Summer Editorial Series: The Conclusion – Has Guelph Changed?

Sometimes wading into the online debate and trying to make common sense of the issues is like yelling at chestnuts for being lazy. If you’re interested in sampling some of the Whitmanesque wit that makes up the Guelph political discourse, one needn’t look any further than the comment section on the latest blog post at 59 Carden St.

The topic du jour was last week’s unveiling of a new logo for Guelph Transit, a mitigating nugget of public relations to help cover for the fact that we won’t actually get our new routes and schedule till the late fall, and won’t step foot in the inter-module transit hub till next spring. Many of the comments were about the wasteful cost of an obviously aesthetic manoeuvre, but never underestimate the anonymity of the internet to allow for the most puerile and base comments to be made in the name of “debate.”

Let’s scroll down, as it were, to a couple of comments in particular. “Waiting for a slow, roundabout ride that almost gets you there, accompanied by the smelly freak show, is for people who can't afford better,” said a regular poster named Grumpy Old Corporal. Adds Doug, of no fixed last name, “If you think that a new logo and slogan will get me out of my car, so I can ride with drooling, mumbling staggering, rude, loud, profane, sloppy and the freak show of Guelph. You're crazy!”

First of all, you know your day’s gone topsy turvy when Grumpy Old Corporal is the voice of reason, and regulars on 59 Carden Street know what I’m talking about. Second of all, would these guys say any of this aloud if not for the anonymity of the internet? I’d bet my bus fare that if Doug or Grumpy ever come into direct contact with the Hills Have Eyes mob from central casting that is apparently the transit using population of Guelph, they’d be too busy trying to not lose control of their bowels.

But this isn’t about the not-so-startling lack of civility on the internet. This piece is about a tonal shift I’ve been sensing in Guelph for some time now. (Hence the above name of the piece.) Now granted, the internet is a terrible place to gauge the temperament of people on average since it typically attracts extremists from both ends, but I’m thinking of something more basic. A gut feeling. This isn’t the city that fought Wal-mart tooth and nail for 10 years. This isn’t the town that revels in, as my friend Oliver from CFRU observes, being the Berkley of Canada. Heck, this isn’t even the place they took Mondex for test drive in back in the 90s.

Remember Mondex? It was to the debit card what HD-DVD was to Blu-Ray. Never mind.

I guess what I’m trying to say, simplistically, is Guelph used to be cooler. Don’t get me wrong, Guelph can still be cool, and is infinitely more cooler than, say, Burlington, but I do feel, what I will call a “Stepford Effect,” creeping into the works. The Stepford Effect, of course referring to Bryan Forbes’ subversive cult classic, where in people start imposing a set of characteristics on a city for what it should be, not what it can be or what it is. A city should have low taxes, lots of shopping, malleable borders, a quiet downtown, and no roustabouts with a cause ready to disrupt.

The assumption now is that Guelph, as it was, is wrong. Being known as the place that held out for so long against Wal-Mart is bad for business. Being known as a place where conscientious objectors occupied green space to try and stymie urban sprawl is bad for business. Despite the fact that our downtown is a centre of arts of culture, you better not put up posters to promote and celebrate that culture because the city will slam you with fees. Then, when its time for a budget crunch, we’ll always make sure to cut transit first, because no one worthy of being pandered to takes public transit. Oh, and by the way, in the one area of the city where we know the highest concentration of low-income people live, we’ll support the closing of the area’s only discount store and replace it with a mid-priced furniture outlet, because there’s one thing our city’s poor needs it’s not paying a cent on a new living room set till 2013.

As with any editorial piece, I don’t mean to say that my way is the right way, but the intent, like with all my editorials this summer, is to try and get people to think and promote dialogue. This is the complete opposite of the intent of the above comments discussed, but it seems like this the only kind of conversation that counts anymore. As we head into a new election cycle, let’s try and reverse that trend together.

