(Aired March 17, 2010)
Finally, a city council with enough jam to make a tough decision. Council voted 7-2 yesterday in favour of establishing water meters starting in 2012. The move is long overdue.
I've always been in favour of paying for what you use, and if you use more water than the next person because, as Marg Spina puts it, you want to have 10 baths a day, you pay for it. You eat fancier food than anyone else, you pay for it, you go out for dinner more, you pay for it, you want a fancier car than my 23 year old van, you pay for it. You like the fancy house instead of the basic bungalow? Well, you get the picture.
Council made the right move in approving the meters. Councillor Denis Walsh says he would have preferred more watering restrictions, or going back to referendum. Pat Wallace says she feels bound to honour the results of the referendum a few years ago, when residents voted against meters. But while I have the utmost respect for Pat, I think she's wrong here. Times change, and the average homeowner, unfortunately and with no disrespect, doesn't have a clue about the bigger picture.
Council has an obligation to make the right decision here. They don't need to go back to the people. The facts are staring them in the face. We elected them to do what's right for the community. This is what's right.
Meters will save money, and at the very least, even if they don't, people should pay relative to what they use. I'm not thinking about the savings we get by deferring various infrastucture upgrades, because eventually that money is going to have to be spent as the city grows. It's really just a simple case of something whose time has come.
Now that council has made the decision, let's just get on with it, and move on to the next project. There's plenty more issues that need discussion.
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I'm impressed that City Council had the gumption to bring in water meters, when they knew they were bound to tick off at least 1/2 of the City. I think there are 6 members of council who will get my vote next time (the seventh isn't running again), and two who won't. We elect city council to research the issues and make an informed decision, not to hide behind referenda. We don't pay Esso $100 a month and get to pump all the gas we want, so why should we pay the City a flat rate and be able to water our lawns for 8 hours a day?
ReplyDeleteThe truth is that alternating watering days and education have taken us as far as we can go. People only change their habits when it hits them in the wallet.