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COLUMN: How councillors vote can be sticky subject

Councillors should 'make decisions in what they think is the best interest of the city,' says political columnist
11172022inauguralbarriecouncilrb1
This file photo shows the inside of the Barrie Council Chambers.

What should determine how city councillors vote on any one issue, particularly a contentious issue?

Say, for example, a combination sports field/Sea Cadets parade ground on the south shore of Kempenfelt Bay.

Personally, I think it’s a terrible idea, destroying a partly wooded area to put in artificial turf, especially near the waterfront where this is one of the few areas still in a fairly natural state. It’s the kind of thing municipalities did with wild abandon 40 years ago, not the action of a progressive city in 2024.

And that error, in my mind, is compounded by the fact the city is fencing off part of the waterfront for a tiny minority of residents, and for a facility that could be built in almost any other location and have the full support of every resident.

I suspect the current council members who voted in favour of it will be cursed by every resident who walks past the chain-link fence over the coming years.

But that’s my opinion. Those aren’t facts.

Obviously, in the mind of all but two of the current Barrie council members, an artificial turf sports field on the waterfront is a great idea.

Back to my original question: What should determine how councillors vote?

Many people over the years have suggested to me that councillors should vote how the majority of residents of either their ward or the city would want them to vote.

The problem with that is it is impossible for council to know what Barrie residents really think about this or any other issue unless someone conducts a scientific poll or a referendum is held, neither of which is practical on every issue that comes before city council.

The one time I can remember city hall conducting a scientific poll to find out what residents were thinking was when the possibility was raised of the city having its own standalone casino. A poll of Barrie residents showed a slight majority was against such a facility in the city.

Furthermore, residents in only one of the city’s 10 wards were shown to be in favour, and that was Ward 4, which I represented, and once again it was only by a tiny margin.

So, if the matter were to come before city council, should I vote in favour, to go along with the majority of my ward residents, or vote against, as the majority of residents citywide preferred? In any case, I don’t think the matter ever came up for a vote.

Coincidentally, the only city referendum I can remember being held is one more than 30 years ago asking Barrie residents their opinion on a hotel and casino complex near the waterfront. Once again, a slim majority of Barrie residents rejected the idea.

(In the end, the province rejected all proposals for casinos not tied to horse-racing tracks, except for a few in cities near the United States border, so Barrie wasn’t going to get one anyway.)

As for the waterfront playing field issue, there haven’t been any polls. An online petition against the field has almost twice as many signatures as one in favour of the field, although the numbers for that latter petition are muddied by the fact it combines the need for a new Sea Cadets facility — which almost everyone favours — with the playing field.

But that’s not a scientific poll.

I’ve always believed councillors should strive to do what they were elected to do, which is to make decisions in what they think is the best interest of the city.

And the fact of the matter is despite what I and many other residents may want, that is what is happening in this case. Those on both sides of the issue are welcome to express their opinions, protest, make deputations and pressure their councillors to vote one way or the other.

But, at the end of the day, council decides, as it has to be.

Barry Ward is a veteran editor and journalist who also served on Barrie city council for 22 years. His column appears regularly on BarrieToday.


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Barry Ward

About the Author: Barry Ward

Barry Ward is a veteran editor and journalist who also served on Barrie city council for 22 years. His column appears regularly in BarrieToday.
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