Still waiting for right mayor

Valérie Plante’s victory had nothing to do with her vision for Montreal and everything to do with the public’s general desire to rid itself, after one term, of a terrible mayor who was a legend only in his own mind. That so many still voted for Denis Coderre only confirms the adage “you can fool some of the people all the time.” Thankfully, a majority were not fooled.

What Montreal needs is a smaller council and government, less regulation and bureaucracy, a real reduction in corruption, value for money in city services and project costs, priorities that respect the real needs of the silent majority, lower taxes and, most of all, for the city to get out of micro-managing its citizens’ lives.

Sadly, with Plante, I fear we’re in for more bureaucracy and meddling, this time with a leftist slant.

Forcing private developers to subsidize social housing is just a hidden tax, and if you thought roads were neglected and congested before, just wait until bike paths take up half the width of all streets and emboldened scofflaw cyclists act with even more impunity than before.

Hopefully someone will materialize in the next four or five years with a true vision for what Montreal really needs. Hint: not a mayor who thinks pipelines represent the devil incarnate, nor one who sees bicycles as the road to nirvana.

Mark Lipson, N.D.G.