Crunching the Numbers

So, what can I learn from the results of the Big Idea Wall? If you know anything about polling, you'll realize that what I did isn't really very scientific. There's probably all sorts of response bias in there but that doesn't matter. My goal was to capture the general mood of the town, which on the whole, is quite positive.

Keeping in the mind the many conversations I had over the weekend around the ideas that were posted, here's how I broadly view the responses:

Development

Dundas is understandably very wary of development and the general sentiment is that developers wield too much power when it comes to determining the fate of our town. People have the sense that developers come to Dundas and tell us what they want instead of asking us what we really need. 

City Hall

Dundas is generally fed up with how the City of Hamilton operates and it doesn't think that there is sufficient transparency or accountability at City Hall. Amalgamation is still a very sore spot and people want to see a stronger voice for Dundas on Council.

Bikes

There are a LOT of cyclists in Dundas and they want bike lanes! It occurred to me over the weekend that Dundas currently doesn't have a single actual bike lane. 

Schools

Dundas is very angry that Parkside is closing but if it must close, people want the City to buy the building and use it as a community centre, including activities for seniors and a childcare centre. There is no appetite at all for the upcoming ARC review of our public primary schools.

Infrastructure

Broadly speaking, Dundas is disappointed in the current state of its infrastructure. In particular, Governor's road needs work along its entire length.

Webster's Falls

If there's one thing that Dundas wants, it's to have the steps down to the bottom of Webster's Falls re-opened. It is interesting how tightly bound the Falls are to our sense of identity.

Taxes

Dundas knows it pays a lot of property tax and while there is definitely some grumbling about it, people seem generally OK with it as long as they feel the money is well spent and we get our fair share of what we contribute.

LRT

This was perhaps the biggest surprise of the weekend. Dundas has very strong opinions on LRT and as far as I can tell, they are almost evenly split "for" and "against". It seems that no matter where a candidate may sit on the LRT, someone will be very angry about it. 

So there you have it. Dundas has spoken! The Big Idea Wall was an overwhelming success and it was well worth the $6 I spent on sticky notes and markers!