What is the state of the economy?

A interesting note on the USA economy

FYI.
--- On Wed, 7/29/09, cfo-newsletter@emailblitz.com
<cfo-newsletter@emailblitz.com> wrote:

From: cfo-newsletter@emailblitz.com <cfo-newsletter@emailblitz.com>
Subject: What is the state of the economy?
To:
Received: Wednesday, July 29, 2009, 1:37 PM

What is the state of the economy? It seems each day brings us a new
set of "signs", and a new set of prognosticators telling us how close,
far, or indeterminate our situation is from recovery.
Take for example two reports, one from the Wall Street Journal and one
from CapLease, both published only days apart in July.

 1.  CapLease cites employment data and states: "After 18 months of
economic decline, we are seeing signs that the deepest recession in a
century may be close to hitting bottom and the economy gradually
recovering. The Labor Department reported that 345, 000 jobs were lost
in May – well below the 650,000 average monthly job loss in the first
quarter and the 504,000 loss in April."

2.    Now compare this to the Wall Street Journal story, subtlety
titled "The Economy is Even Worse than You Think"

    "The Bureau of Labor Statistics preliminary estimate for job
losses for June is 467,000, which means 7.2 million people have lost
their jobs since the start of the recession. The cumulative job losses
over the last six months have been greater than for any other half
year period since World War II, including the military demobilization
after the war. The job losses are also now equal to the net job gains
over the previous nine years, making this the only recession since the
Great Depression to wipe out all job growth from the previous
expansion."
Here we have two reports using relatively the same numbers, with both
coming to wildly different outlooks of both the present and future.
This is not to fault the process it just demonstrates how differently
the filtering mechanisms of disparate brains can sort things out.

·         Home prices dropped 7% in the first quarter of 2009, while
home sales saw an increase in March and April - 45% of home sales this
year were distressed properties sold in foreclosure auctions.
·         Since their peak in 2006, home prices have fallen 32% and
now match their 2002 levels.
·         It is estimated that housing is 18-20% below fair value at
today's prices; three years ago it was estimated to be overvalued by
35%.
·         5.4 million out of 45 million homes in the U.S. (12%) are
either delinquent or in foreclosure, with the number continuing to
rise.
·         By February 2009 the number of prime mortgages delinquent
for at least 90 days, in foreclosure, or turned over to a lender was
at 1.5 million, totaling over $224 billion in loans.
·         The Consumer Confidence Index hit 54 in May, it's highest
point since last September and up from 40.9 in April. This constituted
the greatest gain since April 2003. A Reading of 90 is considered
          "normal".
·         Between March and April, personal after tax income rose by
$131.5 billion (1.1%). $121.8 billion of the increase resulted from
reduced taxes and increased unemployment benefits. $44 billion could
be         traced back to stimulus programs.
·         Consumer spending declined 0.01% in April, as consumers
saved 5.7% of their after tax income.. In March they saved 4.5% and
one year ago they saved 0%. Consumer Spending is estimated to make
   up nearly 70% of GDP..
·         Mortgage debt now accounts for 70% of GDP, in the 1990's it
averaged about 46%. Household debt is at 96% of GDP, it was less than
50% in the 1980's.
·         Total industrial production saw an annualized decrease of
20% in the first quarter of 2009. This continues a trend of four
periods of harsh declines.
·         Commercial paper volume is at $1.5 trillion. Companies sold
$55 billion of stock between January and May, making that the busiest
period since 2000.
·         It is estimated that 60% of CMBS loans made between 2005 and
2007 will not qualify for refinancing at maturity.
·         Unemployment is at 9.4%.

Linda Shea/ Managing Partner
"We Bring Experience to the Meeting"

CFO Capital Partners
Main Office: 437 FoxTract Rd., 1st Floor, Bridgeport, NY 13030
Direct Line: 315.307.8594 * Office: 315.633.9653 * Efax: 775.248.6603
Linda@CFOCapitalPartners.com * www.CFOCapitalPartners..com

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Fwd: FW: National Post Story

Canada looks likely to become in the 2010s what the United States has
been since 1980: the English-speaking world's beacon of enterprise and
limited government. Canada now seems poised to collect its due rewar

Subject: National Post Story
http://www.nationalpost.com/story.html?id=1826896

Canada emerges as limited government case study..

