I gave a speech the other day to a local Service Club and one of the things I talked about was my view of the job that our Mayor and Councillors were doing. Co-incidentally, one of my readers suggested that it was time for me to do an assessment on the Mayor and Council.
It is slightly less than one year before the next election and people are starting to talk about who will run, will Eddie be challenged, and will the turnout be large or small thereby favouring the incumbents. It is interesting as well seeing the Councillors jockeying for position and just starting to break away from the unanimity façade that they have been trying to promote for two years now.
So let me deal with each of the Councillors and then the Mayor and let me give my opinion after watching them for the past two years.
Ward One
Dave Brister---Imagine the rush…from Senior Business Analyst to the equivalent of a Senior VP Finance in a large company.
Dave is bright, hard-working, and articulate. He may be a terrific analyst at his employer but he needs to grow to become a “Councillor” finally. He has to learn that he is not an employee of the Finance Dept but more like a member of a Board who must have a broad perspective. He gets too buried in the minutiae. The question is whether he is capable of doing so since it has been two years already since the last election.
His questions at Council are totally predictable. If it has to do with money, there is Dave. Most often Administration has the answer, and his smirk as he turns off the microphone and the way he pushes it aside with a flair suggests that he likes to hear his own voice rather than gain information.
I wonder why he never had undertaken the forensic audit of City finances that he pushed for in his campaign literature. Dave in his brochure claimed there was no accountability at City Hall and it seems there still is not. What has he been doing since the Mayor said that there was “no accountability whatsoever” in relation to the overtime matter as an example.
His raising of the “conflict” issue when something touches the border makes a mockery of the 11,000 votes he received and is a slap in the face to his Community. He has been virtually invisible on the issue that got him elected, not a smart thing to do, preferring to play the role of Councillor Budget instead.
Dave needs to start thinking independently and understand that he can get re-elected without Gord Henderson’s blessing on an issue.
Joyce Zuk—She is baaaaaaaaack. But not as often as she should be.
I do not understand why Joyce has been so nice over the past two years pretending that Council is united when it is a bickering place full of personal animosities. A few flickers over the past while of the contrariness that I like in Joyce. Over the past few months she has not minded being the lone Councillor voting against her colleagues.
Probably the smartest, quickest and toughest Councillor of the bunch. She has seemed to be under a lot of stress for these last two years for reasons unknown to me.
She has been accused of running for Mayor in the next election and personally insulted several times at in-camera meetings. I do not know why she hasn’t hit back as she did with the ex-Mayor when he annoyed her.
She has been a strong voice speaking for the individuals in the City who are not as well-off as her own Ward 1 constituents. She should be a shoo-in and the number one vote-getter in the Ward if she runs the strong campaign she did last time around.
Since Dave has told Henderson that he is never running for Mayor, that leaves an opening for Joyce if she plans to do so in future. If Joyce runs for Council, then Ward 1 can choose between Scrooge and Santa Claus
Ward Two
Caroline Postma---The Diva of Ward 2 knows her constituents.
She understands that being a Councillor is not just performing on Channel 11 every Monday but cleaning up the filth in the Ward, from “signs” to graffiti. She understood the hard lesson of keeping her mouth shut in her first year as she learned the ropes and went on the rubber chicken circuit speaking with almost every significant group in the City in place of the Mayor. The toss of her blond/brown/red (the colour du jour) hair has made people shake in their boots.
She is not taken seriously by some of her “educated” colleagues but they had better learn fast that she is raw Ward 2. No one else had better forget that either. She is starting to speak more now, giving the reasons for her votes a lot more than in her first year.
Caroline tends to personalize issues much more than her colleagues, reflecting how they impact on her and her family. I would expect that this resonates well with some constituents but can get a bit cloying on occasion if done too much.
Who would have believed at the start of their term that she and Ron Jones could ever work together given their animosities. Now they seem to be the only Ward Councillors that can do so and like each other.
Ron Jones— Part of the Dynamic Duo in Ward 2.