And now, on with the news…

Summer Editorial Series – Part the Second: Skate Punk’d

Sometimes the tenor of a debate is more frustrating than the debate itself, and that’s been happening a lot lately. Not being able to agree is one thing (ask Canada Post), but when the demand for a thing is dismissed outright because one segment of the population views its expense as a luxury and unnecessary, well that’s not democracy, that’s just being a jerk. Or an old fogy, to coin a phrase. That’s the way it seems to anyone following the debate about a new skateboard park, particularly on the message boards of the Guelph Mercury’s 59 Carden Street blog.

Now belligerence is nothing new to the debate process (or the 59 Carden Street blog for that matter), but there was a certain dismissive tone to some of the posts that really got to me.

Example #1: “This is just plain stupid. Why do we need a skatepark? Just because someone says they want one? Because someone over there has one and we don't? Because [sic] the little skulls full of mush will have a place to ply? If these brats need a special park, perhaps they or their parents [sic] should start digging for the cash to buy the land and build one.”

Example #2: “Speaking of downtown, if they give these drunks washrooms after the bars close...I want all the left wing, tree hugging, NDP'S, like Farbridge, Piper, Burcher and Laidlaw to have a shift cleaning these things...it would be hilarious...see how soon these " hopefully on their last term pubic employees" vote to keep these washrooms open for these drunken pigs.”

That second one didn’t have anything to do with a skate park, but little things like topic relevance haven’t stopped people from anonymously sounding off about the politicians they hate in the past. A discussion about washrooms downtown is one best left for another time (or another column), but this is the spirit in which an issue of concern by some of our younger citizens, and their parents, is being discussed.

The history of the issue goes like this: in 2009 there was a skate park in the Deerpath Drive Park, where local skater boys and girls could practice their boarding in a safe, clean and free environment. The project was a pilot with the intention of perhaps opening other skateboard facilities across the city. Unfortunately, the typical hooliganism came to settle in the park, parents rallied, the city responded and long story short, despite promises to the contrary, there’s still no where for youth to skate, discounting the privately-owned (and pay-per-use) Ward Skatepark at Victoria and York.

The wheels of political action do move slowly, and at this rate the kids that used to enjoy the Deerpath Skate Park will be in grad school by the time they get another city-run facility going. I’m just kidding, of course. There are plenty of grad students who still enjoy their skateboards. But the typical issues with any city-run initiative – funding, location, cost, construction – are playing second to the typical misconceptions and stereotyping about skateboarding. And if people aren’t lamenting the few that brought drugs, foul language and noise to ruin the Deerpath Park, they paint those that legitimately want somewhere to skate as “stupid, spoiled and disrespectful.”

Some of that may be true, but here’s what else is true: kids just want somewhere to skate, and maybe can’t afford to do it at a privately-owned and operated facility. There’s the classic argument that a skate park is a kind of extravagance, an elite service that only a few will use, so why should taxpayers pick up the cheque? I don’t know. Do you use every library branch? Get your share of emergency rides in the ambulance? Play in every ball diamond? Swim in all the pools? Obviously not. In the park near my house there’s a public tennis court, and for the life of me I can’t see there being a greater number of tennis players in the city as compared to skateboarders.

But I find these arguments tiresome, not to mention useless without the hard numbers to prove, well, anything. I will say this though, the town I used to live in, Georgetown, has a skate park. If a municipality as bass-ackwards as Georgetown, whose stewards allowed their town to slowly become little more than a bed and breakfast for people from Toronto, Mississauga, Oakville, Brampton and the rest of the GTA – in other words a town without a culture or economic signature of its own distinct individuality – then why can’t a progressive community like Guelph move forward on this issue?

