Wow! The campaign is starting to pick up between the two “top ponies” in Jim Watson and incumbent Larry O’Brien. I desperately want rant about how there is more than one choice, but I will save that for a letter to the editor of the local news media. Instead, tonight’s blog (late night, I am not feeling well so have been wishy-washy on this) is all about College Ward (8).
College Ward is the home of Ben Franklin place, the former city hall of Nepean. Franklin was mayor of Nepean from ’78-97 prior to the 2001 amalgamation of the City of Ottawa. Why is this important? Rick Chiarelli, the incumbent of College Ward, uses his name recognition in the neighbourhood as someone who has been around since the city of Nepean. Indeed, he was the youngest elected official in Ontario at a time and first served on the Nepean council 1988. While Nepean has a lot of older residents, what Chiarelli is not considering is the growth over the past decade of younger and less historically impacted voters. To be quite frank about it, Chiarelli coasted in his last election on name and name alone. He has done very little for the ward.
Don’t get me wrong; I have not lived in College Ward since moving to Ottawa nearly fifteen years ago. However, I moved to this neighbourhood in March of 2006 and never saw hide nor hair of Chiarelli’s campaign come October. I did watch him hire a rather flirtatious assistant at Rockwell’s Restaurant while my (then fiancée) wife and I ate a meal. I did see him a couple of years ago come into my neighbourhood, open a new play structure for the kids and have other people hand out hotdogs before he made up some excuse of important goings-on and departing. I have not, however, seen him lift a finger on issues like crime, transit and community wellbeing.
He helped to push for Lansdowne redevelopment (a private source contracting for public space), is credited for buildings on Woodroffe Ave (one being part of Algonquin College’s long term plan and the city’s master plan for transit upgrades and the other the city archives building) and claims that he has made strides to revitalize Bells Corners. Meanwhile tagging has gone up around the ward, property theft and damage is more noticeable, transit has been a huge black eye (temporary Baseline station filled with issues and local transit is completely unreliable) and community improvements are dismal.
Who do you vote for if not name recognition? Chiarelli’s platform is all about trusting his “experience”, but his experience is quite outdated. He’s grown comfortable in his position and it’s time for a new direction. Below is a short list of those running against Chiarelli for council of Ward 8. I am not going to give you my suggestion outright because even my choice has not returned my emails ... I am near the point of drawing a rhino on my ballet and waiting four years to run against him myself.
Julia Ringma
http://juliaringma.ca/
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Julia-Ringma/345247480677?ref=search&v=info
Craig MacAuley
No social media or website
Catherine Gardner
http://catherinegardner.ca/blog/
John Campbel
No social media or website
Lynn Hamilton
http://www.facebook.com/search/?src=fftb&q=Lynn%20Hamilton#!/pages/Lynn-Hamilton-Campaign-2010/117524741607624?v=wall
http://www.lynnhamilton.ca
W.
Nice commentary and valid points.
ReplyDeleteIncumbents certainly benefit form the name recognition factor - especially if your surname is Chiarelli.
My two cents from another non College Ward Ottawan: Julia Ringma. She is motivated, says what she thinks and has some good ideas for the Ward and the City.
The thing that attracts me most about her is her commitment to sound and sane planning. For too long planning and development decisions have been haphazard at best. Intensification has been ignored in favour of sprawl and loss of valuable green space and agricultural land.
Just sayin'... but if I lived in the Ward, she would be my choice.