It took him awhile to understand that Mike Hurst is no longer the Mayor and he is starting to enjoy Council again. Yet he seems to be totally frustrated on many occasions which led to earlier talk that the was not going to run again for Council. His frustration level seems higher than that of any of his colleagues. Why he won’t come out and say what bothers him is something I do not understand. However, when he finally explodes, watch out.
He and the Diva have buried the hatchet and if the two of them can work together, Ward 2 may be the place to be as the border, an urban village and the Sandwich Corporation get resolved and favour the Ward.
Ron learned a bit about power politics after he spoke out courageously against Council secrecy. The Beztak incident re the arena in Ward 2 was an absolute disgrace as their plan was shot down in flames by his colleagues for a proposal at the Racetrack that seems dead in the water now.
I believe that Ron is a good Ward Councillor. Everyone from his area knows him and he knows everyone and makes them feel special.
I only wish that he and the Diva would take a stronger role on the border since it impacts their Ward the most (Yes I know, the role I wanted them to take!). It is fine to protect Sandwich but then what. That is the part they are missing. They do not have to worry…Brian will get re-elected even if they would only propose talking to the Bridge Company!
Ward Three
Alan Halberstadt---He asks so many questions publicly that people get angry sometimes when he asks them. Even if they are good ones.
Just listen to some “digs” from his colleagues at Council meetings. But that won’t stop him! Alan was the Council S***-disturber when Hurst was the Mayor and when that was needed. He had a bit of trouble at first adjusting with Eddie but seems a lot happier in his role.
He and Eddie get along, Alan was the only Councillor that came out publicly for him at the last election, but I have noticed a couple of testy exchanges recently between them when Alan dared question what Eddie said. Eddie better learn that Alan will NOT back down or be intimidated, friend or no friend. It may also be that Alan can see some of the handwriting on the wall re the next election and understands that his strength is being perceived as an “independent.”
I find him hard to read sometimes on how he will vote. He is leftist on social issue like the environment, but is a budgeteer on the rightist budget slashing. A red Tory, even though he likes the Greens?
I know personally that he keeps his constituents happy with his prompt action on Ward issues being 2 out of 2 on some problems I had.
I think that he has a much broader view than many of his colleagues about city issues, perhaps because of his journalist background. His supporters may still be begging him to run for Mayor.
Fulvio Valentinis---He should have been Mayor!
When he speaks, you have to listen. It does not matter the topic, Fulvio generally has the right answer. Quiet and unassuming, he has saved the City a number of times without getting the true publicity he deserves. I personally can vouch for that.
He is Eddie’s mentor and probably the only Councillor that Eddie really respects or trusts. He is always the one who points out problems or raises policy issues that need to be addressed. If there is a vital issue that needs to be dealt with in Windsor, then Fulvio is the man to see. Truly the Dean of Council.
I believe that if the Mayor and his colleagues had listened to Fulvio more, we would have had a practical border solution already so that we could go on to important matters. He took the fall for Eddie in my opinion on Schwartz---saying that it was a starting point after almost 8 months of telling the world that it was the City’s position. Incredible!
I still do not understand his emotional appeal re the vacant, agricultural lands rather than going on Talbot Road, a position that he had accepted when Schwartz was endorsed. Again, I believe that he is leading the attack for some scheme that has now been dreamed up. It should be obvious to Fulvio why no one listens to the City but he won’t say it in public anyway being the loyal soldier that he is.
It is slightly less than one year before the next election and people are starting to talk about who will run, will Eddie be challenged, and will the turnout be large or small thereby favouring the incumbents. It is interesting as well seeing the Councillors jockeying for position and just starting to break away from the unanimity façade that they have been trying to promote for two years now.
So let me deal with each of the Councillors and then the Mayor and let me give my opinion after watching them for the past two years.
Ward One
Dave Brister---Imagine the rush…from Senior Business Analyst to the equivalent of a Senior VP Finance in a large company.
