Park Board decided by way of a 4-3 split vote to end subsidies to the Stanley Park petting zoo and the Bloedel Conservatory in Queen Elizabeth Park.
As I was told, there were 30 impassioned speakers last week when the vote was deferred, and a contingent of close to 50 for last night’s proceedings.
There is no doubt that these people were sincere in their efforts. For some, both are “iconic” institutions that will be greatly missed.
But in public office, when you are dealing with taxpayers money, and of course an obligation to balance the books year in and year out, tough decisions inevitably need to be made. And quite frankly, the fact that these two institutions are on the chopping block as opposed to other essential core services is a sound decision.
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November 26, 2009 - 10:56 am |
Posted by Jonathan Ross
City Caucus' Daniel Fontaine thinks that the Vision Mayor and Councillors "don't want a single legacy from the previous regime to be successful."
The truth is out there. A 311 system has been created for Vancouver, and in fact is already in use – SINCE FEBRUARY 16, but somehow, there is a conspiracy behind the system’s implementation.
At least, that is what you might believe after reading this post by Daniel Fontaine of City Caucus. Daniel was of course the former Chief of Staff to Mayor Sam Sullivan during his single term in office, which is when the 311 motion was passed by the NPA majority council.
This is the query that Fontaine puts forth:
“When you compare this to how every other major city in North America promotes their 311 service, you have to ask why the City of Vancouver remains mum.”
Well yesterday, I decided to make few calls to City Hall to track down why 311 hasn’t been “officially announced by the City of Vancouver.”
Well, after speaking to a few city staff in both the Business Planning and Services department which handles information technology issues and the Corporate Communications team, I got an answer.
Now come closer, and be quiet. I’ll whisper it in your ear. But first, put on your tin foil hat. You ready?
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