You awake early, more than a half hour before the alarm is set to ring. You go to the bathroom for a drink of water, but nothing comes out of the tap. When you turn on the light switch, no light comes on. More puzzled than alarmed, you wander into the living room and look out the window. The streetlamp in front of your house is also out. In the early morning light, you can see that the road on which your house is located is gone. The park and playground opposite your house have disappeared – as has the school building down on the corner. When you call the police department, there is no answer. Nor is there any response from the fire department.
The above was the opening paragraph in the first chapter of materials that I developed for the Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks, and Treasurers of Ontario for use in teaching about local government to Grade 5 and Grade 10 students during local government week. The scene was followed by words of reassurance. “You are not having a nightmare. This scene is simply a way of showing you what a difference it would make to your life if there were not any local governments.”
In addition to the services described in the scene above, local governments are also responsible for things like day care facilities, homes for the aged, affordable housing, and ambulances. They provide the basic infrastructure needed for a community to grow and develop in today’s global economy. They help to protect the environment by controlling the way that land is developed. In today’s global economy, our large cities are viewed as the key to our ability to compete with other nations. The economic health of these cities is largely dependent on the services that local governments provide.
But local governments, and especially municipal governments, have become increasingly constrained because of interventions by the provincial level. This pattern has been particularly evident in Ontario in recent years, with the province tampering with the operations of several cities and regions and threatening the environment with its encroachment on the greenbelt. A prolonged public outcry, however, finally forced the province to abandon its ill-conceived greenbelt incursion. We need that kind of active, involved public with respect to local government issues in general. Instead, we have been suffering from widespread apathy, reflected in low voting turnout, limited candidates for office, and frequent acclamations.
A century ago, Sir Ernest Simon observed that: “The city council’s services mean the difference between savagery and civilization.” This statement may be even more applicable in today’s unsettled world and the upcoming local government week can provide a timely reminder of the importance of this level of government and why it needs our active participation to be effective. Most of the references to local government week mention the need to get young people more involved. But we need people of all ages to recognize the vital role played by our local governments and to become much more involved.