City Hall
We hope to use this page to provide an ongoing perspective on city governance. We acknowledge that we are not unbiased, but we believe our contribution will be valuable. We’re building a list of specific concerns at the bottom of this page.
If you have news, ideas for the page, suggestions, criticisms, or other comments, please contact us through the form at the bottom of this page.
If you have thoughts you would like to share with an individual councillor, use this link.
To send an email to all councillors, go here.
If you’d like to join the discussion, use the comments box in the posts below.
RECENT POSTS
Navigating new media
This page is really a draft. We have started working on it to help with questions we've been receiving on how to wade through the increasing noise of today's media. We hope you'll have your own favourites to add in the comments. Let's dig in together, and make a...
Franz Hartman speaks at another successful Climate Momentum mixer
I apologize for not presenting all the questions and comments at the end of Wednesday's Climate Momentum talk posted below. There were female speakers, but unfortunately they were at the back, and I couldn't capture their questions from my position at the front....
We have decided to take legal action
You no doubt remember the huge kerfuffle last spring over our alleged violation of the City’s new Respectful Workplace Policy. Our spokesperson, Mike Sullivan, was denied access to City buildings for three months for his deputations on February 26, 2024 to Council,...
Krug Factory development: A question of respect
Let’s start out by saying that there are many good things about the Krug project. It brings badly needed density to our city, preserves a historic building, and will help rejuvenate the downtown. The neighbours are not against the project, but they have some major...
Some people think I should be quiet about this
This is a small matter, but it brings a close focus on what is wrong at City Hall. Here’s my story: I joined the Energy and Environment Advisory Committee nearly two years ago. I applied because I wanted to show that climate activists can be helpful to the...
A LONG TIME COMING
Mike Sullivan's delegation on the new Closed Meetings Protocol see transcript: Our City maintains its integrity by being very careful to follow our bylaws and procedures; sometimes rules are broken, and action must be taken to be sure errors are not repeated. Many...
Where Councillor Hunter went wrong on the RWP
What Councillor Hunter has overlooked in the recent debate is that the respectful workplace policy is expressly designed to protect staff from people like him. First of all, let’s remember why we have workplace policies. A workplace policy is built on the...
In response to Councillor Hunter
In his response to a motion to rescind the city’s Respectful Workplace Policy at Stratford City Hall on July 22, 2024, Councillor Hunter, a lawyer, said the following: Now I’ve heard people refer to the Bracken case as standing for the proposition that the act [the...
City Council refuses to hear banned resident
Barb Shaugnessy is not a member of Get Concerned Stratford, but many people seem to think she is. We apologize to her if being associated with our organization has caused her any problems at City Hall. Barb made a citizen deputation in February against turning the...
Krug factory project
Here's some potentially good news. BMI, the developer for the Krug Factory, may be listening to the concerns of residents. A new page has appeared on their website that seems to respond to many of the criticisms that have been voiced by the residents of the Krug...