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MANOR PARK CHRONICLE
JANUARY
2001
The New Government
The new municipal Council-elect has had its first gathering with senior staff of the new city administration. Staff reported on the structure of the new administration as established by the Transition Board over the last months. The structure under the City Manager comprises 6 major departments - Emergency & Protective Services, People Services, Transportation, Utilities & Public Works, Development Services, and finally the two internal support departments of Corporate Services and Human Resources. This administration intends to focus on three things, service, service and service. It will be citizen-focused. There will be an enterprise culture (i.e. ensuring best practices, incorporating performance measurement tools, fostering corporate-wide service improvement initiatives). The goal will be to build the best City in North America.
The expertise that has been gathered to administer the City of Ottawa at the beginning of the millennium is impressive. I believe that you have every reason to expect that you will be well-served and that the transition to one-tier government will occur without major disruption. At the same time, this exercise is having the regrettable effect that the City is losing many highly qualified people who have served this region and its citizens very well over many years.
The two problematical areas that emerged at the briefing should not pose an immediate concern. One has to do with the reporting relationship of the city's auditor. I believe very strongly that this function must be fully independent of the administration it must audit. This can only be achieved by having this office report to Council and not to both Council and the City Manager as is currently proposed. The City Manager's office itself will be monitored by the auditor. Moreover, the City Manager is ultimately responsible for the efficient and effective functioning of all departments. Council is the only body to whom the manager reports and the auditor is one of the most important tools available to Council in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities. The controversy involving the federal ethics commissioner during the election underlines the importance of proper reporting relationships. I will be pressing for a change in this area. Another area which was curiously organized is the new electrical utility. Organization here has become a little more complex not due to amalgamation but due to the provincial deregulation of the electrical industry. The curiosity which has emerged is that, although the utility is 100% owned by the tax-payers of Ottawa, the only member of the Board which has been chosen by the citizens of Ottawa (or their representatives) is the mayor of the city. All other members have been named by the Transition Board and those members now have terms which range from 2 to 4 years. I don't believe that this kind of paternalism should be tolerated in the future.
During the election, I identified several areas over which the new Council will need to be especially vigilant. One area will be the way in which the region's infrastructure is extended. Another will be finding mechanisms to protect and enhance the role of individual neighbourhoods in the decision-making process. A third will be keeping costs under control and municipal taxes as low as possible. I identified six priority areas in my last article to the "Chronicle". I invite you to both assist me in this task of maintaining and enhancing our quality of life and remind me if I should stray.
Quality of Life Indicators
Preserving the quality of life in the nation's capital was a main theme of my campaign. At its last meeting before Christmas, the Transition Board received a report entitled "Quality of Life Indicators - Baseline Report". This document proposes a list of indicators grouped under three areas - Biophysical Indicators (11), Social Indicators (18), & Economic Indicators (10). The report also provides a summary of the current state of affairs, in Ottawa, for each of the 39 indicators. This may prove a useful tool, especially if City Council decides to revisit each indicator on a regular basis in the future, to assess how well we are doing as a society. Without such attempts at an objective measure it will be impossible to move forward since we will never know if any progress claimed is other than political rhetoric. The document will be available at public library branches. This approach may be one of the most important legacies of the Transition Board.
My Sincere Thanks
I would like to extend my thanks to you, my constituents, for the strong vote of confidence which you accorded me on November 13. Such an extraordinary result cannot do other than encourage me to work even harder for you in the years ahead. I thank the many in Manor Park who have offered their support as volunteers or donors to my campaign. I look forward to working with all in the service of our Capital City in the challenging period that lies before us.
Mes remerciements les plus sincères
Je profite de l'occasion pour remercier tous les résidents pour leur vote de confiance lors du scrutin du 13 novembre dernier. De tels résultats ne peuvent que faire en sorte que de me poussez à travailler encore plus fort au cours de 3 années à venir. Je tiens aussi à remercier tous les gens de Manor Park qui ont contribué d'une façon ou d'une autre à ma campagne. C'est avec enthousiasme que j'entrevois travailler avec vous tous pour le bien de nos quartiers afin de relever les nombreux défis qui nous attendent.
Season's Greetings
I take this opportunity, on behalf of my family and myself, to extend to all, Best Wishes for Peace, Health and Prosperity in 2001.
You can communicate with me at:
Regional Municipality of Ottawa-Carleton
Ottawa-Carleton Centre, Cartier Square
110 Laurier Avenue West, Ottawa, ON K1P 1J1
Tel: 560-1219, Fax: 560-1203
E.Mail: jacques.legendre@city.ottawa.on.ca
Web Site: www.city.ottawa.on.ca
· www.ville.ottawa.on.ca
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