City Hall Bereft Of Original Ideas: BENN
Ottawa’s financial dilemma is the direct result of “that’s the way we have always done it”.
Per College Ward Councillor Laine Johnson, the city faces a $3-billion shortfall between what it can reasonably expect to source in capital and what it will require to meet the obligations it has taken on as a result of the city’s Official Plan. Not to worry. The city is in the process of finalizing the changes to the zoning by laws to put in full force the Official Plan. Codifying the changes to zoning that residents and developers will rely on as they make investment decisions. Without knowing how it will pay for it all.
Why? Because the city has always passed its Official Plan a couple of years in advance of knowing what it will cost. Stunningly short-sighted. Stunningly. But consistent with prior practice. And how has that turned out you may ask? Aside from abysmally, given the current state of the city’s infrastructure.
“If you build it, they will come” was the catch phrase from the book Shoeless Joe and movie Field of Dreams. Not exactly prudent financial advice, but then anyone who looks to Hollywood for investment advice should not cross the street without assistance.
But wait, there’s more. Facing a $3-billion shortfall for infrastructure, council is still seriously considering adding another half-billion or so to the shortfall on Lansdowne.
But wait, there’s even more. Has anyone down at city hall tested Lansdowne 2.0’s optimistic capital costs and operating projections for the impact of tariffs and counter-tariffs? What about for inflation and rising interest costs that correlate directly with inflation arising from the tariffs and counter-tariffs? For that matter, has anyone made even a rough estimate of how much more the city can expect that $3-billion shortfall to rise due to the aforementioned array of tariffs and resultant inflation? Has anyone who has the statutory obligation to oversee city staff asked for this type of sensitivity analysis?
Didn’t think so. Because “that’s the way we have always done it”.
Ron Benn, a finance executive, has been a member of the Centrepointe Community Association for the better part of three decades.
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You can add to that the costs of developing Tewin which, as far as I can see, are just jottings on the back of an old envelope. Somewhat like the napkin figures that Jim Watson used to lock the feds and province into the 3-way $2B/$2B/$2B funding agreements for the LRT. Then, when the real figures came to light, his ‘cleverness’ resulted in the City picking up any cost overruns.
What are the opportunity costs of the City’s single sector investment?
What if, the city had built on the collapse of Nortel to support a resurgence of an IT/Knowledge sector? Or on the social side, had worked to end inter- generational poverty with gusto saving millions. Or if the City really supported 15 minutes neighbourhoods with better transit, more sports and recreation facilities and parks? Or if the City like Orillia hired doctors directly?
What if city council insisted that they have a complete understanding of the full cost of what it was being asked to approve, as part of the evaluation process? Then, perhaps a few prudent councillors might have asked for an iteration of what is presented as a plan (Official, Lansdowne etc.) to bring it in line with what the city could afford.
What we are missing here is that the city approves what they chose to call a plan with an incomplete understanding of what it will cost. That missing piece means that what the city choses to call a plan is nothing more than a pre-schooler’s wish list for his/her birthday.
What this boils down to is that the city’s financial situation is the result of it not behaving like a serious, mature organization. What it boils down to is that neither the senior levels of administration nor council as a whole are capable of governing this city. Quite frankly, I am struggling to identify anyone on council who has demonstrated, on a regular basis (i.e. not just when the circumstances suit their specific purposes), the requisite skills to meet the criteria of being a serious and mature councillor.