The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
By Jonathon Naylor Mayor George Fontaine insists he isn't playing the 'blame game' by seeking new streams of municipal funding from outlying residents. It's not surprising that he felt the need to make such a statement as he recently addressed the Chamber of Commerce. Some of what Mayor Fontaine has said on this topic has been cherry-picked, exaggerated or misunderstood. And it's unfortunate, because that hinders constructive debate. It boils down to this: Mayor Fontaine and city council view this region _ Flin Flon, Creighton, Denare Beach, the cottage areas and points beyond _ as essentially one community. And since it is, in their mind, one community, it makes sense that we all help shoulder the financial burden of the Flin Flon-based services that many of us use. It's not about blaming people. In fact, Mayor Fontaine makes a point of saying that 'some of the best citizens we have in this community don't actually live in Flin Flon.' Nevertheless, city council's ultimatum-like proposal to cottagers _ voluntarily pay or we will try to annex you _ will irk some of them no matter how many nice words are said. Here we have a group of people who in many cases have worked much or all of their lives to move to the lake. They have scrimped and saved and taken on huge mortgages in an area with a notoriously cyclical economy. Now all of a sudden a community 15 or 20 minutes away, whose city council has decided for them that they are part of 'one community,' wants inside their wallets? It sometimes seems like council believes our situation here is unique. It's not. Canada is full of bedroom communities, a category into which many would place cottage subdivisions. What is happening locally is no different than if the City of Winnipeg approached Ste. Ann for funding or if the City of Saskatoon approached Warman. Surely some of the folks in Ste. Ann and Warman wouldn't be impressed, so why would anyone expect this local effort to proceed without any controversy or hurt feelings? What city council is attempting is worth a shot. If there is a potential for fair funding agreements with cottage subdivisions, as well as Creighton and Denare Beach, then they would be lax not to put those cards on the table. Arguments What's unfortunate are the extreme arguments on both sides. Some cottagers seem unwilling to even entertain the idea offinancially supporting Flin Flon, even through new user fees, despite the obvious benefits to many of them and, quite possibly, their property values. If the City of Flin Flon gets to the point where it can no longer afford a swimming pool or arena _ and this would not be any one group's 'fault' _ we would quite possibly see a negative impact on property values both within and directly outside of Flin Flon. Conversely, we have heard arguments from council that stretch the limits of reasonableness. Like the one that holds cottagers should help pay for water treatment in Flin Flon because the private individual they hire to deliver their potable water fills up in Flin Flon. These people are already paying a private individual to collect and deliver the water (if they even use that service). Now they need to pay a second time? That's like buying a bag of chips from 7-11 and then having the potato farmer come after you for his share. I know that some cottagers took offense to Mayor Fontaine's recent comments on fire protection for cottage subdivisions, a service currently provided by the city. Among other things, the mayor pointed out that cottage fires are often subsidized by Flin Flon taxpayers. This is because in many (not all) cases, cabin insurance policies cap the amount of money reimbursable to fire departments. (This can be changed by the policyholder). It's left the city to pursue from fire victims the costs not covered by insurance, a not-always-successful exercise. City records show Flin Flon is still owed $5,215 from cottage fires dating back to 2006. Was it wrong to point this out? Was it a deliberate attempt to make all cottagers look bad? No. It was a statement of fact, and Flin Flonners have a right to know how their tax dollars are spent. Those same Flin Flonners, by the way, are reasonable enough to understand that cottagers aren't actively trying to rip off the Flin Flon Fire Department. They're not. Whether this region is one community is debatable. But we are all neighbours. And as neighbours, we need to understand where both sides are coming from. If there is indeed a blame game being played _Êon either side _ it needs to stop. Local Angle runs Fridays.
