Time for Accountability for Rehtaeh Parsons - My letter to the Minister of Justice Ross Landry

Dear Ross,
I write to you out of concern, frustration, and sadness over the incidents that lead up to the untimely death of Rehtaeh Parsons, a 17 year old that was taken off Life Support on Sunday evening after being raped, bullied, and cyber- bullied by schoolmates of Cole Harbour High.

My concern stems from the Crown Prosecutor’s decision to not press charges against the 4 boys who raped Rehtaeh even though a photo was circulated to other students of Cole Harbour High.  With all the technology and the ability to trace the IP addresses or MAC addresses of computers, I am puzzled that our integrated police service took so long with their investigation.  Moreover the time span during the investigation it took to interview the alleged rapists.  This is unacceptable.  Our Police Services need to address such heinous crimes in a timely manner and to conduct interviews of suspects in a timely manner!  Allowing months to go by without interviewing a suspect is absolutely unacceptable.

This brings me to my frustration; with respect to the lack of action by the High School Faculty, the Principal, and the Halifax Regional School Board Member/ School Board.  How could this type of bullying, cyber-bullying be unnoticed? Teachers are not immune to gossip and student issues.
The response from the Crown Prosecutor’s Communications person, Chris Hansen, was is just spin-doctor gibberish to deflect the genuine reality that Justice was not served.

My sadness is derived from the disappointment that Rehtaeh has perished without justice being served and that her family has been let down by the Government Agencies that are supposed to protect its citizens.  The 4 boys have gotten away with their horrific actions.  The High School has not fostered an anti-bullying program.  The Police and Justice Services have failed the citizenry of our community.

I formally request a full review of this case and that the 4 alleged rapists are brought to justice.  The Parson family have had to endure so much heartache and they need closure.   Personally, I am requesting this review for all the young women who are venerable to such crimes.  Please have your staff investigate the Todd case in British Columbia and the amendments adopted there with respect to Bullying.

Preventing another rape, bullying and subsequent death of a youth is in your hands.

Dawn Marie Sloane

Bravo Min. Jennex! HRM, smarten up and save our Neighbourhoods!

The problem with the school review is that in HRM's case it is killing established communities by forcing children to go to schools outside of their neighbourhoods which then cause the deterioration of walkable sustainable communities/ neighbourhoods. As the typical amenities are closed down or relocated, neighbourhoods lose their uniqueness, pride, and functionality. Families move and communities deteriorate, crime become rampant, and other businesses and or amenities move.

Communities suffer when the wrong choices are made with respect to the closing of community amenities. Children no longer walk to school= obesity. Eyes on the street= the feeling of being in an unsafe environment = crime. The more people move out of the established neighbourhoods the more it costs us all in taxes (to pay for the relocation of amenities and the price of new infrastructure such as sewer and water).

Our water bills are going up because of this "shift", deferred maintenance to our infrastructure is occurring which means we are going to see an increase to water bills (as stated on the news last night) that will not even come close to the $$$$ required to keep the system to a optimum working conditions.

We need to plan properly. HRM has allowed for leapfrog development ( spot development outside of the serviced area which requires the basic services - police, fire, snow removal etc) which has made our growth uncontrollable. HRM by Design tried to remedy this but Council was weak and didn't take the really necessary steps to curb the leapfrogging.

Moreover, if the correct housing developments and affordable ( a sliding scale affordable housing) was enacted, people could live within the serviceable area which would decrease the infrastructure costs, allow for the existing amenities to be utilized to their capacity ( money saving) and allow for the local businesses to thrive as the population would use the local shops in a walkable community scenario.

The other issue is the amount of money HRM gives to the developers to build the services HRM will take over after the development is concluded - otherwise known as capital cost contributions. HRM needs to revise this policy and adopt the policies Harry Kitchen and Enid Slack proposed to HRM which stated that Developers need to start adding a % of the infrastructure cost to each house built outside of the serviced area. We as existing taxpayers should not be subsiding new growth that perpetuates the closure of schools, decline of neighbourhoods, and the loss of community.

HRM Council needs to learn the word NO and to revise the planning documents so we can rebuild our urban environment so we aren’t wasting money on services that are too spread out to provide at a reasonable rate.

It's really just common sense. You cannot expect an elastic to stretch beyond its capacity and not break. Our elastic (HRM coffers) is starting to fray and deteriorate. The breaking point is nigh! Look at all the money being spent on transit and new overpasses, while our older areas are not being maintained properly.

 Are people using transit?  No.  Only a certain sector, yet HRM build overpasses, underpasses to aid the pressure of new development and the almighty vehicle... typically one person vehicles. Planning our region and using the fund for infrastructure properly should be the catalyst to change, but I fear there are too many fingers in the pot.