Dave is bright, hard-working, and articulate. He may be a terrific analyst at his employer but he needs to grow to become a “Councillor” finally. He has to learn that he is not an employee of the Finance Dept but more like a member of a Board who must have a broad perspective. He gets too buried in the minutiae. The question is whether he is capable of doing so since it has been two years already since the last election.
His questions at Council are totally predictable. If it has to do with money, there is Dave. Most often Administration has the answer, and his smirk as he turns off the microphone and the way he pushes it aside with a flair suggests that he likes to hear his own voice rather than gain information.
I wonder why he never had undertaken the forensic audit of City finances that he pushed for in his campaign literature. Dave in his brochure claimed there was no accountability at City Hall and it seems there still is not. What has he been doing since the Mayor said that there was “no accountability whatsoever” in relation to the overtime matter as an example.
His raising of the “conflict” issue when something touches the border makes a mockery of the 11,000 votes he received and is a slap in the face to his Community. He has been virtually invisible on the issue that got him elected, not a smart thing to do, preferring to play the role of Councillor Budget instead.
Dave needs to start thinking independently and understand that he can get re-elected without Gord Henderson’s blessing on an issue.
Joyce Zuk—She is baaaaaaaaack. But not as often as she should be.
I do not understand why Joyce has been so nice over the past two years pretending that Council is united when it is a bickering place full of personal animosities. A few flickers over the past while of the contrariness that I like in Joyce. Over the past few months she has not minded being the lone Councillor voting against her colleagues.
Probably the smartest, quickest and toughest Councillor of the bunch. She has seemed to be under a lot of stress for these last two years for reasons unknown to me.
She has been accused of running for Mayor in the next election and personally insulted several times at in-camera meetings. I do not know why she hasn’t hit back as she did with the ex-Mayor when he annoyed her.
She has been a strong voice speaking for the individuals in the City who are not as well-off as her own Ward 1 constituents. She should be a shoo-in and the number one vote-getter in the Ward if she runs the strong campaign she did last time around.
Since Dave has told Henderson that he is never running for Mayor, that leaves an opening for Joyce if she plans to do so in future. If Joyce runs for Council, then Ward 1 can choose between Scrooge and Santa Claus
Ward Two
Caroline Postma---The Diva of Ward 2 knows her constituents.
She understands that being a Councillor is not just performing on Channel 11 every Monday but cleaning up the filth in the Ward, from “signs” to graffiti. She understood the hard lesson of keeping her mouth shut in her first year as she learned the ropes and went on the rubber chicken circuit speaking with almost every significant group in the City in place of the Mayor. The toss of her blond/brown/red (the colour du jour) hair has made people shake in their boots.
She is not taken seriously by some of her “educated” colleagues but they had better learn fast that she is raw Ward 2. No one else had better forget that either. She is starting to speak more now, giving the reasons for her votes a lot more than in her first year.
Caroline tends to personalize issues much more than her colleagues, reflecting how they impact on her and her family. I would expect that this resonates well with some constituents but can get a bit cloying on occasion if done too much.
Who would have believed at the start of their term that she and Ron Jones could ever work together given their animosities. Now they seem to be the only Ward Councillors that can do so and like each other.
Ron Jones— Part of the Dynamic Duo in Ward 2.
It took him awhile to understand that Mike Hurst is no longer the Mayor and he is starting to enjoy Council again. Yet he seems to be totally frustrated on many occasions which led to earlier talk that the was not going to run again for Council. His frustration level seems higher than that of any of his colleagues. Why he won’t come out and say what bothers him is something I do not understand. However, when he finally explodes, watch out.
He and the Diva have buried the hatchet and if the two of them can work together, Ward 2 may be the place to be as the border, an urban village and the Sandwich Corporation get resolved and favour the Ward.
Ron learned a bit about power politics after he spoke out courageously against Council secrecy. The Beztak incident re the arena in Ward 2 was an absolute disgrace as their plan was shot down in flames by his colleagues for a proposal at the Racetrack that seems dead in the water now.
