Chalk Talk: Mayor Daryl Bennett

PtboCanada's Chalk Talk is a snapshot of people's favourite thing about Peterborough. Watch for us around town as we would like to feature your favourite thing too! In this edition of Chalk Talk, Mayor Daryl Bennett was very enthusiastic about "The volunteer spirit of Peterborough!"

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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PTBOPics: Business Openings & Moves Around Downtown & East City

When you walk about vibrant downtown Peterborough and East City, you likely always seem to spot a new shop, a new place to eat, or places that have relocated to another part of downtown. Here's a glimpse of recent changes...

Saying goodbye to 38º restaurant means welcoming Nicolini's back after a hiatus away from downtown. 

Hobart's Steakhouse is now calling Hunter Street home after a complete renovation to the building which was once occupied by Nicolini's. Across the road from Hobart's is currently the home of Fab Collectables & Gifts (see below), which is now on the move and has a 30% off sale in effect. No mention of where their new location might be.

As we previously mentioned in a post, Circus has now opened its second location at 382 George Street to accompany their already existing location on Aylmer Street. Circus replaces Glow Maternity, which has relocated to 188 Hunter Street. 

Enticing Cakes will be moving across the road from their current spot to help expand and grow their bake shop. Also in East City is the recent addition of the already ever popular Ashburnham Ale House.

Shots (above) has recently opened in the old Splice location at 379 George Street.  

Goddard's Flippin' Burgers will be opening soon beside the Galaxy Cinemas where Johnny Eh's were previously located, and joining the increasing competition of the perfect burger downtown. Goddard's also has a location in Bancroft at 181 Hastings Street North (see below).

Photo by Evan Holt

We love to see new and existing entrepreneurs opening their doors and helping to continue to making our downtown a thriving one. Tip us with further changes you know about downtown, in East City and elsewhere around town.

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Julie Morris]

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Read The Speech Mayor Bennett Delivered On Financial Health Of Peterborough

PTBOCanada file photoAt the DBIA Breakfast Network at Empress Gardens this morning (June 19th), Mayor Bennett delivered the following remarks...
 
Good morning.
I come this morning wearing two hats.
 
As a businessman,
Our operation on Simcoe Street
Has been a supporter of the DBIA for a number of years,
And I appreciate all your good work
In helping to protect and grow the downtown.
 
As the Mayor,
This is actually the first time
That I have had the opportunity
To speak at a DBIA Breakfast Network meeting.
 
I want to thank you for your invitation,
And suggest to you that,
If there is value in a more frequent pattern of conversation,
I would be happy to be part of it.
***
 
Mr. Raino was very generous
In permitting me some leeway in selecting my topic today.
 
In recent times,
I have spoken about my Mid Term Report...
In which 86.6 per cent of my 45 election proposals
Had been either achieved or substantially achieved
By City Council...
At the half way point in our four-year term.
 
 
I have spoken recently about the Provincial proposal
For a new casino in the City,
And the need to approach that debate
With both reason and caution.
 
And many of you will know
That I spoke earlier this year
On the economic health of the downtown,
And the substantial investment that the City is making...
And will continue to make...
In its support.
***
 
Of course, none of these things
Exist in isolation,
And all of them are dependent for their success...
In one way or another...
On the availability of public sector funding...
Which, in turn,
Speaks to the state of the City’s financial well being.
And that is the topic I want to discuss with you today.
 
By way of context,
There is no doubt that jurisdictions around the world
Are facing very difficult financial challenges these days.
 
Just look at the frequency of countries defaulting on their debts, or having to restructure them...
The recent European austerity measures and bank bailouts...
The US Debt Ceiling...
The US Fiscal Cliff...
And the financial instability associated with the Arab Spring movement.
 
Of course, municipal governments are not exempt.
Just two months ago,
Stockton, California ...  a city of 300,000 people...
Was entered into bankruptcy.
 
In our own province,
We have some legitimate concerns.
Servicing the debt
Is now the third-largest expenditure in the Ontario budget...
And Ontario’s debt is increasing at a rate
That is more than twice that
Of the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care.
 
People are understandably concerned
About the state of public sector finances,
As they should be.
 
The question this morning
Is whether they should be concerned
About the state of finances
In the City of Peterborough...
Or concerned about
Our financial capacity to both manage our current needs,
And meet our future needs.
 