If the greater good is not seen as the objective, then we will continue to spiral out of control...  taxes, infrastructure costs ( for maintenance and for new) will increase and this wonderful place will drive people to other municipalities that are more affordable.

Valentines…..Shhhmalentines

As a 45 year old single woman, I really can’t stand all this hype over Valentine’s Day.  Frankly I just don’t understand why one day out of 365 is so important to those that have found a mate.  Notice I didn’t say soul mate, lover, or better half.  I will embellish on this soon enough.
Personally, I think it you have a partner, male or female; you should feel love, compassion, and trust 365/24/7 and not just show it on one day.  Mind you like any friendship or relationship there will be days when you want to take a cheese grater to the others face or flush the toilet while they are showering…  it’s human nature to not be “ in love” 365/24/7.  We all can get on each other’s nerves.

With that being said, this day originates from a grizzly event, and I choose not to participate for several reasons which I will not elaborate on as it is really none of your business. I’m a realist and believe that the more you promote a made up holiday, the more you exclude those that are a huge part of our populace.  Marriages are not the norm these days.  The Church hasn’t the control it had before on our daily lives and I’m not going to delve into that issue, but I will say that if anything we as humans should be celebrating our individuality and ability to be kind to each other and not this ploy to sell greeting cards, flowers, candy, and whatever else people give on this supposed event.

As a society we need to stop with the hype and move toward love and compassion 365/24/7.  One nice deed a day to a fellow human, animal, or plant could make this world a better place for all of us, so why are we still allowing this marketing ploy to dictate our lives? It’s a money maker. It generates high expectations from those we admire or hope to be admired from.  It plays on our insecurities and causes doubt to creep into our minds that if we do not have a person we think enough about to spend money on, then we are dysfunctional and perhaps not good enough to be loved. We all deserve to feel needed, wanted and loved with or without another in our lives. 

Well sisters and brothers, I say stand up and say no more!  We are all worth something and we do not need someone else to prop you up or to make you feel good about ourselves.  For example today I bought the Germination Station so I could grow fresh greens which I plan on sharing with my friends and neighbours.  I was happy to treat myself to something that I will be able to share. Make random acts of kindness not so random.  Make them your new mission!

Please think over my thoughts…  I’m sure I will get flack for this blog. 

Blue Jays, Cranes and the rise of the Phoenix

While feeding the 5 bluejays that frequent my backyard every morning, I could hear the rattling of cranes and thought to myself progress has come to Downtown Halifax. Several people have asked me but why did it take so long and what is the fate of those that have hung on awaiting this to occur?

New Central Library

During my tenure on Regional Council, so many projects were approved (many hotly contested), yet we are only seeing movement now.  Some blame the past Council, others blame the developers.  In actual fact; I believe it is the realization that the HRM By Design Secondary Plan is finally being taken seriously.

From 2000 to June 16, 2009, Halifax Regional Council struggled with development within the oldest part of the municipality.  Developers would ask for huge exceptions to the existing municipal planning strategy and expect Regional Council to comprehend their rationale to challenge the plan.   Unfortunately, one exception to the Municipal Planning Strategy became the normal occurrence and the battle over heritage/ height/design became so intense that it seemed Regional Council was constantly polarized which media, businesses, and citizens blamed on the Elected Officials. 

Yes, planning documents need to be never ending working documents so that they are kept in line with desires of the citizenry/business, but not to the point of ignoring the rules all together. There is an avenue which allows for changes to be adopted to a development plan called an amendment.   This allows for planning strategies to be revised through several steps: public input via public information meetings, first reading (allows for Regional Council to either move the revision to a Public Hearing or nix it), and then the debate on the Council floor.  This allows for healthy dialogue between the public and the Elected Officials which should aid the Elected Officials with their decision- making. 

Thankfully HRM By Design has made this antiquated procedure the way of the DoDo.  With the input of thousands of citizens, developers, and businesses; the Secondary Plan is in the hands of a group of volunteer professionals who comprehend the intent of the plan and review the proposed developments which has diminished the waiting time for developments.

So if that is the case, why did it take so long for these developments to get going?  It’s called reality!  This is not a game of Sim City! As a former draftsperson, I know first hand how long it takes to compile and action a project.

Assembling funding, detailed designs, and working through permits and other documents/approvals for water, sewer, electrical takes abundance of man hours from all aspects.

