What the hell is democracy!

In response to the Federal and Provincial politicians message that they in deed don't care about Hamilton's rights to run our own democracy and make the decisions that will effect our future for generations to come.

On July 31st, our Provincial MPP's declared a statement supporting what ever location for the Pan AM stadium we chose, it was indeed a local matter and they supported the democratic process.

The truth was, the feds and MPP's where having their strings pulled by powerful minister or senator who felt that an east mountain stadium would have more economical benefit for Toronto and it's CFL franchise, rather than a west harbour location that would see more money stay in Hamilton and prop up it's woeful economy.

Friday, the province sent a truly remarkable Draconian letter to Hamilton city hall stating that they have declared the cities Democratic rights null and void. The new stadium could only be built on the East Mountain if the city wanted any funding.

Now, on Saturday the Federal government did some damage control with a statement that the Province had no right in making any decision on their behalf and in fact Hamilton can decide once again where they wish to build the stadium with no strings attacked to to government funding.

This is a ludicrous and illegal infringement of rights, I can't believe this is happening in Canada!

In ire I have wrote this poem as a decree to our government at all levels and too this business leader that Hamilton is not to be played with for your own needs and desires.

DEMOCRACY

Democracy is dead
and we all should shed a tear
We have lost
because of compromise and fear

You have no right
to tell me what I can't have
This is my land
Who the hell are you
to tell me how to pile my sand

I tire of the politicians
that try to sway the course
of everything that is right
What good is choice
If there is only one entered in the fight

Freedom is not a slogan
It's my right
Move your shadow
from my light

I live here proud
strong and free
Justice for all!
I decree

Kendall Oliphant 2010

A few choice words for those holding Hamilton's growth hostage

The words are the same seven words the brilliant mind of the recently lost George Carlin made us laugh nervously at so many years ago and will never be uttered on this blog. That is where the comparison between the mother f*!@er a!#$oles at the Mayors office, City Hall and Liuna Station ends.

Lister Block is dead

This week has been a cornucopia of lies, ineptitude and border line corruption down at Hamilton City Hall. Lets start in reverse order, on Friday it was revealed that on this Monday Hamilton will return a $7-million cheque to the province after failing to reach a deal to save the Lister Block and restore dignity to a joke of a downtown.

LIUNA and partner Hi-Rise have decided to cry like babies and take their ball home after the city rightfully accused them of dropping the ball way to many times. LIUNA served official notice to the city yesterday that their compromise in the $25-million negotiations is off the table. LIUNA also advised the city that its other planned developments on King William, including replacing the fallen Balfour building, are on hold. Plus, they said they will fight an attempt to put a heritage designation on the Thomas Building beside the Lister on James Street North.

Why is LIUNA saying they've had enough making compromises?, even though the city has had to walk on egg shells trying to get a working deal together. The Lister deal fell apart this week after both sides couldn't agree on the terms of a $1-million guarantee on the second phase of the project.

Mayor Fred Eisenberger appealed to the province yesterday morning for another extension of the hefty grant, which was intended to make the deal more affordable for the city. He was flatly refused. Rightfully, the province had already extended the deadline twice.

The stymied deal,

Councillors want the additional development to offset the cost of buying the Lister. It will cost taxpayers an extra $1.3 million a year for city offices compared to existing leases.

The developers proposed they would get their guarantee back if they built a commercial building or seniors home of at least 65,000 square feet, or 130,000 square feet of residential space. Either development would generate $550,000 a year in taxes for the city -- just $50,000 less than originally requested by council.

But LIUNA also wanted a sliding scale if they built a smaller development. The union would only lose the entire $1 million if they built less than 40,000 square feet. If they were between 40,000 and 60,000, they would only give back a part of the guarantee.

Think about how that looks to Hamilton taxpayers, to developers with an interest in downtown redevelopment, and to Queen's Park. It looks like our local government is so dysfunctional, so parochial, so short-sighted and outright ineffective, it couldn't find adequate common ground, even for a $7-million grant.

This is unfair to the hardworking people of Hamilton. There is adequate blame to go around all parties in the Lister negotiations. The developers have been inconsistent about project components and their willingness to commit to guarantees. And the childish rhetoric emanating from LIUNA on the subject in recent weeks hasn't been helpful.

In a reasonable world outside the vacuume of council chambers, the parties involved would realize what's at stake and work right through to the Monday deadline to find compromise and salvage the grant money. Sadly, that's probably not going to happen, which raises the unfortunate question: Now what? Try your spin on that one Mayor Fred.

Eisenberger leaked tape scandal(see video at the bottom of the post)

If this story wasn't so pathetic it would be funny. Stoney Creek Councillor Brad Clark admits to circulating the stolen tape that landed Mayor Fred Eisenberger in hot water for leaking confidential information, but stops short of admitting to stealing the tape himself.

