On Thursday, January
17, 2013, the District of Tofino released a press release regarding the District
of Tofino’s new organizational structure.I'm not sure why the daycare is being run by the Finance Dept. or why Bylaw is going to Corporate Services ?? Anyway....there's no details in the announcement and no numbers so it remains to be seen if there is any savings to the taxpayer.....
https://tofino.civicweb.net/Documents/DocumentList.aspx?ID=15249
39 comments:
I'm concerned that this is the first thing the new Mayor announces.
Yah, The CAO rolls up a big shit ball, passes it to the new mayor to throw, and then flees town the same day for Winnepeg. COWARD!
It must be remembered that council voted unanimously in support of the action.It is unfortunate that the new Mayor has inheirited this situation.
This is the great restructuring ? What a joke ! Council was impressed with this ? I feel sorry for Ms. Osborne
What a f***ing joke. Nothing but a grandiose social experiment dreamt up by a guy that never did an honest day of physical labour in his life. He's no longer human. He lives in his head. You can't make policies for others when you live in your head.
It seems that Josie has bought in to this nonsense . Meet the new boss,same as the old boss.
I can't believe six other people bought into this. I almost gave them the benefit of the doubt, but no more. "Stupid is stupid does."
" If the blind lead the blind, surely both will go into the ditch."
Fast acting Koolaid!
I don't see much wrong with this in the very limited amount of information i have to work with. Other than Sally losing her job. Realignment of the responsibilities for each department is not inherently bad, However, it very much seems like they got rid of parks and rec position to create a specific Resort management position. Meaning, theoretically there is going to be a bigger push for tourism development. City planners do get involved in parks and rec choices, for sure. Technically, now that the daycare infrastructure is in place, it becomes a balancing the budget scenario with no need of oarks and rec. Yes, it was spearheaded by Sally, point taken.
I also have question marks in what exactly corprporate department entails?
As far as research and education goes, what will be the concentration? Let me guess, marine biology? Would this not compete and interfere with what Bamfield is doing? Furthermore, the municipal government should not get involved in this. It should be done privately or by provincial or federal grants if it is done at all. Would like to hear what ideas the mayor is cooking up, but again, from the limited amount of information i have, I don't like it at all.
So far since Sally was fired Parks and Rec is chaos.Bad move
Parks and Rec is a mess. The new boss is too busy to run it and his work load too.
Yes Ralph, council did vote unanimously but did they really understand what they were voting on? Perhaps someone didn't give them the whole story, or maybe they just didn't do their homework and get all the facts. Either way they screwed up. If they had any honour they would step in now and make things right!
I was simply noting that council voted on this before Josie became Mayor.I don't think it was fair to have her deliver this press release.Sally is gone and there will be a severance package and the new RMI director won't work for free so I fail to see any savings to the taxpayer.This is the same recycled crap that Bob Long tried to introduce.
Who needs Parks and Rec ? We need higher learning,arts scans and more pet projects.Bring on the consultants !We can fund them with RMI mad money !
Quote from Mayor Josie Osbourne's Facebook:
"Today we issued a Press Release with more details about the re-structuring of the District of Tofino's staffing. I believe that this decision of Council will make the District of Tofino more accountable, responsible and efficient, particularly in the way we manage the money from the provincial Resort Municipality Initiative (some $650K/year). I also think that we will be able to bring more stability to our staffing structure. If you have any questions, please contact me. I will put a link to the new org chart in the comments below."
Stability to staffing structure? The molale at the DOT has hit an all time low since the announcment of the corporate restructuring and dismissal of Sally. What was wrong with the way the RMI money was used in the past? It makes more sense to me to divide up to the the different department to use it to the best of their own department expertise. Only 10% of it can be used for operations and now that will all be used for resort services department wher in the past it was all being used already for things like washroom cleaning trail maintenance and presumably a portion of Sally's salary as she was using some of that money for very successful projects such as the awesome new bike park and Lighthouse trail.
