The level of taxes is a constant concern - the city has limited resources and as a core city we cannot shoulder the social burdens of an entire urban region. The higher tax rates we charge on shops and offices make the downtown a less attractive place to do business.
I am not sure I agree with the Times-Colonist’s comment that I am “...at his best minding the taxpayers' piggy bank...” , But it is certainly true that I often find myself in a minority opposing spending initiatives.
The following discusses one long-standing area of what I consider unneeded expenditure of resources, the provision of support for two community centers in Fernwood. The immediate issue was a long-overdue decision to terminate the lease for one of the two centers, and its potential impact on a tenant, the theatre group Theatre Inconnu. The following is my response to those who wrote protesting the decision.
Thank you for your email with regard to the lease at 1921/1923 Fernwood. You should have received a reply from one or more of my colleagues, but I am also writing to you because my views on this subject differ quite a bit from those of other council members.
It is my understanding that this building was first provided to the Fernwood Community Association many years ago partly because there was a split in the community and there were two rival community associations that did not wish to work together; it was decided to offer different services out of two nearby buildings. Although I was not a city councillor at that time, I like to think that I would have opposed taking a step such as this to perpetuate a split in the community, rather than allowing a democratic process to resolve the differences between the groups. Certainly over the years that I have been on Council I have consistently called for the two groups to amalgamate. Instead, the City is in the nonsensical position of funding two community associations in Fernwood - and make no mistake, providing a City-owned building tax and rent free to an association so it can rent it out to earn money is a way of funding it. The City has been guilty of encouraging a division in the community by supporting two associations, and the sooner it stops the better. Far too much of the scarce human resources of the community is devoted to inter-association rivalry and to the management of buildings.
Many of those who have written to me have suggested that the FCA is providing a valuable service by providing a space for Theatre Inconnu. I am not an expert on space requirements for community theatre groups, and I do not know whether this space is the best available for this purpose, but assuming that it is, I cannot see why this is a good way for the City to provide this support. For example, rather than giving the building to the FCA and allowing it to sublease the space to Theatre Inconnu, would it not be preferable to simply give the building to Theatre Inconnu and allow them to manage the space themselves? Why should the City provide the subsidy to Theatre Inconnu and others indirectly through the building management policies of the FCA, rather than directly? It is even possible that Theatre Inconnu would be able to gain access to federal and provincial arts grants to refurbish the building. However, I say this not knowing whether there are other theatre groups that would have an equally good claim on the scarce resources the City can devote to the arts. Perhaps a board representing the arts groups would be the best manager, should this building indeed prove to be a suitable candidate for this purpose. If not, the resources now in-corporated in the building might be harnessed in a different way.
Thanks again for taking the time to write. This issue has concerned me for many years and I hope that the good of the Fernwood community as a whole will be considered in arriving at a solution.
Geoff Young