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Vrbanac is the voice of common sense TV is making a mockery of marriage The institution of marriage is under assault. And before you think this is another editorial that wades into the contentious issue of sameâ€"sex marriage, guess again. The real assault is the one occurrting on the air waves where suitors are herded up like cattle before being put out to stud. or an obnoxious fiancé puts shame to the idea of the wedding vow. That seems to be the common premise, whether the show is "The Bachelor, "The Bachelorette" or "My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiancé." Kudos to Bob Vrbanac for being. to date, the sole voice of clarity and common sense that I‘ve read in regard to RIM Park ("You don‘t solve one problem by creating another," Chronicle, Feb. 18. 2004, p. 10). The promise of love and honour has been turned into how to trick and deceive â€" all for a cool $1 milâ€" lion. RIM Park has become a musical affair Long Time ago, the Dreamer A‘city council in My Little Town lecided to create a millenniâ€" um Palisades Park. It was a Long And Winding Road, but Something had to be done. Council was looking for Cites and would ultimately Lister to the local sports groups advocating the importance of Gumres People Play. Ensuingly. the library. cultural and other charitable groups would become Memories. When the Mansion On The Hill was completed, agreed to and Turned To Stone, sports Big Spenders and politicians were Dancin‘ In The Streets. The matrimonial state is being torn asunder by the reality show Council, who, fram a fiscal stance, knew Nothin From Nothin\ didn‘t believe it was Walking On a Thin Line, because sports is what the People wanted. Further, as politicians are wont to do, While You See A Chance. Take it‘ The offer seemed Irresistible, Besices, staff said, It‘s Afright. In the meantime, however. a Cheater, disguised as a Cool Jerk was Strokin‘ city officials and electâ€" ed reps to spend Money on this Stairway To Heaven and that said that the end cost would be Peanuts. However, Minute By Minute, the local Pretty Paper exposed the proâ€" jected costs as Lies and that actual interest rates were significantly More And More. He would Twist them into a Fever by offering Nights On Broadâ€" way, along with a Sea Cruise, Lady‘s Night and even golf in Florida at Swingtown. At that Time Of The Season. Everybody seemed to be on a Spin ning Wheel. _ o Was it True? Signs of Bad Times LETTERS TO THE CHRON Vrbanac puts proposed solutions to the RIM Park issue in realistic perspective and sets out a proper starting point for reasonable conâ€" sideration of our choices. Again. kudos to him; and, was Answers at the inquiry scemed hard to come by:. The Big Boss Man would say of his responsibility. Pass Me By. while the treasurer muttered (Um, (/m. Um, Um,. Um. Um, as to his knowlâ€" edge of the costly deal. The CAO would Take The Money And Run. with the full support of his coâ€"workers, claiming. He Ain‘t {a} Heary, he‘s just Insensitive. vraze‘s lust for money. And it‘s sunk to new lows with a TYÂ¥ show calted the "The Littlest Groom‘, no pun intended. The show attempts to help a fourâ€"footâ€" five man find his soul mate by askâ€" ing. "Does size really matter when it comes to true love?" Will Glen decide that, "Good things come in small packages," as he serial dates through a group of little people. were flitting about Here, There And Everywhere, but when the Dust In The Wind settled, most politicians and top emplovees said 7t Ain‘t Me Babe. deciding to deflect pressure and Hang Em High with a Here Come Da Judge inquiry. The carnival tent has been turned inside out on this freak show. And where is real love celebrated on any of these shows? It‘s like they‘re thumbing their noses at anyone who has made this lifeâ€"time commitment. Maybe it‘s no surprise as our postâ€"modern pessimism is poured The }eigning mayor said I‘m Movin‘ Out. and the treasurer said Take This Job And Shove It. Some of council seemed truly regretful and embarrassed, saying I‘m Sorry and Forgive Me, while the other cheeky Little Devils claimed i Was In The Right Place, But It Must Have Been The Wrong Time. Citizens were in the right to say Enough Is Enough or ask Where Were You When I Needed You, howâ€" ever now seemed only Dazed And Confused, simply demanding some Respect. Sadly, it was Too Late To Turn Back Now:. So Where Do We Go From Here? Well, in late 2003 we elected a new council, which is a Good Thing. The atmosphere at city hall was More Than A Feeling }t was Bad, a Wipeout...a real Thriller® Our mayor, who is supported around the horseshoe with many a New Kid In Town and who has made some Promises, Promises to be a Handyman and frankly, I‘m A Believer No more issues Behind Closed COMMENT NICL] anybody listening? out against one of the pillars of our society. Or maybe it‘s just a reflecâ€" tion of a society where 50 per cent of marriages end in failure. And why bother trving? That seems to be the message as they try to replace the substantial with the superficial. And where is this assault on marriage most on display? Just stayed tuned to Fox as there is a new episode of "Cops" chronicling this social decay. Doors. Taxpayers are Wishin‘ And Hopin‘ that council will be creative in keeping increases Lowdown, go Easy on us and really Thirk seriousâ€" ly about the best options. If there is an epilog or a Morning After to this local Charade. there is many a Lesson to be learned. * If a deal seems as easy as Oneâ€" Twoâ€" Three, then there‘s Something In The Air. * If you‘re unsure @ffacts on how to vote on an issue. then Honey. Don‘t! * The Taxman of RIM Park will visit us for the next 30 