I can't imagine the new department will only have one staff person either. More costs! This is not what the voters of this town want. WE wnt community not resort. Leave the resort services to the resorts!
I am glad to see the new mayor working in harmony with the existing council.Together we can build a bigger and better Whistler.
Am I reading the new chart correctly? The new RMI department will be staffed by a manager and a (temp) assistant? Wishing that new manager the very best.. There is no way one or even two full time staff will be able to take on that amount of work. Ridiculous!
We're left in a quagmire, while a mini-van leaves town under the cover of darkness with its car top carrier full of cash.
i get it now..the resorts restructerd tofino.
were now resort tofino!
im waiting for restart tofino.
then tofino academy of arts and resort sciences.
The only motive for this "restructure" was to get rid of Sally. Is the new mayor also a smith follower ? The average Tofitian sees through this .....why does council steadfastly stand behind smith ?
7;40 AM, It's the hourglass. The only info they got was from Smith. They had to accept his word as the gospel. We all know how he could put his wn slant on things to suit his own personal needs.
The choice of restructuring in favour of an agenda to increase tourism and deplete community services such as Parks 'n Rec needed to originate from the 'true' community, not an ambitious graduate fresh from Tourism University. An economic perspective which supports income diversity is imperative in this environmental and economic climate. Too bad there isn't an inexpensive way to hold a mock election after one year to let the councillors know whether or not we support the direction they are taking. It is too huge step for Tofino to take without public consultation. But wait a minute! The public spoke loud and clear in support of Parks 'n Rec the evening they held their open house, that evening before the most valuable employee ever to walk those halls was dismissed. A shifty way to blind us as they alter the agenda right under our noses?
8:53 right on.
Yes, right on! They forget who they work for.
As Don Magoo once told me,
"The bigger the relijun, the bigger the screwin'".
Wise man.
Spoke from experience.
As is often found in life, a little poo stinks more than a big poo.
Regarding, "an ambitious graduate fresh from Tourism University".
When you're married to an ATM machine, and therefore insulated from the real world that most people face, I suppose life affords one the opportunity to sit around and dream up new theories about how the great unwashed should conduct their lives. While you flit off to distant luxury destinations several times per year because you are stressed out, for most people, a trip to the park or to the local Rec center is all they have.
I see not saving to the taxpayer at all...one upper management position replace with another or perhaps two others. Constructive Dismisal and please no confidentiality clause make they all twist. Remember Sally his name is spelled S M I T H on the legal paperwork.
I'd like to see the dollar savings this is supposed to generate. I'm guessing the finance dept will want nothing to do with this slight of hand because there are rules in accounting, GAAP. And to fudge these will have serious repercussions. Aaron please stay away from this steaming pile of...let B.S. shovel it up on his way out the door.
how much do you suppose Sally's severence is costing the district? I wonder if that has been worked into the "cost saving" of reorganizing. I hope it's lots. She deserves it! Definatly got shafted.
no one is supposed to know anything because it could affect someones job at the district.
like if a positions job description is modified from typing and filing to just typing whoah! big union problem maybe, job action, grievance, shop steward etc.
so no one can know anything about cost benefit analysis, actual cost, budget line items etc. because its all about labor. sure.
the pope used to insist the earth was flat too.
8.53
Do you mean the graduate who recently got her masters, and has continuously reminded us that she has her masters, her masters, her masters?
Masters: Successful completion of lengthy rote learning program, followed by the crowning glory, a big certificate denoting self-worth given to the ego.
Sally did not need a masters to unite people. She had passion, fortitude and a heart.
Braden's high falutin' corporate language and the bureaucratic doublespeak of his shills indicate incompetency in relating to people.
"What we have here is a failure to communicate."
Cool Hand Luke.
LOL!!!!!