I believe that Ron is a good Ward Councillor. Everyone from his area knows him and he knows everyone and makes them feel special.
I only wish that he and the Diva would take a stronger role on the border since it impacts their Ward the most (Yes I know, the role I wanted them to take!). It is fine to protect Sandwich but then what. That is the part they are missing. They do not have to worry…Brian will get re-elected even if they would only propose talking to the Bridge Company!
Ward Three
Alan Halberstadt---He asks so many questions publicly that people get angry sometimes when he asks them. Even if they are good ones.
Just listen to some “digs” from his colleagues at Council meetings. But that won’t stop him! Alan was the Council S***-disturber when Hurst was the Mayor and when that was needed. He had a bit of trouble at first adjusting with Eddie but seems a lot happier in his role.
He and Eddie get along, Alan was the only Councillor that came out publicly for him at the last election, but I have noticed a couple of testy exchanges recently between them when Alan dared question what Eddie said. Eddie better learn that Alan will NOT back down or be intimidated, friend or no friend. It may also be that Alan can see some of the handwriting on the wall re the next election and understands that his strength is being perceived as an “independent.”
I find him hard to read sometimes on how he will vote. He is leftist on social issue like the environment, but is a budgeteer on the rightist budget slashing. A red Tory, even though he likes the Greens?
I know personally that he keeps his constituents happy with his prompt action on Ward issues being 2 out of 2 on some problems I had.
I think that he has a much broader view than many of his colleagues about city issues, perhaps because of his journalist background. His supporters may still be begging him to run for Mayor.
Fulvio Valentinis---He should have been Mayor!
When he speaks, you have to listen. It does not matter the topic, Fulvio generally has the right answer. Quiet and unassuming, he has saved the City a number of times without getting the true publicity he deserves. I personally can vouch for that.
He is Eddie’s mentor and probably the only Councillor that Eddie really respects or trusts. He is always the one who points out problems or raises policy issues that need to be addressed. If there is a vital issue that needs to be dealt with in Windsor, then Fulvio is the man to see. Truly the Dean of Council.
I believe that if the Mayor and his colleagues had listened to Fulvio more, we would have had a practical border solution already so that we could go on to important matters. He took the fall for Eddie in my opinion on Schwartz---saying that it was a starting point after almost 8 months of telling the world that it was the City’s position. Incredible!
I still do not understand his emotional appeal re the vacant, agricultural lands rather than going on Talbot Road, a position that he had accepted when Schwartz was endorsed. Again, I believe that he is leading the attack for some scheme that has now been dreamed up. It should be obvious to Fulvio why no one listens to the City but he won’t say it in public anyway being the loyal soldier that he is.
Ward Four
David Cassivi—A long tenure gives one experience which ought not to be discounted on a Council made up of so many rookies.
The Senator is generally the last one to speak on an issue. Not, as some would say, to see how the wind is blowing, but because he expertly and succinctly gets to the heart of an issue in his brief comments to Council.
Dave IS the swingman on this Council as he was in the last one. Where he goes the majority will go. When he voted against Hurst, you knew that Mike was finished as Mayor. Eddie is desperately playing to his ego by making him his “emissary” (THAT may have backfired badly) and will get him involved again in the arena solution. Council is starting to line up 5-4 on many key issues with David as the swing again.
Dave was “trashed” recently by the Star. I explained why in a BLOG. I am sorry that David did not hit back as he ought to have done. Turning the other cheek may be “statesman” like but I would not have been as dignified as the Senator if that had happened to me.
I will be very interested to see how the dynamics on Council might change over the next few months as a result of this incident.
Ken Lewenza, Jr.----A guy who has the potential to be Mayor but is too inconsistent in how he treats his role.
Not his father’s Oldsmobile (or Chrysler given his job). Clearly he is a bright guy with a vision of the world, even if some view it as ”leftist” to label him improperly. For a guy who seemed not to take his election seriously at the beginning of term, he grew remarkably to present a passionate voice expressing his point of view at budget time last year. Then he allowed Eddie to steal his thunder at the Council meeting dealing with the budget and has gone downhill since. It was like the fire had gone out. But now the fire seems to be re-kindling but for how long.
