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Saturday 16 February 2019

For 10 points, What is community resilience Alex?

Ottawa is a government town more than any other. In 1998 Paul Martin said he would meet his deficit reduction targets come hell or high water.  The Harris provincial government amalgamated, consolidated and eliminated services and soon the impacts of similar measures by Rob Ford will be felt.  It is unreasonable to expect that Ottawa is immune to the impacts of future austerity programs resulting from the consequences of a world awash in debt induced by record low interest rates.

The federal and provincial governments are both deep in debt and at the municipal level we are not immune. Since Jim Watson was elected mayor in 2010, the City of Ottawa's total net debt has more than doubled — and is topping $1.7 billion by the end of 2016, for annual interest cost of about $170 million to service the borrowings. (See https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-city-debt-doubled-to-1-69-billion-since-2010-1.3836398

Meanwhile we are starting to see the knock on effects of climate change with extreme weather events like floods, tornados, record snowfalls. There will be more of the same.

The implications of this are that the city must prepare and revisit its business continuity plans. Neighbourhoods too, need to have considered and updated emergency plans. 

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-city-budget-draft-2018-1.4393408




Resiliency means neighbourhoods can withstand increased taxes or decreased government funding. It may present itself as poorly maintained streets, inadequate housing, poor transit services and many other indications of financial stress within the city.

We are starting to see the cracks. The writing is on the wall for all to see.


As the future ward representative you have to be thick skinned enough to handle the immense pressure that will mount from all sides as it becomes increasingly apparent that the status quo will not hold.

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