Burke Still MIA, and Cam Wants a Gun

The Curious Case of Marty Burke

Not to keep beating a dead horse (may Animal Alliance Environment Voters Party candidate Karen Levensen forgive me), but Conservative candidate Marty Burke once again made news last week for not showing up some place. The stage was Guelph Place Banquet Hall, the event was the Guelph Mercury-sponsored all candidates debate. Sure, maybe the 100 or so people, there, at the hall, in person, might have been the only one’s that noticed, but then the whole thing was broadcast live over the internet, and the dreaded press themselves were hosting the darn thing…

Burke’s sudden, last minute bow from the Mercury debate, brought his attendance record for all-candidates forums in the 2011 federal election down to a staggeringly bad two to four count. Burke, the man who would help Prime Minister Stephen Harper secure his majority government, at the time of this writing, couldn’t be bothered to show up for two-thirds of the public debates he was invited to, and that doesn’t seem to care to respond to press requests unless they’re from major local media outlets and by e-mail. Are you still planning on voting for Marty Burke? The question you should be asking is why.

Sure, he had a pretty good reason why he couldn’t come to the Mercury debate. An old back injury incurred during his time in service with the Canadian Forces flared up and on the advice of his doctor and his chiropractor, he avoided the possibility of further injury by sitting in a chair for two straight hours. Just 24 hours later, Burke let the Mercury (and their readers) know that everything was alright and he was back to campaigning, knocking on doors and attending campaign events 12 hours a day. Either Burke has Wolverine-like healing abilities, his back wasn’t that big an issue, or he was just looking for out from another unfriendly debate situation.

But no matter who you vote for, remember to vote on Monday May 2nd. To learn more about where and how, go to elections.ca and for all the latest election news got to my blog at http://guelphpolitico.blogspot.com/
 

Help Cam Guthrie Buy a Gun (Not Like That)

A couple of Guelph politicians are teaming up to bring home a piece of Guelph history. At auction this weekend, a handgun owned by Nathaniel Higinbotham will be put on the block at F.J. Corring in Toronto in a sale of militia artefacts. Ward 4 Councillor Cam Guthrie is leading the charge to buy the vintage Smith and Wesson firearm that was presented to Higinbotham, a prominent developer in the early days of Guelph and later its Mayor and Member of Parliament, in 1866. The estimated value of the gun is between $5,000 and $6,000 but it could go for a much as $10,000.

This where Guthrie’s efforts come in. Gerald Austin, the owner of the firearm in question, has said he was called about a year ago by both the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa and the Guelph Civic Museum. “We tried to work out a deal, but it just didn’t work out,” said Austin, adding: “I always thought it should be in the Guelph Museum. I just wasn’t in the position to give it to them.” In other words, there wasn’t enough cash on the table, which isn’t surprising considering that the acquisitions budget for the Civic Museum is $1,000 per year.

But there is support for Guthrie’s efforts. Fellow councillors Todd Dennis and Gloria Kovach have already pledged $100 each, and Guthrie himself pledged $500 to get the ball rolling. Paul Schmidt, owner of Winmar Restorations, has also stepped up promising to match donations dollar-for-dollar. “If we can bring something from Guelph back to Guelph, I think that’s an awesome thing,” said Schmidt who’s a self-described history geek said. “I came to this city 15 years ago, and it’s been nothing but good to my family and my staff. I just want Ontario to recognize how great our city is.”

If you can help out, get in touch with Councillor Guthrie at his City Hall number 519-822-1260 x2513, or his e-mail Cam.Guthrie@guelph.ca

Rewind, Be Kind

In the spirit of the season last month, Mayor Karen Farbridge laid a smack down on Ward 1 Councillor Bob Bell in one of the first meetings of the new term. It began with Bell who wanted council to reopen the subject of the new transit hub downtown to debate a potential redesign before construction recommenced in the spring. When confronted by a staff report that said reopening the hub’s design was a bad idea on numerous levels, Bell now famously, said to Guelph Mercury reporter Greg Layton that, “I stopped believing everything that was written in staff reports years ago.”

Flash forward to a couple of days later at the meeting, where right from the top, Mayor Farbridge laid down the law: Bell’s comment violated council’s values and the Code of Couct, which is signed by all councillors, by saying things that could “injure the reputation” of staff. “If there are any comments this evening that cross over that line I will censure you,” she added.

