What city services would you perform if the workers were not there to do it?

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/663812

Would cutting grass at the local park be something you would be willing to do?

Deank wrote:http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/663812

Would cutting grass at the local park be something you would be willing to do?

Good for them. Damn unions.

I think this is great! Those people probably met their neighbours too, and became a tighter community!!!

I'd do it. I also shovel the sidewalks on my street in winter in front of my house, and a few homes in each direction. Just to be neighbourly!

Why does the city clear the sidewalks? Most other cities have it as a home owner responsibility, some with some very substanial fines if you fail to do so.

edmonton for example

http://www.gov.edmonton.ab.ca/bylaws_licences/bylaws/sidewalk-snow-removal.aspx

When a complaint is filed, a Municipal Enforcement Officer will investigate and issue a warning notice asking the owner to clear the walk within 7 days. If the owner does not comply a $100 ticket is issued and the City clears the walk at the property owner's expense.

i don't think the city clears the sidewalks...at least not by me. They do drive their little machine/plow down the sidewalk...but I wouldn't call that clearing...it's more like taking the top off.

They probably just clear on their way from Point A to Point B where the city has to clear since there's no homes at that location.

I don't think they do in residential areas, at least not much anymore. I thought that they used to. They still clear in downtown and around major streets or commercial areas.

Nope, they still clear the sidewalks in my neighbourhood. But by the time they get there and with the less than terrific job they do it is best to do it ourselves. That said when we get a huge dump to have the city clear them majority of snow away is nice.

grumpy old man wrote:Nope, they still clear the sidewalks in my neighbourhood. But by the time they get there and with the less than terrific job they do it is best to do it ourselves. That said when we get a huge dump to have the city clear them majority of snow away is nice.

Yeah...one thing I found funny in my neighborhood when I first moved here.

Those plow things came through...so it seemed nobody bothered shoveling anything...but it annoyed me that I couldn't see the concrete (which tells me there's ice buildup)

So I went out and shoveled the walk clear (and the neighbour's cause he was about 85 at the time and couldn't shovel)...right down to the concrete.

This past year...you could see the pavement in any direction for about 6 houses from mine...and I wasn't even shoveling more than my own anymore (new neighbours).

Hopefully this year the trend will spread even further and we'll have a whole block clear.

so no one wants to actually discuss the question then?

SIDEWALKS ON PRIORITY I AND II STREETS

Sidewalks on Priority I & II streets shall normally be maintained to a compacted snow surface. Plowing shall commence when an inspection, following a 5 cm snowfall accumulation or equivalent local drifting conditions, indicates a necessity for a clearing operation.

The snow plowing operations shall be completed within thirty-six hours following the end of an average storm. (See Sidewalks in the Downtown Square Area.)

SIDEWALKS IN THE DOWNTOWN SQUARE

Sidewalks on Priority I and II streets within the Downtown shall generally be plowed to a paved surface whenever conditions allow. However, minor snowfalls and/or warming temperatures between plowing operations may result in a layer of compacted snow or ice on the sidewalk surface. A plowing operation shall be initiated when the snow has accumulated beyond a depth of 5 cm.

The snow plowing operations shall be completed within thirty-six hours following the end of an average storm.

For the purposes of this policy, the Downtown Square shall be identified as the area bounded by Broadway Avenue to Ellice Avenue and Main Street to Memorial Avenue. Notwithstanding these limits, Main Street from Higgins Avenue to Portage Avenue and from Broadway Avenue to the Assiniboine River shall also be included.

SIDEWALKS ON PRIORITY III STREETS

Sidewalks on Priority III streets shall normally be maintained to a compacted snow surface. Plowing shall normally commence when an inspection, following an 8 cm snowfall accumulation or equivalent local drifting conditions, indicates a necessity for a clearing operation.

The identification of sidewalk plowing routes on Priority III streets shall be undertaken in such a manner so as to prioritize, wherever possible, sidewalks in the immediate vicinity of elementary schools.

The snow plowing operations shall normally be completed within five working days following the commencement of work. Work on weekends and holidays shall be limited.

SIDEWALKS ON PRIORITY III STREETS (NEAR SENIOR CITIZEN COMPLEXES)

Sidewalk plowing routes on Priority III streets shall be established so as to identify a designated access route from each senior citizen complex to the most logical Priority I or II street.

Sidewalks on these access routes shall normally be maintained to a compacted snow surface. Generally, plowing shall commence when an inspection, following a 5 cm snowfall accumulation or equivalent local drifting conditions, indicates a necessity for a clearing operation.

The snow plowing operation shall be completed within thirty-six hours following the end of an average storm and shall normally be done in conjunction with the sidewalk on the connecting Priority I or II street.

For the purposes of this policy, senior citizen complexes shall be identified as a building that is devoted exclusively to senior citizens and has ten or more dwelling units.

Are you looking for volunteers?

There's certain things I think the city is/should be responsible for...there's others I could take or leave.

