Municipal Monitor - January/February 2008 - (Page 20)

By James McQueen, 1993 AMCTO President t is hard to believe that it was June 1993 when I became the 51st President of this great Association. Wow, where has time gone? However, it is a fact and here I am, some 14 years later, being asked to reflect on my year as President. It was a privilege and an honour to be your official leader during a very unsettling time in local government in Ontario. For me, it was a year of personal growth. At times it was also very demanding to meet the many roles of the position: chairperson, ambassador, negotiator, writer and spokesperson. In all, I believe I tracked a total of 77 days conducting AMCTO business not including preparation and travel time. I will always be indebted to my employer, the Town of Milton, and the Finance staff for being so supportive during this time. So what was so exciting about being President in 1993-94? I will recall just a sampling of issues that made it a banner year. Association membership was growing rapidly, having increased to 2,500 members after five years of 7% annual growth. AMCTO was very busy making changes to meet the needs of the I expanding membership, which included conducting a detailed strategic planning process. During this year, the Municipal Directory was introduced through a partnership with the Ministry of Municipal Affairs. It continues to be a well-used source document. The Member in Transition Program was also initiated, with some 32 members taking advantage of the service in the first year as victims of the Social Contract. And speaking of the Social Contract, who will ever forget those tumultuous times of cutbacks, Rae days and job losses? I had the duty of representing AMCTO at the negotiating table with the Province of Ontario and hopefully had some impact on the final outcomes. It was also during this year that AMCTO had the opportunity to help structure the first government Canada-Ontario Infrastructure Program. In August of 1993, I was part of an AMCTO presentation to the Provincial Administration of Justice Committee about Bill 79. This, of course, was significant legislation related to Employment Equity. I believe we did positively influence the final legislation and we certainly caught the ear of the committee members. Liberal MPP Bob Callahan said in part, “I would like to congratulate you on your brief and for having the guts to come before this Committee…and say what you are saying.” AMCTO continues to reflect the comments of this MPP with its Legislative program. On the humorous side, but not at the time, I believe that the 1994 conference was the only time that the Presidential Suite was closed by the host hotel. It seems that the Boston Red Sox were in Toronto and happened to be staying at the conference hotel. The poor boys needed their sleep for a ball game the next day and complained to the establishment about the noise level…I don’t understand why? In any event, it was an earlier than usual Tuesday night for some of the members. So here we are, with 2008 just around the corner. I am retired from the Town of Milton but still involved on a number of fronts with AMCTO. My involvement with the Association continues to be an interesting and positive journey, with my year as President being a “once in a lifetime” experience. ◆ KMK Consultants Limited is committed to our clients, to deliver practical, reliable and sustainable water and wastewater solutions based on sound engineering. Consulting services include: Municipal/Education Development Charge Policy and Cost Sharing Water/Sewer Rate Setting, Service Feasibility Studies and Masterplanning Long Range Financial Planning for School Boards and Municipalities Fiscal and Economic Impact, Needs Assessment, Demographics and Land Market Studies Development Application Approvals Process User Fees (DAAP) Reviews 4304 Village Centre Court Mississauga, Ontario L4Z 1S2 Tel: (905) 272-3600 Fax: (905) 272-3602 e-mail: info@watson-econ.ca Your Environmental CounSEl John Willms Environmental Law Specialist Certified by the Law Society of Upper Canada 416 862 4821 jwillms@willmsshier.com www.kmk.ca www.willmsshier.com ENVIRONMENTAL, ENERGY & RESOURCES LAW municipal 325837_KMK.indd 1 20 • MONITOR 4/26/07 8:08:11 AM 305644_cn_watson.indd 1 11/9/06 9:41:03 AM 303420_willms.indd 1 January/February 2008 AM 11/6/06 10:00:47

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Municipal Monitor - January/February 2008

Municipal Monitor - January/February 2008 Contents President’s Message: Recognizing Achievement Viewpoint: Increasing Voter Turnout Building Bridges The Municipal Buddy System Harnessing the Wind Water Under the Bridge Municipal Memos Index to Advertisers

Municipal Monitor - January/February 2008

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