COLLINS: All eyes on inaugural council meeting tonight

Hamer-Jackson’s main job is to be the face of the City and provide leadership. A nationally recognized expert on civic government told InfoNews on the weekend Hamer-Jackson wasn’t off to a good start.

George Cuff says some of Hamer-Jackson’s comments about some Department heads, and a demand for an apology from Councillor Dale Bass over recent comments in Council about Hamer-Jackson’s plans for a recovery centre are not conducive to a good start.

What Hamer-Jackson says tonight may give us a glimpse of how the Mayor plans to lead. Or not.

The key to the future, though, isn’t the Mayor. Most of the pressure is on the shoulders of CAO David Trawin.

As I wrote last week, the Chief Administrative Officer is the go-between. The Mayor and Council need to go through Trawin to speak to Department Heads, and they don’t speak to individual employees.

It will be up to Trawin to guide Mayor and Council through the proper procedures. The one thing we don’t want is a toxic work environment that will see good people leave.

As far as Councillor Bass is concerned, I don’t expect her to apologize for her comments about the recovery centre, which she suggested was more like a concentration camp. The reference to the concentration camps of Nazi Germany may have been a little out there, but I think the thought behind the comment was fair. And in a one-on-one confrontation, I would not bet against the Councillor.

Despite all this, I hope Mayor and Council find a way to work well together, and with City staff. There is much to be done. And it will take a solid team to make that happen.

I’m Doug Collins and that’s One Man’s Opinion.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.

by Doug Collins

COLLINS: All eyes on inaugural council meeting tonight

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