You’ll hear Hamilton city councillors opine, from time to time that they don’t have a spending problem at City Hall, they have a revenue problem.
It’s difficult to attach any credibility to that claim when you see how they’ve wasted so much money on the ward boundary issue.
RELATED COMMENTARY: Ward boundary stance a waste of time and money
They paid over $240,000 to a well respected and experienced consulting firm to consult with the public and make recommendations.
In a blatant case of gerrymandering, council ignored the report and drew their own ward boundaries and now, they’re being forced to go to the Ontario Municipal Board to defend their actions.
Late last week, council confirmed that they will hire outside legal help and experts to argue their case before the OMB, but they won’t tell us how much it will cost.
However, past experience with the OMB suggests that the cost will be significant, and you know who’s going to pay that bill.
Don’t be fooled by their assertion that the money comes from a reserve fund; where do you think the money for the reserve fund came from ?
Adding the cost of the wasted consultant’s report and legal fees, it’s possible that council will spend close to half a million dollars to resist a plan that would give Hamiltonians a more fair and equitable election system.
And that, my fellow taxpayers, is an egregious spending problem!
Bill Kelly is the host of Bill Kelly Show on AM 900 CHML and a commentator for Global News.