7/25/2009 12:00:00 AM

Our time to shine

David Frum, National Post
Published: 7/25/2009 12:00:00 AM

Canada and the U. S. are experimenting with two radically different
responses to the great recession of 2008-09. The Obama administration
has opted for a massive increase in government spending and government
debt. It enacted a colossal stimulus package, followed by a topped-up
supplemental budget for the second half of the 2009 fiscal year and an
even more extravagant budget for 2010. U. S. federal budget deficits
are exceeding a trillion dollars a year; over the next 10 years, the
country will accept more debt relative to national income than at any
time since the end of Second World War -- and that's before counting
the cost of the President's ambitious health-care plans. (Obama
insists his plans will save money but nobody believes it --not even
the Democrats' own Congressional Budget Office.)

read more

Copyright © 2007 CanWest Interactive, a division of CanWest MediaWorks
Publications, Inc. All rights reserved.

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FCPP Publications :: Study Cites Privatization In Productivity Gains

FCPP Publications :: Study Cites Privatization In Productivity Gains: "Study Cites Privatization In Productivity Gains

Scott Deveau, Financial Post, June 26, 2009

In a page seemingly ripped out of the free-marketer's handbook, a new study argues productivity has surged in Canada's transportation sector over the past two decades primarily thanks to three factors: privatization, deregulation and increased competition.
From 1981 to 2006, while business productivity overall rose 0.2% on average per year, productivity increased 3.6% in the freight rail sector and 2% in the airline sector, according to the report yesterday from the Conference Board of Canada."

Fwd: Make MPs reveal expenses

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Canadian Taxpayers Federation <taxaction@taxpayer.com>
Date: Thu, Jul 16, 2009 at 4:06 PM
Subject: Make MPs reveal expenses
To: backtoeden.ontario@gmail.com

You are receiving this e-mail because you have either signed a CTF-sponsored petition on-line or contributed financially to the CTF in the past. If you do not want to receive further information from the CTF please click "Manage my Subscription" at the bottom of this e-mail. Otherwise, please add taxaction@taxpayer.com to your address book. Our privacy policy is available here. We are a non-partisan citizens' group dedicated to lower taxes, less waste and accountable government.

 

Make MPs Reveal Expenses    Not surprisingly, the British scandal has prompted Canada's auditor general to want to examine MP spending here. Clearly this is necessary. That's why the CTF's Kevin Gaudet told CTV the books should be opened for all to see.   Canadians need to tell Ottawa loud and clear the status quo is not acceptable! Click here to find your MP's contact information and tell them the following. The Auditor General should have access to the records of MPs' office spending. All MPs expenses should be put online for all to see, similar to Toronto city councillors. Your MP should not wait for disclosure to become mandatory policy, but follow the example of Michelle Simson, Liberal MP for Scarborough Southwest and post them today. Prime Minister Harper also needs to hear from you. He can be contacted by email at pm@pm.gc.ca, faxed at (613)941-6900, or written at 80 Wellington Street, Ottawa, ON K1A 0A2.   Together, we can make a difference. Stand up! Be Heard! TaxAction is an issues and action update sent to supporters of the CTF.  Contact our office at admin@taxpayer.com, phone 1-800-667-7933, fax 1-800-465-4464, or write 105-438 Victoria Ave. E., Regina, Sask. S4N 0N7. More updates can be found on our website, www.taxpayer.com.

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Whistleblower protection Goes Global

Whistleblower protection Goes Global: "Our planet is beset by huge problems – from the instability of our finanical systems to climate change and global poverty – that are in part due to irresponsibility, misconduct and even illegality by governments and corporations. We need mechanisms – laws and institutions – that will help citizens to take back control of society: so that we can direct the planet's resources towards serving humanity and the public interest."

There is strength in numbers- lets re-establish merit and value in our governance system. PR

Brantord Letters to the editor

All governments must pay closer attention to hardship

Two recent items by local news outlets should be cause for the members of our city council, MPP and MP to sit up, very straight, and take serious note of what is happening to the people living and paying taxes in this city.

Food bank demands are increasing. Brantford has an unemployment rate hovering around 10.9%, Canadian unemployment numbers hover around 8.6%.

Our MP voted to stall EI restructuring. We are second in the filing of personal bankruptcy in Ontario, up 60.3% over the same period in 2008.

The article touches on, but does not provide, the number of homes in the city that are going into bank foreclosure, or forced sale because people can no longer afford them. Businesses throughout this city are suffering as these numbers grow.

