Editor's note: The following is an open letter to city council and the media:
Are we still the happiest city in Canada as reported back in 2015?
This year past may have been a turning point, as it seems that there is less reason to be jolly, especially with respect to actions taken by our local council and staff during 2016.
Things got off to a bad start with councillors, all except one, committing the spending of millions of local tax payer dollars just for the initial portion of the Maley Drive extension despite the majority of citizens publicly opposed to the road, echoing the feelings of one former councillor who said the project was a road for no one to nowhere for no reason.
The siren appeal of federal and provincial tax dollars was too much to resist, despite the fact these funds could have likely been applied for more useful projects including the repair and maintenance of our present crumbling infrastructure.
Again, tax dollars from provincial coffers appear to be the reason why local Rainbow School trustees are determined to build large new schools to replace smaller neighbourhood facilities, despite pleas from parents and other tax-paying citizens.
User fees continue to rise, and the age for older adults to receive consideration was raised to 65. The cost of living in our community as the result of these and general tax increases plus special levies for water and waste water continue to increase above the rate of inflation, affecting many on low and/or fixed incomes.
Just before the end of the year, the draft Master Transportation plan was approved by council with little in the way of near-term benefits for pedestrians and cyclists, but advocating expensive road widening and new construction despite the likelihood that our population will not increase and may actually decline going forward for several decades.
Council and staff remain fixated on legacy projects for the downtown in a questionable revival effort and to satisfy special interests both private and public.
Projecting forward, we trust the New Year will see the results of watershed studies now underway to show that continued harmful residential and commercial development around our precious lakes and waterways should not continue as in the past.
We hope that council will begin to fully understand that our community is in a low- or no-growth situation and plan accordingly to reduce expenditures in order to contain tax increases at or below the rate of inflation. We recommend that a new transportation plan be developed to take into consideration repair and maintenance of our existing roadways and improvement to pedestrian and cycling safety.
We hope that council will do a “rethink” with respect to expensive new special projects, and, in particular, the perceived need for a central library and art gallery to replace the present facilities and both to be located downtown.
Is a new library really required in our expanding digital age, and also a new gallery when most everywhere are experiencing declining attendance? We recommend consideration be given to incorporating a museum of Sudbury history sharing space with the Art Gallery in the Bell Mansion to create a valuable tourist revenue generating attraction.
Consideration should be given to the re-purposing of some of our present facilities including the present arena when a new building becomes a reality, hopefully not requiring taxpayer dollars.
It is time to be creative while living within our means and to maintain a sustainable and truly livable happy community for all our citizens. 2017 is the year to start to make it happen.
John Lindsay
Chair, Friendly to Seniors – Sudbury