Over coffee this morning the Editorial Board of The Langley Record unanimously supported Mayor Rick Green's taking of the high road in this Langley Advance article. Our discussion turned to what Green could do in 2009 to bring more harmony to the Township and actually get some much needed work done. Here are some of the things we kicked around:
Public Input and Participation - Green promised during his campaign that there would be more public input. His first official move on this will be his new finance committee. But it is no surprise that instead of Green tapping into some significant business and finance experts, we hear he is leaning towards a committee comprised of his campaign supporters.The final committee list is not final yet, so we will not publish any names here. I guess you could consider these people to fit the bill of "public input", but Green runs the risk of having a bunch of YES men advising him. This is the mayor's decision and unlike Obama, Mayor Green seems to hold grudges with those that have oppose him and perhaps age causes him not to reach across the isle and built bridges to help his administration. If his New Year Resolutions include work in these areas, we agree that it would be a very good thing for him and the Township at large.
Town Hall Forums - Green announced last week that in the New Year he would launch separate monthly meetings where citizens can address their concerns to mayor and council. While this appears to be a good idea on the surface, it could turn very ugly and cause further division in the TOL. The current council process already allows citizens (and groups) to address mayor and council with concerns or announcements in the form of a DELEGATION. In our opinion the Delegation system works well, in that people need to state their case within a 5 minute time period. Over the years, mayor and council have been very generous with this time rule, but it still gets abused far too often. Imagine a separate public gripe session without solid time limits? If not managed properly, the public will grow tired of time-wasting and simply not attend these meetings. As it is, the Township public fail to attend most council and other public meetings.
Our suggestion to Mayor Green is to dedicate one regular council meeting per month to include a one hour gripe session that would include not only mayor and council, but would see senior staff or managers on hand that can speak to public concerns about Police, Fire, Waste Removal, Parks & Rec., Engineering & Traffic, Planning, and a host of Township services. Enforce a clear 5 minute rule and allow these people to present their more lengthy submissions in writing to council for further consideration. This would truly be a valuable meeting and experience for Township residents. If you can't state your case in 5 minutes, then you are just wasting public and council time.
Council Priorities Meetings - Mayor Green could really build some bridges in this Township with the advertising of Council Priorities Meetings and the opening of them to the public. It would be made clear that the public cannot comment at these meetings (just as they can't with current TOL committee meetings). This would help prevent the public from thinking that various issues just come out of thin air, leaving the public felt left out of the process. It would provide greater insight into the council process and help all of us to understand the issues of most importance to the TOL.
Consensus Building - 2009 Would be a great time for Mayor Green to put aside the issues of the recent past and begin to conduct in-camera and council meetings with an atmosphere of building consensus. There is one councillor that opposes these type of meetings because it doesn't leave much room for public grandstanding and pandering. The remainder of council are reasonable people and would embrace such a move by Mayor Green.
Abundance and Not Scarcity - Many Township residents are successful and some could be considered affluent. People that have achieved success in life know the value of prudent governance, but reject the notion of a scarcity mentality. While the world economic situation is a sobering reminder that we need to manage our finances, it is not fair to residents to paint a picture of doom and crisis because you promoted a way to finance the Township budget, while keeping property taxes at current levels. Township residents are not unreasonable people, but we do expect community amenities like parks and trails, recreation facilities and programs, etc. If you promote density development and increase the numbers of people that dwell on an acre of land (a huge shift in living arranagements for many people), then you must provide the community with quality amenities that allow people to get away from their small patch of land and enjoy some wide open space and first-rate facilities that accommodate their work, life and leisure schedules and activities.
Bridging Urban and Rural Residents - Over the course of this past civic election a huge spike seems to have been driven between the urban and rural residents of the Township. This is not healthy and both types of land use are extremely important to the health and vitality of this Township. While sewer, water and other public services should be provided to the rural residents whenever possible and practical, we must also respect the fact that many rural residents do not desire these services because of the connection and other fees that must be paid by them. Previously council has been flooded with complaints of this type and residents wanting exclusion from various area upgrades. Many of us older folks don't have kids in school, but we help finance the education system anyway. It is not fair that South and Central Langley folks complain to the urban residents about supporting community assets and amenities. Mayor Green could help bridge this divide and work to show both rural and urban residents the value of community assets.
There are tons of other recommendations, but the Board will leave those for a later time. Ponder these thoughts and feel free to voice your opinions.
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