Our MPP lauds the new harmonized tax that will be the largest tax grab in this province's history and add further burdens to families already struggling.

The city receives their property taxes, be it from the bank or homeowner, but the loss to these families cannot have a price attached to it.

This council lauds the stimulus money being poured into the city, as photo opportunities are taken with each handout, but they are not providing the cost to the city taxpayer.

We will pay once at the federal level, once at the provincial level and once at the city level for every dollar attached to stimulus spending.

This city needs to stop spending and not just focus on a "zero budget increase" but on a "zero tax increase."

Mary O'Grady Brantford


Let's get a new city team for new talks with county

Land negotiations between the City of Brantford and the County of Brant must be reestablished with a new negotiation team for the greater common good.

The taxpayers of Brant and Brantford should not be penalized by the breakdown between the city and the county in land negotiations. We believe cooler heads should prevail to unlock the new tax revenue, the new jobs and new business potential represented by the estimated 5,000 acres held hostage by the dispute. Not using the land potential for a higher and needed use is both unfair and wasteful to all -- the property owners, the general taxpayers and the local economy.

If we cannot resolve local issues amongst ourselves, the province, as a higher authority, can force terms that could be less beneficial than a locally negotiated and controlled solution. This is a bad precedent for our local long-term autonomy.

Prior to giving up our jurisdiction over this dispute, we, the Brant Taxpayers Coalition, recommend that a new, more senior negotiation committee be established to resolve the issue. We suggest that the mayor and mayoral candidates -- councillors Littell, Sless and Cesci- Smith -- be part of this new committee. All members proposed have a track record of steady leadership and cool-headed, not inflammatory, and fair actions -- traits needed to resolve this important growth or anti-stagnation local issue with the county.

If it is broken, we can and should fix it locally, and remove those who are obstacles or in the way of progress, positive benefits and results for all parties concerned.

S. Holle Brantford

City cleared to buy properties - Brantford Expositor - Ontario, CA

City cleared to buy properties - Brantford Expositor - Ontario, CA: "In a report released Tuesday on the results of a hearing of necessity under the Expropriation Act, inquiry officer Victor Freidin held that the city's bid 'is reasonably defensible' to acquire 'in the public interest' all the lands belonging to owners who objected to the city's ongoing bid to take over 41 properties on or around the south side of Colborne is 'reasonably defensible.'
The sole exception is the property with the tall building at 35 to 39 Colborne, owned Donald Fines and Co. Inc.
Freidin held that the city's case fell short on several points, and that the 'private interest outweighs the public interest.'"

taxpayer alert - how much will this cost? PR

Whistle-blowing, public appointments, conflicts offices have no influence

Whistle-blowing, public appointments, conflicts offices have no influence: "Whistle-blowing, public appointments, conflicts offices have no influence
Stephen Harper set up watchdog offices, but most have yet to make an impact on government.
By Cynthia Münster
Hill Times: July 13th, 2009
The Commissioner of Lobbying, the Public Appointments Commission, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Tribunal, the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner, and the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner, all created by Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Federal Accountability Act have yet to make a difference in the federal landscape, say machinery of government experts.
With the visible exception of the Parliamentary Budget Officer, the offices and commissioners created have not yet had a measurable impact."

Why we need more public oversight - the Canadian Citizen Accountaility Act- How about building confidence and trust by using the public as an oversight group? PR

John Tory would beat David Miller, Ipsos-Reid poll finds - Posted Toronto

John Tory would beat David Miller, Ipsos-Reid poll finds - Posted Toronto: "John Tory would beat David Miller, Ipsos-Reid poll finds
Posted: June 25, 2009, 7:15 AM by Rob Roberts
By Joseph Brean, National Post
Mayor David Miller’s support among Toronto voters has “plummeted” to the point where a majority disapprove of his performance, and he would lose in a race against possible challenger John Tory, a new poll shows.

The dismal poll numbers, which also suggest the incumbent, two-term mayor would lose to Deputy Premier George Smitherman, come as Mr. Miller struggles to contain the political fallout of a crippling strike of municipal workers.

But the collapse in Mr. Miller’s support -- from 69% four years ago to 43% today -- is not just an expression of frustration with the stopped garbage collection and closed public services."

An interesting read and primer for those that want to run in a political hot spots-;....Arrogance and complacency cannot offset the stench of bad management practises and the stench of a garabage strike . Pr

Effective local solutions please

fyi-- pass it on please

 

Land Negotiations between the City of Brantford and the County of Brant must be re-established with a new negotiation team for the greater common good.

