Walking in Waterloo Region

[ookpik]

I filled in the TriTAG form

? Link, please.

writing (a customized note) to my councillor (uptown), Waterloo mayor, and regional councillors/chair. I got a response from all but Sean Strickland so far. I'm satisfied by their responsiveness. They were all generally in favour, but it comes down to cost. Mayor Jaworsky mentioned the existence of a study with a higher projected cost than in the op-ed.

It's important that the city provide some realistic numbers, specifically how much per year this would raise our property tax bill. That's the only way the electorate can make an informed decision on this issue. Otherwise the only output from all these deliberations will be hot air. And unfortunately it won't even be directed at melting snow.

P.S. Other costs the Record's piece omitted are (1) private snow removal services hired by responsible people who can't personally clear their sidewalks, e.g. the doctor, salesperson, etc. cited in the article but also snowbirds, vacationers, etc. who leave the region during part or all of winter and (2) the value of the time devoted by volunteers who clear sidewalks for those people who are physically unable to do so on their own.