OUR JOURNEY, OUR LEGACY

Inaugural Speech, December 4, 2006

Fellow councillors, special guests, and members of the public, today this Council embarks on an important journey.

There are three aspects of that journey that I’d like to speak about: The plan, the journey itself and the reason why reaching our destination is so vital to the future of this municipality.

First, the plan.

Many of us have been preparing for this trip for a long time. Last year we pored over the road maps and chose our destination. We looked at the obstacles holding the residents of this municipality from achieving their potential.

We chose progress over status quo.
We chose initiative over inertia.
We chose to do the right thing for this municipality, knowing full well that it would take backbone and courage to move the markers forward.

There were those who suggested that we had misread the will of the public when we chose our preferred route, our Strategic Plan.

Well that was then and this in now. The election showed we were right. Those who believed in Council’s direction have been re-elected. Convincingly.

We have been given a mandate to accomplish the directives of the Strategic Plan. We have been given a mandate to be progressive. And we will.

We will start very shortly by becoming the first municipality in Muskoka to conduct its business at the council table electronically and the first to actively embrace performance-based initiatives for all senior management.

We will build those fire stations we spoke about in our campaigns. We will build them because the people of this municipality deserve the best fire and first response service we can give them.

We will follow through with the streetscape and parking improvements in Bala and Port Carling. We will improve them because the business people of this community need the support of their Council to create a year-round economy.

We will have a new site alteration by-law that stops inappropriate tree removal and blasting.

We will complete the review of the Official Plan and Zoning By-law and through that process we will tackle the issues that have challenged us, such as:

• setting guidelines for residential use of commercial properties, including fractional ownership

• incorporating language that encourages affordable homes and provides incentives for contractors to build them

• allowing commercial owners a range of options for staff accommodation

We will continue to set goals and let the public know how we’re progressing with an annual report card. Our budget process will be clear, comprehensive and transparent, with Council setting the priorities and an acceptable range of tax increase while our administrators ensure compliance with Council’s direction.

And now I want to remind you why this journey is important.

Quite simply, our journey will determine the legacy we leave behind.

We must always remember that we are not a Council for some of the people, we are a Council for all of the people: young families who are trying to find affordable homes and jobs and add vitality to our communities — seniors who want to live their lives in the villages they love. Both have champions around this council table.

We will pay attention to their concerns by moving into areas we have shied away from in the past, namely recreational programs and opportunities for youth and for seniors. We will do whatever it takes to keep the people who want to live here, here.

Through our new Economic Development Committee we will tap the knowledge and expertise of the best business leaders in this community and together we will solve the most troubling problems facing business today.

Our most difficult challenge will be to stimulate the economic well being of the community, while protecting the essence of Muskoka. It’s a delicate balance.

Our legacy depends on how well this Council handles environmental issues brought about by growth and development: issues such as quarrying of granite, indiscriminate blasting, stormwater management, deteriorating air quality, and a whole new set of data on lake system health that indicate that the problems are getting a lot more complex.

Through education and legislation we must convince people to live more gently on the land. In this regard, Council must lead by example, by continuing to restore natural shorelines in waterfront parks, by installing dark-sky compliant lighting, prohibiting cosmetic use of pesticides on public lands and planting native species instead of turf.

Now that the general population realizes that global warming is a real threat to the planet, municipalities no longer have the luxury of waiting for senior levels of government to dictate change. Operational changes in municipal governments, however small, can cumulatively make a difference. We can begin by establishing protocols that require the Corporation to consider energy efficiency and emission control in everything it builds and purchases.

In conclusion, the voters of this municipality have given us a mandate to get on with the business of moving this municipality forward in a way that protects the very best of Muskoka and enhances the quality of life of all its citizens.

It’s an admirable destination.

As Izaak Walton said: “Good company in the journey makes the way seem shorter.”

I believe we are in the very best of company here today. I believe there are extraordinary possibilities in ordinary people and together we will make a difference.
Thank you.