Over the past several weeks, the Gazette has published numerous articles from concerned St. Albert residents related to our city council. Each issue of the Gazette has another opinion or rebuttal from comments in a previous issue. It’s like watching the back and forth volley at a tennis match. Depending on who you support in this tennis match, councillors have been referred to as “the gang of 4,” “the gang of 3,” “bullies,” “bickerers,” “grandstanders,” “nitpickers,” rearview commentators, with some individual councillors being named. If truth be told, maybe a few of the writers to Your Views could also be put into some of these same categories. a few of the writers to Your Views may also fall into some of these same categories. I’m all for freedom of speech and voicing concerns, however my thoughts are that personal attacks and put-downs aren’t typically very constructive and usually very one-sided.
We all know that many of the issues councillors deal with are complex and controversial. If we’re honest with ourselves, we know that a councillor’s vote will never please everyone in our community. I know that’s what they signed up for, and that’s the reality and risk they face every time they publicly discuss and vote on an important issue.
Councillors and the mayor bring their own unique and valuable experience, expertise, personality and important voice to the city’s decision-making process. Like them or not, they’ve all been elected fairly by a majority of St. Albert voters, and they’ve committed themselves to help our community in their own way.
As far as their differences, I’m in favour of a council of people from various backgrounds, with differing personalities, varied skills and experiences, and new and innovative ideas. These differences can be healthy, if harnessed and managed properly, and can lead to good discussion and creativity. When our intent is in the right place, our differences can be creative – at home, at work, and yes, even on city council.
I suppose some councillors may have dreams of moving to other levels of government, but I believe all councillors and the mayor got involved in civic politics with best intentions – to make a positive difference and to do some good in our community. I believe they are all doing their honest best. I also believe that they earn their salary, putting in significant time and effort in document reviews, meeting preparations, council meetings, special events, and non-stop day-to-day interaction with residents. Would we want the same workload and hassles?
Hats off to our council members. Who knows what lies ahead for them, or what issues will dominate their future discussions. What will earn my respect as a voter is that they appreciate each other’s perspectives, take time to listen and allow their differences to produce positive, creative solutions.
Don Ladner, St. Albert
