Sept 16 2024- Plan20-50 Proxies Throw A Hail Mary

The Great Canadian Talk Show

Episode 21 continues to explain the failed tactics used by regional planning honchos to override local councils and seize power, and the desperate attempts by influential proxies to rescue the Metro concept.

Part 1- After all the hue and cry about the Winnipeg Metropolitan Region and the collapse of Plan20-50, you'd think the NDP government would want all the input they could get from the public. Instead,⁠ as Marty revealed in the Winnipeg Sun⁠, they posted a survey- but didn't tell the public.

8.40- It takes 20 questions to get to the Metro part of the survey- and you'll hear how the questions are framed. The NDP didn't advertise it, and none of the 18 member RMs advertise the survey. The WMR also didn't post it to their website. It's like the public consultation is being... rigged.

Providing timely information to the public isn't a high priority for Metro, as they were shamed into updating the site last week.

After the charade of public hearings was waylaid, WMR stand-ins are trying to rally support for the plan - even though one of the RMs has complained they were never spoken with by the plan's authors. Every time you look there's more proof this was a top-down process where the protecting the public interest was an inconvenience.

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15.24 Part 2- Misinformation, disinformation and worse were in the arsenal of a trio of Metro supporters who penned op-eds that downplayed and misrepresented the fatal flaws of Plan20-50.

With 11 RMs opposed, it's a safe bet they know better than any political scientist if the WMR was a threat to local control of land and water decisions.

20.00- A second op-ed was penned by a planning professor. He tried to get sympathy for the WMR's "decades worth of hard work" and 'relationship building", cast aside by Wab Kinew's opt-out promise made without even consulting the poor WMR.

A reference to a "very small" staff was also designed for sympathy, before concluding the plan should not be shelved because opponents "that might not appreciate its benefits."

In reality, there's no benefit to letting the Mayor of Winnipeg have a veto over your own municipal planning.

23.50- A third column came from a veteran planner. He did not disclose his own role in the formation of the WMR or previous employment with the City of Winnipeg.

The column continued the tactic of demeaning opponents as 'just not getting it', while insisting there's a need to copy planning processes from failing jurisdictions like Vancouver where no one can afford a house anymore.

The questions raised if the WMR suffered from a too-small staff and too-small budget were floated to set up doubt and exonerate the Metro efforts. In Episode 21 we present the facts to refute that tactic.

34.30- You'll hear the reported amounts spent in 2023 on Plan20-50, staff and other line items - with less than $1100 spent on advertising and promotion, total. That seemingly included holding 3 open houses on a blueprint affecting 850,000 people.

With the province tossing an extra $140k into their account, money wasn't the problem either.

It was the WMR itself- beset with an attitude of superiority and entitlement, rushing to the finish line to get the Plan20-50 passed.

It was a naked power grab- and now no onen wants to advertise the NDP survey to hear from average citizens about their ire and dismay.

41.30 Part 3- A fourth op-ed demonstrated the bottom-line credibility problem Plan20-50 proponents have.

They are aligned with far-left "climate crisis" activists who falsely claim the 600 that appeared in Niverville "shut down" the public hearing and reject a "sustainable lifestyle".

That's what the doomsday crowd seems to believe. No wonder 11 RMs are saying "no".

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