2010 Draft Budget Forum for the City of Vaughan

The City of Vaughan is hosting a budget forum for residents to provide their input in the 2010 Draft Budget process.

Monday, November 16th, 2009
7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Council Chambers, City of Vaughan Civic Centre
2141 Major Mackenzie Drive

Council is considering an approximate property tax increase of $38.29 a year on the average home re-assessed at $459,367 or a 3.41% tax increase!

We urge all residents to attend the meeting and participate in the consultation forum and provide their comments.

More information on the city's draft 2010 budget can be found at http://www.city.vaughan.on.ca/newscentre/projects/2010budget/index.cfm

If you require further information please do not hesitate to contact us.

Thank you,
Saving Vaughan

City of Vaughan - Ward Boudary By-Law OMB Appeal Update

The city of Vaughan passed By-Law 89-2009, on May 5th, 2009, which has been appealed at the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) by Lucia Milani.

Ward boundaries are a key component in our system of local government. The voters in each ward elect one Councillor to deal with local issues and represent their interests on Council. The voters also elect three Regional Councillor's to deal with city-wide issues and represent their interests on Council and at York Region.

The city undertook to do a ward boundary review in 2008 and it lacked a comprehensive review with no active public involvement and the process in which they followed was flawed.

The city of Vaughan is composed of distinct communities of interest and each on of our communities have their own specific needs and local issues. Effective representation of our specific needs and local issues is of the utmost importance.

The OMB hearing commenced on Thursday, October 22nd, 2009 and several residents have been granted participant status and others have been given somewhat party status. A few residents involved with "Saving Vaughan" have been granted participant status for the hearing.

We realize that a lot of residents either work or cannot attend an extensive OMB hearing that takes place during the day and we are inviting you to send in your comments and/or suggestions and we will provide them to the OMB on your behalf.

If you're sending in your comments and suggestions please indicate the following information:

• First and Last Name
• Full Address
• Which ward you currently live in?

The following information is being posted for those residents who would like to attend the OMB hearing:

• Date: Monday, October 26th, 2009 to Friday, October 30th, 2009
• Time: 10:00 a.m.
• Location: City of Vaughan, Civic Centre (Hearing Room), 2141 Major Mackenzie Drive

We look forward to hearing from you. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact us by emailing savingvaughan@gmail.com.

Thank you,

Saving Vaughan

Open Letter to Minister Watson

Earlier, today we emailed the following letter to Minister Watson and all interested parties. "Saving Vaughan" is requesting that Minister Watson gives the citizens of this city the opportunity to have a discussion with him so that our side of the story can be heard! Minister Watson: Once again, we come to you to request that the citizens of Vaughan, that we have the honour of representing, be afforded the same courtesy as did some of the City of Vaughan staff. We believe that, if truly the government of which you are part of is fair and open, you should grant us an audience so that our side of the story can receive the same attention. There is an old saying that says “Every bell has two sounds”, and so far you have chosen to listen to only one. If our judicial system operated that way our prisons would be busting at the seams with all sorts of innocent people behind bars. How can a meeting that lasted less than an hour have given your staff the certainty that “everything in Vaughan is fine”? We (the residents), have spent numerous hours, days if not months researching the information that has led to not one but two current members of Council, one other that got away with a slap on the wrist and the former mayor facing charges under the Elections Act. There have been allegations of corruption from within Council: there are now new allegations that an investigation by York Region Police was underway. The number of lawsuits against the City is reaching unprecedented levels. The abuse of taxpayer’s money is absurd. Yet you, siding with your staff, continue to turn a blind eye to all of this. Minister, we urge you to do the right thing. Listen to our complaints and hopefully act on them. No more of the usual rhetoric of “vote them out at the next election”. An audit, if an inquiry is impossible, will send a strong message to anyone seeking to “serve the people” that they will not be allowed to “serve themselves”. In closing we urge to please grant us an audience within the next few weeks. Respectfully, Saving Vaughan

Ward Boundary Appeal Update

Will they change or will they not change for 2010 elections? Ward boundary changes have a massive impact on the future of Vaughan and how effectively the voters will be represented. The key ingredient that was necessary during the ward boundary review was a much wider public discussion. Having councillors make that choice amongst themselves was not in the public’s interest. The Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) Pre-Hearing has been scheduled: Date: Thursday, September 10th, 2009 Time: 10:00 a.m. Location: City of Vaughan, Civic Center (Council Chambers), 2141 Major Mackenzie Drive Any individual who wants to become a participant can either attend the OMB Pre-Hearing and indicate that they would like Participant Status during the hearing or they can write or email the OMB with their name, address, and contact information and request that they want Participant status and/or that they're interested parties to the hearing. We have the OMB email contact information for the Planning Assistant who is looking after the file however, in order to avoid an abundance of residents contacting them you can email us at savingvaughan@gmail.com for further information. The appellant documents are public documents and are available either at the city clerk's office or by contacting the OMB Public Inquiry Office at 416-326-6800. The OMB Public Inquiry Office will arrange a time for individuals to review the file, at that time, an individual can also make photocopies (will be charged a fee) of the file. The City Clerk’s office will also provide you copies for a fee.