Clark says he gave a digital file and transcript of the tape to a Hamilton Community News reporter and his best buddies councillors Sam Merulla and Scott Duvall out of what he says is "compelling public interest."

"The mayor is the gentleman who admonished city council for breaching codes of conduct for talking about personnel matters ... and then I get this package (showing) that he had clearly done what he had admonished people for doing."

Eisenberger, who has asked for a police investigation of the missing tape and a city review of his apparent code of conduct violation. Meanwhile, Duvall kept his big mouth shut, on the other hand Merulla known famously for his run off at the mouth if you ever catch a city council meeting in person or on the local public access station, pathetically tries to cover his ass arguing, if that was the goal to distribute the tape as a way to "whistleblow", he(Clark) wouldn't have distributed the file and transcripts so selectively.

Merulla believes Clark wanted to politically embarrass the mayor for his own purposes and tried to use him to do it. Right!(sarcasm) Wanna buy some real estate right for development, needs a little fixing up.

Here's where it sounds like another episode of the Sopranos, Clark tells Merulla the story of the mayor's presumed code violation should be told as soon as possible and suggests Merulla should pass the files on to reporters. Clark refuses to say who provided him with the files. But it's clear from his e-mail that he had been in contact with someone who allegedly had access to the mayor(Who's Deepthroat?).

A friend of both councillor's regularly recorded the mayor's interviews Clark said in the e-mail to Merulla but does not want his name mentioned because he is suing the city for wrongful dismissal. The newspaper crack team of investigative reporters(if you want to know where the best place to eat is) learned that Ian Dovey, Eisenberger's former communications adviser who taped some of the mayor's media calls, is suing the city for breach of contract. Eisenberger let Dovey go last summer after five months on the job.(the man in the shadows is revealed! Is this just a ruse!)

Meanwhile, council has directed city staff to hire an outside investigator to review whether Eisenberger broke council's code of conduct by revealing in-camera information in an off-the-record interview with reporter Andrew Dreschel. Any off-the-record conversation is strictly confidential. God! haven't we learned yet from these dumb celebs who get caught doing something they shouldn't have on tape. Get rid of the evidence!

It gets better, Clark brushes off any suggestion he himself may have violated the code of conduct by circulating the Eisenberger interview. The code forbids councillors from disclosing any confidential information to the public. Clark believes he's clean because he merely distributed a transcript of an interview.

Media in this city is becoming more like a gossip column every day. It's no secret they are hurting for revenues so they rely on this type of crap. "Leaked" or down right stolen information that finds it's way into the media hands is rarely divulged for compelling public interest. More than enough it's released to serve a personnel agenda. Both Eisenberger and Clark, who have been banging the integrity drum louder than any other members of council and now both their hands are dirty.

Politics is the dirtiest legal profession their is. Clark was not playing the part of whistleblower he nothing more than a political opportunist, his actions are bound to revive the distrust and suspicion that descended on council in the wake of Councillor Dave Mitchell's code of conduct troubles.

To be squeaky clean and above suspicion, Clark would have served his own and the public interest better if he had openly put the tape before council or the city's legal department rather than indulging in this backroom crap.

Video of Eisenberger's response,

Hamilton's expressway just got a lot more expensive

Hamilton tax payers are set to be legally "fleeced" or in this case "clowned" to the tune of $1.8 million. That's right folks, the corporate mafia rolled over city council recently leaving them covered in tar and powdered sugar. Large welts left by floppy shoes where also visible. Their lawyers had no comment. If you see any of the culprits, immediately halt all contact with them.

Funny aside, the already dry city coffers are about to get even drier. All because some of the cities largest corporations haven't picked up a paper in forty years and realized a portion of the Red Hill Expressway was set to be built in their neck of the woods.

Council has voted to pay out nearly $1.8 million to a number of businesses who claim they suffered damages from road closures associated with the construction of the Lincoln Alexander Parkway. The cost of the legal settlement with the McDonald’s hamburger chain and other businesses apparently isn’t covered by expressway reserves.

According to the resolution approved at Tuesday's council meeting, $1,795,000 will be paid out to “Arrowline Gas Ltd, MCGW Properties Corporation and Q Lube Ontario Inc, McDonald’s Restaurants of Canada Limited, Vinnefield Trading Inc, Avondale Stores Limited, Donut Diners Inc and 1136075 Ontario Limited” to resolve claims “arising from the closure of Limeridge Road East at Upper Wentworth”.

The money will come out of the expressway accounts. But under questioning from downtown councillor Bob Bratina, the head of public works, Scott Stewart, said the account “doesn’t have that sort of money in it now.”