 

 

The taxpayers of Brant and Brantford should not be penalized by the break down in negotiations between the city and the county in land negotiations. We believe cooler heads should prevail to unlock the new tax revenue, the new jobs and new business potential represented by the estimated 5000 acres held hostage by the dispute. Not using the land potential for a higher and needed use is both unfair and wasteful to all-  the property owners, the general taxpayers and the local economy .

 

If we cannot resolve local issues amongst ourselves, the province, as a higher authority, can force terms that could be less beneficial than a locally negotiated and controlled solution. This is a bad precedent for our local long term autonomy.

 

Prior to giving up our jurisdiction over this dispute, we, the Brant Taxpayers Coalition recommend that a new more senior negotiation committee be established to resolve the issue. We suggest that the Mayor and Mayoral candidates : councillors Littel,  Sless  and Marguerite Chesci Smith be part of this new committee   All members proposed have a track record of steady leadership, cool headed "not inflammatory" and fair  actions , traits needed to resolve this important growth or anti-stagnation local issue with the county   .

 

If it is broken we can and should fix it locally, and remove those who are obstacles or in the way of progress, positive benefits and results for all parties concerned.

 

S. Holle

Communications Director

Brant-Taxpayers Coalition 

-


backtoeden.ontario@gmail.com

: Excellent letter! on being a real Canadian !

As a born german -I am a proud Canadian and believe that this is a good letter . Stop the political correctness. expensive nonsense which devalues our country values.

 

 

 Canadians -time to get our country back

 

"Ships in the harbour are safe, but that's not what ships are built for." William Shedd

 

 

 

A Letter to the Editor (excellent letter)

 

So many letter writers have explained how this land is made up of immigrants.

Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people why today's Canadian

is not willing to accept the new kind of immigrant any longer.

 

Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to Canada,

people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line in Halifax and be documented.

Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground.

They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times.

They made learning English a primary rule in their new Canadian households and some even changed their names to blend in with their new home. They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a new life and did everything in
their power to help their children assimilate into one culture.

 

Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labour laws to protect them. All they had were the skills, craftsmanship and desire they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity.

 

Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out.

Canadians fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany, Italy, France, Japan, Czechoslovakia, Russia, Sweden, Poland and so many other places.

None of these first generation Canadians ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They were Canadians fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the
Emperor of Japan. They were defending the Freedom as one people.

When we liberated France, no-one in those villages was looking for the
Ukrainian-Canadian or the German-Canadian or the Irish-Canadian.

The people of France saw only Canadians.

 

And we carried one flag that represented our country.

Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up
another country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would
have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here.
These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be a Canadian.

They stirred the melting pot into one red and white bowl.

 

And here we are in 2009 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same rights and privileges.

Only they want to achieve it by playing with a different set of rules, one that includes a Canadian passport and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country.

I'm sorry, that's not what being a Canadian is all about. Canadians have been very open-hearted and open-minded regarding immigrants, whether they were fleeing poverty, dictatorship,

persecution, or whatever else makes us think of those aforementioned immigrants who truly did ADOPT our country, and our flag and our morals and our customs. And left their wars, hatred,and divisions behind. I believe that the immigrants who landed in Canada in the early 1900s deserve better than that for the toil, hard work and sacrifice those legally searching for a better life.

I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country flags, fighting foreign battles on our soil, making Canadians change to suit their religions and cultures, and wanting to change our countries fabric by claiming discrimination when we do not give in to their demands.

 

Its about time we get real and stand up for our forefathers rights.

We are CANADIAN Lest we forget it!!!

I am a Citizen of this Country & proud of it!

 

NO MORE POLITICAL CORRECTNESS
NO MORE not saying CHRISTMAS in
stores and our schools!
MERRY CHRISTMAS !!!
I Want my Canada of birth BACK !!!

 

P. S. -- Please pass this on to everyone you know!!!

KEEP THIS LETTER MOVING!!

 

Hope this letter is read by millions of people all across Canada!!

