Staff Spins On Vacant Unit Tax: LULOFF
Orleans-East Cumberland Councillor Matt Luloff says he can’t get straight answers from city staff on the controversial vacant unit tax.
This is not a good sign that staff is not being honest with Luloff. The councillor should bring this up at council.
In fact, a whole discussion on staff relations with Ottawa City Council wouldn’t hurt. The public has become accustomed to being spun by staff but doing the same to councillors is unconscionable.
If staff doesn’t respect council, then perhaps it’s time that city council takes staff out to the woodshed. That can be accomplished publicly at a meeting.
Where is new city manager Wendy Stephanson on this? She is responsible for the actions of her staff. If staff doesn’t respect city council (fundamental to democracy), maybe Stephanson should not be city manager:
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Maybe staff has been avoiding providing Luloff with information that he can spin and use to his advantage in the campaign for election to Queens Park that he’s running simultaneously while retaining his paycheck as an Ottawa councillor. His comments about the vacant home program definitely align him with the musings of a certain Doug Ford.
Should a municipal councillor be allowed to use his position to chase down info that’s not available to other provincial candidates? Maybe Luloff can ask his questions and receive the answers in a public forum such as a Committee or Council meeting where they would be available to all.
Didn’t Luloff participate in the decision-making process at Council when this program was approved? Has he not heard about the democratic principle of Council solidarity? Once the program is City policy, you stand behind it. If there are issues, you raise them along with suggestions for amelioration.
What are the questions he’s asked staff? Maybe he should tell us that rather than focusing on what he sees as an unsatisfactory response.