Put egos of municipal leaders in time out

Currently in the Annapolis Valley dissolution, annexations and possible amalgamations are being covered in the media.

In April the council for the Town of Hantsport voted to dissolve saying:

• Structure doesn’t meet the needs of the day...
• The town status no long appears to work...
• The town can’t sustain its own infrastructure...
• We will still be a community...
  

The town has approached both Hants West and the County of Kings to see if either municipal unit is interested in accepting Hantsport into their municipal unit. At least one Hantsport councillor has spoken against dissolution. Currently, "Think Hantsport" has formed to oppose dissolution. The Municipality of Kings County has called a special council meeting for June 16 at 5PM to begin its discussion.

Inter-municipal cooperation, annexation and/or amalgamation is also fuelling a heated debate in Hants West. This began with a perceived lack of transparency surrounding a letter sent to the Minister of Municipal Affairs from the Town of Windsor.

Now we see the Village of New Minas entering the mix. Under the direction of village commissioners it's exploring BECOMING A TOWN.

From where I sit as a relatively new 2012-minted Kings County councillor I see opportunities to improve our valley region from Windsor to Bridgetown through amalgamation. I think that may be the only way to eliminate all the behind the scenes manoeuvring and petty power struggles between some Wardens and Mayors and perhaps now even Chairs of Village Commissions. They set agendas, lead debates and seem adept at plucking the strings of municipal tunes that have played over and over again for too many years. Progress may not be embraced any day soon. But inflated egos and/or protection of "tax bases" could well stop any significant change dead in its tracks.

The Kings Partnership Steering Committee is currently looking for more opportunities to collaborate on service delivery. But recently, and with a strong majority vote, it took amalgamation off the table as a method worth immediate study. Does this mean collaboration and amalgamation are incompatible in the minds of some.

"Now or Never" said Ivany.

Sadly, I don't think the required, swift action Ray Ivany called for is possible until citizens find a way to put the egos of their municipal leaders in time out. A first step for rural and urban residents of Kings County to ask may be to ask each other: "Do we need several village commissions, three towns and a county governing about 60,000 residents?" A second step may be finding out the stand of your town or district councillor, village commissioner, warden or mayor on the issue of amalgamation or smarter, leaner government. 

Your wallet may thank you for paying more attention to the issue of having a municipal government versus several.