This is a question that I am asked frequently,
And one in which I take a personal interest.
I ran on a platform
That included managerial leadership and financial efficiency,
And I want to answer that question for you today.
 
 
And I will start by telling you that the budget
For my own Office next year
Will be held to a zero per cent increase.
 
There are five performance measures that I will quickly cover.
 
***
 
First, consider the City’s credit rating...
That is, the evaluation given by credit agencies
Of our credit worthiness...
An evaluation that serves as an indicator to the investment community
Of our financial security and trustworthiness.
 
Standard & Poor’s credit rating
For the City of Peterborough at the end of 2012
Is AA-/Stable...
A very positive rating
That we have earned consistently since 2008.
This is very good news
And a financial status that we can be proud of.     
 
In assigning this rating,
Standard and Poor’s
Made two key comments about our finances
That I want to share with you.
 
First, the City has consistently posted strong budgetary performances,
Because our operating balances
Have averaged nearly 17 per cent of our operating revenues
Over the past five years.
This means that our yearly balances
Are consistently strong and robust.
 
And second, the City’s free cash and liquid assets
Were about $113 million at the end of 2012,
Or more than eight times our estimated debt service for 2013.
This means that we have a very strong liquidity level.
 
Again ... an accomplishment in which we can take pride.
 
***
 
A second measure to consider
Is residential property tax increases.
We have been deliberate
In keeping these increases
At modest levels,
In order to help keep costs down for Peterborough families.
 
For most home owners,
We are judged on the basis
Of our all inclusive property tax increases,
And how they impact real people with real pocket books.
 
Our annual residential increases so far this term
Have all been at or below 3 per cent...
Including last year,
When we added a special 1 per cent increase
To help fund much needed capital investments.
 
This is a responsible course
That is supportive of all taxpayers...
Our customers...
That is intended to maintain our services to them
Without being a burden on them...
And a course that we will continue for the entire term.
 
***
 
Third, we have made a conscious choice
To invest in our long term future.
It is tempting for some
To put off the hard spending decisions
About future investments
In favour of spending
That has immediate and visible results for voters today...
Because that can be a popular way to govern.
Short term gain...
Long term pain.
 
It is not my way.
 
In order to renew our infrastructure
For the benefit of future generations,
We have invested in a wide variety
Of important capital improvements.
Not all of them are visible,
But all of them are essential for our long term health as a City.
 
In fact, there are 240 capital projects
In the 2013 capital budget,
Representing an investment of almost $63 Million.
 
These include:
Airport expansion and improvements, including the Seneca College building;
Major waste water management projects;
Sewer improvements;
The new police radio system;
The new fire station;
The CPR bridge;
Arena renovations;
Market Hall Improvements;
And a large number of road improvements.
 
Many of these are in the downtown,
And all of them help strengthen a City that cares about its downtown.
 
***
 
Fourth, we have been very careful
In managing the level of our capital debt.
 
Our capital debt this year, both issued and approved,
Is just under $135 million...
A number that includes the debt of both
The Peterborough Utilities Commission,
And the Fairhaven Long Term Care Home.
 
The City’s Net Financial Assets Ratio...
A measure of the extent to which
Liabilities can be met from operating revenues...
Has been very consistent
Over the last three years of its calculation.
 
In fact, according to standards set out in provincial legislation,
The City is using less than half of its debt capacity.
 
If we wanted to,
We could issue an additional $200 million of debt
For a ten-year term,
And still be within the limit imposed by the Province.
 
In fact, even with a debt limit we have set for ourselves...
That being a limit of 15 percent of our “own source” revenues,
We are still using only 75 per cent of our debt capacity.
 
The bottom line is that the City’s debt situation
Has been managed responsibly and with caution.
The cost of our debt servicing is easily manageable...
The City is well positioned to carry additional debt...
And we are living well within our means.
 
***
 
Finally, I do want to say
That the debt picture of the Province of Ontario,
Which I touched on earlier...
Is an important part of our own financial picture.
 
And the reason is simple.
Increased provincial dollars
Spent on servicing a provincial debt
Mean fewer provincial dollars
Spent on other expenditures,
Including municipalities.
 
Interest on the Provincial debt
Is projected to cost Ontario taxpayers
$10.6 Billion in 2013–14...
An amount equal to 8.3 per cent
Of the total provincial budget.
 
