Haldimand "Mayor Trainer says I Think they are Pooping on Us"

Well the deadline has passed and the answer is official, "no money" for Haldimand County Recovery Plan. Are you surprised?

I usually call and talk to Mayor Trainer regarding issues before I write about them, but in this case I am taking all of my information from an article written by Karen Best of the Chronicle. Karen is an excellent reporter and I trust that all of her information is correct. I have taken some excerpts from the article in particular the ones that I am interested in and made comments under each one. You can either buy the chronicle or go to the link to read the entire story online. Please read the entire article it is very informative.

Thanks Karen for an excellent story, and for informing the public of what has transpired!

Haldimand County council disappointed by provincial government; Protest in the works?

Posted By KAREN BEST
Posted 2 hours ago

Mayor Marie Trainer's sit in by a senior government minister's office door was put on hold until both the provincial and federal governments have time to review Haldimand County's recovery plan.

She and other council members are hoping for more positive responses than those received within the last week. The Ontario government rejected an $8.4 million grant application for a Hagersville sewage plant upgrade and the federal government revealed a set of strings attached to $1.26 million in grant money for replacement of cast iron water pipes in Dunnville. On top of that, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada minister Chuck Strahl rejected council's request for a meeting.

So council will wait until April 21 for a different kind of news.

Earlier this year, the $56 million recovery plan was mailed to Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and Prime Minister Stephen Harper and a few of their ministers. The plan predominantly focused on expensive infrastructure including improvements to the Dunnville, Cayuga, Hagersville and Caledonia sewage treatment plants and funding for an infrastructure study in the Nanticoke industrial park.

Council members were very disappointed about the Hagersville grant rejection especially when the project met all criteria including ready to build and related to infrastructure. County chief administrative officer Don Boyle and physical services managers planned to seek an explanation for the failed application from officials in the Ontario Ministry of Public Infrastructure Renewal. Boyle held the county's application up against many that were granted a portion of the $450 million provincial Municipal Infrastructure Investment Initiative. Ottawa received the most with $20 million for a library and archives followed by Hamilton with $14 million for trails. A $7 million theatre in Chatham-Kent attracted funding as did a $4.5 million aquatics centre in St. Catharines.

Frustration surfaced in related discussions. Boyle said there was no indication when Ontario will deal with the county recovery plan. "No one seems to have the time," he said.

My understanding of the statement above by Boyle is that the "Government" is telling Haldimand County exactly that, "they have no time for us". You certainly don't need a "brick" to fall on your head to understand that one.

Coun. Buck Sloat suggested camping out to protest and Trainer said that for some time she was considering that as a last resort. "If that's what it takes, we'll sit in front of the minister's office," added Sloat.

Now just a suggestion, but do you think that we (the residents) should ask if we can join Council in their "Sit In"? Or are they just not ready for the support yet.

"We need straight up front conversation with ministries to see where they stand with Haldimand County," said Boyle. In his mind, Plan B can involve galvanizing the community around a common theme - "we need help for this". "They've ignored us," noted Boyle.

"Plan B"? Well we have heard that before. Everyone seems to have a "Plan B", do you know what "Plan B" is? Now here Boyle is talking about the community? Is he asking for our help, now that it is "confirmed" that they have been "ignored"?

Trainer stated that Haldimand County was being held hostage for all of Canada and believed governments wanted to leave it there and forget the municipality. "We have to change that approach," she added.

It would be interesting to find out how Haldimand County is going to change their approach. I would firstly suggest that Haldimand County change their approach to the most important asset that they have and that is the "Residents of Haldimand County"! Have we not been ignored and chastised in all of this?

Trainer said she has taken provincial aboriginal affairs minister Michael Bryant's advice to heart to no avail. Last November, he suggested she stop "pooping" on Premier Dalton McGuinty and she did. Unfortunately that did not open the doors to assistance, she pointed out. Given grant rejection and recent correspondence, she believed the tables were turned.

"I think they are pooping on us," she said.

Well their is the first "secret" that has surfaced, and it wouldn't have been revealed if the money had come our way! We in Haldimand have been "POOPED" on from the beginning, and it is very obvious that our own "Elected Officials" have been aware of this for some time! Is it not time now for Haldimand County to come clean?

While recognizing the camp out as a good suggestion and willing to do it, Coun. Tony Dalimonte convinced council to give the federal and provincial government time to study the huge list of recovery items in front of them.

Well just when you thought that maybe just maybe Council would ask for our help, and bingo, Councillor Dalimonte has convinced Council to just wait a little bit longer. So I guess there is "no" "Plan B" after all! Hello guys, you have been told, when are you going to get it!

"If any good came out of this whole issue, it has brought the county together," noted Trainer. Council members adopted Boyle's suggestion to wait to react until Bryant's April 21 meeting with council.

I would like an explanation for this statement from Mayor Trainer. How has this brought the County "together"? The "Recovery" plan was done behind closed doors and with no interest on behalf of Council or Staff for our input. The plan was forced to be made public by the "Provincial Government" who basically stated they will not give funds unless we hear from the public. Could part of the failure to secure these funds be on the backs of Council members who decided in their wisdom to not follow "due process"?

A change in course from treading lightly may be due, the CAO indicated. "As a county, we need to stand up and be counted," said Boyle about mobilizing council and the community.

The residents of Haldimand County have been asking their own "Elected" officials this for quite some time now. Once again Boyle is asking that the Council and Community get together.

In response to council's request to meet with the minister, his chief of staff wrote that Strahl "must decline". No explanation was provided. As an alternative, he suggested the county ask senior federal negotiator Ron Doering to update them on Six Nations land claim negotiations. "Once again we're getting a brush off," said Boyko who prepared a motion describing the Strahl's response as unsatisfactory and asking for dialogue with the minister. Council unanimously endorsed the motion.

Maybe council is dealing with the wrong ministries because the INAC and the Ontario ministry of aboriginal affairs ministers place First Nations as their top priority, said Trainer.

Sloat pointed out that the first responsibility of every federal minister is to the citizens of Canada. He also asked staff to follow up on Finley's promise to arrange a meeting with Strahl.

http://www.dunnvillechronicle.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=968357&auth=KAREN+BEST