Troster Should Get Those Security Gates Down

Somerset Councillor Ariel Troster has concerns about new security measures at City Hall. Good.

This from Troster’s newsletter:

Many have written to me about new security procedures at City Hall. I share your frustration with these new impediments to accessing important public spaces. Security matters are delegated to staff, and these new measures were not a result of a political decision. I will continue to collect your feedback and share it with staff. I hope we can improve the experience for all who come to City Hall.

—

Here’s a idea.

Take away the delegated authority. If security cannot act sensibly, perhaps it should not have delegated authority over security at entrances.

Get council to order security to remove the gates at Ottawa City Hall entrances that create roadblocks for residents to access the people place on the main floor of the building. If residents don’t want security gates at city hall, here’s an idea … take them down.

Maybe it is time for city hall to represent the people of this city, rather than just represent city hall.

Councillor Troster … act, don’t just talk about it. Your constituents don’t want those gates.

Ridiculous security matters much more than declaring Ottawa the Shawarma Capital of Canada. Security matters.

It’s obvious from the reaction of readers on The Bulldog that the public doesn’t want those gates. Journalists in town has argued against those gates. Think about it for a second … reasonable people don’t want those gates and, frankly, those barriers won’t stop a person who really wants to get in. The gates are a mistake. Correct the mistake. Or are the people of city hall unable to admit their mistakes.

Represent the people of Ottawa. Take down the gates.

Don’t use delegated authority as an excuse for bad governance. Act. Don’t just talk about it … act. This is an important public-policy issue.

Democracy is about openness, caring and inclusiveness. Those gates stand in the way of those important principles.

The gates are of dubious usefulness and a waste of $1 million.

Ken Gray

This Troster newsletter excerpt is courtesy of the city-wide community group Your Applewood Acres (And Beyond) Neighbours.

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