Executive Decision-making at City Council?

27 Candidates vie for 8 Ward Councillor positions & 6 for Mayor. They all claim that “Change is needed”, but are they willing to up their game as the City’s “executive committee” for decision-making?

“Spectacular success comes from unspectacular preparation” - Robert H. Schuller.

Kudos to Doug Dickerson

I applaud Doug Dickerson  for being the only Candidate for CKL Councillor to date to submit a SWOT+ Report. While Doug did not lay out his Report in a formal SWOT+ format, all of the ingredients for a SWOT+ analysis are contained in his Report.  

If Doug was our Ward 3 Councillor at the City of Kawartha Lakes today, and if he was asked to participate in a SWOT+ “brainstorming” session with the Mayor and other elected Councillors on these topics, he would come to that meeting well prepared. This is this kind of thoughtful preparation that (I believe) will improve the decision-making performance of our new City Council after the Municipal election next month.

My Perspective

As a former Board member, and one who thinks of City Council as a similar type of “executive committee” empowered to make important decisions, I understand the fiduciary obligations that every elected Council member will undertake on City Council. You will be executives who will face a stream of challenges over the next 4 years. Your responsibility will encompass decisions regarding the allocation of CKL’s human capital (employees), asset capital (infrastructure, equipment, vehicles, contracts with 3rd party service providers, etc), financial capital (tax receipts, credit and debt arrangements, receipts from other levels of government, corporate donations, etc) and regulatory powers (the ability to make and oversee the enforcement of by-laws, and other rule-based mechanisms of authority. 

These four domains of responsibility are very complicated and it will require all new City Councillors to climb a steep and lengthy learning curve in order to perform at your best. 

Doug’s reward

To reward Doug,  I am requesting the Woodville Freedom Group to include the Doug Dickerson SWOT+ REPORT in the next weekly Bulletin that will be sent to its 700 members by email. A few other Councillor Candidates have informed me that they are in the process of preparing a SWOT+ Report. I will ask the WFG to include all submissions in this email. 

I am also a writer of political and economic topics on Substack.com under the bulletin title MY LIFE LENS. I will also post all SWOT+ Reports there to reward every Candidate who shows the willingness to prepare a thoughtful report.

Finally, I asked Doug to plant a sign on my boulevard. He came to my home earlier today to erect his sign (see photo). Doug has earned my vote and my endorsement for other electors to see.

Good luck to all of you. MAY THE BEST (WO)MAN WIN! 

Doug Dickerson SWOT+ Report

SUBMITTED  by Doug Dickerson, Candidate for Ward 3 Councillor 

Being a candidate in Ward 3, I would not presume what the greatest concern across the City is; however, I suspect it is the same as Ward 3.  And that would be the continuing deterioration of our roads.  A close second in Ward 3 is infrastructure, particularly Fenelon’s Sewage Treatment Plant which has operated over capacity for many years, with the resulting overflows emptying directly into the Fenelon River flowing into Sturgeon Lake.  The functioning of City Hall, or lack thereof, comes from most residents seeking building permits (of any sort), exorbitant costs to sever &/or rezone property, detailed information, rudeness, etc.  Their frustrations are numerous; they do not believe the City staff or Council are working in their best interests individually or the City’s.

With so many roads in disrepair, it causes potentially new residents and businesses to think twice about moving their investments here.  The City appears poorly managed. And more than one has moved out citing bad road conditions.  This robs us of needed jobs and foregoes new property tax revenue – not a vision of success.  A realistic 5-year road rebuilding program, updated yearly and followed, will allow for proper budgeting for the City and inform all taxpayers when to expect their street to be done.  I would suggest the 50 worst roads in Ward 3 would each have a pay-back period of roughly 7 years factoring in the high maintenance costs each year.  Then the net dollar savings kick in!

If Council fails to move on the Fenelon Treatment Plant expansion immediately, growth in Fenelon Falls will not occur.  Failure to move will result in lost property tax revenue & lost opportunities new growth brings with it.  Working with Federal & Provincial infrastructure grants available for expansion will ease any financial burden on City taxpayers.

The inner workings of City Hall are in desperate need of revamping.  Council needs to regain control, be respectful and be firm on what each job entails, how it is described & delivered, & how it can be improved.  The opportunities for a new relationship with “the customer” creates a more positive workplace and hearing the words “thank you” more often than “damn it”.  Less staff turnover will be the net financial benefit to taxpayers.  All City provided programs should have a “sunset clause” to review delivery & effectiveness every two years.

New growth should pay for itself through fees & development charges and should not be imposed on the existing tax base.  Upgrading of existing infrastructure to accommodate new growth ought to be factored into the development charges with a small portion charged to the City as new replacement.

Respectfully submitted to the Woodville Freedom Group for analysis and comment,

Doug Dickerson, Candidate, Ward 3 Councillor