VARNA – Ratepayers from the Municipality of Bluewater gathered in Varna Aug. 26 to ask questions, air grievances and raise concerns about a variety of issues in the lead-up to this fall’s municipal election.  

Roughly 300 people turned out for the meeting, held in the auditorium at the Stanley Complex and organized by a group called the Concerned Citizens of Bluewater.

As previously reported, that group presented a petition to Bluewater council June 7 asking for a public meeting but council balked at the idea, choosing instead to present structured responses to issues raised in the petition at a July 19 council meeting.

Mayor Bill Dowson voiced his intention to hold a full public meeting if the structured responses didn’t satisfy the petitioners.

He said at the Aug. 26 meeting he was approached by the concerned citizens group, who offered to organize the meeting themselves.

Dowson was one of four members of Bluewater council to attend the meeting, along with Hay East Coun. John Becker, Stanley East Coun. Peter Walden and Zurich Coun. Marg Deichert.

Councillor-at-Large and 2010 mayoral candidate Jim Fergusson told the Times-Advocate he’d called his own meeting for the same evening at Bayfield’s Town Hall before being invited to the Varna meeting.

Deputy Mayor Dave Johnston said he had a family commitment that evening but will be holding his own public meetings in Hensall, Zurich and Bayfield later this month.

Bayfield Coun. Tyler Hessel also cited another commitment for Aug. 26, while Stanley West Coun. George Irvin said Monday he opted to attend Fergusson's meeting instead.

Hensall Coun. Kay Wise said in an e-mail to the Times-Advocate a motion for a public meeting was defeated by council, and suggested the "two main questions raised were answered thoroughly" at a council meeting.

She said she feels her door has never been closed to anyone, and has never neglected to return a phone call or speak to anyone.

Hay West Coun. Bill MacDougall could not be reached for comment.

Ratepayers who attended the Aug. 26 meeting were given five-minute segments to ask questions or voice concerns during proceedings that lasted about two hours.
Members of council were given the chance to respond at the end of the meeting, rather than addressing each comment immediately after it was given.

The list of questions and concerns varied widely, from tax increases and building permit fees to economic development, municipal spending, and costs associated with hooking up to the water system in Bayfield.

Allegations of nepotism in the municipality’s hiring practices were also raised, as were difficulty in securing funding for upgrades to the Blue Water Rest Home in Zurich, and perceived divisions on council.

One man criticized the municipality for holding an information meeting about the Grand Bend Sewage Treatment Plant expansion on the same weekend as the Zurich Bean Festival, which he identified as a busy time in the area.

Another man questioned the need for 10 Bluewater councillors, saying five positions could be eliminated, making council more efficient.

Mail concerns in Bayfield were also raised, along with the perceived need for public washrooms and an active tourist booth there.

All of the councillors present appeared to take notes during the proceedings, and some pledged to get answers to the questions raised.

Deichert said she would submit her notes to the councillors who did not attend the meeting.

After the meeting, Dowson said it was heart-warming to see the "caliber of people that came to the microphone, and the way they phrased their questions."

He said it was an excellent meeting, and a lot of information was passed on to council.
"I hope and I'm sure we will listen to it," he added. "I will be (listening to it), I think the rest will, and we have to be serious about it. It's a serious matter."

Paul Steckle, who has been heavily involved with the Concerned Citizens of Bluewater and presented the petition to council June 7, also said he thought the meeting went well.

"I think there was a pretty good sense of what people's thoughts were on a lot of issues tonight," he said. "I think people were being kind and respectful, and I think there were issues that weren't addressed.

"I know of at least three issues that could have been addressed this evening which were very personal and could have been very startling to some people here, but weren't raised but are going to be raised at a later time."

Steckle said he thinks the meeting accomplished what the group set out to, though he was unsure what the next step will be.

He said the group would attempt to make sure all the ward council roles are filled – at press time, there was no candidate listed for Stanley East, as Walden has decided not to run.

"We've lost our interest in government, and for the right reasons," Steckle said. "We had all kinds of reasons tonight for people to be disenchanted and say, 'Listen, I've given up on the system.'

"And I think people tonight people will go back, say, 'Well you know, we really can make this work but we have to put an effort to it.'

He said he believes the exercise got more people involved, adding that one "can't expect that government is going to change very much if we don't like the way it's being run unless we make an effort to change it ourselves."