State of the city address sounds more like the state of Sam

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/02/2011 (5358 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

They call it the “state of the city” address, but most political observers have come to understand this is really the “state of Sam” address.

The annual speech by the mayor, hosted by the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce, is a must-attend event for most opinion leaders and media types. In fact, the 45-minute address by the mayor is exceedingly popular with a news media that is becoming more and more estranged from daily political reporting. For those organizations that no longer provide staff full-time to cover city hall or the Manitoba legislature, the state of the city speech is a great chance to get dressed up and play hardened political beat reporter. Even if the event itself rarely produces news.

The state of the city address, and its cousin, the state of the province address, are little more than a marketing exercise for the mayor or premier. It’s a chance to celebrate accomplishments, predict progress and dish out a tidal wave of optimism bigger than Manitoba’s infamous spring floods.

That’s what normally happens. That is not what happened last year at Mayor Sam Katz’s state of the city speech.

Last year, as he faced a re-election campaign that promised to be the most competitive he had ever seen, Katz went on the attack, hurtling taunts and insults at those who tried to tear him down during his first four years in office, and those who would see him stumble in a re-election bid. The smack talk even extended to the NDP government of Manitoba, which he accused of immorally inserting itself into the municipal political arena. In particular, Katz was convinced the arrival of former NDP MP Judy Wasylycia-Leis into the mayoral race was a clear sign the New Democrats were trying to take over city hall.

They say it’s not paranoia if they’re really out to get you, but Katz must know by now that in politics, everyone is out to get you all the time. His protestations were inappropriate, even immature, given the realities of modern politics. Katz was re-elected despite the fact he used this event to do his impression of an uncovered blender.

So, what exactly did Katz offer us this year? He was clearly more confident and less agitated than last year. In keeping with tradition, Katz spent most of his time listing evidence of progress. No positive development was too small for the mayor to mention. And while his goal was to convince Winnipeggers they live in a major urban centre that is going places, his focus on the most minute signs of progress gave Katz a decidedly small-town flavour.

Katz trumpeted the arrival of Swedish furniture icon Ikea and American department store giant Target as signals this was a city “on the move.” He cited the future construction of a water park “complete with a wave pool and a lazy river” as evidence we’re an exciting, dynamic place to live. A new retail development at Polo Park, five dozen new police officers and new facilities at the zoo. It went on and on.

There are many in this town who welcome Ikea and Target, and who love water parks and zoos, but surely the mayor could find a few things more important than overhyped retail outlets and water slides as he brands Winnipeg as a dynamic community. Katz is a former owner of a minor league basketball team and current owner of a minor league baseball team. His speech certainly sounded like a speech from the mayor of a minor league city.

The other problem with Katz’s speech is it desperately underplayed the challenges facing the city. It is called the “state of the city” speech, not the “let’s look on the bright side of life” speech. Citizens deserve a side of harsh reality with their platitudes. Katz failed to fulfil that goal.

He did touch on the infrastructure deficit and on the growing tab to meet provincial standards for sewage treatment, but did not mention this is a city that right now does not produce enough revenue to pay its bills. It’s been 13 years since the city last raised property taxes. And for at least two years now, the city has been raiding reserve accounts for tens of millions of dollars to support the operating budget. Despite campaigning against property tax increases in last fall’s election, Katz may very well have to raise them in a budget to be delivered later this month. Those who were in attendance may have occasion to feel a bit misled if, after hearing how peachy things are at city hall, they face the first property tax hike in more than a decade. In my business, that’s called burying the lead and it’s a dangerous political strategy to employ.

Katz no doubt saw this speech as an event where he could just enjoy the moment without getting caught up in the details.

As a result, we know Sam’s state is quite good. As for the city, we’re still not sure.

dan.lett@freepress.mb.ca