If London’s Doing BRT, Argyle Wants to be Included
“The Argyle Community Association asks council to reconsider the eastern route,” the group writes in a letter sent to council, signed by board chair Shawn Lewis. “It is our position that the eastern transit village should be located at Argyle Mall.”
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Time to Fix Council Pay (Permanently)
It happens almost every term of council in London, the issue comes up of how much council is paid and whether or not the position should be “full-time” or “part-time” (currently councillors are considered part-time). It always brings a cry of (ignorant) protest from some quarters that “greedy politicians” are feeding at the trough again, and instead of making a tough (and awkward) decision, councillors kick the proverbial can down the road with some version of “make it an election issue” or “let next council decide”.
So let’s cut through the crap shall we?
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New Leadership Resolves Firefighter Contract Battle
As 2016 drew to a close, I wrote about the need for City Council to replace London’s top bureaucrat (https://shawnlewis.ca/2016/11/when-its-time-for-a-new-city-manager/) . The (now former) City Manager, a hire made by the previous city council, was clearly not interested in playing nice with others.
Not only was the new (the city elected 11 new representatives to the 15 member council in 2014) council’s authority being undermined, but the City Manager had also become one of the key figures identified as the source of labour disputes with the firefighters and police associations and CUPE Local 101 representing the city’s inside workers.
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Interviewing Mayor Matt Brown on #LdnOnt TV
On March 16th I had the opportunity to sit down with Mayor Matt Brown and talk to him about Vimy Ridge Park, and London’s rapid transit plan, as well as toss him some questions from Londoners.
London City Council approves allowing makeshift Vimy memorial to stay
From The London Free Press, originally published here: http://www.lfpress.com/2017/03/02/london-city-council-approves-compromise-allowing-makeshift-vimy-memorial-to-temporarily-stay
Facing an awkward political problem, council voted overwhelmingly to let a plot of east-end land that’s home to a community-built war monument stand as Vimy Ridge Park temporarily…
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Stop Fighting Vimy Park MP Urges
From the London Free Press, Feb 27th. Full Article Here: http://www.lfpress.com/2017/02/27/bureaucracy-suggestions-of-politicking-threaten-timely-tribute
A London MP is entering a city council conflict in which a mix of patriotism and military history has collided with bureaucratic rules and accusations of politicking.
With competing proposals to name a park in honour of the Battle of Vimy Ridge — and neither likely to be formalized by its 100th anniversary in April — MP Peter Fragiskatos is urging council to quickly approve a community-led option he believes best honours Canadian veterans… Continue Reading
Fighting City Hall for Vimy Ridge Park
Photo Credit Mike Hensen, The London Free Press
By Dan Brown, The London Free Press Monday, February 20, 2017 original version here: http://www.lfpress.com/2017/02/20/london-city-hall-staff-are-recommending-no-to-two-groups-trying-to-get-parks-named-after-canadas-nation-forging-first-world-war-victory-in-france
Two different groups hoping to honour First World War veterans want London politicians to do something they rarely do — overrule the bureaucrats.
Shawn Lewis is the outreach chair for the Argyle Community Association. He and others would like to have a small strip of land officially named Vimy Ridge Park this year, after the nation-defining First World War battle for Canadians whose 100th anniversary is this spring.
“Everything is in place and the city hasn’t had to spend a dime,” said Lewis.
In fact, the land in question, next to the Charlie Fox roundabout at Hale and Trafalgar streets, named after a Second World War fighter pilot, is already Vimy Ridge Park as far as the locals are concerned. Continue Reading
2016 Year in Review Friday Roundtable
It’s the AM980 Friday Roundtable 2016 Year in Review, with “the Political Insiders” Shawn Lewis & Stewart Blair, former City Councillor Cheryl Miller, and AM980’s Craig Needles:
Talking London’s World Junior Hockey bid & value of tourism on @LdnOntTV
Host Shawn Lewis, John Winston of Tourism London and Ryan Robinson of “the Wrap” Knight’s Post Game Show
Watch the clip from the show here: http://rogerstv.com/show?lid=12&rid=9&sid=4756&gid=265893