After months of going through the steps of denial, reflection and acceptance we have now reached the point when the party can now move forward.  Sunday we start the move forward…to election victory!

Tim Hudak has been reborn following a resounding speech Saturday afternoon to 1600 delegates and a 79% approval rating as the Leader of the Ontario PC Party.  He has accepted what was, what has been and what could have been.  It is only now after this weekend that the party can move on to what can be, what should be and what will be – a future as the governing party of Ontario.

The candidates for Party President also confessed to the delegates Saturday during their debate, but they were quick to move on, promising outreach, grassroots politics and hard work leading to the next election.  During the morning session the speeches from candidates for Party Executive positions were also soothing to the PC soul with candidates promising to not repeat the sins of the campaign past, promising to work with the new President and making sure that the central campaign never again takes the controls and as hard they did last October.

With executive elections set for Sunday, we all will have done penance for the election that saw 16 new MPP’s elected, the Liberals left with a reduced Minority – BUT still no election victory since 1999.

So the checklist for the weekend is complete:

• Openly admit the shortcomings of the past election – CHECK!
• Swear to never have a central campaign have 100% control – CHECK!
• Reaffirm Tim Hudak as the Leader to take us to the next election – CHECK!
• Elect a new President and Executive charged with taking control and taking action that will lead the party (with the campaign team and Leader) to victory – Consider this done – CHECK!

I propose that we now go forward, never speak of the October election as anything but a reminder of what happens when the party does not listen to its Candidates, their teams and the Party members.

We can now leave the confessional ready to forgive but never to forget.

Through the weekend many will have tweeted, you can follow along with the hashtag #pcagm12.  Feel free to jump in from wherever you will be this weekend.

I can be found Twitter @robertdekker and on Facebook at http://tiny.cc/n5l97. Please follow me and send your thoughts on this and other postings.

The meeting of Ontario Conservatives will be a chance to meet up with our colleagues and friends we met and worked alongside with during the October election.

This will also be a weekend were we have a chance to meet the new PC MPP’s and find out how they are succeeding in their roles.  We will also confirm Tim Hudak as our leader as I expect he will receive overwhelming support from the 1500+ delegates that are in here.

I think the most important part of this weekend will be an affirmation that Ontario needs a PC government to put the province back on track and put an end to the McGuinty mess of debt, deficits and direction due south of Ontario’s reputation.

Through the next three days, there will be talk of the loss October 7^th, but that is natural and needed for our policies to develop and for everyone to reconvene to our purpose of electing Tim Hudak as Ontario’s Premier when the next election comes around.  The party must focus on the main goal of showing Ontario that the PC Party is ready to lead with sound economic policies and programs that put Ontarians first.  We will be talking about jobs, the economy and energy – the three pillars that are needed for Tim Hudak to lead this province.

The AGM will elect a new executive; I am pleased that Eastern Ontario will be strongly represented by Rob Elliot, Charmaine Clayton and Dan White as Vice-Presidents.  I am happy that we have three outstanding candidates vying to be the PC Party President with Richard Ciano, Kevin Gaudet and John Snobelen.  After much consideration and speaking to the candidates and delegates supporting the three candidates for the Presidency I will be supporting Richard Ciano for Party President.  Richard believes as I do that grass roots – the members and supporters of the party will drive the success that will bring a PC government to Queens Park.

Through the weekend many will be tweeting, you can follow along with the hashtag #pcagm12.

Feel free to jump in where ever you will be this weekend.

I can be found on Twitter @robertdekker and on Facebook at http://tiny.cc/n5l97. Please follow me and send your thoughts on this and other postings.

January was a rough month for poor old Elgin Street, a couple a water main breaks and businesses closed or flooded or maybe both because of it.  There was lost business and cancelled reservations.  Old infrastructure is going to cost more money the longer it takes to plan, tender and start the replacement of what currently sits beneath the asphalt along Elgin Street.

Leadership is missing to organize the merchants and owners along this street, Somerset Councillor Diane Holmes says that there have been past attempts to bring everyone together but they have failed, leaving poor old Elgin left to its own resources.

The tragedy in this scenario is that Elgin Street will HAVE to be fixed sooner rather than later and when it comes to having one organized voice to speak for merchants and businesses, there will be none and the design plans will have no input from those that rely on area residents and others to shop and enjoy an meal along Elgin Street.

