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
Update on investigation of City Council
Get Concerned Stratford continues to ask for documentsand minutes from the city. Some of the requests go back three years.Here’s what’s outstanding. A generic request for any files related to Xinyi was met with a bill for $8800 before they would begin looking. We...
Glass Factory Info Search Reveals More Illegal Council Activity
See the redacted in-camera meeting minutes Open, Transparent and Democratic? NOT! by Mike Sullivan The more answers we get, the more questions it raises. In November of 2020, Get Concerned asked for an investigation into the propriety of doing business in...
Avon Crest and taxpayers deserve more
This letter, written by Loreena McKennitt, was published through Wise Communities on March 27, 2023. It is with concern and disappointment that we are now seeing yet another of Stratford’s unique and significant buildings prepared for demolition without a timely and...
A Surprise for Avon Crest
The federal government announced new retrofitting funding in February. There's a catch, though... The federal government is under pressure: our emissions are quickly climbing to pre-pandemic levels, and government needs to find ways to meet 2030 targets. Retrofitting...
Stratford to get higher property taxes (Thank you, Doug Ford)
by Mike Sullivan -- submitted as an op ed to the Beacon Herald Complex and controversial, Bill C-23 is a gift to developers from the newly-minted Provincial Government. And it comes just as new city councils are being sworn in all over Ontario so none can complain...
Who voted against the Xinyi glass plant?
Actions speak louder than words We get several emails a day asking who voted against the glass plant. Here's our answer: The important thing to remember is that NOBODY on Council voted against the factory. At least not in public, and if it was voted on...
Freedom of Information (FOI) and Closed Meeting Investigations
Get Concerned Stratford is still seeking information from the city related to the Glass Factory shenanigans of 2017-2021. (cue Richie Havens, Woodstock ’69) by Mike Sullivan Get Concerned Stratford filed a request for the text of the agreement between the Province and...
Council regularly broke closed meeting rules
CONTROVERSIAL CLOSED MEETINGS REPORT RELEASED At the request of Get Concerned Stratford, an investigation of Stratford City Council’s secret (in-camera) meetings has been conducted by the Closed Meetings Investigator. The report was released this morning. The City has...
City of Secrets: why you should be worried about the NDA
Imagine you are a municipal councillor, perhaps just starting out, and you are presented with a document to sign as part of a negotiation with a company. You are told that that the language in the contract is “standard boilerplate,” to protect professional secrets, a...
Charlie Brown and the municipal football
It’s the nature of city government to want control. That’s not always a bad thing, but how much control is needed in City discussions with residents? The Stratford City website has been a bone of contention for years. Posts are sometimes unclear. Things are hard to...