Raise the Hammer
By RTH Staff
Published March 21, 2014
Jeanette Eby and Matt Thompson, co-presidents of the Beasley Neighbourhood Association, sent the following letter to Ward 2 Councillor Jason Farr to reiterate the BNA's support for the Cannon Street Cycle Track, which the General Issues Committee just unanimously approved.
The motion to implement the cycle track must still be approved by Council next week.
Dear Councillor Farr:
We are writing you today on behalf of the Beasley Neighbourhood Association in order to thank you for your support of making Cannon a complete street, a decision on which will go to council shortly.
Some members of council and the community have attempted to postpone this much desired and needed community-building project because of the impression that certain consultations were not held.
Let us be clear that the BNA and residents' groups from across downtown have long expressed our support for making Cannon a complete street that better balances uses by pedestrians, cyclists and transit users and drivers. A bike lane/cycling track is certainly part of this vision.
Please know that the BNA continues to strongly support the proposed improvements to Cannon St. and that we feel that the public engagement led by Yes We Cannon was extensive, robust, and representative of the diverse communities that live in Beasley. The passionate volunteers from YWC took the time to come to our meetings and attend our public events in order to engage with members face-to-face.
In case there is any doubt about how Beasley residents feel about a safer, better Cannon St., please see the attached photo taken at our last summer BBQ. At this event held in Beasley Park, right on Cannon St., Yes We Cannon was able to talk to hundreds of residents who actually LIVE around Cannon St. As you can see, this includes the caretakers of young children who worry about their every time they walk with kids down Cannon's narrow urban highway.
Proactive community members do not wait for citizens to come to them when they want input, as is required by the Public Information Centres model used by the CIty. Our community has already been engaged, so let's get on with making downtown Hamilton a better place to live.
Sincerely,
Jeanette Eby and Matt Thompson
Co-Presidents, Beasley Neighbourhood Association
Support for Yes We Cannon in Beasley (Image Credit: Beasley Neighbourhood Association)
By Michelle Martin (registered) - website | Posted March 22, 2014 at 17:49:04
Now if we could only get it extended past Ottawa Street N...
By jason (registered) | Posted March 23, 2014 at 09:36:08
Sorry, but this doesn't count as public input. There's no black and white PDF being mailed out by city hall. Plus, The Spectator says so.....
By seancb (registered) - website | Posted March 24, 2014 at 12:26:50 in reply to Comment 99001
Also, R. Donlyres needs to approve everything first
By AnjoMan (registered) | Posted March 24, 2014 at 09:19:36 in reply to Comment 99001
Yeah, and you can't count any consultation that happened at a barbecue because those are too fun.
By Borrelli (registered) | Posted March 24, 2014 at 11:09:32
Apparently some councillors think that unless it's done in a drafty community centre with poster-boards, it doesn't count. The City surely has a central role to play in public consultation, but let's not hold up those low-turnout PICs as a Gold Standard for public engagement.
By jason (registered) | Posted March 24, 2014 at 12:30:20 in reply to Comment 99074
The city, and Speculator, should be thanking Farr and McHattie and all of the community groups who reached out to thousands of people and gathered tremendous public input without relying on paid city staff to do all the work. I realize politicians are experts at make-work projects, but let's be honest. Staffers aren't suddenly going to lose their jobs because some feedback is gathered without them.
By highwater (registered) | Posted March 24, 2014 at 11:46:42 in reply to Comment 99074
Yeah, except Clark wasn't even asking for that. He just wanted a 30 day period for gathering comments. He was willing to delay a pilot project for an entire year, for rudimentary consultation that would be token even by the city's standards. Hard to see it as anything other than a stalling tactic given what he was proposing.
Comment edited by highwater on 2014-03-24 11:47:29
By old guy (anonymous) | Posted March 24, 2014 at 16:36:34
By that math I'm over 600 years old
You must be logged in to comment.
There are no upcoming events right now.
Why not post one?