years. * There will be a oneâ€"time Big Shot of funds required by residents of My Town to help pay down interâ€" est and other costs. Why get marriage counselling when you can just blow them away? â€" It all makes you wonder why you said "I do" in the first place when everything in our culture says, "I don‘t support your decision". * It is imperative. with a facility of this magnitude, that we outscore and hire an individual to properly manage and promote some and start Takin‘ Care of Business...No Matter What! So much for "Until death do us part‘. * You Can‘t Get What You Want ‘Till You Know What You Want * Do What You Do. Do Well * If you‘re out of your element in dealing with the intricacies of being a city councillor, then you‘d do well to ask for Help and then Shaddap You Face. And, finally, even though there‘s been a lot of Bad Blood in the recent past, the Waterloo citizen will proâ€" claim "I Will Survive and I‘m Gonna Be Strong. I have Faith in Tomorrow. So let‘s Come Together, Let‘s Hang On. Waterloo, Because, When The Going Gets Tough...We Are Family!" Michael H. Clifton Waterloo Craig Hoddle Waterloo Of course municipalities do not have the same inventory of saleable assets as the senior level of governments, except for local hydro utilities which municipalities have owned since 2000 everal weeks ago I wrote about the City of Waterloo budget Sund suggested ways in which the city could reduce expenses and raise revenues. One of the ways governâ€" ments at all levels raise revenue is through selling assets. The federal government is currently ruminating about sellâ€" ing their stake in Petroâ€"Canada; and the provincial government is similarly reviewing their stable of assets to determine if it makes sense to sell anything. Waterloo not the first to use money from hydro Obviously I was quite pleased to hear Mayor Epp announcâ€" ing a plan to approach Waterloo North Hydro to explore ways in which it can help out with this year‘s budget. Some municiâ€" palities such as Cornwall and Brampton have sold their hydro interests to the private sector for hundreds of millions of dolâ€" lars. Brampton for example netted approximately $130 million. Other municipalities have used their Hydro utilities for cash infusions without selling. Kitchener for example has "withâ€" drawn" $11.5 million, Toronto has removed $100 million and Missisâ€" I ETV sauga has used $200 million from STRICI\LX their local hydro provider. Municipaliâ€" ‘ SPEAKING ties who sell their locally owned utiliâ€" ties are taking a much bigger gamble ‘ moree uk. â€" in the long run â€" when compared o to municipalities who use financial *re mechanisms to withdraw cash from | (@B MJ ssm &« the utility while still maintaining ownâ€" ,% 2C 0 5 ership. Local ownership still requires & . x= l p local control and accountability. % 6 * tm which are good things to have in your ~ Tds corner if you‘re a consumer. i: . When the ownership of local utiliâ€" ] m ties was "devolved" to municipalities, the provincial government also structured the arrangement so that the new owners were required to absorh all debt. The bilâ€" lions of dollars of debt that the old Ontario Hydro had accuâ€" mulated over the years was now divided amongst the newly created local utilities. These utilities financed the debt by issuâ€" ing promissory notes to the new owners. in our case, the City of Waterloo, the Township of Wellesley, and the Township of Woolwich. The City of Waterloo, as the majority shareowner, holds a promissory note issued by Waterloo North Hydro for approxiâ€" muately $30 million. The problem with this arrangement is that Waterloo North Hydro has never met its repayment obligaâ€" tions. Beginning in 2001, the city was to receive $2.2 million a vear. In actual numbers, the city has only received an average of approximately $800,000 per vear over the past three years. The draft 2004 city budget has a payment listed at $900,000. was agreed to in 2000. In fairmess to Waterloo North Hydro, the utility agreed to the $2.2 million per year when it was thought the hydro rates were heading toward true deregulation. When this experiment failed and hydro rates were subsequently frozen, Waterloo North Hydro,(and most other locally owned utilities) were unable to generate the extra cash to pay the municipalities. Mayor Epp‘s hydro plan a good one Rather than rush to the market place and sell hydro in its entirety, Mayor Epp is trying to restructure the original financâ€" ing agreement and ask the utility to pay the city $15.1 million of the original $30 million. Waterloo North Hydro, after repayâ€" ing the city, would in turn borrow the money from a commerâ€" cial lender. The city would use $1 million to help cover some park costs immediately, and $14.1 million would be set up in a restricted reserve fund with the interest earned applied to the overall park debt. This route is much more palpable than sellâ€" ing all of Waterloo North Hydro. Clearly. hydro is not producing the revenues that Waterloo thought it would when the ownership and financing structure By "calling in the loan" so to speak, the city can help solve its immediate budget crisis and still maintain majority ownership of hydro, which is the best of the both worlds. It is now up to our sister municipalities in Wellesley and Woolwich to support the deal at the hydro board and then have it ratified by their respective councils. If this happens, and there is a good chance it will, Mayor Epp and Waterloo council will be well on their way to solving the challenge of this year‘s budget. Please _ email _ your _ questions/comments _ to sean@seanstrickland.com . Waterloo North Hydro may save the day STRICKLY y SPEAKING %‘}; | i SEAN STRICKLAND