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THE ART EXPERIENCE OF 2000 "The Region‘s Largest Show In Years Of This Calibre" BARRY JIM McCARTHY OPENING REED RECEPTION au a ama>»>~ & > BARBER GALLERY BARBER GALLERY HOURS: Monâ€"Fri 9amâ€"5:30pm; Sat Samâ€"Spm 167 Suffolk St. W., Guelph 576â€"3323 Thursday, October 19, 2000 7:00pm to 9:00pm October 19 â€" November 7, 2000 EXHIBITION DATES: I am not at all in favour of this program, but 1 would like to refer to the July 11 Record when Coun. Woolstencroft called for a public meeting which was then held on Oct. 2 to inform the taxpayers how the surplus was obtained. At that meeting, Coun. Woolstencroft stated the city had good relations with all departments with no strikes or arbitrations in the near future. Why should there be when you get a raise without even asking for it? Then the mayor said that the government sets regulaâ€" tions that the city or municipalâ€" ity may not run deficits So what does that tell you? 1 would say at budget time, budâ€" gets are boosted or padded to make sure that these departâ€" ments don‘t run at a deficit. How often can the staff go to the same department year after year and find ways and means of saving hundreds of thousands of dollars, and by that time they must have all the bugs out of the system. Before 1996, the staff and employees could not find many ways of saving any dollars. And when they did it was put back into the system or into the pot for the next year. Theres an elecâ€" tion coming up and I hope all the taxpayers will take a good look and phone all the candiâ€" dates on this matter. And then there was nothing ever heard of or said about the $636,500 received from the Mutual Group that became Clarica. Of that money, council voted to allocate $150,000 â€" towards employee initiatives as such leadership development proâ€" gram. I hope that money was not on top of the Winshare proâ€" A loss to taxpayers 1 am in favour of scrapping the Winshare. It‘s a win I see for the employees and a loss for the taxpayer. After all, the fedâ€" s EHERCTE Everyone I‘ve talked to in the city of Waterloo about this agrees that they should have never in the first place brought that in because theres just no way you can account. In a pubâ€" licâ€"run system there is no profâ€" it, there is no loss. If they need money, they tax you. If they have a surplus, they don‘t give it back, but bopefully what they do is they reduce the taxes. So their theory or logic behind that whole program is flawed in that, as I say, there is no profâ€" it or loss and for them to proâ€" port to run a system under profit and loss is ludicrous. Give it to counciliors I think they should disconâ€" tinue Winshare for sure. If they don‘t know what to do with the money, other than give it back to the taxpayers, they should give it to council â€" their wages and the mayor‘s wages aren‘t that wonderful. The employees shouldn‘t be doing what their doing for Winshare, they should be doing it on their own incentive. That‘s what they‘re paid for. It‘s ludicrous John Weber Abuse of our money 1 don‘t think the council should reward city staff for savâ€" ing revenue. I think that‘s taxâ€" payers‘ money. It should either go to the taxpayer, go to the poor, go to the shelters for the homeless or something else should be done with it other than paying extra salary to peoâ€" I am in total disagreement of the Winshare program. I feel the employees are paid well and of course should come up with ideas to save the taxpayers money. Paying them bonuses because they have, is an abuse Trim the weeds 1 was at the meeting on (Oct. 2) regarding Winshare, and 1 also believe that tax money should have gone towards, if nothing else, to trim and cut the weeds which we were told that there was not enough tax money left for that. Every year we‘re told we must spray or get rid of the toxic weeds every spring and sumâ€" mer. Now when I go for walks there are so many tall weeds all over the place, I just cannot see raising taxes to do this when its been given away in free Carol Dolezsar Marie Walser