Are the city services that effect us on a day to day basis all that bad? Seems the city is hell bent on decreasing core services rather than realizing the real issue lie with over spending on photo op mega projects like the winter games, purchase of energy from Lakeland Mills, PG hotel purchase, trips to China, land purchases in downtown, and of course the 10 million dollar river road dyke so heavily promoted by city council but fortunately shot down by the city residents.

“The City of Prince George has just completed its Core Services review, and among the recommendations are a call for the privatization of the Four Season’s Pool and sale of the Pine Valley Golf Course. “

The golf course and the pool are two fine examples of things the City doesn’t need to be into.

I say, keep pine valley and drop any subsidies the city gives to the pg golf and curling club. Is pg golf and curling club piped into the city water like all the other irrigation in the city or do they have thier own pumps and source? A golf course uses a lot of water over the summer.

The golf course gets no city funding as it pays for itself, and the pool costs less then 3 city employees out of 900+ the city has on payroll… small costs to have a city with recreation facilities. The reason they are being ‘privatized’ is for private real estate interests and nothing more. Its a con job on the citizens of PG is all the core review is.

No one told me this might be like certain Indian reservations when I moved here.

the sales pitch was “elect me and I can reduce your taxes and not impact services. Even better, I can do it with a hiring freeze and without laying anybody off.”

Ha, how long do that promise last? Unfortunately many of us, me included, bought into the sales pitch.

Then the core services was pitched as the vehicle that would be the magic wand to make it all come true. The magic bullet they came up with – privatize services and sell off assets. Wow, $350 thousand to come up with that revelation?

Privatizing public services is something that is driven by ideology more than business principles. History has shown that while it may result in paying workers less, the money saved in wages is usually taken up by a required profit margin. In the end us taxpayers end up paying the same in taxes and usually see higher user fees and less accountability.

the rhetoric you get during an election or during a union rally is all the same. And they wonder why we don’t care anymore.

The golf course and the pool are two fine examples of things the City doesn’t need to be into.
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They were built with tax dollars so why should they not belong to us. Its a the same old story,”build it and the investors will come to get the profit.
Cheers

“Privatizing public services is something that is driven by ideology more than business principles. History has shown that while it may result in paying workers less, the money saved in wages is usually taken up by a required profit margin. In the end us taxpayers end up paying the same in taxes and usually see higher user fees and less accountability”.

And

“The magic bullet they came up with – privatize services and sell off assets. Wow, $350 thousand to come up with that revelation?”

Bang on Mitch2.

Eagleone “Its a con job on the citizens of PG is all the core review is.”

Agreed. Folks are sharp this morning!

As much as people like to complain, the status quo is not acceptable.

Whatever the City has been doing has not been working as we continue to pile on the debt, with no strategy on how to repay it.

Whether we like it or not, it’s time to look at what the City does and why they’re doing it, or bury our heads in the sand and hope it all goes away.

The question is, if some services and facilities are privatized, is it going to actually translate to a savings to taxpayers? I have my doubts. I suspect it will simply mean a larger profit for a private company instead of wages to city employees. As much as I hate the idea of underworked, unachieving city employees who make 30+ dollars/hr I think I hate out of area companies taking taxpayers money out of the local economy more.

“CUPE BC President, Barry O’Neill will be in P.G. to talk about “City Services Under Attack”

I’d be interested in hearing Barry’s alternatives on how things can be fixed, or if he even thinks anything is wrong at all. Apparently, staffing levels and selling of city infrastructure are off the table.

I don’t understand how anyone can say that selling the Four Seasons Pool and Golf coarse is a good idea? Why was it a good idea 40 to 50 years ago and now they are not? Why sell these assets for pennies on the dollar it took to build and maintain these facilities? If these facilities are such money losers, why would anyone want to buy them? I think that building which is being constructed on the corners of fourth & fifth and Victoria street would shed a lot of light on why we have a financial crunch.. supposedly. Trips to China, Core review, the Canada Winter Games….why focus on the working class… because they are easy targets!

Cheetos: “I don’t understand how anyone can say that selling the Four Seasons Pool and Golf coarse is a good idea? Why was it a good idea 40 to 50 years ago and now they are not?”

Because the City is drowning in debt, and the costs to run and staff everything has gone through the roof since then. And yes, the China trips (and other such junkets) should also stop.

JohnnyBelt, there’s one problem with your suggestion about CUPE BC President, Barry O’Neill that apparently staffing levels and selling of city infrastructure are off the table.

I think that with Barry, staffing levels are definitely off the table as he is fundamentally opposed to any job loss for any union member as that would result in the loss of dues paid to his union. With regards to your comment about selling of city infrastructure being off the table, once again I think that his opposition is related to his fear that union members will lose their jobs and his union will lose the dues from members if city infrastructure is sold.

A business needs customers in order to survive. Unions are no different. Their membership is their customer base and the union is always worried about declining dues.