Phone: 490-4010
Grade this year: C-
Grade last year: D
Peter Kelly has a knack for getting his indecisive personality caught up in events, you gotta hand him that.
Last summer, for example, he told the Chamber of Commerce that thanks to the new sewer plant, the harbour was clean enough to swim in. “Really?” asked reporters. Rather than pulling on the Speedos then and there and diving off the boardwalk, Kelly dithered and wavered for a couple of months, then made a media splash at Black Rock Beach. Two days later it rained, raw sewage was once again flowed into the harbour and the beach was closed to swimming. This winter, of course, the sewer plant crapped out entirely, and Kelly became the poster child for half measures and not getting the job done. It’s not entirely fair, but Kelly owns the failed sewer plant.
Same thing with the failed Commonwealth Games bid. Because he didn’t act forcibly to control the free-spending bid committee, he owns the cost overruns and horrific PR that resulted from the collapsed bid.
What’s especially irksome is that Kelly seems to have defendable political positions, but won’t say out loud what they are. For example, although he’s been critical around the edges, he’s yet to take a firm position on tax reform one way or the other. “I haven’t seen a proposal from the Tax Reform Committee yet,” Kelly said, responding to a direct question from Sue Uteck in an open council session.
That’s not leadership. It’s cover-your-ass equivocation.
Halifax doesn’t have a strong-mayor system of government, but Kelly is missing a huge opportunity to shape and direct this city into the future with use of the bully pulpit. As a result, we all lose.
Still and all, Kelly soundly defeated challenger Sheila Fougere in last year’s election, so that’s a consideration. And, responding to criticism that he lets council meetings get out of control, he’s attempted somewhat successfully to exert a stronger hand, even if it’s taken six months to get the hang of it.
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City Council Report Card 2009
This article appears in May 14-20, 2009.
Dud.
Super Dud, but the citizens voted him in over shelia, so live with em.
Kelly is a waste of oxygen. He won the elction because he has the support of the status quo crowd. We need leadership desperately in this community but we will never get it because we get the government we deserve. If we paid attention and got involved and voted for intellegent people it would be different.
Peter Kelly is a Smelley….. he has engaged in criminal behaviour with his galpals Frank Beazley and Stephen Sykes. They knowingly kept mum about a possible rapist at the table during the Commonwealth Game Bids so that they world would not know they keep rapists on the pay roll… Smelly also knew and knows his popo continue to abuse the victim into silence and submission…..we ended up in court….I guess these LCD (lowest common denominators) do not know Scottish people?
Peter Smelly should be impeached..for his role in protecting a rapist who he knew refused to take a lie test while at the same time Smelly makes you take one to apply for a HRM job…….he knew that Murphy was accused of rape in 2005 and he kept that from the public ..the rape victim brought it to you, the public with the hopes you knew before the last election…
Oddly asked if the rape is why Murphy lost the last election….I told the reporter no ( also kept from you)…the police, council, police commission, ombudsman office, crown and 2 ministers worked too hard to keep it from the public because it belongs to other crimes police committed over a 30 years span… Murphy was not re-elected because his own community seen other reasons why he was not worthy……
There is a skank- stank in this city and it aint the harbour….. it is Pete Smelly