So now we are seeing the results of what seemed to be a lifetime of meetings, public input, and heated debates.  So why are businesses closing? What is causing this mass exodus? Several people on my Facebook have chimed in on this topic with several theories. Here is one example of why we are losing good businesses on Barrington Street.

Many of the businesses, the independently operated, lease space for their businesses and the owners are jacking up the rent to the point they cannot sustain themselves.  One such business which was an awesome little antique/art gallery/restaurant was Elephant’s Eye.  The owner decided to renovate, but this caused the business to shut down during renovations only to then have to close permanently because the owner raised the rent. 

The loss of Dacane Surf Shop, Extreme Pita, Oddjects, and Captain Sub/Greco Pizza and Elephant’s Eye in the past 30 days makes you wonder if Barrington Street will every bounce back.  Well, it will.  Just like Gottingen Street and Spring Garden, Barrington will reinvent itself but it will be at the cost of our entrepreneurs that have awaited some aid with the resurgence of the downtown core.  These shops, bars, and restaurants had faith in our downtown and waited patiently for the citizens to discover their unique businesses and now, now they could hold on no longer ( depending on their circumstances of course – just generalizing) If the rents continue to climb where will our energetic entrepreneurs go?  Will they leave Halifax for greener pastures?  Many have already done so unfortunately. 

The old adage “with progress comes change”, let’s hope that during this change, those that have contributed to keeping the Downtown alive are able to hang on just a little longer.

Public Trust - Must Not a Bust

I have procrastinated enough.  It’s time to write a blog on public trust.  I’ve been thinking about this a lot, and what is there to say about public trust? 

I think the polls say it all when it comes to public trust.  37% of the electorate voted in the last municipal election.  This is the same number as the last election of 2008. So why wasn’t there a total overhaul of Regional Council?   The media and polls strongly suggested people wanted a dramatic change to their municipal government, yet only three seats actually changed in the election.

Could it have been the inconvenience? Due to the change in boundaries, there were changes to many poll locations.  To save money, Council agreed to the elimination of advanced polls by paper ballot hoping the electorate would take advantage of the two weeks of internet and phone voting. Moreover Election days were moved to Saturdays to allow for easier access to vote.  Or was it just plain apathy?

I’m thinking it’s the last.  Apathy seems to be rampant within all levels of government these days. I believe it boils down to public trust. A large percentage of the population have lost faith in the system and can you blame them?  No.  

At the municipal level, politicians are not really in control with the day to day operations of the municipality.  The issue stems from the fact that our elected officials are strangled with legislation from past provincial government decisions. In Halifax Regional Municipality’s case; they are ruled by a report known as the Hayward Report. Written in 1995 for immediate action in 1996, the report outlined the newly amalgamated Municipality’s governance model which empowered the bureaucrats and emasculate the elected officials.   

William Hayward the author of the report himself was a bureaucrat and really didn't understand the complexities of municipal services and the roles the citizens wanted their representatives to govern.  With the adoption of this governance model, several things were left out of the framework, starting with the support of the citizens and businesses for the change.  Out of 3 amalgamations, only one was truly backed by the electorate, and it wasn’t Halifax, Dartmouth, Bedford or the former counties; it was Queen’s Regional Municipality.    

With so much opposition to amalgamation, I believe the citizenry were so turned off; they lost interest in any of the details like the governance model.  Do you blame them?  I certainly don’t, but I do blame the lack of educating of the public of this model on the municipality. By not educating the electorate, their expectations of good governance are dashed constantly because the rules favour the process and policies of former “strategic plans”, “planning strategies”… etc.  Does the bureaucratic machine have too much power and those elected not really educated in the rules surrounding government? I think it’s a little of both.  

While at a Federation of Canadian Municipalities Conference a few years ago, I noticed that Calgary has a great program in place for educating their citizens. Run by Community and Neighbourhood Services City Hall School is available for school children from grades 3 to 12 the opportunity to be educated on the operations and political side of City Hall. A city educating their future citizens could be broaden to include newly landed immigrants or citizens that would like to know more about civics.  Why can’t Halifax introduce something like this? 

I brought this idea up at Regional Council many times, but unfortunately I had no support, so I’m challenging this New Council to pick up this idea and run with it!  Seriously, if we want a change in the percentage of voters, more civic pride, and more citizen participation; you need to foster, educate, and work with the citizens.

On a closing note, public trust is a two way street.  Yes, government needs to gain the citizens’ trust by acting in good faith, but citizens have to stop being so bloody apathetic!   Change only happens when everyone participates as a team.  I know, I’m cheerleading here… but if we want better government, we have to participate, push our elected officials, and request change, not just for the sake of change, but to make our communities better for all.