Viewed initially as Hurst’s revenge on Eddie and a possible contender to Francis at the next re-election, that has all changed. He and Eddie are of a similar age. He has been a big booster of Eddie so far—why do you think the unions are so supportive on the border. He is the one person that Eddie has to be concerned about, not because Ken will undermine him, but because he is NOT a businessman. While Eddie attacked the union members who rejected the Casino offer as not understanding the “investment” opportunity being lost, Ken will discuss issues of “social (in)justice.” He now is playing the role of conciliator with one particular situation at City Hall that could turn ugly.
Like Eddie, he understands the media. (He started an alternative voice, city-wide newspaper after all). He has become the leader of the small person bloc on Council, not by design but by default. Some colleagues are looking to him now for direction as they used to do with Eddie. He will be the one leading the attack on the slash and burners this time around again but how effective he will be remains to be seen.
If Bill Marra runs for Council in the Ward, notwithstanding the Star attack on his Ward mate, I think that Ken is at risk to be a one term wonder.
Ward Five
Jo-Anne Gignac---Someone must have reminded her that she is on Council now, not the Board of Education.
She exasperated me hearing of her Board experiences when she was first elected. Who cared! I have not heard that as much lately. However, she still speaks in Education-speak when talking at Council.
Clearly she is an intelligent woman and works hard. You can tell that by the many questions she asks on all topics. She does her homework thoroughly. She fits the role of a Councillor with people being impressed by her style and appearance. [However, she should stay as far away from Percy’s Panel as she can. She is NOT good at answering his questions, seemingly getting flustered easily and giving poor answers].
Apparently, she is viewed as the one most likely to challenge the Mayor for re-election if anyone on Council is going to do it. It may go back to the time when Eddie beat her for election. She seems to be the only Councillor who is staking out her own position on the border as an example. While she is supportive of Schwartz, on several votes she has taken “populist” positions contrary to her colleagues.
As I said before, I just do not get a strong indication of what she stands for. I just have a difficult time making up my mind about her.
Tom Wilson---He is not running again so I shall be brief, or is he?
Some of the Councillors believe that he is getting so angry at some things taking place at Council that he may just run again for spite! I am told that the attack from the Star recently did not bother him one bit since, as a friend said “He doesn't care what the media writes/says.”
He still has it in him if he wanted. I thought he was brilliant on the Beztak debate. His questioning was excellent and to the point and his speech was passionate. Oh well.
David Cassivi—A long tenure gives one experience which ought not to be discounted on a Council made up of so many rookies.
The Senator is generally the last one to speak on an issue. Not, as some would say, to see how the wind is blowing, but because he expertly and succinctly gets to the heart of an issue in his brief comments to Council.
Dave IS the swingman on this Council as he was in the last one. Where he goes the majority will go. When he voted against Hurst, you knew that Mike was finished as Mayor. Eddie is desperately playing to his ego by making him his “emissary” (THAT may have backfired badly) and will get him involved again in the arena solution. Council is starting to line up 5-4 on many key issues with David as the swing again.
Dave was “trashed” recently by the Star. I explained why in a BLOG. I am sorry that David did not hit back as he ought to have done. Turning the other cheek may be “statesman” like but I would not have been as dignified as the Senator if that had happened to me.
I will be very interested to see how the dynamics on Council might change over the next few months as a result of this incident.
Ken Lewenza, Jr.----A guy who has the potential to be Mayor but is too inconsistent in how he treats his role.
Not his father’s Oldsmobile (or Chrysler given his job). Clearly he is a bright guy with a vision of the world, even if some view it as ”leftist” to label him improperly. For a guy who seemed not to take his election seriously at the beginning of term, he grew remarkably to present a passionate voice expressing his point of view at budget time last year. Then he allowed Eddie to steal his thunder at the Council meeting dealing with the budget and has gone downhill since. It was like the fire had gone out. But now the fire seems to be re-kindling but for how long.