Bell apologized and said it was all cool. He didn’t mean to offend anyone, he was just saying that “there are times when the information is not accurate or is misleading…” No big deal, really. To which Farbridge said, no, really, do you want to be censured? Because I’ll do it right here in front of everybody.

Aside from fun with illation, the affair did yield an opportunity to take a new look at that Code of Conduct. Certainly Farbridge saw it that way when on a recent blog post at http://mayorsblog.guelph.ca/ she talked about professional disagreements between council and staff. The Mayor pointed to a specific section of the Code of Conduct, which was developed last term by a citizens’ committee. In it, this clause says council can approve budgets, policy and committee processes, but be mindful that staff doesn’t work for them, but for the City of Guelph as a corporate entity.

“Members shall be respectful of the fact that staff work for the City as a body corporate and are charged with making recommendations that reflect their professional expertise and corporate perspective,” it continues. “Accordingly, no member shall maliciously or falsely injure the professional or ethical reputation, or the prospects or practices of staff, and all members shall show respect for the professional capacities of the staff of the City”.

So basically, saying that you “stopped believing” staff reports because they’re “not accurate or is misleading” and doing so in the public sphere of the local newspaper or the live broadcast from the floor of city council, is a C-of-C no-no. Does this mean that council can’t have disagreements about staff as per a particular recommendation or policy brief? Farbridge gave an emphatic ‘No’ in her blog post adding that it is a councillor’s responsibility to question staff reports, but that they should be able do so while not violating the “integrity or professional competence of staff.”

In the recent election there was a lot of discussion from the various challengers that there was “too much agreement” between council and staff last term, or that council would “rubber stamp” any and all of staff’s recommendations just because they came from staff. Bell has always been outspoken, and I hate to imply conspiratorial motives, but such a blatant and openly on-the-record rebuke of staff seems almost a response by a veteran city councillor to those complaints.

But the mistaking of civility for collusion is an all too frequent meme in the modern age of politics. Any person that doesn’t see eye-to-eye with you, no matter the issue, is your political enemy. Even if you should happen to agree on other issues, they’re still your enemy. There is no room for compromise because compromise is weak. I’ve started to think that that this might account for lower voter turnout at all levels. People expect that their point-of-view with a given candidate should line up 100 per cent, but if you can only agree with someone on nine out of ten issues, then how can you in good conscience vote for them?

I suppose as New Year’s Resolutions go, no longer insinuating professional misconduct of city staff in local media is as good as any other. In the tumultuous debates to come, let us keep in mind that most politicians and civil servants are good, honest, hard working people doing their best despite obstructions and limitations that can be physical, legal or jurisdictional. No matter what their position on an issue, most people are working for, it what their opinion is, the best interest of the City of Guelph. Or as Abraham Lincoln once said, “If you would win a man to your cause, first convince him that you are his sincere friend.” But what does that guy know?

All I Want From this Next Council…

Dear Guelph City Council,

I’ve been a very good citizen of the Royal City this year, and I would like to get a few items for next term. Before I begin though, my Mom says I should thank you for the things I got last term. The new roads and infrastructure was really nice, once we had them assembled, of course. The new City Hall is pretty swanky, but it’s almost too nice to play with. The improvements on the Provincial Court House were pretty cool, but I didn’t like that Hanlon Creek Business Park so much, but my parents say we need it so…

But seriously folks, there are some developments that I wouldn’t mind seeing coming out of council in the next four years (if not sooner). Primary among them is the transit hub.

Such a monumentous undertaking, converting an entire section of Carden Street into a one-stop shop for local and inter-city public transit, was the last item being funded by cash from Queen’s Park and Parliament Hill to be shovel-ready. Are we going to get an extension on that loan, or are we going to have to eat it, which, if I know the city of Guelph and its past actions, will mean transit cuts? The good news is, as of last Thursday, it appeared that no eating would be necessary.

