CambridgeToday received the following Letter to the Editor from reader and founder of Ontario Landlord Watch Kayla Andrade in regards to a recent council decision to establish a task force to look into the city's water billing policy.
For two and a half months, we awaited the city staff's report on what it would look like and cost for the city to resume managing and collecting from tenanted water and sewage accounts.
The report concluded that it would cost the city $1 million dollars to take back this responsibility.
However, I found the report to be inflated and lacking valuable data to substantiate this figure.
This is why I support councillors Helen Shwery's and Mike Devine's motion to create a water billing task force aimed at finding efficient ways to revert the water billing process to hold the end user financially responsible.
The task force will comprise three councillors, two tenants, two landlords, and two non-landlord/tenant residents.
Having closely followed many Cambridge council meetings, I can confidently say that we have several excellent council members who are knowledgeable, hardworking, and unafraid to roll up their sleeves and advocate for their constituents.
Unfortunately, Ward 7 and Ward 4 are not being adequately represented. Some councillors are gaslighting, fearmongering and being closed-minded, refusing to support a committee of volunteers dedicated to exploring cost-saving options.
Instead, they attempted to defer hearing the motion to create the task force until September. They also failed to recognize that the city is in the business of treating, delivering, and billing water and sewage to residents.
By misleading Cambridge residents into believing that water management is the property owner's responsibility, they are creating unnecessary confusion.
Do they really want a situation where owners set their own water rates, add their own administrative costs, and bill tenants? I don't think so. If you reside in Ward 7 or Ward 4, do your research and don't just read the headlines, please consider other candidates in the next election.
We need councillors who are committed to working hard to make Cambridge an amazing place, not those who pretend to be doing the work while failing their constituents.
To the elected officials on council who supported this motion, thank you for your dedication and hard work on behalf of all your constituents—tenants, landlords, and taxpayers.
Tenants appreciate your efforts to change a policy that prevents evictions; landlords appreciate your steps to prevent policy abuse; and taxpayers appreciate your consideration of policies that prevent additional costs due to their current financial struggles, and our growing homelessness crisis.
Now our community members have the opportunity to be included in the direction and change we want to see in this city.
I look forward to seeing who will be on the committee and am excited about the committee's forthcoming report on this crucial issue.
Kayla Andrade,
Cambridge
