Town council debated the merits of making a list September 26 after receiving a request from the Municipal Joint Services Board.
That board, which currently only oversees waste management, asked the three participating municipal units for a prioritized list of services they "would like to see investigated" for possible movement.
Mahone Bay, Bridgewater and the Municipality of Lunenburg created the joint services board a year ago after a $100,000 consultant study and a later supplemental report by Marathon Human Resource Group looked at regional governance and shared services. The consultants recommended the units use waste management as a starting point to be followed by the addition of other services.
But the request sparked discussion around the table, since officials haven't yet evaluated the success of the current model.
Deputy Mayor Dave Devenne suggested he'd first like to see how effectively the board is able to operate.
"We need to wait for the evaluation. Before we give them more to be responsible for, we have to look at how well they're discharging the duties they have now," he said.
But Councillor Lynn Hennigar, who sits on the joint services board, said the list is just a place to start discussions.
"I think there are at least two partners at that table that want to move forward with services and that you really risk some talent at that table walking away if we don't move forward with something, at least the discussion of what might be next," she said.
"Part of the issue, in my opinion, is that two partners are ready to go with whatever's next," she added. "And one partner perhaps isn't there yet and if that partner is never going to be there this board needs to figure that out really quickly."
Mayor Joe Feeney, a fellow board member, agreed it's a question of whether it will be a joint services board or just a waste management committee by another name.
Councillor Kelly Wilson, the town's third rep to the board, suggested it's possible to move forward without committing at this point. The board is preparing to hire a chief operating officer and services could impact the needed skill set.
"There's a difference between putting a list together of what's next and doing it," Councillor Wilson said.
"What's the harm in submitting, I call it a wish list," Councillor Penny Carver said. "Why not submit it and see what happens?"
Mahone Bay's list, which was passed unanimously, includes planning, policing, accounting, IT, recreation and human resources. There was no suggestion of priority.
"I'll be fascinated to see where it goes," Mayor Feeney said.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Lisa Brown
Quelle/Source: South Shore Now, 01.10.2013
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