The town recently slamming the breaks on the business licensing bylaw was a prime example of why public input is so vital.
Town council wanted more input on the issue, though many stated the idea has merit, and a report will be coming back on the matter later in the year.
It clearly caught a number of local businesses off-guard and they were upset about it, and they can’t be blamed for that.
A number of them packed the Amherstburg council chambers at the March 25 meeting to support Sarah Brush of Speck’s Restaurant and council reversed course and suspended the program, one they unanimously supported just three months earlier.
Hopefully this also leads to more input at public meetings and open houses. I can understand why there are those who don’t think their voices will be heard, but the business licensing issue was one where people were heard and action was gained.
It is always important for this, or any other municipality, to meet with its people, listen to them and take the appropriate action. This issue showed how valuable public input is and why opportunities to gather it should always be provided.
Sunshine List
I get it – the Sunshine List story is long.
It was written to show how tax dollars are spent on public servants, not to call anyone in particular out. If one name and salary is printed, the thought process was that they all should and that led to a long story.
There are those that argue the $100,000 threshold should be raised and while I understand that argument, I have no issue with it being left where it is. Having a salary of $100,000 was earned by a lot of people and a lot of work is behind much of those salaries.
That said, it’s still a lot of money to many, many people so people have a right to know who is earning what in the public sector.
For those who may say “well, how would you like your salary printed?,” I can respond that I’m not in the public sector but if I were, I am not even halfway to the threshold.
Shameless plug
The 2024 River Town Times phone book is now out. We were expecting it late last week but unexpected delays pushed it back a few days and it was delivered to our office Monday afternoon.
We put in a lot of work on this so we encourage people to pick up their free copy. As we are a small team, we are distributing it as fast as we can so please exercise a little patience with us.
It is still a popular product and we thank those who continue to support it!
The importance of public input demonstrated, new phone book, and more!
Ron Giofu