Posted April 25, 2017
There are still a few things we can do between now and Wednesday's City Council meeting to push for Council to approve the Environmental Project Report amendment and move the LRT process forward:
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Phone or email your councillor, especially if you live in a 'swing ward' where the Councillor is on the fence, and tell them to support the plan. Phone calls are more effective than emails, especially since some councillors are falling behind on emails. The major swing wards are:
- Ward 6 (East Mountain) - Tom Jackson
- Ward 8 (West Mountain) - Terry Whitehead
- Ward 9 (Stoney Creek Mountain) - Doug Conley
- Ward 10 (Stoney Creek) - Maria Pearson
- Ward 13 (Dundas) - Arlene VanderBeek
You can find contact information for all the councillors here.
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Encourage your family and friends to do the same. If they haven't already submitted a statement, they can also do that.
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Attend the City Council meeting on Wednesday, April 26, 2017, 5:00 PM at City Hall, 71 Main St W in Hamilton. Make sure we fill the chamber so they can't ignore us.
It's not too late to keep this project on the rails, but Council needs to hear an overwhelming show of support from Hamiltonians so they will have the courage to take YES for an answer and accept this once-in-a-lifetime investment in the city's future prosperity.
For all of the emails, phone calls and social media messages you have already made, thank you! It is because of your extraordinary efforts to date that we are in a position to fight for this project at all.
Once we get through this hurdle, we can renew our focus on ensuring that all Hamiltonians are able to understand the vision behind this project and the many benefits we will all be able to enjoy.
That includes reaching out to people who are skeptical, cynical or just misinformed about the project and helping them to see why it is in their interest as well.
If we can get past the endless hand-wringing over whether to proceed with LRT, we can focus our energies on ensuring that we mitigate the challenges of construction, support the businesses that will be affected to help them succeed through the transition, and emerge all together as a stronger, more united city.