 

 

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Back to Eden communities
Sunridge -261 Oakhill Drive, Brantford
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Gmail - Should We Sell Our Water? - Frontier Online - siegholle@gmail.com

Gmail - Should We Sell Our Water? - Frontier Online - siegholle@gmail.com

Interesting source of free revenue for Canadians -how is water different from selling power or energy? PR

Calls for Whistle-Blowing Watchdog to Step Down

Calls for Whistle-Blowing Watchdog to Step Down: "Calls for Whistle-Blowing Watchdog to Step Down
Andrew Mayeda — Canwest News Service
July 5, 2009

Integrity Commissioner Christiane Ouimet
testifies in the Senate on Jun. 19, 2007.
Photo: Chris Wattie/ReutersOTTAWA -- Nearly two years since she was appointed by the Harper government, the head of a federal agency designed to protect whistleblowers is off to an underwhelming start, critics say.
As part of the accountability reforms put in place in the wake of the sponsorship scandal, the Conservatives beefed up legislation that gives public servants a confidential outlet for reporting wrongdoing, while protecting them from reprisals. In August 2007, Prime Minister Stephen Harper appointed Public Sector Integrity Commissioner Christiane Ouimet to enforce the new act.
However, Ouimet has yet to report a single case of public-sector wrongdoing to Parliament. Her office has not referred any cases to a new tribunal of senior judges that has the power to award as much as $10,000 in compensation to whistleblowers who have been punished for coming forward, as well as to discipline their bosses."


The faint hope clause in politic should prevail -get people with knowledge and aility to really do the job in the public interest, PR

Fwd: Calls for Whistle-Blowing Watchdog to Step Down

I would love a job like this  What accountaility could really and easily;be acheived with some skill , knowledge and integrity - chuckle   Sieg  

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <newsletter@fairwhistleblower.ca>
Date: Mon, Jul 6, 2009 at 11:12 AM
Subject: Calls for Whistle-Blowing Watchdog to Step Down
To: sieg H <siegholle@gmail.com>

FAIR Newsletter                                                           6 July 2009 Calls for whistle-blowing watchdog to step down National Post Andrew Mayeda -- Canwest News Service OTTAWA -- Nearly two years since she was appointed by the Harper government, the head of a federal agency designed to protect whistleblowers is off to an underwhelming start, critics say... ..."For the system to work, whistleblowers must trust the person to whom they report wrongdoing, and believe that action will be taken, said Hutton. "I think she has completely blown her credibility with those people." See full text of article: Calls for whistle-blowing watchdog to step down FAIR (Federal Accountability Initiative for Reform) http:fairwhistleblower .ca Federal Accountability Initiative for Reform (FAIR) promotes integrity and accountability within government by empowering employees to speak out without fear of reprisal when they encounter wrongdoing. Our aim is to support legislation and management practices that will provide effective protection for whistleblowers and hence occupational free speech in the workplace. FAIR is a registered Canadian charity. Click here to unsubscribe from FAIR newsletter

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Back to Eden communities
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Fwd: [Skimaire High Tech] Canada has a great energy future

why Canadians have a future

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Q-jumpers <siegholle@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, Jun 25, 2009 at 10:14 AM
Subject: [Skimaire High Tech] Canada has a great energy future
To: siegholle@gmail.com


[http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2009/06/canadian-oil-sands-more-oil-than-saudi.html]
Canadian Oil Sands: More Oil Than Saudi Arabia?

Canada's oil sands hold an estimated 170 billion barrels of oil that can be recovered with existing technology and as much as 1.7 trillion barrels -- more than five times the size of Saudi Arabia's reserves -- that could be produced with the use of new methods that are being developed.

As the only non-OPEC source with the capability for large production growth during the next several years, oil sands have the potential to reduce the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' revenues, weakening the cartel and those members that often undertake policies hostile to U.S. interests.

By getting more of their oil from Canada, refineries in the Midwest are moving from being at the back of the crude oil supply line to the front. With these secure supplies, Midwest refineries are not as vulnerable to supply disruptions from overseas producers or hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico.

So who would object to Canadian oil sands?

Eenvironmental groups like the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Sierra Club are trying to shut down Canadian oil sands production and block the expansion of refineries here in the U.S.

If the environmental groups truly cared about achieving results in their battle against global warming, they would better focus their energy on the construction of scores of power plants in rapidly developing economies like China and India that account for most of the increase in the world's carbon emissions. These developments pose the real global environmental danger, not the Canadian oil sands.