Viewed initially as Hurst’s revenge on Eddie and a possible contender to Francis at the next re-election, that has all changed. He and Eddie are of a similar age. He has been a big booster of Eddie so far—why do you think the unions are so supportive on the border. He is the one person that Eddie has to be concerned about, not because Ken will undermine him, but because he is NOT a businessman. While Eddie attacked the union members who rejected the Casino offer as not understanding the “investment” opportunity being lost, Ken will discuss issues of “social (in)justice.” He now is playing the role of conciliator with one particular situation at City Hall that could turn ugly.
Like Eddie, he understands the media. (He started an alternative voice, city-wide newspaper after all). He has become the leader of the small person bloc on Council, not by design but by default. Some colleagues are looking to him now for direction as they used to do with Eddie. He will be the one leading the attack on the slash and burners this time around again but how effective he will be remains to be seen.
If Bill Marra runs for Council in the Ward, notwithstanding the Star attack on his Ward mate, I think that Ken is at risk to be a one term wonder.
Ward Five
Jo-Anne Gignac---Someone must have reminded her that she is on Council now, not the Board of Education.
She exasperated me hearing of her Board experiences when she was first elected. Who cared! I have not heard that as much lately. However, she still speaks in Education-speak when talking at Council.
Clearly she is an intelligent woman and works hard. You can tell that by the many questions she asks on all topics. She does her homework thoroughly. She fits the role of a Councillor with people being impressed by her style and appearance. [However, she should stay as far away from Percy’s Panel as she can. She is NOT good at answering his questions, seemingly getting flustered easily and giving poor answers].
Apparently, she is viewed as the one most likely to challenge the Mayor for re-election if anyone on Council is going to do it. It may go back to the time when Eddie beat her for election. She seems to be the only Councillor who is staking out her own position on the border as an example. While she is supportive of Schwartz, on several votes she has taken “populist” positions contrary to her colleagues.
As I said before, I just do not get a strong indication of what she stands for. I just have a difficult time making up my mind about her.
Tom Wilson---He is not running again so I shall be brief, or is he?
Some of the Councillors believe that he is getting so angry at some things taking place at Council that he may just run again for spite! I am told that the attack from the Star recently did not bother him one bit since, as a friend said “He doesn't care what the media writes/says.”
He still has it in him if he wanted. I thought he was brilliant on the Beztak debate. His questioning was excellent and to the point and his speech was passionate. Oh well.
The Overall Assessment
How would I assess this Council. One would think that after the nice things I said in general, the ranking of this Council would be high. Yet it is not. I rank them overall as a “fail.” If one wanted to characterize this Council, one would use terms such as:
1) Secretive. So much for “open and transparent government. They act in secret behind closed doors and do not trust us. Have we ever been given a chance to talk about the border or moving the arena to the racetrack or is the downtown being re-located to the Casino area. It must be bad if the Star is against them on this issue.
2) Indecisive. Their border strategy failed and what is their alternative, the bus terminal was to built for Super Bowl and has not even been started, who knows about an arena, Canderel has not been rented out (and the Keg must be worried with rumours of DCX going), we have no economic redevelopment strategy to recover our lost auto jobs
3) Fiscally erratic. Sure they are trying to save pennies on the budget but they have not tried to recover the $68 million MFP shortfall, they have the overtime mess, the pay equity mess, who knows what the border is costing us, the tunnel building surprise, some re-assessment problems and OMERS will add millions. And we are still paying for Canderel.
4) Achieved little………… tell me what they have done other than 311.
How can one explain why this Council has failed so badly. They are all good people, hard-working and devoted to doing the right thing for Windsor. I know many of them personally and understand how hard they work and for so little money. It is almost like having a second full-time job.