In 2010 while working on my campaign in Somerset Ward, I had the pleasure of meeting individually with four of the five BIA’s that are in the Ward.  The Bank Street, Preston Street and Chinatown BIA’s along with the Mall management of Sparks Street all presented a strong defense of their businesses and a passion to do what their members demanded for their best interests.  The BIA’s also worked with the City (not always successfully) to make changes and improve their section of the City.  There is a Somerset Village BIA, however I was not able to have a meeting with their Executive Director during that time I was a candidate.

The need for an Elgin BIA goes past the replacement of infrastructure; it leads to having a good and productive relationship with the City of Ottawa, the Ottawa Police and with the Centretown Citizens Community Association.  The BIA would be empowered to work with the NCC and the many Run and Event Organizers that come into the Downtown and use portions of Elgin Street for their events.  Without a united and organized voice the merchants are left at the whim of what the City permits to take place on Elgin.

I am not naive and realize that politics will play a major part in how this is all going to go down.  There will be the City Councillor against certain merchants, merchant vs. merchant and even residents vs. merchants in the battle to become one strong organization.  There needs to be leadership to bring everyone together.

During the formation of an Elgin BIA there is one bond that should keep everyone together, the need to keep Elgin street a viable place to do business.  That should be enough to start the conversation; from there it could be anyone’s guess as to what path the Elgin BIA follows.

If anyone is interested in seeing Elgin Street form a Business Improvement Area (BIA), please contact me, I would like to see this to happen and am offering my services to the area shops, restaurants and hotels.  As a resident near Elgin and user of its shops and businesses, I want to see the current businesses on Elgin survive and create a strong commercial area for others to do business in.

I can be found Twitter @robertdekker and on Facebook at http://tiny.cc/n5l97. Please follow me and send your thoughts on this and other postings.

http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/4775214/Red_Heart_Blue_Sign

I remember the day that the announcement was made during the Provincial campaign and how my thoughts were  ‘great, they are buying votes again this time they are doing it with a Money Back guarantee for students just like giving Ontario another day off did in 2007.’

After the announcement was made I was out door knocking in Ottawa Centre, talk was all about the rebate, how exciting it would be to get that money back.  Lacking then when the campaign promise was made (as it is today) was the elephant in the room of HOW Ontario was going to afford it and what will be the actual cost to the taxpayer of the rebate?  Naqvi, who is the Parliamentary Assistant to the Ontario Finance Minister, was not hinting this week as to how the government was going to afford the millions to be paid out. Talking door to door about the grant I asked the question to voters I spoke to “who do you expect to pay for this?”  The answer is, all of us, the parents of the student receiving the grant, and those that do not have children in post-secondary school, through higher taxes or increased student fees and further increases in tuition.

A few Tweets through the day stated that the Ontario PC’s were against helping families, the truth of the matter is that he PC Party was calling on Colleges and Universities to make post-secondary school more affordable and accessible for all of Ontario, no matter what tax bracket your family fell into.  Every single Ontario family felt the pinch of education costs escalating year over year.  I am not holding any hope that the rebates paid out this year will cover the increase for tuition in 2012- 2013.  What is interesting to read are all the tweets about the Tuition Grant, there are a fair number of students and parents that are unhappy and were not afraid to state it.  By searching the #30off hash tag in Twitter you can see what everyone is saying about the rebate, not just those who gave it to us.

Here’s an incredible thought, how about if a tuition grant was NOT needed because the cost of College and University tuition DID NOT increase?  Not having to scrimp and save for that money in the first place seems like a much better alternative to receiving the grants to pay back the extra loaned or borrowed.  The tuition rebate grants will not reduce tuition, only a government dedicated to working with the Universities and Colleges to increase post-secondary spaces while holding steady or decreasing tuition can be effective in making everyone in Ontario benefit from an affordable and accessible education.  Sadly we do not have that government in Ontario right now.

I can be followed on Twitter @robertdekker and on Facebook at http://tiny.cc/n5l97. Please follow me and send your thoughts on this and other postings.

You can read the the letter here: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/opinion/letters/must+reduce+homelessness/5935216/story.html

While being the PC Party Candidate in Ottawa Centre in the Provincial Election provided me with my first opportunity to speak out on what I believe in, Red Heart Blue Sign has allowed me to continue to speak to you about Ontario, the City of Ottawa and issues that affect us all.

The best to each of you for 2012, thank you for making 2011 a memorable year for me.

Rob

In Ontario the provincial government funds programs through various ministries; the City of Ottawa distributes money from the Federal, Provincial and its own programs.  The seriousness of our homelessness problems are never as visible as they are in the winter when there are double digit temperatures below zero.