And really, what’s the deal with Ward 1 Councillor Bob Bell wanting to take a minute and edited the plans. In case you missed the Mercury article he said that he wanted to cut the number of bus bays at the hub from 22 to 18, and that those four cut bays “could be accommodated along the Gordon/Norfolk streets corridor.” So it’s a transit hub where there’s an 18 per cent chance that the bus you really want is a couple of blocks and a five minute walk away.

While I appreciate the councillor’s due diligence, I am aghast. I thought the City couldn’t revisit a construction plan once the shovels were in the ground. At least, that seemed to be the argument when the Hanlon Creek Business Park started to get going. Sadly, as I walked from one store to the other last Wednesday in a vain effort to find bus tickets (because apparently stocking up suppliers on the first day of the month so that they don’t run out is too much to ask), I wondered if former Mayoral Candidate Ray Mitchell was right. “Transit is the fallback position to cut when money is needed as it primarily hurts the poor, and we know they don’t vote” said Mitchell in his Candidate Questionnaire for Guelph Politico. “Cutting bus services was probably the meanest thing this council did.”

I know I’ve been harping the transit issue a lot this year, but it really does seem like there’s a concerted effort out there to perpetuate the myth that freedom is a car that you yourself ride in alone and that buses and trains are for poor people and hippies. Parking for the transit hub has been a concern, but I ask, why does one have to drive their car to the bus station? Or the train station? Or at the very least, why is their no encouragement from the City to car pool? If everybody’s going to the same place anyway…

With Rob Ford in Toronto ending “The War on Cars” (Worst. Covered War. Ever.) I wonder how long it will take his thinking to trickle outward from the GTA. Roads are for cars! Bikes are for sissies! Street cars are stupid! If you can’t drive a car, at least have the decency to travel by way of a dark tunnel underground where car people don’t have to look at you! First of all, can we get Clarence Odbody to stop by Rob Ford’s house this Christmas before he turns Toronto into Potterville? And second, if the increasingly long drive to get anywhere hasn’t given you a clue, I’m out of ideas on how to get people to think of transit more positively, and not wrinkle their nose at the thought of taking a bus.

Anyway Council, there’s some milk and cookies in it for you if you figure out a way (not that that’s a bribe or anything). In the meantime, stay cool and good luck with the term ahead.

Signed,
A random lunatic (with his own newspaper column)

The Civic Engagement Guide 2010

So it happened again: The second of five planned days of service cancellation throughout the City of Guelph. On Friday July 9, no facilities were open, doors were locked on City Hall, libraries and their books were shut up tight, and, oh yes, there was no garbage pick-up.

Once again though, it seemed that the news reached deaf ears and blind eyes, at least that’s how it was described by Guelph Mercury reporter Scott Tracy in a post on the 59 Carden Street blog. “I was out for a bit Thursday night and the affected area is between my house and downtown,” Tracy wrote. “I stopped and told about 10 people who already had their bags out or were in the process of putting them out. None of them had any clue what I was talking about and a couple of them seemed to think I was lying about there being no services today.”

Little did they know, apparently, that Mr Tracy is a man of impeccable moral character, but again the debate raged: just how exactly, given all the avenues of communication available to the City of Guelph, did the message not reach wider? More still, how detached are these people that Tracy mentioned, that the news of the so-called “Karen Days” only reached them once it was told to them by a random stranger on a walk through their neighbourhood?

So in an effort to tackle these questions, I decided to put together this quick civic engagement guide. Use it well, and you just might not be the one caught putting out your garbage for a truck that never comes.

1) Read a Paper – As curmudgeonly as Andy Rooney is, he was right a few years ago when he said that he didn’t think anyone that didn’t read a good newspaper should get the vote. Of course, Guelph is hardly Toronto with its several different daily newspapers to choose from. Still, we do have two solid newspapers in the Royal City, and if you’re too cheap to pay for the daily, there’s the one that comes to your house twice a week for free. That’s right, the only reason the Guelph Tribune won’t come to your house is if you ask it not to be delivered there. And here’s the kicker: each Trib usually features a two page spread of City news and updates, directly from the horse’s mouth so to speak.

