Both Legs still Intact
At Council list night the obedient four were bested by the feisty five and the Colliery Dams leg was not removed…. But we did not get out of the emergency room. After the defeat of a motion to choose which leg we would remove, a motion was made and passed which essentially played for more time and left the ball in the Comptroller of Water’s court. While this improves on self mutilation, it leaves several paths open by which the provincial minions can display their wrath.
I hold that, unless there are some things about this matter which I do not understand -a not unlikely possibility- that we would have been better off being direct and replying that we cannot make a decision which is best for our community as the information needed to do so is, in our best opinion, insufficient in ways which we have clearly identified. Accordingly, if the Controller of Water feels that his office has sufficiently defined the matter, then that Officer should decide what is best for Nanaimo, build to that need and send us the bill.
Would any provincial agency under such circumstances wish to inflate the project, destroy more environment than is absolutely required and spend more money than is absolutely necessary all while accepting full project responsibility for it and taking the chance of making a display of their ineptness and/or arrogance to a province wide public.
I don’t think so. Sometimes directness beats deviance. I believe that this is one of those times…..
Ron Bolin
Posts and Comments on Nanaimo Governance 
Highlights from the council meeting:
Councillor Kipp: “this whole process is so flawed…I am tired of all these threats…we still haven’t done any studies on what will happen downstream…the affidavits to DSS are false (and we know it).
Councillor Bestwick: “…people can sue me, I’ve got nothing in my name anymore…”
Councillor Pratt: “we can’t just do nothing…I agree with Councillor Thorpe…”
Councillor Yoachim: “doing nothing was never stated…” (everyone wants a solution).
Councillor Thorpe: “I know many people think I don’t care but I do…time has run out…I have listened to [the experts]…”
Councillor Brennan: “…they’ve given us a deadline…”
Councillor Fuller: “I will chain myself to a tree…stop laughing at me [to Brennan]…we don’t have any overtopping studies…”
Councillor Yoachim: “can we relax the hazard levels?…” (Golder Engineer replies yes)…
Swabey: “Golder likely doesn’t know what we are talking about…”
Counciller Hong: “how much snow and rain is required to fill the dams…”
Mayor McKay: heavy sigh… [time for new strategies]
They say you get just what you pay for!
Perhaps we, the taxpayer are just too cheap?