As a new councillor, the last three months have been the best chaos I could have imagined. It takes a serious and concerted effort to balance understanding of the complex issues that face our community and the varied opinions that define possible solutions. It takes talking to the community, to staff, to outside professionals and to local business.
I have just returned from a conference in which 37 countries were represented. My presentation was on Squamish. Surprisingly, most people knew where Squamish is and our accessibility to outdoor amenities. Our little town is on the global radar.
I believe it is apparent to everyone that our city is facing difficult financial times. This challenge can be attributed to multiple factors, two of which are:
1. Aging infrastructure that needs replacement or refurbishment, combined with the failure of previous councils to adequately budget funds for the job.
2. Industry taxation. The residential population will be expected to carry an unfair burden for services and infrastructure if we continue to lose business.
It's budget time, and council is faced with some tough decisions. Council will all have to sacrifice personal priority for the greater good. We are a population of 17,500 and cannot expect to afford world-class anything if it is to come out of general taxes, and also expect to flush our toilets.
Operating budgets need to be realistic and driven by council priorities. It is essential to build capital reserves. City services must be efficient and realistic. We must mitigate and monitor any uncertainties in future forecasts, and budget accordingly.
Taxation paradigms need change. Despite best intentions, we are becoming a city of telecommuters. Necessary are more hubs where people can work together, in separate industry. We need technology resources. We need to communicate with groups such as Inside Edge to understand the global change in industry. We need great food policy. We must choose projects that can be realized with volunteer help and be economically sustainable in the long term. There is no shortage of feel-good projects that can be "quick wins" if we can creatively finance; for instance, better use of QR codes and social media.
The community is striving for the same things. We all want to see economic development. The district has a new economic officer laying the framework for our geographically gifted community. The work that is being carried out will not manifest in a matter of months, but will take years to flourish. We need to be less reactive, and more proactive. The district needs constructive criticism, informed with data and creative solutions. I believe what we most need is positivity - clear, concise dialogue both within the district, and with the community. We cannot be afraid to express our ideas, and we must listen to opposing opinions with an open mind and heart. Council looks forward to working with our new communications manager to create the dialogue that our community deserves.
Cities, states, provinces, and whole countries now find themselves in the same situation. Our council has to have the courage to make tough decisions while we, as citizens, taxpayers and businesses, must be prepared to undertake some sacrifices.