~From my editorial in today's Detroit News
http://mjperry.blogspot.com/2009/06/canadian-oil-sands-more-oil-than-saudi.html

--
Posted By Q-jumpers to Skimaire High Tech at 6/25/2009 07:12:00 AM

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Harper, Ignatieff are both winners - Brantford Expositor - Ontario, CA

Harper, Ignatieff are both winners - Brantford Expositor - Ontario, CA: "Who hates this? Not surprisingly, the NDP and the Bloc Quebecois do. It must gall Jack and Gilles that they gave Ignatieff just the leverage he needed to bring Harper to the table, by blurting their intention to vote non-confidence at the first opportunity.
They could have hedged their bets and denied Iggy his platform. Do these two never learn?
As for the media, we're guilty of theatrics of our own, it seems to me. During an otherwise newsless June we put up a rash of breathless stories speculating about a summer election. Will they? Won't they? Once the 'crisis' has passed we immediately rush to determine who won, who lost, who 'caved' and who didn't, and heap scorn on the entire process.
Does any of this noise matter? Surely it matters most that our MPs, whom we pay upwards of $175,000 a year, will stay on the job for another few months and that the two grown-up parties in Parliament are working together, for a change. Government should be about give and take. When did compromise become grounds for ridicule?"


This is a sound reality assessment PR

Reversal of decision 'pleases' builder - Brantford Expositor - Ontario, CA

Reversal of decision 'pleases' builder - Brantford Expositor - Ontario, CA: "A city homebuilder has the green light to begin the next stage of his controversial housing project along the Grand River waterfront.
After much debate Monday, city council approved, 7-3, a site plan agreement that will allow Mike Quattrociocchi and his company, Mayberry Homes, to proceed with the third stage of his housing project on Grand River Avenue, between Jarvis and Hilda streets.
The vote reversed a decision in a committee of the whole meeting two weeks earlier, when Quattrociocchi's application failed on a tie vote."

A wise business decision ? PR

Expropriation-a Necessity or a can of worms ?

No need to take over properties, owners say Posted By MICHAEL-ALLAN MARION

The city says its bid to expropriate the south side of downtown Colborne Street is a "reasonably necessary" move to end three decades of inaction by the private sector.

But some of the aff ected property owners say the municipality has yet to demonstrate a need to take over their land.

Those were the main competing themes at city hall during Thursday's hearing of necessity under the Expropriation Act. Three property owners and one tenant are objecting to council's decision in February to expropriate 41 properties on the south side of Colborne to clear the way for redevelopment.

Hearing chairman Victor Freidin is expected to deliver his report this summer.

Testimony and evidence Thursday reveal an interesting glimpse of the politics and business dealings swirling around the stretch of disputed properties.

Chris Tsekas of Weir Foulds, the law firm representing Brantford, said the city's downtown revitalization program has had "some traction." But the south side of Colborne with its increasingly decrepit and often vacant buildings has not had a "spark" that would spur the private sector in the past three decades, he said.

"It is an area that is affected by blight and it is an area that needs redevelopment," he said. "The city is tired of waiting for the private sector. All you have to do is walk by all those storefronts to realize that something is wrong."

He and associate Constance Lantaigne led a succession of senior city officials through evidence and testimony on the history of the downtown's decline, and the city's efforts to revitalize it in the past decade with a community improvement plan approved by the provincial government, a grants program and other policies.

It culminated in a detailed examination of a downtown master plan approved by council late last year to carry the goal to its conclusion, with the south side of Colborne as the No. 1 priority.

Coun. Mark Littell is chairman of the South Side of Colborne Task Force, which was formed last year to act as a political facilitator between property owners and Laurier Brantford, Nipissing University, Mohawk College and the YMCA.

He said the task force turned to expropriation after it became clear that one developer, Jack Lechcier-Kimel of Torontobased Summit Glen, was unable to assemble land he had optioned from businessman Steve Kun and other owners and meet deadlines to get proposals moving.

One project being watching closely, said Littell, is a $40-million joint athletic and recreation complex proposed for the south side of Colborne by Laurier and the Y.

Steve Kun, who owns 20 properties in the stretch, remained an objector to expropriation, and did not withdraw as was reported Thurdsay in The Expositor.

Some city officials misinterpreted a letter from Kun's lawyer that he had withdrawn. In fact, the letter merely declared that the lawyer himself had been instructed to withdraw from the hearing. Kun intended to represent himself.

In his testimony, Kun said he is not opposed to the city's redevelopment drive on south Colborne, only to council's method.

He said that his business goal was to purchase downtown properties to facilitate big projects.

He said he has sold blocks, when requested. For example, a group of eight properties on north Colborne were sold to the city, and later became part of the Harmony Square development. Another group of properties was turned into Laurier Brantford's Heritage Block project.