Council decided to payout instead of fighting it because, according to councillor Lloyd Ferguson,

“Our legal counsel and outside counsel advised us that if we lose, it will cost us in the order for $4.5 or $5 million, and if they win it will cost us a $1 million. The million dollars is professional fees to walk us through the litigation process because we’re up against a corporate giant like McDonald’s who will take it through to the Supreme Court, and courts have demonstrated in the past that when it involves a government agency like the City of Hamilton, they will not assign our costs if we win.”

I agree with Chad Collins who challenged the claims of the businesses, said he was “sickened” by the payment and asked if the city’s policy of not doing business with people who sue it could be applied to them.

“For us to be compensating someone who knowingly knew what the municipalities plans were as it related to the expressway, I think is wrong,” he declared, asking that staff report to a future meeting what steps might be taken to exclude the businesses from city contracts."

I watched the debate on Cable 14 last Tuesday night and it sickened me to watch how much these corporate vultures can get away with. Thanks to hamiltoncatch.org for the minutes of the meeting.

Later,
Kenaz

Hamilton City Hall Grinches Need To Grow...

A heart would be a start, but City Hall needs a major boost in "testicular fortitude" as well. What Hamilton needs are more bureaucrats who think outside the box like the BIA, instead of ones who keep banging nails into the downtown coffin.

Members of the Hamilton Downtown Business Improvement Area say they are perpetually at loggerheads with city hall every time they offer a solution to rid the downtown of its image as a dirty, unsafe destination.

Overflowing garbage receptacles, street litter and disregard for the BIA's planned landscape design that featured plants best suited to survive fumes from waiting buses are some of the headaches members say they've faced. They also complain about hassles for the BIA in putting up Christmas lights.

And when the BIA wants to try something new -- like closing part of King Street for the Santa Claus parade or hanging lamppost banners that advertise sponsoring businesses -- the BIA often gets a "No, you can't do that." Without any logical reason.

Other BIA brainstorms:

The relocation of bus stops from around Gore Park, in effort to alleviate the unpleasantness to diners on outdoor patios from the exhaust fumes. The BIA has requested the bus stops be moved somewhere else downtown.

The BIA wants the city to find a way to get absentee landlords sitting on derelict buildings to either sell or improve their buildings so they can be put back in use.

The BIA isn't asking the city to pave the streets in gold, just get rid of the crap and spruce the place up. Is that to much to ask?

Later,
Kenaz

Hamiltonian's rally in support of Dieppe Vets

Sickened by the vandalizing of the Dieppe monument, Hamiltonians and city officials showed their pride and thanks for the local veterans promising to repair the lakefront memorial.

Not only will the 10-inch bronze crown-and-bugle patch vandals ripped from the cairn's north face sometime in the past week or two be replaced. As well, city officials gave a gift to the veterans in the form of a pledge to pave an adjacent parking lot and repair cracks that have appeared in the concrete wall and foundation of the four-year-old, $420,000 tribute to the sacrifices of the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry.

I hope the degenerates who vandalized and thus spit on so many heros of Dieppe are happy for now. Hopefully when they are caught justice will be served, harshly and coldly. A proper tribute to that fateful day in 1942.

A memorial ceremony will be held Sunday marking the 65th anniversary of the battle.

Later,
Kenaz

Hamilton needs a new city hall

Oops! They did it again. Like Britney, it seems like Hamilton City Council on a regular basis finds themselves exposing their vulnerabilities for everyone to see. They bickered for more than thirty years over Red Hill Creek; poured millions into changing directions of streets only to make downtown a traffic nightmare; squandered the Maple Leaf Foods deal that cost thousands of jobs; chased every millionaire who even whispered the hint of moving an NHL team without offering a shred of evidence Hamilton can even support a team and lost the bid to host the Commonwealth Games, twice.

Now, the "old guard", old in the sense of out of touch, have voted to put Band-Aids on our deteriorating, outdated and inefficient eyesore that is our City Hall. Hamilton is the only major city in Canada not to have a modern centre in which to conduct business. City Hall should be the jewell of Main Street, with an inviting entrance that beckons the average joe and multi-corporation alike to enter its hallow halls to conduct business and bring much needed revenue to the city coffers.

Instead an ugly box surrounded by a concrete deck devoid of any green is what we offer visitors. Pretty stomach turning if you ask me. So I totally don't understand the decision of councillors like Sam Merulla to not want to build a new city hall but instead renovate a dilapidated building. A decision that will not only be a more costly one in the long haul, but will permanently cast a myopia over Mayor Fred Eisenberger's "new vision" for Hamilton.

The old councillors weren't listening. They were more concerned with how they looked. City councillors are elected to show bold leadership and sometimes make unpopular decisions because they are the right decisions, not worry about their image and Mr. Merulla has the most bloated ego. The councillor needs to start seeing the trees for the forest even if it interferes in anyway with his individual political aspirations.

Later,
Kenaz