Things like the plowing...for the sidewalk in front of my house...I could care less. For the street & back lane...absolutely.

Water lines & Gas lines...definitely city (or their contractor). Cause I'm not going to go dig up the roads/streets.

Tree trimming...that's questionable. I have a big tree in front of my house I'd like to get rid of. It's cracked, and I expect it to fall down any day (was praying last night it would fall on my car). But because it's growing leaves every year...the city won't touch it. And they won't let me do it either...I can't even hire someone to do it...or the city will fine me for it. Because it's on the "boulevard" I'm just ignoring it...but if it was in my back yard...I'd be taking chunks out and using it for firewood already.

I think a more specific list would be reasonable for your question Dean.

What "services" did you have in mind? Anything specific?

thats the question.

WHAT SERVICES WOULD YOU PERFORM...

From the sounds of it your examples are pretty much on par with what I am thinking.

But there's dozens of city services

Trash collection
Street sweeping
Sewer Cleaning
Grass Mowing
Librarians
Parking Meters
Line Painting
Lifeguards

trash collecting... we dont exactly all have dump trucks
Steet Sweeping... need the machine
Sewer Cleaning... need the machine
Grass mowing.. .... lots of us have mowers
Librarians... hmmm well lots of smaller towns and cities do that based on volunteers, but I think there would need to be a point of still having some employees.
Parking meters...Probably be easier to get rid of parking meters all together then to get volunteer work done on it.
Line painting... possibly.
Lifeguards... again... lots of smaller towns use volunteers.. but still think there would need to be at least some oversight.

trash collecting... we dont exactly all have dump trucks

we don't exactly all need dump trucks. many towns require people to deliver their own trash to the dump.
I've known some neighborhoods that get together and pay "the guy with the pickup" to take the whole neighborhood.

Steet Sweeping... need the machine
or lots of brooms. My mother-in-law sweeps her street in front of her house out to the middle of the road, and the back lane to the middle of the lane.
If everyone did that...

Sewer Cleaning... need the machine
I'll agree with you here...or else we could all get compost toilets .

Grass mowing.. .... lots of us have mowers
Would give me a good reason to get a riding mower

Librarians...
hmmm well lots of smaller towns and cities do that based on volunteers,
but I think there would need to be a point of still having some
employees.
Those that have volunteers generally have 1 or 2 "management" types who run the place. They also aren't comprehensive libraries.

Parking meters...Probably be easier to get rid of parking meters all together then to get volunteer work done on it.
Or, with today's technology...it could be done electronically...though I prefer your idea...paying to park is ridiculous anyway.

Line painting... possibly.
just hire the graffiti kids to do it

Lifeguards... again... lots of smaller towns use volunteers.. but still think there would need to be at least some oversight.
Again...a "manager" for assignments...and lifeguards should be paid. Anyone who goes through that much training should get compensation....though anyone IN training should/could be required to be an assistant guard as part of that training.

true on the garbage,... could also apply to snow removal on the streets... City could just do major routes and the rest done by the people who live on the street.. or people who hire contractors to do it.

And lots of these items are not just small towns that do it.

EdWin.. whats Edmontons street cleaning... anything? I remember going through there in the winter a number of times and even some of its major routes had nothing at all done to them.

"Grass mowing.. .... lots of us have mowers
Would give me a good reason to get a riding mower "

I know what you mean.. I was at the Mennonite village in Steinbach for Canada Day. There was this one older dude giving the "barrel" rides to the kids and seems to just freakin love it

all it was, was a lawn mowing tractor, with a series of plastic barrels cut in half and put on wheels.

I could so totally enjoy putting around cutting grass.

On that note.... how would we encourage all these volunteers to come out? Love of the city?

I think that the city has downloaded enough already. If it was a matter of belt tightening, I'd be there, but I see stuff being dumped, but the same bloated bureacracy exists. Too many sacred cows. I rarely go to the library, after all, I have the internet.

I volunteer massive amounts of my time in recreation and I see city employees, getting mucho dollars and somehow I'm accountable to them? When the city bureacracy gets their sh1t together, then I'll contribute more. I'm not getting my money's worth now.

Same goes for the school system.
(end rant)

Gotta love the TO workers want to be paid for sick days not used and then they wonder why they are contracted out .

Office work could be contracted out , why do we need to pay unionised desk jockeys .

I think we are missing the point...

What work would the average citizen do to keep the city neat and tidy were city workers to go on strike?

grumpy old man wrote:...
What work would the average citizen do to keep the city neat and tidy were city workers to go on strike?

I believe we'd be a mess. It's hard enough getting people to cut the grass on the boulevards in my area, so I don't have much hope for people to keep the city clean.

I swear some parents should be slapped for raising their kids to be pigs.

I would gladly take my garbage and deposit it on Paul Moist's front lawn. If that sort of tactic works for the unions, then why should it not work for us.

I would do what ever had to be done .

The first thing I'd do is to SELL Winnipeg Transit.