He also participated in a series of failed proposals to give the YMCA a new permanent home.

But he is adamant that the city did not talk seriously with him about the south side of Colborne. And he was never officially asked to attend any meetings of the task force, which met with other property owners.

In testimony, Kun recounted that city manager John Brown had asked him to a meeting last Jan. 8 to talk about south Colborne and the properties he had optioned to Lechcier- Kimel.

Kun said he told Brown that the options had been extended to the end of February because Lechcier-Kimel was having trouble with financing to close the major purchase. If it didn't work out, Kun said the city could buy his properties on the same deal given to Lechcier-Kimel.

He said Brown told him "the city is definitely not interested in any purchase of properties on the south side of Colborne."

The next month, council approved expropriation, a move that made it impossible for Lechcier-Kimel to get the necessary financing to buy the properties, said Kun.

"In all fairness to the developer (Lechchier-Kimel), the city did not give him the cooperation he needed," said Kun, accusing city officials of "duplicity" in their dealings.

"The city has not acted in good faith. I don't think it's fair, I don't think it's sound and I don't think it's necessary to expropriate in this way. There are willing sellers and willing buyers."

Dick Waterous, principal in Tutela Properties Ltd., argued the city could not demonstrate it needs to expropriate a vacant property his company owns at the western end of Colborne, near Icomm Drive.

He pointed out sections in the downtown master plan, which identify the property as a "gateway," but did not recommend immediate action because more technical information was needed about its condition.

"What do you think of the prudence of purchasing land without that information?" he asked Ross Burnett, a consultant who helped write the downtown master plan.

Paul Scargall, a lawyer for Donald Fines, whose company of the same name owns a large building at 35-39 Colborne, also argued the city has no compelling case to take over his client's property.

He pointed out that the building is occupied and has heritage significance, which would suggest it be left alone.

Waterous and Scargall both kept pressing the message that the city is trying to expropriate a large section of properties with no immediate purpose to show, other than the Laurier-Y project, which needs only a portion of the area.

Tzekas countered that it may be an "unusual expropriation" but the city has the power under Section 28 of the Expropriations Act to acquire land for provincially approved community improvement programs, which could have wider purposes.

"Cities can do that," he said.


Do not do it without the real facts or a real plan -an expropriation caution to taxpayers - Haste makes for potential waste - TAXPAYER Comment

Expropriation is a Property rights game. If this was a legitimate game -win or lose on the merits -the city lost the game big time in the Necessity hearings and proceedings Listening to the testimony of the " city staff experts and witnesses" only re-enforced why the City should not be in the development business partiularly with " with free" taxpayer money and the bully power(Section 28 of the Expropriations Act ) to do it . Having a real plan- not a warm good feel fuzzy dream driven by political expediency, with real information about the properties and the remediation costs certainly would have helped save the day .

Which 200 stakeholders did they consult to justify this potential next Eaton ICOMM type unsinkable titanic clone project? Which Stakeholders did they consult? The stakeholder definition given by the embattled consultant was people with an economic interest or stake in the program- specifically a list of approved names given to him by the City. It is most unfortunate that the property owners, or Taxpayers for that matter, where not deemed worthy stakeholders entitled to provide input. In this case the property owner input was compelling and should be heard.

Everyone in Brant, should worry what this dream will cost Brantford and the precedent it sets for the future. The pleasant dream of dynamic ,academic growth,prosperity and a new tax base could turn into a expensive gateway nightmare if not properly planned and executed on the real facts or economic merits. S. HOLLE

Old car reduction incentive

The incentives proposed could be a win -win for the auto industry and the taxpayer-by providing a stimulus to reduce the estimated 2 year new car inventory. PR

Waterfront mike

Homebuilder, council face off again
Posted By MICHAEL-ALLAN MARION

Brantford homebuilder and former city councilor Mike Quattrociocchi will find out tonight if council will approve his application for a site plan agreement governing the third phase of his controversial housing project on Grand River Avenue.

The application failed on a tie vote two weeks ago, but it is on tonight's council agenda for consideration.

At first, Quattrociocchi held out hope that he may still win, because Coun. Vince Bucci was absent on the first vote, and was believed to support his application. But when he found out the Mayor Mike Hancock, who did support it the first time, is away on business, he began lobbying other councillors over the weekend.

"I still hope to get enough support," he said.