Why am I running on CHANGE?

I have spent more than 13 years closely following the decision making of Oshawa City Council. Many of the same names city around the Council chambers as when I started paying close attention. I uncovered many breaches of policy and protocol from the decisions of Council relating to the construction of the Consolidated Works Depot at 199 Wentworth St. - Failure to provide the required business plan before Council making a decision. - Overpaying for the property, despite that issue being provided by the Auditor General’s review.- Staff working on a major project without direction of Council (in fact, Council had overwhelming voted against a consolidated works depot at this location prior and directed staff not to proceed) - The City Solicitor holding documents as ‘privileged’ to keep information away from the public AND Council decision makers. - Staff withholding documents from Council decision makers – basically misinforming Council decisions. - Staff withholding documents from the public, even under Freedom of Information requests and legislated duties to provide. - Staff providing false and misleading affidavits to government agencies – basically perjury, with no repercussion. The intent with the Freedom of Information requests, appeals, and reconsideration orders was not to stop the construction of a much needed Consolidated Works Depot.  It was about holding the City accountable to the taxpayers.  It was about holding the City to Transparency of their decision making.  It was about ensuring the City was following their own rules, legislation, and honoring the trust given them by the citizens. For some time, the City worked feverishly to hide the details.They also worked to ‘clean up’ their act and be accountable to their processes. But as time went on, they believed that our memories would be short.

Most recently, the City has reverted to their old ways. Buying and selling property behind closed doors, for undisclosed amounts of money, for undetermined needs is neither Accountable nor Transparent. The City, with Council approval, evicted a taxpaying, lease paying, tenant from our Airport. They were sued by the Canadian Flight School for their unscrupulous activities. WE, the taxpayers, were forced to pay a hefty, undisclosed settlement in the lawsuit. The City has yet to reveal the costs.  They have yet to reveal the lost revenue to the City, which now becomes operating loss to the Airport.  Those operating losses are fully funded by the taxpayers. Recently the Region of Durham publicly issued a report that DRPS has purchased that now vacant building from the City of Oshawa and Oshawa Airport.  Was that always the intention?  That $13+M purchase and renovation project is also paid for by tax dollars – part of your Regional tax assessment.

The City, approved by Council, has agreed to renovate the Tribute Communities Centre at a cost of $50M.  They have taken out a debenture for the first year of the renovation project for $20M.  This expenditure does not show up in the 2025 or 2026 budgets.  Debenture financing, interest and principle, are paid from the annual operating budget of the City, which is predominantly tax funded. Council approved the purchase of a portion of the former Oshawa Clinic, presumably the portion they have declared as Heritage protected, to entice Queen’s University to open a Health Science facility.  As the new owner and landlord, the City/taxpayers will be responsible for remediation of asbestos and other chemicals to renovate this property for Queen’s University.  No business plan has been publicly provided, no costs for the purchase nor the renovation are known, and absolutely no information has been provided on future income from this property to offset those costs. It should be noted that the developer currently owning the property has been linked to campaign donations to this Council in previous elections. Each of these examples relate directly back to the revelations we found around the construction of the Consolidated Operations Depot more than a dozen years ago.  Each of these is questionable in their level of accountability and transparency.  None of these have had public business plans to guide the Council decision making.  All of these will cost the taxpayers considerable money, now and in the future.

Incumbent councillors seeking re-election this week who sat at the decision-making table in 2013 include Chapman and Marimpietri.  Incumbents also seeking re-election, Gray and Nicholson were not on Council in 2013 but had previously served and were key figures in By-Law 29-2009, the Delegation of Authority By-Law that provides staff with powers over Council.  This by-law may be the root to the evil in our City at present. Sanders is also seeking re-election in this election and was a member of the Council that approved the Works Depot, fired the Auditor General, and has been trying to get back on Council since his defeat in 2018. Of the remaining incumbent Councillors, all but one have had at least 2 terms (8 years) on Council, and should be fully aware of the responsibility to the people, the necessity to follow policy and procedure, the expectation of the citizens and taxpayers, to make well-founded decisions for our City.

But they have all become complacent. They don’t care about the rules. They treat us all as cheque books or ATMs. The only reminder that will stick with them beyond election day is to vote them out! And so, I am running on CHANGE. Wholesale Change. An entire new Council. AS A WARD 4 VOTER I can’t support any incumbent for mayor or Ward 4 representation. Fresh minds. Fresh perspectives. Fresh ideas. Fresh support that isn’t from a special interest group. No allegiances, only to the citizens and the best decisions for our City. AS A CANDIDATE, I have to be prepared to work with any other elected representative, and can do that.  I have had many work experiences with co-workers that weren’t exactly friends.  I was there to do a job, and I did my job, just like I will do as your Regional and City Councillor in Ward 4. Vote for CHANGE. VOTE

for a better Oshawa. www.jeff-davis.ca