2) Listen to the radio – Of course, modern commercial radio isn’t faring that much better than their cousins in print, but still, for locally relevant bits of news and information, you can’t do much better for accuracy and immediacy. And again, the City typically buys air time to update citizens on important news and information, like what days your garbage might not be picked up. So tune your dial in to either 106.1 FM, 1460 AM, or check out your community radio at 93.3 FM.

3) Visit the City’s Website – Yes, the City of Guelph has a website. And everything that you might ever need to know about where to do what and talk to who and when is as close as your nearest internet browser. Did I just blow your mind? I thought so. If there’s an important new piece of information the City thinks you should know about, it usually ends up in a press release right there on the main page. And if that’s still not enough for you, check out the city council’s schedule so that you can lodge your complaints in person. Or if you think you can do better than the two people currently representing you on council, find out how to file and run for office yourself this fall.

4) Keep reading Guelph Beat and Guelph Politico – Like my man Shaft once said, I may have to put you down, but I won’t let you down.

-guelphpolitico.blogspot.com 

Money Problems, Pissoirs Pulled and Climate Change

No Money, Mo’ Problems

It appears that despite rumours to the contrary, the economy hasn’t quite reached recovery status quite yet as it seems the recession is taking a sledgehammer to coffers city wide. A summary report prepared by the City’s chief administrative officer Hans Loewig was released a few weeks ago showing that the city’s revenues were entering into serious deficit territory, though not quite the $8.1 million as initially reported. The forecast deficit will probably be closer to $4 million, but don’t think for a minute that that’s got people sweating any less about the financial forecast. There’s talk of their being less money to go around in the form of cuts to grants and other expenditures, and the governance committee last week nixed the idea of spending $5,000 on a consultant to analyze the citizens’ committee findings for the scheduled market review of council remuneration.

Additionally, last week at the annual meeting of the Guelph Chamber of Commerce, local chamber president Andrew Anderson had this to say about this year in business for Guelph: “Obviously, the last year has been less than stellar for most.” Anderson made these comments to the Mercury after the Chamber’s meeting at the Delta Hotel on Gordon. Keynote speaker, and Ontario Chamber of Commerce president and chief executive, Len Crispino told the audience that there’s room for optimism because our pre-recession domestic economy was strong and he endorsed the integration of Federal and provincial sales tax scheduled to be phased in July 1st as a good move to help businesses’ bottom line.

Of course, this discussion of recovery/not-recovery situation comes mere weeks after the Guelph Community Foundation’s second annual Vital Signs report card that gave the city Cs and Ds for the growing gap between the poor. Amongst the statistics presented: the richest 10 per cent of families earns more than six times the amount of the poorest 10 per cent; the Guelph and Wellington Ontario Works caseload increased by more than 30 per cent between April 2008 and April 2009; and the unemployment rate in Guelph since June 2008 has increased by 84.8 per cent. So is the economy recovering? I guess that depends on where you stand.

Pissoirs Pulled

Looking to pee downtown? Well, you’re stuck again with the indoor variety as the outdoor pissers, sorry: pissoirs, have been pulled with the conclusion of the two month-long pilot project. As you’ll recall, the controversial project was brought to city council by the Downtown Night Life Task Force which includes representatives from downtown businesses, the Downtown Guelph Business Association, Guelph Police Service, the University of Guelph and the City of Guelph. The pissoirs (I hate that word) were part of a three pronged assault on public urination downtown, which also included heightened awareness and greater enforcement of by-laws against peeing where you feel like as if you’re a common dog. City staff monitored the level of use, the number of by-law infringements and number of calls for maintenance during the pilot. Reports will be made to City Council on the assessment of the pilot project in the coming weeks, so look for that information when it comes across my desk.

