[GREN-Exec] MZO Press Release

[Kevin Thomason]

Hi Susan,  

Good point and I agree with you.  Originally, they had drafted the release with all three municipalities listed but I had them change the wording so that it now reads “in both Stratford and Cambridge, the mayor, Councillors and Staff were complicit in keeping this from the public…”  since in Stratford and Cambridge there were numerous in-camera meetings where Council and Staff discussed things without public knowledge.  

We aren’t sure in Wilmot how long Staff has known about things but they surely new about it before Christmas Eve.  Two Wilmot Councillors have stated they knew nothing about it advance but suspected other Councillors and the Mayor had known about it for a while and were keeping it from them and the public.  

So hopefully, there is the right balance in this press release - two communities clearly being called out for withholding information from the public and Wilmot guilty of trying to push their MZO through so quickly over the holidays with little time for public knowledge or engagement.

Let me know any questions or if there is something we need to change further.

Thanks,
Kevin.

-------------------------------------

Kevin Thomason

1115 Cedar Grove Road
Waterloo, Ontario Canada  N2J 3Z4

Phone: (519) 888-0519
Mobile Phone/WhatsApp: (519) 240-1648
Twitter: @kthomason
E-mail: kevinthomason at mac.com or kevthomason at gmail.com

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> On Jan 12, 2022, at 7:05 PM, Susan Koswan <susankoswan at execulink.com> wrote:
> 
> 
> Is this true, or assumptions about municipal councils and staff being complicit? I did not get the impression from the Wilmot meeting that they knew about this proposal - or am I just being naive?
> 
> Susan K
> 
> The use of MZOs in the three communities of Stratford, Cambridge, and Wilmot include similar abuses of power by their respective Municipal Councils. In each community developers worked for months in secret to craft their MZO request and in both Stratford and Cambridge the mayor, Councillors and Staff were complicit in keeping this from the public and catering to the developers profit motive.  The fact that Wilmot’s MZO was to be announced and approved so rapidly over the holidays with little public knowledge or information is equally troubling.
> 
> On 1/12/2022 6:24 PM, Kevin Thomason wrote:
>> Hi GREN Executive,
>> 
>> The Wellington Water Watchers, Blair Engaged, and Concerned citizens of Stratford have reached out to GREN to see how they might be able to help with this Wilmot MZO.  The have offered to do a joint press release with all of our organizations to try to raise awareness on the abuse of MZO’s by the provincial government.
>> 
>> The amazing Mike Balkwill at WWW has taken the lead on things and I have worked with him to draft the following press release below.  Please review it and let me know any concerns, otherwise the WWW is going to distribute it tomorrow using their public relations machine.  We already know that CTV is interested in doing a story next week and the other groups have been fantastic in doing what they can to help us with this.
>> 
>> Let me know any questions or ideas.
>> 
>> Thanks,
>> Kevin.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> -------------------------------------
>> 
>> Kevin Thomason
>> 
>> 1115 Cedar Grove Road
>> Waterloo, Ontario Canada  N2J 3Z4
>> 
>> Phone: (519) 888-0519
>> Mobile Phone/WhatsApp: (519) 240-1648
>> Twitter: @kthomason
>> E-mail: kevinthomason at mac.com <mailto:kevinthomason at mac.com> or kevthomason at gmail.com <mailto:kevthomason at gmail.com>
>> 
>> -----------------------------------------
>> 
>> 
>> 
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