Watson’s Big Talk In The Big Smoke

Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson and his Mississauga counterpart Hazel McCallion together again. The old buddies co-authored an article in the Toronto Star on Tory leader Tim Hudak possibly not uploading some municipal costs.

Well lookie here. Our young whippersnapper Mayor Jim Watson has joined with Mississauga Mayor-Into-Perpetuity Hazel McCallion to write a piece for Toronto audiences in the Star on the threat of Tory leader Tim Hudak not uploading the costs of social services and the like from the municipal property tax base to the province. Rather bad luck however to have teamed up with the Mississauga mayor after she was found to be in clear conflict of interest. Timing is everything.

Not completing the upload program would hurt communities in every part of Ontario. If the effort is not completed, cities like Ottawa will lose $35 million in cost savings; Hamilton $25 million; Thunder Bay $3.6 million; Greater Sudbury $5.7 million; Toronto $172 million, and Peel Region (including Mississauga) $29 million. In addition, each community in Ontario will lose its share of the court security cost upload.

These numbers are not small. The dollars mean a lot to local councils and taxpayers. And that is why a clear and concise answer from politicians and their political parties is so important.

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E-mail Ken Gray at kengray20@gmail.com Gray welcomes these e-mails for possible publication in The Bulldog.

Ken Gray is an Ottawa journalist who was the Citizen’s city editorial page editor, municipal affairs reporter and a member of the newspaper’s editorial board. He writes a weekly column Wednesdays in the Citizen. During the early ’90s, he edited the Southam News-Toronto Star First Edition, one of the first new media ventures in Canada. For more than three decades, he has worked in many posts from reporter to senior editor at the Montreal Gazette, the Winnipeg Free Press, the London Free Press, the Regina Leader-Post and the Citizen. As well, Gray founded and taught a course in media law and municipal government at Algonquin College. He earned a master’s journalism degree and a honours bachelor’s history degree at the University of Western Ontario in the 1970s.

Ottawa’s Community Associations

Federation of Citizens’ Associations of Ottawa-Carleton, Alta Vista, Beacon Hill , Beaverbrook Kanata , Bellwood, Blackburn Hamlet, Briarbrook Morgan’s Grant, Bridlewood, Canterbury, Cardinal Creek , Carleton Heights, Carlington, Carlingwood, Carlsbad Springs , Cedarhill, Central Park , Centrepointe, Centretown, Chapel Hill South, Civic Hospital Neighbourhood , Constance & Buckhams Bay, Copeland Park , Country Place , Crystal Beach/Lakeview , Cumberland Village, Dalhousie, Dow’s Lake , Dunrobin, Faircrest Heights, Fairlea, Fallingbrook, Findlay Creek, Fitzroy Harbour , Galetta, General Burns, Glabar Park, Glebe, Glen Cairn , Glens, Greely, Half Moon Bay , Hampton Iona , Havenlea-Chapman Mills, Hearts Desire , Heron Park, Highland Park , Hintonburg , Hunt Club, Huntley, Island Park , Kanata Lakes , Kanata Town Centre, Kars, Katimavik-Hazeldean, Kinburn, Leslie Park , Lincoln Heights-Parkway, Lindenlea, Lowertown, Manor Park, Manotick, March Rural, McKellar Park , Munster Hamlet , Navan, New Edinburgh, Nicolls Island, North Gower , Old Ottawa South , Orchard Estates , Osgoode, Ottawa East, Community Council of Overbrook, Portobello South, Qualicum-Graham Park , Queensway Terrace North, Queenswood Heights, Riverside Park, Riverside South, Riverview Park, Rockcliffe Park , Rockcliffe Mews/Carson Grove, Rothwell Heights, Sandy Hill , Sarsfield, South Keys Greenboro, Southpointe, Stittsville, Stonebridge, Tanglewood-Hillsdale, Trend-Arlington, Vanier, Vars, West Barrhaven, Wellington Village , Westboro, Westboro Beach, Westcliffe Estates, Whitehaven, Woodpark

City Organizations

Citizens for safe cycling, Greenspace Alliance