And we all understand
That those dollars could be put to very good use in our city...
Which has, like other cities in Ontario,
Become a repository for a number of failed policies
Of the provincial and federal governments.
 
 
***
 
So here’s the message.
 
The City of Peterborough is in excellent financial shape.
 
Our credit rating is positive and stable.
 
Our residential property tax increases
Have been held to modest levels.
 
We have wisely invested not only in our present,
But in our future.
Our debt situation is responsible and manageable.
 
And we look to the Province to manage its own debt
In ways that will ultimately free more dollars
For Ontario cities and regions like our own,
Who are the real engines of Ontario’s growth.
 
***
 
I admire, respect and share
In the determination of the DBIA membership
To bring economic investment, development and renewal
To the downtown.
 
An essential bedrock of that good work...
For which there is no substitute...
Is a solid record of well managed municipal finances.
 
That is exactly what we have set out to achieve,
And we all have reason to be proud of the work
Of our City Council and our City staff
In making it happen,
And in our collective accomplishments to date.
 
Thank you.

[Speech sent to us by David Goyette in Mayor's Office.]

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Watch: Pilot Episode For New Peterborough Comic Web Series "Jobless"

[UPDATE, Monday, June 17th] Watch a behind-the-scenes update on the new web series Jobless below and the success of their pilot episode:

---------

ORIGINAL POST

With the unemployment rate in Peterborough hovering around a miserable 12 percent, a timely new comic YouTube series has been launched called Jobless. Created by Mike Moring and Adam Martignetti, and showcasing local actors filmed at locations throughout the city, the plotline is this: Two clueless/utterly unemployable twentysomething dudes strive to make ends meet by any means necessary in Peterborough. Brilliant concept. Now this series has great potential on many levels—at the very least, it shines another light on the huge problem we have in the community with young people finding any jobs—and who knows, could totally take off and create a few jobs/source of income in the entertainment industry. Watch the first episode of Jobless below; it's fun, self-deprecating stuff.

[YouTube; Facebook]

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Watch What Makes Peterborough One Of The Best Places To Live & Work

Here's a "rant" style video by the GPAEDC on what makes Peterborough a great city to live, work or start a business. It's hosted by Jef Dueck.

[YouTube]

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New Website No Casino In The City Launches In Peterborough

No Casino In The City is a new website looking to bring the latest information about the potential casino that is coming to Peterborough, and the possible negative impacts on the community. They have created a fact sheet, offer .PDF petitions to download, share upcoming dates of key meetings, and give info on what you can do to share your thoughts with others about the harmful effects of having a casino in town.

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

[Related: Case Study: What Happened When Springfield Opened A Casino; The Peterborough Casino: What the OLG Isn't Telling You; Casino Would Be One Of Largest Employers]

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The Phillips Report: Gambling On Our Economic Future

When the issue of having a casino in Peterborough comes up in casual conversation, the most common reactions are usually physical, not verbal. Either people's eyes roll or their shoulders shrug. Most often, people are against it or ambivalent to it. Rarely does anyone engage the idea with a sense of excitement or express how important a casino would be for the future of the City.

Those who do articulate their support first argue that it creates jobs and that it is a way to attract more tourists. Both arguments have some merit. Those who are against it see it as having potentially serious social consequences, such as those who will develop a gambling "addiction." This position has some merit, too. There are, however, some facts that need to be considered when considering the reality of a casino.

First, collectively, the patrons of a casino always leave the casino with less money in their pockets than they had when they walked in. "The House" always gets its' cut, which is substantial, and is used to create the jobs at the casino. 

The second fact, that most people choose to ignore, is that what determines the difference between the money one has in their pocket when they enter the casino versus the money they have in their pocket when they leave it is determined by chance—luck—not their natural good fortune or fate. 

The third fact is that there is a considerable financial investment that needs to be made to create a casino.  This is rarely mentioned in casual conversation. It would be interesting to know if people think that this investment could be better used more effectively in creating jobs and economic opportunity in the City.

Finally, and is most concerning, is that most people believe that the only source of economic growth comes into the community from outside it. The casino is coming to us, not being created by us. In effect, there is a general view that our economic development is up to others, outside the community, not ourselves. This view considers marketing Peterborough as the only means of growing the economic opportunity.

