Water rates in Norfolk

[Spidubic]

WATER BILLS CAUSING SOME HEADACHES FOR NORFOLK RESIDENTS

Ward 7 Councilor Harold Sonnenberg told council during Tuesday nights meeting that people should be thankful for what they have instead of complaining. He says "Large populations across the world don't even have access to clean drinking water and children are dying everyday because of it."

Honestly not impressed with this comment. I for one will remember that when election time comes around. Yes we have it good in Canada compared to other countries but it seems like every place you go prices have gone up and we are getting pennied to death. And Norfolk Council does not seem overly concerned about the fact costs are rising but paychecks are not.

[growler]

well i don't think much about what some say about us having it so good/easy either,but at times i've made some pretty silly things to.
but on the average,i think our council is/has done a little better job than they are credited for,(about a 7 out of a 10?)there are a couple i don't think are the brightest candles on the cake and who make more sense when they keep quiet rather than when they talk.
and a couple others who i wouldn't vote for even if they held a gun to my head!
but on an overall average they have not done anything that bothers me enough to hire a hit man over.
the most recent budget,i think was a decent thing,no overly large things to complain about, and a reasonable increase considering what we are made to pay our HPP (high priced police).
and with the bull that the MNR, and the MOE, and a few others demand,our services aren't to great,but not worth getting all twisted over!
so like i said/say if some would just not say anything sometimes it might be a bit better ?

[Spidubic]

I would give them a passing grade on the latest budget. My only issue with them is IMHO each budget should be met with a goal of 0% increase. They always seem to start with a 10% increase and a goal of 2-3% and when they get there they are happy and slap each other on the back. I would be glad to get from 10 down to 2 but not happy. Only a 05 increase to me would be a slap yourself on the back happy time.

[Ruby Tuesday]

Haha. I agree on the budget comment. Funny how they start high and whittle down and congratulate themselves. Shouldn't there be common sense frugality when they put the budget together to begin with? I think that if they started at 10% over and got down to 2% that someone was putting inflated numbers in to begin with - and shouldn't of been.

I can't wait to run for mayor!

[growler]

i just got this as a bcc of the mayors letter to anyone who should be doing something about this !
mp's,,mpp's, the prov.leadersof all party's,and almost anyone involved with municipal budgets !
so as we're talking about controling spending,i figure it's something we should all be supporting ?

At the end of this year (a short 9 1/2 months from now), we in rural and small town Ontario will be required to adjust our already limited and hard-pressed budgets and seriously consider reducing our spending on important infrastructure or health and social services to pay for the raise the Ontario government has publicly stated that it (the Ontario government) is going to give to the OPP.



Two years ago the past Premier said that his government would be giving the OPP a 8.5% raise. That was before a number of large urban centers, with their own police forces, gave their police a raise.

When this government is telling every municipality, group and union that "restraint" is a must, and they are fully prepared to give the OPP a minimum 8.5% increase, it is time to speak up and say "stop the madness".

The voices of the Opposition parties are deafening in their silence on this urgent rural issue.

If we allow this to happen, if we remain silent, then the heavy burden of this increase to the OPP, on our limited budgets, will be our fault.

I ask every Minister and MPP to take immediate action and stop this lunacy.



I ask all of those whom I have copied (b.c.c.) that you communicate your serious concern about this disgraceful intention to you MPP, your peers on Council and your contacts on other Councils in "rural and small town" Ontario.

At the "bear pit" session at ROMA the responsible Minister said that "committees" and AMO were working on the issue. Has anyone seen a single report of progress from any of these committees? Has anyone received a report from our Association about progress toward a solution before the end of 2013?

She also told the delegates that the OPP were number 26 on the Ontario police pay list. To me that was a clear indication of her intent to give the OPP a huge raise to make them the top paid force in Ontario at our (rural and small town Ontario) expense.



They give the raise, we pay for it!! We have NO say for pay!!

Speak up, visit www.mayorscoalition.com and join the Coalition members at OSUM on May 1st (we will hear more on this later).

An minimum 8.5% raise to any group in this fiscal environment would be an abomination.



This is NOT an issue of quality of service by the OPP. The service that Norfolk receives is top notch and highly professional, and I strongly support the officers and civilians in the Norfolk detachment. This is an issue of an unaffordable, unsustainable and unaccountable (Councils to their citizens) cost to rural and small town Ontario forced upon us by the government of Ontario.



If the government of Ontario is unwilling to stop this intended action, then we must ask them to remove the cost of the OPP service to rural and small town Ontario, from our Levy and treat it similar to the education tax or institute a cost share formula similar to health.

[Spidubic]

Seems odd to me that the Ontario Government sets the dollar amount for OPP but does not pay it. If they want the OPP to get an 8.5% raise then they should be the ones dolling out the money. How can they expect small counties to pay the same amount as bigger counties or cities?

Bottom line to me is we are reaching a point where people are being taxed to death. It is time for accountability. Show the people why you are spending the money and where exactly it is going.

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