The At Home/Chez Soi project has done much to show that when there is a concentrated effort to provide a home there is more needed than just a roof.  Life skills as simple as respecting and getting along with others can be more challenging than finding a place to live.  The solitude of not having others watch and try to control their lives is one aspect of not having a home that appeals to many.  The At Home/Chez Soi Project address these issues with support and follow up with the clients in the program.

While the monetary benefits help everyone and all levels of government, the greatest benefits go those who have the support and new encouragement to live an independent and healthy lifestyle.   Benefits reach into the most important streams of our live from Health care, Emergency Medical services, Policing and our Judicial System.  Savings in these areas can partially fund the continuation and expansion of the program. Though he does not quote any financial numbers, Malcolm Gladwell writes in his piece “Million Dollar Murray” (http://www.gladwell.com/2006/2006_02_13_a_murray.html ) the impact that the homeless have on many aspects of our society.

It is my hope that well before the At Home/Chez Soi Project ends in 2013 a firm commitment is made at the Federal,  Provincial and Municipal levels of government to continue and expand the program to include cities outside of those currently (Moncton NB, Montreal QC, Toronto ON, Winnipeg MB and Vancouver BC) involved.  It is incumbent on our community leaders to press Government leaders to openly discuss the role each plays in ending homelessness and providing greater assistance to Non-Profit housing organizations to meet their individual mandates for the level of care they provide their residents. The plight of the homelessness is just as important to our society as looking after our elderly and fragile, ensuring a stable Health Care system and good economic government policies.  These are not only individual but collect concerns for a strong Canadian society.

I can be found Twitter @robertdekker and on Facebook at http://tiny.cc/n5l97. Please follow me and send your thoughts on this and other postings.

There are many people that have been there with me, and in the spirit of my #twitterexperience here is a list of those I look forward to reading on twitter whether I agree with their views or not.  For those of you that are not on twitter that I am close to, and you know who you are, this is a Twitter list only so there is no need to feel left out.

So in no particular order here is my Twitter list for 2011:

@sunswimsail, @acoyne, @michellebranch, @markchats, @beatlestweets, @walterrobinsonm @amyleemelinda, @nicbranch, @OpenFileOTT, @MacLeodLisa, @J_MacDonald_PC, @Centretowner, @mbpowell, @markblevis @FredShermanOVPC, @emma__elizabeth, @stuntmanstu, @nickdekker2, @rdekker1830, @deVormerij, @ScottMoffatt21, @lights, @andrea_maclean, @jamiepistilli, @yasir_naqvi, @anilnaidooNDP, @JimWatsonOttawa, @DaybreakHousing, @pastaandsalsa, @SteveClarkMPP, @emilyddickinson, @ProCPV, @AlexLewisOttawa, @brentcolbert, @katrynasmon, @KidsHelpPhone, @LisaLarter, @KenGray, @OttawaFoodBank, @DenVan, @Kaylafernet, @LuciaLand, @donfex, @ODonnell_K, @bose_anu, @ChantalHbert, @Bruyere_Care, @rjeschmi, @bitofmomsense, @timhudak, @PerryMarleau, @rlmOttawa, @debsimms, @kady, @stephen_taylor, @roseannecash @sabinegibbins

While I follow and enjoy reading over 600 people, these Tweeters listed above come often and come with plenty to say.

In the spirit of Twitter I close this entry with #MerryChristmas and #HappyNewYear to all in the Twitterverse!

I can be found Twitter @robertdekker and on Facebook at http://tiny.cc/n5l97. Please follow me and send your thoughts on this and other postings.

The Food Drive is just the tip of the iceberg of the generosity that exists within the hearts of residents in Ottawa and Gatineau.

Within the past few weeks Ottawans have given to the following causes and campaigns to help everyone in our city.

The United Way of Ottawa wrapped up their annual campaign by raising $31.5 Million.

A Radiothon hosted by Rogers Radio Stations in Ottawa raised $170,313 for the Snowsuit fund and CFRA Hosted the CFRA/Bruyere Radiothon had more than $2.4 million donated.

There are so many other ways that we give, it could be by throwing money in a Fireman’s boot in the Santa Claus Parade or filling a Salvation Army Kettle.

This time of year many organizations will be making requests for their good causes as each looks to have a balanced book with hopes of starting 2012 with a flush account and plans to do more good work for Ottawa and Gatineau.  If you are able to please consider helping any of these organizations.

Ottawa you are Good, Giving and very Generous!

I can be found on Twitter @robertdekker and on Facebook at http://tiny.cc/n5l97. Please follow me and send your thoughts on this and other postings.