It is time that we come to grips with the opportunities for growth that come from within the community. We need to rid ourselves of the myths that constrain us and seek out, and invest in, the opportunities that already exist in our community.

The most generally accepted approach to future growth is to invest in "shot gun marketing"—shooting out the "message" about Peterborough and seeing what it hits, and comes to us. Although there are often comments made about investing in building on what we already have in the community, there is little evidence that there is any significant investment in it. The idea that there are strengths in the community to build on is given lip service, at best.

The "shot gun marketing" approach, ironically, is a lot like a casino. We are investing in activities where the payoff is determined by chance. To even the most ardent casino supporter, it wouldn’t make any sense for a successful local business looking at making a $1 million investment in its growth to spend the $1 million at the casino and expect a better financial return than investing in their business.   

The Peterborough economy—the mix of the private and public sectors—is more diverse today than it has ever been. Unlike the local economy of fifty years ago, we are blessed with an economic foundation that can support a much larger economic structure than we now have. To build this economic structure, we need to find new ways—investing in new ways—to build on our strengths. Making these investments from our community, in our community, is much more likely to lead to meaningful, sustainable economic growth than gambling on others coming to "save" us.

The arguments for and against the casino belies the real issue: how we can best spend public- and private-sector funds to help us meet our economic potential? The investments required for a casino to become a reality here could be better spent investing public and private funds in building on the considerable strengths that already exist in this community.

It is not difficult to determine where the opportunities for growing the existing economy are. In fact, that work has already been done. Obviously, given the discussion we are having about the casino, there are funds to invest. Now it’s about how to spend them.

The sad reality is that the longer we neglect investing in strengthening and growing what we already have here, the more we lose our competitive advantages to other communities that are making investments in strengthening their communities.

The real lesson coming out of the discussion about the casino is that thoughtful and meaningful investments in the existing economic strengths of Peterborough are more likely to pay off than gambling with our hard earned economic resources.    

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Tom Phillips. Ph. D. Phillips is Professor in the business programs at Fleming College and Trent University.]

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You Might Want To Attend This Public Meeting On The Topic Of A Casino In Peterborough

Head over to the Board Room at the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board office (1994 Fisher Drive) on Tuesday, March 5th at 6:30 p.m. to join the discussion on the possibility of a casino coming to town—and the pros and cons of such a decision. This is a special public Planning Committee Meeting and the city would like your input. So make sure to give it.

[Related: Case Study: What Happened When Springfield Opened A Casino; The Peterborough Casino: What the OLG Isn't Telling You; Casino Would Be One Of Largest Employers]

[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]

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Case Study: What Happened When Springfield Opened A Casino

In the 1993 episode of The Simpsons, "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)", Principal Skinner pitches the idea of opening a casino during a town hall meeting discussing ways to revitalize the economy. And townsfolk seem to dig it. Mr. Burns, owner of the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, really likes the idea and the boost it should give to the economy and how it will make him richer.

So Mr. Burns decides to build it on the waterfront and name it "Mr. Burns' Casino" and be the owner, while Smithers is his casino manager. Homer leaves his job at the power plant and takes a job with Mr. Burns at the casino as a blackjack dealer when it opens.

While Marge waits for Homer's shift to end at the casino one day, she finds a quarter on the floor and uses it to play a slot machine. She wins. And she almost immediately gets addicted to gambling, while neglecting everyone around her—including Lisa who has an important school assignment.

Bart is too young to gamble at Mr. Burns' Casino—he tries, but gets kicked out—so he starts his own casino for his friends and all their friends to play in his treehouse.

When Homer realizes Marge has developed a serious addiction to gambling—she's there at the casino 24/7—he looks for her in a panic in the casino. His outburst is caught on the casino's security camera, and when Mr Burns sees this, he demotes Homer back to his old job at the power plant. 

After Homer confronts Marge about her addiction, she realizes that she has a problem. She returns home and remembers what she had with her family. And Homer settles back into his job at the power plant. Mr. Burns, meanwhile, became a recluse, a germaphobe, once the casino opened and decides to return to the plant.

The casino is later demolished by an explosion. This was because of a mix-up behind the demolition crew in regards to setting it (it was supposed to be set for implosion).

[Simpsons Wiki; Wikipedia]

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