Fight Climate Change this Weekend

Guelph will be holding its own celebrations in recognition of the International Day of Climate Action this Saturday at St. George’s Church. From Noon to 4 pm there will be several activities in order to promote “fun and reflection on how we will create a sustainable future.” Amongst the all ages activities will be arts and crafts, face painting, music and other entertainment (like story telling), an art show featuring local talent and information from local organizations dedicated to sustainability and environmental protection. When the sun goes down, come back to St. George’s for a public presentation by David Noble, a Guelph-based entrepreneur, author, and climate change advocate recently recognized by the Guelph Mercury as one of the city’s 40 Under 40. There will also be a musical performance by James Gordon. For more information, check out the Guelph Climate Festival on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=266982195102

The Election Post-Game

The fascinating results of the Federal election have forced me to take the Guelph Beat column into very familiar territory one last time. As I’m sure you’re all aware, local attorney Frank Valeriote beat the odds both locally and nationally to become Guelph’s new Liberal MP. Not only was Guelph one of the ridings to watch leading up to Election Night, it was also one of the ridings to watch On Election Night as Conservative hopes for a majority government came down to several tight races across the country. In fact, the Guelph race was so tight, final results weren’t made known until the midnight hour.

Victory was never a foregone conclusion for Valeriote as the polls constantly demonstrated. It was always a toss up between the Liberal nominee and his Conservative rival Gloria Kovach as the lack of incumbency in this riding opened it up to an anything can go attitude that contributed to a ten name long ballot. Also contributing to the uncertainty is the rise of Mike Nagy, the Green Party candidate had serious momentum going into the September 8th by-election, with many observers expecting a win for Nagy who was mounting his third campaign.

In the midst of all this uncertainty, Valeriote had played the odds and prepared both an acceptance and a concession speech, he told the Guelph Mercury. Arriving after midnight at the Italian Canadian Club for his now-victory celebration, Valeriote had no compunction about his party’s decision to push the Green Shift, only regrets that there’d be no Liberal government to see it through. Valeriote did, however, reiterate his desire to build bridges with the other centre-left parties and listed his priorities as child care, climate change and the economy in no particular order. “We have to deal with all of them,” he said.

Meanwhile, a short distance away at her campaign office, Kovach admitted defeat. In what had to be a profound upset for the veteran city councillor, she came out with a 1,792 vote difference between her and Valeriote. She was also locked out of a seeming Conservative sweep of Southwestern Ontario; Guelph is the only red spot on the map surrounded by blue after Conservative victories in Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge, Brant, and Wellington-Halton Hills. While Kovach closed the gap with the Liberals, following the 5,300 vote difference between Liberal Brenda Chamberlain and Conservative Brent Barr in the 2006 election, the Conservative share of the popular vote remained steady at 29 per cent.

The real Cinderella story of the night though is Nagy’s strong, third place finish. Nagy more than doubled his 2006 totals, finishing with 12,456 voters desiring to send him to Ottawa as the first, elected Green MP. With 12,000 plus ballots in his favour, Nagy secure a little over 21 per cent of the popular vote; a significant showing despite the fact that he didn’t secure a first or second place finish. It took three elections to get here, but at his post-election soiree at the Fox and the Fiddle in Old Quebec Street, Nagy seemed to indicate that he was done. "I think this is probably it for me," he said. "I think we had it on Sept. 8th and Stephen Harper knew that.”

Finishing fourth, in what was surely an upset in an otherwise positive night for the party, was NDP candidate Tom King. King, a popular author and radio personality was considered one of the NDP’s star candidates, an impression helped by the fact of party leader Jack Layton’s frequent visits to the riding during the by-election. "The disappointing thing was coming from a by-election into a general (election) campaign," said campaign manager Justin Gniposky. Like Nagy and the Greens, the NDP expected the fact of the by-election and no incumbent to generate enough excitement for Guelph to elect its first New Democrat to the House of Commons.