Next Blog: TBA

Boxes Aside... Benefits of Community Councils and How to Save Small Municipalities

I was going to write a quip about the things I uncovered while sorting through the 12 years of reports, thank you letters, requests, and material brought back from conferences, but I have decided to change gears due to two opinions that were made regarding how our municipality should be governed and the issues towns throughout Nova Scotia are facing.

The first opinion was tweeted last night.  It thoroughly enraged me as the comments were completely incorrect regarding the role/governance, and use of Community Councils. Many may ask “what is a Community Council?”  A Community Council is a smaller body of Regional Councillors which represents areas which are physically adjacent to each other or have similar planning, geographical, and community similarities.  For example: on the peninsula the former four districts (11, 12, 13, and 14) were known as the Peninsula Community Council.  The four Councillors met once a month publically to discuss the areas of concern for these four districts on topics such as variances to the Municipal Planning Strategy (MPS) with respect to development or additions to dwellings or planning applications for their area, concerns brought forward by businesses or residents of these Districts or Staff related files within the areas (such as park upgrades).   

Although these meetings were public, not many residents or businesses attended unless they had a beef with a development or a neighbour’s proposed request for a variance.  Some groups did take advantage of the ability to present their questions, comments or requests to the Community Council, but it was never a packed house.

The abilities of a Community Council over the past 16 years have not been modified nor used to its potential under the Municipal Government Act (MGA) or the Halifax Charter (basically a carbon copy of the MGA with amendments focused on Halifax and its required need for changes to the legislation to allow for better governance on matters such as planning (example HRM by Design).

What irked me regarding the tweet last night is the person basically said it was “another level of government that we do not need”.  Well, I absolutely disagree; in fact, this IS the type of government we need, but has been underutilized, never fostered, or funded properly to make it all of what it should be, the venue for community engagement, citizen consultation, and local grass roots governance. 

While studying the different forms of local government, I learned about several models of governance under which Canadian municipalities can govern.  The closest comparison to what Halifax Regional should be governed is; Toronto.  Unfortunately, William Hayward (the bureaucrat charged to design the governance for Halifax Regional in 1995-96 by the Provincial Government of the time) didn’t go into great detail on the aspects of governing, only to point out that the Chief bureaucrat shall have ultimate authority over the operations of the Municipality, Regional Council (including the Mayor) would be like a Board of Directors dealing with the adoption of policy and amendment requests to the Province.  Hayward’s approach to the use of Community Councils was quite vague, thus the proper usage of this government body is weak and not as effective as it could be.

Toronto on the other hand, uses its model of Community Councils properly or I should say better than Halifax Regional.  First of all Toronto is set up as a Two Tier system ( Halifax Regional is 1 Tier) which gives authority and the ability for Community Councils to actually work.  Instead of compiling the Community Councils by geographic likeness, Toronto broke them in to categories: Urban, Suburban and Rural.  Toronto also allowed these Community Councils to establish budgets for localized work operations (parks, neighbourhood improvements etc.) as opposed to everything going to the full Council ( Halifax does this currently).  We have all witnessed how polarizing effects of Urban versus Suburban /Rural over the years have caused controversy at Halifax Regional, so I won’t delve into that drama.

How will the Community Councils evolve for this new Council?  I’m not privy to any information, but I hope that they decide to do it correctly and follow Toronto’s example.  Furthermore, I hope the Provincial Government with get off their butts and start working with the Halifax Regional on revising/ amending the Halifax Charter to allow for a better form of governance that will be for the betterment of all areas of the municipality.

The second opinion piece that grabbed my eye was published in the local newspaper.  It described the failing towns of Nova Scotia in the more rural areas.  Interestingly enough, the Province has been aware of this issue since the early 1970’s (Graham Report).  During a Union of Nova Scotia Municipalities’ conference, the state of the province’s population shift was presented and demonstrated their forecast, and the issues that would arise within the next 10, 15, 20 years.  Basically, the population would be attracted to the more urban areas and this would cause financial hardship to the smaller municipalities.  As stated in the opinion piece, Canso was the first victim and more to follow if a creative solution is not incorporated. 

The “A” word (Amalgamation) is not the answer, but joint service agreements between small towns and counties may bring a little relief. This would allow for communities to retain their identity, and share resources, manpower, and establish joint capital projects to enhance the quality of life for the current and/or future businesses and citizens.

There is a huge need for creative solutions: tax breaks to companies to relocate to an area or a main street.  For this to succeed, our Province and Federal Governments need to accomplish a few things: the connectivity whether it be digital or physical must be made a top priority. The Broadband rollout promised years ago must be completed, and stable transportation choices (buses, train, and roads in good state of repair) must allow residents and businesses to transverse without the fear of delay or safety issues.  It’s a sign of the times; no one will relocate to an area that does not offer such minimal living requirements. 