The expectations were so high! They were a new team, 4 new members, a fresh outlook, action-oriented, and going to solve all of our woes. To be very blunt, the old Council got a bad rap about how “dysfunctional” it was. It wasn’t. Sure there was not the “unity” that there supposedly is today, votes were generally 7-3, but the old Council made the tough decisions that still impact us today. In my opinion this Council compares poorly with the job the old Council did for Windsor, at least after February, 2003! This Council has coasted on their predecessor’s results and has had few significant achievements.
So how does one explain this? It’s called LEADERSHIP, or rather lack of it in Windsor.
The Mayor is the only full-time member of Council. Under the Ontario Municipal Act, the Mayor’s functions include:
(a) to act as chief executive officer of the municipality;
(c) to provide leadership to the council;
As can be seen above, one cannot talk about Councillors without talking about Eddie. So let’s talk about:
The Mayor
Eddie Francis---If you are a regular BLOG reader, you know what I think of our Mayor.
To be blunt, he is a disappointment to me personally. I feel let down. He is not the person I thought I helped get elected to lead us on some of the most important decisions this City will ever have to make. I did a lot of work for this man during the campaign because I thought he was the new Windsor. He is not.
It is too bad that most people do not remember what Eddie said during the campaign about his Real Plan and what a new Windsor will look like in 10 years. [If you want to read what he said, contact me.] In my opinion, what he offered sounded achievable but not now, after watching him perform for two years as our CEO.
He is an astute politician while denying that he is. Remember his campaign kick-off speech: “I will do this not as a politician but as a citizen who wants to serve you.”
He must be a good chess player, always moves ahead of anyone else. The combination of the Phase 1 Agreement and the infamous Agenda Item #5 is clearly a good example….precursor to buying/leasing the Tunnel with Detroit. Who would have suspected that?
Does he have a few trusted friends from whom he seeks advice and who will tell it as it is? If not that is a huge liability for someone in his job as leader of the City. Does he rely only on himself?
Eddie had weaknesses as a candidate as can be expected. These flaws have been magnified as Mayor and he has done little to change or correct them.
Eddie’s fatal flaw is his own brilliance. He is too smart for his own good. His “workaholicism” is due not to actual working but by trying to ensure that the real universe unfolds in the same way his model of it does. When there is a divergence, he has problems.
I am sure that a good part of his day is spent “micro-managing.” Unfortunately with the situation in Windsor, he cannot possibly do it all. He has to learn how to trust and let go.
While he has been the leader on the border, especially by keeping Councillors united, even those who admire his skills there knock him on lack of leadership on other issues. He has his own agenda and timetable and does not care what others think.
He likes talking about “Council” actions and decisions, not because he is modest or empowering of his colleagues but to deflect any negativism away from him if something turns out wrong. He is Teflon or tries to be (the Mady garage fiasco is classic). It is not his fault. He is the “nice guy.” Let others be negative, not him.
Eddie has forgotten who supported him, from some of the biggest business leaders in town, to his financial contributors to his workers. Most importantly, he has forgotten Windsorites. He has not learned what being a leader means. His lack of involvement by the “people” in the border process as an example is shameful by an advocate of Open and Transparent Government.
He has made the word PLAN a joke. Remember the quote from Warren Kinsella “the killer ballot question is always this one: "Do they have a plan?” Well Eddie learned his lesson. He has a plan, a plan for everything. And as a Councillor told me once “….he must have a Plan, Eddie always has a plan even if I do not know what it is yet.” I must admit with my border fixation, I do not see a Border Plan to accomplish a good solution for Windsor that I can support.
Council's Future
With lack of leadership from our Mayor, the only person who can afford to spend his whole day worrying about the City, it is no wonder that Council is floundering.
That is my assessment of Windsor’s political leadership. It is not a pretty picture with the serious issues this City has facing it and I must admit that I cannot see a lot changing in an election year. Oh, don’t worry, we will get all kinds of announcements….isn’t that par for the course in order to get re-elected.
I wonder if one of our Councillors will finally have enough, or better yet a group of them, so that we might have the Council of 2003 with or without the Mayor as part of them. It is our only salvation!
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