Rounding out the results are the Marijuana Party’s Kornelis Klevering with 129 votes; Libertarian Philip Bender with 159; Communist Drew Garvie got 77 votes; and Animal Alliance Environment Voters Party’s Karen Levenson had 73. Meanwhile, John Turmel secured his place as the most losingest man in Canadian politics with his 67^th loss, but he did however beat Marxist-Leninist Manuel Couto, who I’m still relatively sure doesn’t really exist.

By-Election Update and A Farewell to Hampton

Still Waiting…

So it’s the end of June, which can mean only one thing: we’re probably not going to get a by-election to replace Brenda Chamberlain as our Federal Member of Parliament until the Fall. I remind you, gentle Echo reader that our government has until October 7 to announce when they’re going to fill our seat.

But the question is, why haven’t they called an election yet? "I have no idea why they haven't called an election," University of Guelph political science professor Judith McKenzie told the Guelph Mercury last week. "It's a real guessing game."

McKenzie though had a potential answer as to why. "I haven't heard the buzz that there's a huge push to have by-election," she added. Since Chamberlain’s retirement, the riding has been represented by Kitchener Centre MP Karen Redman and Chamberlain’s old constituency office on Cork St. has remained open.

In the meantime, the candidates aren’t wasting anytime by hosting big named guests and hitting each other where it counts: the issues.

It’s Not Easy Being Green

Conservative candidate Gloria Kovach fired off a salvo at Liberal Frank Valeriote last Wednesday saying that Valeriote “did not agree with investments in green technology.” Apparently, in an interview given for a Guelph Mercury article last March, Valeriote express his “disdain” for green technology saying, “Government shouldn’t help industries invest in green technologies. Instead, the government should place a cap on greenhouse gas emissions.”

“The Liberal policy on climate change has evolved through open debate and discussion and includes helping industry adopt new, greener technologies through the Advanced Manufacturing Prosperity Fund, part of the Liberal platform,” said Valeriote in response to my e-mail asking him about the press release. “I have said this in the past and continue to believe in a comprehensive response, including helping industries, regardless of what has been said otherwise.”

Meanwhile, the Kovach press release went on to say that instead of investing in green technology, Valeriote is a staunch supporter of Stéphane Dion’s “Tax Everything” plan. There’s even a link to the Conservative’s non-too-subtle “Will You be Tricked” website where the talking oil stain tells you to beware of carbon taxes because “it’s a tax on everything.” The ads were a matter of some controversy when they began airing last month as Conservatives had originally intended to have the ad aired at some gas stations around Southern Ontario, including Guelph.

Valeriote added that there will be more news to come about the Liberal approach to the environment. “Over the coming months you will see the Liberal Party's response to our need for a comprehensive climate change plan. I have advocated for a comprehensive plan to address global warming every time I have been asked since I was nominated as the Federal Liberal candidate for Guelph.”

In the meantime, Kovach was bringing a lot of headliners to town last weekend for a barbecue fundraiser in Exhibition Park. The Guest of Honour was The Hon. John Baird, Member of Parliament for Ottawa West-Nepean and, more importantly, the Minister of the Environment.

Get Down with NDPs

Meanwhile, across the political spectrum, NDP candidate Tom King hosted a few of his party’s MPs from Ontario at his campaign office on Woolwich. Members of the public were invited to meet David Christopherson (Hamilton Centre), Chris Charlton (Hamilton Mountain), Irene Mathyssen (London-Fanshawe), Peggy Nash (Parkdale-High Park), and Paul Dewar (Ottawa Centre) and enjoy some fair trade coffee and snacks.

Howard, We Hardly Knew Ye

Finally, Guelph Beat salutes Howard Hampton for his retirement after 12 years as provincial NDP leader. I will always remember Hampton for his campaign stunts from the 2003 election which included trying to nail Jell-o to a wall and having a flat-bed truck with big dollar sign bags drive away down the street. I can’t remember the point he was trying to make, but those were good gags. Hampton will continue to sit as MPP till the 2011 election.