Ok, enough ranting.  I have a linen closet to clean out.

Next Blog: Public Trust

The Ironic Twist Fate Throws at You

Fate. Some people think that everything in life happens for a “reason”.  Perhaps it does. I’m not discounting any theories these days.  I just know that a few weeks ago I gave the graduating class at Eastern College (approx. 1500 people in attendance) an inspirational speech on the premise you never know what your future has in store for you. 

I told them of how an unknown community member somehow became a community activist after experiencing a disturbing incident while walking back to work one lunch hour, how this activated the activist in her. Her passion for helping our area was noticed by her neighbours and she was asked to run in the next municipal election. The activist was elected 3 times to represent her community and was now seeking a fourth term. This is where the Ironic Twist of Fate comes in….my political career ended days later. 

Now it’s time for Double Irony… cue the “Jeopardy Music”… 

Last week I was awarded Best Councillor by the readership of The Coast for the 10^th consecutive year in a row for which I am extremely proud of. So am I missing something here?  Winning such an awesome award, but not getting elected…  WTF?  Talk about mixed messages. Reminds me of the guy you dated for 10 years, but he’s really in love with someone else and they are getting married tomorrow.

This led me to thinking; is our life’s path predetermined or do we make our own destiny? Are there glaring neon directional signs that perhaps we do not see or want to acknowledge?  Denial is just not a river in Egypt me thinks. (Yes, I know it is spelt Nile.) Do others see what our future hold for us? Will they share their info and advice with you or just let you fall into that lion pit like Yosemite Sam??

Case and point: a friend invited me to a church service the other Sunday.  Although I am not the best of company to anyone these days, I decided to go.  Thought it might give me a soulful boost.  I was informed it non-denominational fellowship and that I may find some of the practices different.  I didn’t think it would be an issue as I have always enjoyed experiencing various cultures, religions, and respect all who practice any spiritual practices.  In fact my Great Grand Father started a non- denominational church in Clearwater, Manitoba at the turn of the last century.

The Spiritual Science Fellowship describes itself as “Federally Chartered Inter-Faith Association providing spiritual services, educational programs and Pastoral Ministrations for persons regardless of their religious background, who desire to understand experiences of Psyche and Spirit.”

The members are very friendly and inviting.  I appreciated that their hymnal included contemporary music like Imagine and On Top of the World, and the meditational time which allowed for a very calming reflection time.  Something I really haven’t done for quite some time.  Only one problem, my cell phone was on silent, but I had the alarm set for 7:30 pm to remind me to take my antibiotics for my pneumonia.  As the congregation began to slip into meditation mode….  The Theme for Laverne and Shirley started rising up throughout the hall.  Somewhat relaxed, I didn’t realize it was my phone until “we’re going to make our dreams come true” was wailing quite loudly. I grabbed my purse and ran into the hall to shut it off.  Just a little bit embarrassing to say the least.  I then rejoined the meditation session with the phone completely shut off.

The next part of the service included a messaging exercise.  My friend told me that the Ministers would pick individuals out of the congregation and ask them if they would like to receive a message. A physic message.  If you say yes, the Minister will either hold your hand or just begin to give you your message.  As the first Minister delivered messages, I was relieved that I had not been chosen.  I just wanted to be an observer, a fly on the wall.  

The second Minister then got up and delivered a few more messages and then approached me.   She asked me if I wanted a message, and I was reluctant at first but thought what the heck.  What could she tell me that I don’t already know about myself?  She took my hand and proceeded to describe her vision.  “I see you polishing… repeatedly polishing shoes.”  Uh?  Shoes?  What does this have to do with me, am I going to work in a shoe store like Al Bundy? 

She then told me “You keep repeating the same task. You need to stop blaming yourself.  It isn’t your fault.  You have so much to give and you feel defeated.  Don’t blame yourself.  You need to heal.”  Well, I was floored.  She said a few other nice things which I can’t recall as I was weld up with tears by then.  The conclusion of the service included the joining of hands and singing of Kumbaya.  Yet irony enters….I always told the previous Council we needed to do this, but it never happened.

As I left the hall, I began to digest the message.  It wasn’t my fault.  The shoes were an analogy for my rehashing of the campaign. I then recalled a famous quote: “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”  Albert Einstein   Do I believe a guy who had a perpetual bad hair day?   I’m not going to tempt fate.  Time to move on…. 

Next Blog: Odd things inside the boxes