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Stouffville Sun-Tribune n www.yorkregion.com n Thursday, Jan. 16, 2014, 6 O Fax: 905-640-8778 Class: 1-800-743-3353 OPINION Editorial CCNA BLUE RIBBON !"#$ Publisher Ian Proudfoot General manager John Willems 6290 Main St. Stouffville, ON. L4A 1G7 www.yorkregion.com LETTER OF THE WEEK Town council job description doesn't include campaigning Re: Questions surround town council, letter to the editor by Art Woodruff and Emmerson challenges critics to run for mayor, Jan. 9. They're off and running -- at the mouth. Mr. Woodruff makes a number of perhaps valid, although vague, observations with no real solutions offered. Mayor Wayne Emmerson should perhaps consider the writer for his short list of those who "should" run. Where have all the past letter writers gone? The late Margaret May has a legitimate excuse and Arnold Neufeld-Fast is prolific, but I miss the offerings of Fred Robbins, Sue Sherban, Hugo Kroon, Dave Probert and the rest of the "old guard" of town council watchers. I have attended many meetings of council, workshops, training sessions, presentations, hearings and events, as well as meetings of York Region council during the past year. My intention to run for WhitchurchStouffville councillor has been well known by family and friends. During the past months, as I prepared myself for the job at hand, I was overwhelmed by the offers of support from my community. Financial and moral support was offered, but more importantly, so was the support of many individuals with specific skills, which I lack and I feel a councillor requires to fulfill a duty to his/her constituents. The obligations of a municipal politician are simple and are laid out quite clearly in the Municipal Act. Consider all sides of an issue, make an informed, objective and procedurally sound decision, free of interference in the best interest of the community. The "job" is somewhat more involved: · Represent the public's well-being and interest, develop and evaluate policies and programs; · Determine services to be provided; · Ensure administration policies, practices and procedures, as well as controllership procedures are in place to implement decisions; · Ensure accountability and transparency; · Maintain the financial integrity of the municipality; · Carry out all duties under all existing applicable acts and regulations. You can file all the glad-handing, babykissing, parades, ribbon cuttings and other events under campaigning, unless you have been in the habit of supporting and taking part in such events prior to running for office. 905-640-2612 DISTRIBUTION 1-855-853-5613 Editor in Chief Debora Kelly dkelly@yrmg.com Taxpayers demand value even when saving bucks ISSUE Residents waited days and weeks for trash pickup across northern York Region. That's not only a WhitchurchStouffville problem. Drive around York Region and further into the GTA and you'll see the scene repeated many times. Road crews can't be everywhere. We should accept that. On the other hand, dangerous situations should be quickly addressed by the municipality. Waste pickup is another issue. All across northern York Region, complaints were Tweeted, emailed and phoned into municipal offices. Issues with the contractor had raised their heads in some of the municipalities even before last month. The new delays of days and even a week-plus only exasperated the situation, with residents, councillors and bureaucrats. Having a third party do government work can save money, as Toronto Mayor Rob Ford will quickly tell us. But York Region's northern six has also learned it doesn't have the control over a situation like the one we just went through. Politicians are now in scramble mode, apologizing to residents, holding emergency meetings and poring over a long-term contract it signed. Residents expect, and pay for, better. We're sure our politicians will respect that trust when signing new contracts with suppliers. Director, Business Administration Robert Lazurko Director, Regional Products and Classified Debra Weller Director, Production Jackie Smart Director, Distribution Tanya Pacheco Director, Marketing and Sales Development Gord Paolucci Editor Jim Mason jmason@yrmg.com N Advertising Manager Anne Beswick abeswick@yrmg.com Circulation Co-ordinator Daphne Lawrie dlawrie@yrmg.com York Region Media Group community newspapers The Sun-Tribune, published every, Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a whollyowned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. Delivery issues? For all your delivery inquiries, please contact yrcustomerservice@ yrmg.com LETTERS POLICY All submissions must be less than 400 words and include a daytime telephone number, name and address. The Sun-Tribune reserves the right to publish or not publish and to edit for clarity and space. E-mail jmason@yrmg.com Ontario Press Council o one likes to pay taxes. That's a given. Locally (including our school boards and the region), provincially and federally. And when people talk local politics and taxes, the common criticism is all they receive for their dollars is snow clearing and garbage pickup. Not everyone goes to the library, swims in the municipal pool, attends hockey games or theatre productions or rents community centres. Apparently. And when that snow isn't cleared or the trash not taken away, taxpayers quickly anger. (Quick, name a service you pay the provincial or federal to provide that if not completed you would notice as quickly as a snow-packed street or a driveway filled with post-dated recycling, trash and compostables.) We saw this clearly during the holiday season, stretching into this month. It was the perfect storm. And our roads still show it. Snow, followed by ice and covered by rain. Add a deep freeze and a sudden thaw and you've got some streets, especially, the back roads that are still unsafe to walk on and difficult to drive over. You can file all the glad-handing, baby-kissing, parades, ribbon cuttings and other events under campaigning, unless you have been in the habit of supporting and taking part in such events prior to running for office. On a personal yet public note to my many supporters and friends, sadly I will not be running in the 2014 municipal election. Due to health problems, my doctors have correctly advised me to focus my effort on another battle, I will be watching closely and anyone wishing my support had better meet the criteria laid out. This community is growing quickly, too fast for some too slow for others. It's our sandbox, let's all keep it clean. Thomas E. Winters Stouffville BOTTOM LINE: Taxpayers enjoy saving money ­ but they also expect service for their dollar. Don't like post office, council? Go online T his is debatable WEIGH IN ON THE DISCUSSION ... e-mail your comments to jmason@yrmg.com ONTARIO PRESS COUNCIL Canadian Circulations Audit Board Member Re: Town not happy with mail service, Dec. 26. Canada Post makes you unhappy with its service, plus the cost? One answer to the Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville: go online. Change your billing system so we all can pay you online. When Canada Post increased the rates for mailing and decreased the level of service, do what I did. I pay all my bills online and will do so from now on. It saves me time and money. All utilities give you excellent service regarding this. I'm pretty sure our municipality can do the same -- it already accepts property tax payments via financial institutions from online and telephone banking . Jack Verhoog Stouffville