Just had a look at the new organizational chart on the DOT website. It says that the commmunity tells mayor and council what to do. Did the community ever tell the mayor and council to restucture the way they did? NO! Did the community ever tell Mayor and council to eliminate the Parks Rec Dept. and get rid of Sally? NO! Did the mayor and council ever consult with the community over their grand reorg plan? NO!! Did the community ever request that mayor and council create a Resort Services dept.? NO! It was all done behind closed doors with zero public input. Democratic? NO! I can't see how their in camera decision can even be legal. This is the sort of desion that legaly should be made in public. Another thing that I find offensive in the new organizational chart is the fact that mayor and council tells the Recreation Commission what to do. Is it not the role of the commission to advise council? They are a group of hard working volunteers that do an excellent job for this community and council has no business telling them what to do or not do! This whole thing is so wrong and such a mess. Kind of ironic that the architect of the whole thing skipped town the day it was unrolled. Kind of rude that he dumped in in the lap of Josie the week she started as mayor. She's got a shit storm to deal with when instead she could bedealing with the real issues in this town. I'm just so fed up!
There is only one reason for the Community Children's Center to be run by the finance department: To raise revenue. I suspect we will see an increase in costs associated with some seemingly legitimate but ultimately spurious reasoning... For example, "Unfortunately, the increased costs of liability insurance require that we pass on these costs to our customers. Consequently, childcare costs will now be revised at $blah blah blah per hour. We apologize blah blah..."
While they say that the changes won't affect programs or services, it doesn't say that they can't increase costs.
On another note, from the RMI (http://www.ruralbc.gov.bc.ca/about/RMI/RMI_Funding.html)
RMI is an incentive based program, annual funding is calculated according to the following:
Based on a resort municipality’s accommodation units, a percentage value (1 to 4%) is assigned based on the following:
Less than 450 Accommodation Units 1%
450 to 899 Accommodation Units 2%
900 to 1349 Accommodation Units 3%
1350 Accommodation Units or greater 4%
Therefore, the more accommodation units, the more RMI funding. To see the interest in expanding accommodation units in Tofino, see the above calculation.
And this gem:
"The RMI program is linked to the following key outcomes for resort-based communities: blah blah blah
•Increased municipal tax revenue;"
So, expect to see taxes go up and those increases to come from a variety of sources because those taxes need to come from:
"•Diversification of municipal tax base and revenue."
It had never occurred to me previously Tofino is referred to legally as the "Corporation of the District of Tofino." An apt description with no euphemism necessary. I hope that we will all like to live in the Tofino of 2016 as envisaged by our fearless leaders, something of a mix between natural beauty and Disneyland. Tofino is a place of great natural beauty, this is the reason why so many people want to visit. I suspect council has embarked on an ambitious strategy to commodify this natural beauty. Sally's termination may well have been rooted in financial concerns, though nothing as simple or inane as the budgetary line item of her salary. Indeed, it's difficult to calculate the economic impact of a walking trail, or a skate park. This infrastructure value-adds to the community but can't easily be quantified on a profit and loss statement, thus the costs are merely and more simply realized as losses. This shift to a cynical business model for Tofino may seem prudent given the economic climate and outlook, we can all be scared about that, but we may all be appalled with the results: Tofisneyland.
"Will now be revised to $blah balh per hour. We apoologize blah blah..."
ctsrati14
Highlight of the night!
Since the new Resort services Department has no manager as of yet, why was it not offered to Sally? Most of the duties of the new department were duties that she already has much experience in, successful experience at that. I suppose it will be another position filled from outside the community.
Sally probably turned the new resort services manager postion down. It's an impossible job set up to fail. Plus she's more about community than tourist services so would've probably have ranted about how stupid it was (a black mark on her file?) and told council to take another look. That girl knew what we wanted and how to give it to us. I sure miss her. There's no way she can be replaced - my kids will be the ones that miss the most, but I will also miss knowing that I can call Sally at the village office, and she will direct me to where I need. I feel like apologising on behalf of this lousy council. We're so sorry Sally, this is not how we all feel!!!!!
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