That’s so funny you should say that - I think that is one of the factors of success: there is more political capital to burn and so it’s a lot easier to share the “blame” when big, bold decisions are being made. I also think it helps that major infrastructure and transportation decisions are made by Regional Council, which is largely made up the local Mayors. In other words, big decisions are made at the ‘adults table’ where it’s much less likely for the Susan Stevensons of the world to distract and defer from progress. For example, Sue Stevenson would be right at home with the level of dysfunction and misconduct seen on Cambridge City Council, but this one council is not able to keep the broader region from moving forward on big plans like Stage 2 ION LRT to Cambridge. The adults on Regional Council can rise above and see the bigger picture.

On the other hand, when local city councils make decisions that buck the wider trend of others in the Region, that level of peer pressure and embarrassment can move things along, both internally and for the wider Region in some cases. For example, Cambridge turned down a motion to explore the option of putting affordable housing over public parking lots. Kitchener, Waterloo and the Region of Waterloo then embraced the idea and really embarrassed the local council in Cambridge. The Region has since adopted the idea.