Politicians apologize for complex process

By RICHARD ROLKE Morning Star Staff Aug 26 2007 http://www.vernonmorningstar.com/
Some Vernon politicians are seeking forgiveness over the alternate approval process, but others remain unrepentant. Council rescinded three readings of a bylaw Friday that would have allowed it to borrow $20 million for a library/office complex. That move came after 6,223 names were signed to a petition opposing borrowing. Coun. Patrick Nicol immediately called for there to be a referendum, something the Vernon Taxpayers Association sought while soliciting names for the petition. “I clearly made a mistake on that (alternate approval process), there’s no question,” he said.

An apology also came from Coun. Juliette Cunningham. “It was probably my inexperience as a councillor,” she said, adding that Okanagan Regional Library placed tight timelines on council to proceed with the building. “We were put in a position of going the alternate approval way.”

But not all council members were willing to back away from the alternate approval process. “The decision wasn’t undemocratic or arrogant,” said Coun. Buffy Baumbrough. “Given the information provided to us, we chose to move forward. At the time, we all believed in what we were doing.” That was also the view of Mayor Wayne Lippert. “The process worked. You got your signatures,” he said of the association getting enough names to block borrowing. On Friday, staff presented council with various options to fund the proposed complex. They include going to referendum, selling property, short-term borrowing and drawing from reserves. “The issue is on the agenda Monday but whether a decision will be made is up to council,” said Lippert.

Many council members favour the plan to construct a complex between city hall and the existing library. “Everyone present voted to put it out there and we made a commitment (to ORL),” said Coun. Jack Gilroy. “The library is a done deal on that property.” But Coun. Pat Cochrane wants a cultural complex on the city-owned Coldstream Hotel site revisited. “There is a year to the next election and that year could be used to draw up detailed plans and then go to the public and let them vote on it,” he said.

The Vernon Taxpayers Association wants the official community plan review completed before there is a decision, and for the public to be involved in large expenditures. “Our position is we want council to provide a cost benefit analysis on any proposed large expenditures and put it to referendum,” said spokesman Tony Stamboulieh in a release. “Our community is drowning in debt and there are so many issues to be dealt with that are far more important than building offices for Mayor Lippert and council.”
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Vernon Morningstar EDITORIAL Aug 26
Message lost on mayor
It appears like Vernon’s mayor still doesn’t understand the actual focus of the recent alternate approval process. During a special council meeting Friday, Wayne Lippert continued to defend using the alternate petition process instead of going to referendum to garner public input on borrowing $20 million for a library/office complex. “The process worked. You got your signatures,” he told representatives of the Vernon Taxpayers Association, which collected 6,000 names on a petition and blocked borrowing. That would lead people to believe that residents signed the petition because they were against the complex or borrowing. And while there was some of that, most people inked their names to the petition because they opposed the approval process the city was using and they wanted to force a referendum.

By making these comments, Lippert continues to ignore the fact that the city botched the entire matter when it didn’t use the age-old format for garnering public opinion on spending their money — a referendum. If that route had been selected from the get-go, the city wouldn’t likely find itself in the situation it is now — determining whether the complex will go ahead or not.
But Lippert isn’t the only one who hasn’t got the message. “Given the information provided to us, we chose to move forward. At the time, we all believed in what we were doing,” said Coun. Buffy Baumbrough. Toeing the party line and not apologizing despite overwhelming public defeat may be the direction Baumbrough wants to follow, but has she ever thought the advice the city got was wrong?