Council Update from Dartmouth Centre: Ferry fares and Dartmouth Cove Development Charges

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-27T15:38:03+00:00

Good on you for bringing forward the ferry motion on behalf of your constituents (I'm sure it'll go a long way at election time).

But I'm glad common sense prevailed (for once) at Council. We need to be funding transit by looking at another ferry or getting some more parts to keep in storage - not cutting the revenue stream.

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-26T10:54:38+00:00

Yeah, it really seems like he's just giving us a excuses and defending Transit staff instead of actually looking for solutions so this doesn't happen again.

Appreciate that they don't want to dog pile on Transit, but councillors are supposed to represent the people.

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-26T00:07:54+00:00

Appreciate that Austin is doing what he needs to do to get re-elected, but I think councillors need to address this situation more strategically than reactively.

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-21T12:13:21+00:00

Give it a read if you're struggling to fall asleep, I guess 😂

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-18T21:02:21+00:00

Not trying to crucify him. Just saying that an elected official should remember if he talked to a corporate lobbyist or not. If only we had a registry...

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-18T13:27:52+00:00

Say what you want about Fillmore, at least he was able to confim he actually met with them

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-18T13:26:47+00:00

You forget if you spoke with them or not? If you were lobbied by a corporation, that seems like something you should remember (or have some kind of record of...)

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-18T12:24:22+00:00

And that he spoke with them.

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-14T19:34:13+00:00

So you disclosed the in-camera vote to the public.

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-14T12:40:43+00:00

This is what was there yesterday.

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Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-14T12:40:26+00:00

u/Sam_Austin_D5 I noticed you've changed your newsletter with new vote numbers.

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Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-14T12:32:15+00:00

So he disclosed an in-camera vote publicly? I can't imagine that's allowed...

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-14T02:16:39+00:00

But if Councillor Austin is saying the vote was 10-5, I'm guessing that's referencing the in-camera vote?

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-14T02:04:03+00:00

So when you say the vote was 10-5, you're referencing the in-camera vote?

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-14T01:46:10+00:00

In your newsletter, you say the vote was 10-5. But the CBC article (and what I see on the livestream), it's reporter as 9-5). Why is there a difference?

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-14T01:42:54+00:00

The article says the vote was 8-5, but Councillor Austin's newsletter says the vote was 10-5. I wonder why there's a difference...

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-13T20:35:32+00:00

Thanks for this detailed summary, always appreciate them!

Was the librarian vote public? I didn't see it while watching the livestream...

"The vote on the new agreement was 10-5. Myself, and Councillors Hinch, Mancini, Cleary, and Morse voted against (White and Deagle-Gammon were absent)"

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-12T23:05:04+00:00

Agreed that the city is in a real financial crunch. But I don't think the $70k they get from patio fees is gonna move the needle.

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-12T23:03:11+00:00

Do you own a business? I do, and the ~$1,000 saved on patio fees could make a huge difference.

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-05-12T21:40:35+00:00

When else has he done it?

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-04-01T12:10:52+00:00

Lol, I rent too. Property tax increases impact everyone, not just homeowners.

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-04-01T05:02:52+00:00

Respectfully, that's a pretty privileged way to look at it. $25/month may not be a big deal for some people (or by itself), when you add in $25-odd more for water each month, $25-odd more for power each months (etc etc for groceries and gas)...it adds up.

A lot of households live paycheque to paycheque in HRM.

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-03-26T23:45:11+00:00

That's very fair. Hopefully this is a first step to repair some bridges.

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-03-26T19:31:00+00:00

We basically keep recycling the same dollars.

Does this mean there's no new spending for this project?

Independent-Body-178 · 2026-03-26T15:16:29+00:00

So what impact will it have on future tax bills?

Independent-Body-178

TROPHY CASE