Columnists
Crisis of confidence
Next Tuesday, I will table a motion of non-confidence in Mayor Steve Ferguson at a council meeting. The purpose of my motion is to send a message.
Residents and businesses in Prince Edward County have lost confidence in the municipality as a force for good in their lives. They see massive infrastructure spending on behalf of large developers. They see rising debt levels. They see the municipality take on more risk than it can bear. They see enormous disruption to their lives and business. They see plans to run roads through their homes. They see developers given a green light to pave over sensitive ecosystems. Residents see these things.
But they don’t see our mayor. They don’t see our head of council. It’s a problem.
During COVID, Mayor Ferguson was everpresent. Sitting on the corner of his desk, he produced weekly video messages updating homebound residents with the latest developments in the spread of the virus and information about how Shire Hall was responding to the crisis. He was present, supportive, and helpful. Mayor Ferguson was at his best during COVID.
Today, when Mayor Ferguson addresses my community, it is to scold residents for their impatience and sense of entitlement. Otherwise, he is invisible and silent.
Somewhere along the way, Mayor Ferguson stopped trying to explain municipal plans and ambitions. He stopped representing residents and businesses and became the spokesperson for developers and the province.
Residents in my community feel Mayor Ferguson has stopped listening. They sense that he is talking past them. They don’t believe he understands the risks. They don’t believe he is accountable.
Big plans roll forward, including the redevelopment and expansion of a long-term care home ($100 million), the rehabilitation of County Road 49 ($55 million), and waterworks expansion ($300 million). Each is a generational project for a rural community of this size. But it is happening all at once.
Worse, the lone project currently underway is being badly mismanaged.
A WINTER OF DISCONTENT
Unlike Picton’s roadworks, where alternate routes were inconvenient but manageable, Wellington has been cut in half. The single road that crosses through the village has been closed for months. And it will be for months more. Ripping a community in half breaks down everything— getting to work, getting to a doctor, getting food, seeing friends. It is made worse when deadlines keep moving, and the plans keep changing without explanation.
On April 28, when we vote in the federal election, half the village will spend 40 minutes getting to the polling station over barely passable roads on the other side of the village.
Communication has been terrible, confusing and, at times, insulting. Wellington residents have been treated as nuisances in the way of progress.
Residents understand that things change quickly in a construction project—that circumstances are fluid.
But from the beginning, there was not enough planning put into this closure and advising residents on how it would work.
A month ago, after hundreds of complaints, a one-page explainer was produced and distributed, suggesting folks reach out to a staff person. Calls to that number went unanswered as the individual identified as the contact person was away on holiday.
On another occasion, human error resulted in a flood of dirty water gushing into the basements of new homes at Twelve Trees—no apology or explanation from Shire Hall.
Rerouting traffic from what was once a provincial highway onto Hubbs Creek, Greer Road, and Consecon Street seems to have come as a surprise. Snow clearing was insufficient and, at times, dangerous. With spring’s arrival, the detour route is a washboard of holes, making travel slow, risky and damaging.
WHY?
People have asked what I want from this motion. What is the point?
I want Mayor Ferguson to be a visible leader in Wellington. I want to encourage him to take responsibility for the challenges residents and businesses are enduring and explain the steps being taken to remedy them. I want him to do so on a regular basis.
It is not solely on his shoulders, but can no longer be entirely upon mine. I want Steve Ferguson to be mayor of all of Prince Edward County.
I want him to deal with his council members as colleagues—as part of a collaborative team. I want fewer closed-door meetings on matters critical to the business of this municipality.
I want Mayor Ferguson to share vital communications immediately without delay. I want to know the contents and context of meetings he has with developers, senior levels of government, investors and union leaders on a timely basis.
I hope he will commit to this. I would hope he will want to do this.
My community has lost faith that Shire Hall is working in their interests. Mayor Ferguson is the head of Council and must take responsibility for this breakdown.
I am not looking for a resignation or censure. The purpose of my motion instead is to urge Mayor Ferguson to work with Council so that together, we can begin to restore confidence in this institution as a positive force in the lives of County residents. We must earn back the trust of our community.
Well said.
I would like to understand why a new Water Treatment Plant, to meet the needs of the Base 31 development plan, is in Wellington ?
We have a Water Treatment facility in Picton with County Owned Waterfront adjacent to it for expansion. Would that not have been a more cost effective and less disruptive choice?
Good questions. I’m sure many of the Residents would appreciate an answer to that as well. I know I certainly would.
I wonder about some of these comments – is anyone paying attention to what is actually happening in Wellington? In the County? The debt load is incredible, and our great grandchildren are still going to be paying for all this mess. This is a Councillor who is looking after the Residents of the Ward he was elected to represent. That’s a far cry from the Councillor in my Ward, who is so transparent he disappears, and yet another Councillor who is looking after his own interests to the detriment of the Ward he was elected to represent and ignores their wishes for their Ward. Come on, people. I’m not getting my “news” from one source, and neither should you.
Tend to agree. Bringing forward a vote of non confidence is gas lighting but sells more papers for the base. Kinda akward making profit from a Council crisis when you are part of the debacle!
The Times is a free newspaper.
The more disruption the Wellington Councilor can bring upon Council which he is a vocal member of only serves to benefit his newspaper business that thrives off of consistent Municipal ridicule. Would suggest conflict of interest.
I disagree. The conflict of interest was in Mayor Ferguson deciding to add his vote to the mix. Now THAT is a direct Conflict of Interest. It would have been prudent for him to abstain, and let the Council do their job in this regard.
Thank you. We certainly lost confidence and trust.
This motion is inapproprite and does nothing to help the current situuation. Offering solutions would be so much more helpful.
From what I’ve been reading, seeing and hearing … offering of solutions have been disregarded out of hand, and/or blatantly ignored, by many who are more knowledgeable than those in Shire Hall. I don’t know if we need to dismiss this Council and Staff completely out of hand, but “Head Office” definitely needs a reset. Some of us lost confidence well over a year ago, and the debt load just keeps increasing. But to each their own, eh? Opinions and voting, after all, is what Democracy is all about. Soon to be removed from the Residents and our elected Councillors in PEC with the new Mayor powers on May 1st, apparently.
Our Mayor warned that continued extreme criticism of Operations could result in the CAO walking. Not taking that advice we now have a Municipal Crisis. Mission accomplished!!