City of Vaughan - Ward Boundary By-Law OMB Appeal

Recently, the City of Vaughan passed a Ward Boundary By-Law 89-2009, based on a review that was commenced by city councillors and staff prior to 2006. On May 5th, 2009, City of Vaughan council voted to pass the by-law which is for a system of five wards with re-aligned boundaries. Ms. Lucia Milani, a long-time resident of Vaughan has now challenged the ward boundary by-law at the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB). The review and potential ward boundary configurations were all performed by city staff and council members were able to submit their own configurations and comments during the process. One public meeting took place where those in attendance were not allowed to voice their concerns or comments. Instead they were given markers and were asked to write comments on the various configuration maps made available. Very minimal public input was implemented into the process. Staff and council’s involvement should have been limited to just providing the data and the logistics for the review and an independent consultant should have been hired to conduct the review. Key stakeholder and stakeholder groups such as: ratepayers associations and business improvement associations across the City of Vaughan should have been invited to participate. “Saving Vaughan” believes that a ward boundary review should not have been taken so lightly and that the process should have had more of a broader public input from beginning to end. A ward boundary change should not have been made with extensive involvement from councillors. All members of council have a vested interest in the outcome … even if they knew 100 per cent for sure they will not be running. In order for the new Ward Boundary By-Law to be in effect in time for the next municipal election in the fall of 2010, the OMB must make a written decision by December 31st, 2009.

Who is "Saving Vaughan"?

To All Concerned Citizens of Vaughan, I apologize for not providing you with the face or name behind this movement. I assure you that it was not done intentionally and I honestly did not anticipate so much hesitation. My name is Nick Pinto and I am leading a group of fellow concerned citizens across the city of Vaughan. As stated in the previous post, due to the recent shocking revelations as to how our elected members of Council and Senior Staff have conducted the business of this city and for the way they’ve misused and mismanaged the taxpayer’s funds entrusted to them. These actions have tarnished the reputation of the City of Vaughan and have brought this great city much public humiliation. “Saving Vaughan” has kicked off a petition drive demanding that the Minister of Municipal Affairs (Mr. Jim Watson) perform a provincial audit of the city finances. And they’re hoping that you will put pen to action and do the right thing. “We have the power to change it NOW and we WILL!

The petition is available for all residents online at http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/saving-vaughan.html. For those who would like to sign the petition in person please contact savingvaughan@gmail.com for further information on where you can sign the petition. If you would like to help with our effors and want to volunteer for signature collection please do not hesitate to contact us. "Saving Vaughan" is asking that you forward the links to this blog and the petition and help spread the word to all your family and friends of Vaughan and encourage them to make a difference.

Press Release: "We have the power to change it NOW and we WILL!"

Concerned citizens of Vaughan start petition drive demanding that the Minister of Municipal Affairs perform a provincial audit of the city’s finances!

For Immediate Release:

May 9th, 2009: Citizen’s of Vaughan will no longer tolerate the behavior of the current local government that has brought this great city much public humiliation. The shocking revelations as to how our elected members of Council and senior staff have conducted the business of our city and the way they’ve misused and mismanaged the taxpayer’s funds entrusted to them for their own personal gain has many citizens outraged. These actions have tarnished the reputation of the City of Vaughan.

Vaughan citizens should not tolerate patience for these activities. It is time to accelerate the process and take matters to the next level. The cooperation and support of all Vaughan citizens is needed to begin this process to demand that the Municipal Affairs Minister (Mr. Jim Watson) performs a financial audit.

“We have the power to change it NOW and we WILL!” We are taking back our city and welcome all concerned to take part and help in the process of marking this historic time. We should no longer fear our local government, but show our elected officials that this is our city and we want it run properly. And one day we should be able to take pride again, knowing our local government serves the people with respect and integrity.

For further information on how you can sign this petition or volunteer in our efforts, please contact savingvaughan@gmail.com. Residents interested in signing the petition may do so online at http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/saving-vaughan.html. All media please refer to http://savingvaughan.blogspot.com or e-mail savingvaughan@gmail.com.