seejohndavis.com

(July 20, 2006, Huntsville Ontario) - John Davis visited Huntsville Town Hall today to put his name forward for Huntsville Town Councillor, Chaffey Ward in the upcoming election.

John is no newcomer to the political scene as he represented Huntsville as member of the Muskoka Board of Education in the late 80's. When he did not run for re-election to the Board, stating personal reasons, he said, "I know I will be back. I truly enjoy representing my friends and neighbours. This is a very rewarding way to give back to the Town I love."

John & his family moved to William Street in Huntsville from Gravenhurst in 1983; he had been working as the Meat Manager at the Downtown Dominion Store since 1981. Since then he has been involved in his Masonic lodge, Huntsville Minor Baseball, Huntsville Hurricane and Hoya Basketball, fundraising for Interval House in Bracebridge, various political campaigns and many community committees. John is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Huntsville Festival of the Arts (3 years he served as President of the Festival), a founding member of the Huntsville Lake of Bays Rotary Club and Past Master of Unity Lodge.

John believes that the role of a councillor is a serious one. "You must listen to the members of the community; this Town belongs to all of us. I have a personal set of values that guides me everyday. I believe in respect for self and others, and I believe we as a community have a responsibility to help those who are unable to help themselves. Taxpayer's money should be used wisely to benefit all, not a few special interest people. My background will show you that I love the arts, sports and service to my community. I will bring these to the council table every time."

John’s eleven years in the car business has taught him that he must not only listen to what
People tell him they want, but also to impart knowledge he has gained from experience and research as well. Communication is a two way street, a councillor must keep his constituents informed as well as listen to their concerns. Properly representing the voters of Chaffey requires an equal share of each. Strong representation from all wards builds a better community a better Huntsville.

John & his wife Debi raised three daughters in Huntsville, Mandy & her husband Scott own and operate a motel, a restaurant and recreational vehicle rental business in Port Sydney, Amy & her husband Phil live in Rockwood Ontario and Carly, born at Bracebridge lives and works in Toronto. Davis' are proud grandparents of two beautiful granddaughters.

Contact: John Davis
Business telephone: 800 989 1113
Home telephone: 789 3276
Email: jdavis16@cogeco.ca

It has been a long time since I made an entry, shame on me.

I will start with family info first.Everyone seems to be doing OK at least this week. Debi and I helped Mandy and Scott with a Christmas party last night. Everyone appeared very happy.

Snow in the north this early brings skiers and snowmobilers to life and cars and trucks to the ditches. The nice part about nasty weather is people stay and shop at home because the roads are to bad to go to Buffalo and beyond.

Victoria is trying very hard to walk and every day she seems to be growing bigger and brighter. She is such a joy I wish I could spend more time with her and Abigayle. I am sure with a new baby on the way in March I will get to spend a fair bit of time with both the girls. Proud pop I am.

Phil and Amy seem to be keeping busy curling, studying,vacationing and working etc. The hall is decked out in Abigayle's Hallmark musical toys and she is enjoying dancing and singing to them even more this year than last, if you can believe that.

Carly and Jason have had their first surprise repair on their new (old) Park Avenue. Car ownership isn't it grand. They both are doing well in their respective jobs and appear ready for Christmas if anyone really can be.

We are having Davis Christmas on the December 23 at Lockie and Denise's house. It will be great to see everyone and I think everyone will be there. I could go on for ever but I will stop here.

I promise to bring you up to date soon on what is happening at council.

For a new or used car contact me at johndavis@braymotors.com or call 1-800-989-1113 ext 232@ home jdavis16@cogeco.ca or 705-789-3276

It has been a while since I posted an entry on my blog. Last night Mayor Doughty decided it was time to let the public and some members of council in on his plan for the park. The Coles note version is he moved the single family  townhouses to a four story condominium building. Changed the location of the residential component to the newly acquired for $350,000.00 (M&B) property. Certainly not a bad price in my opinion and an opportunity we really could not afford to miss. The former council had the same idea in mind but the then asking price of the owner was unrealistic. Having the ability to extend Caroline St is perfect. My only thought on this is the extension should only be one way from Main to West.We will now leave Queen street alone and not remove the unsightly and possible trouble causing hydro wires along this street but according to Mayor Doughty this will save us $100,000.00. The miracle if you want is the fact the Mayor says " to demolish M&B and build a new street there can be accomplished for just $75,000.00" I will be watching this budget item closely. I sure hope this can be accomplished at such a price and if so will be the first to praise his Worship.I was sad to see the misrepresentation of the four lots between West and King street. The Mayor indicated in the information portion that all four lots would remain a wooded area only to admit in the council meeting that he plans to sell the one lot which presently has a house on it. One of the three remaining lots will also require a fair amount of reforestation to become a forest lot as it has been used as a supplementary parking lot in the past for both Planning Mills employees and Town employees when they occupied the building.The big question is where is that $1.9 million dollars in savings the Mayor promised in his election speeches.

My Objectives for council 2006-2010  -do more for the many and less for the few -in other words give greater priority to roads, streets, other infrastructure items. Things we all use whether young, middle aged or old.Spend less money, less time and less resources on special interest groups.  -safety on our streets and in our subdivisions-provide more walking trails even the old fashion kinds they call sidewalks, a healthy community is a happier and more productive one. If we increase traffic flow on a residential street lets think safety first not as an after thought.    -be ever mindful of our environment not just our physical but our social and economic environment as well. We must be the catalyst not the engine for growth. We must set policies that protect our air, our lands, our waters and our tranquility we must pass by-laws that are fair, manageable and enforceable and allow business and individuals alike too work and grow.  -we must address adult literacy problems by finding more ways to provide opportunities for these individuals to seek and obtain help without sacrificing their dignity. By increasing their reading and writing skills we give more hope to them and to our future as a town.  -TARTS- My Grandmother always said “ take the tarts when they are passed”-we must keep ourselves in a position to take the tarts when they are passed by continuing to be fiscally responsible in our expenditures and by maintaining strong reserves without placing a huge tax burden on our constituents. Nippising University was such a tart we let it pass.  -we must support those businesses we can –such as the King William group, we must celebrate and acknowledge the progress that many of those businesses have made on their own such as the Huntsville and Rainbow Motels and encourage others to follow suit without taking over their project. We must rely on the myriad of talent we posses in our community to establish made in Huntsville designs, there is no need to emulate or replicate others and certainly NO NEED TO HIRE A CONSULTANT  who simply copies what others have done.  -for those businesses that neither need nor want our help let us not impede their progress but make sure they adhere to our policies and designs.  -we must figure out a way to make our future, our youth feel comfortable in our downtown core, we must embrace them in our plans, they have much to contribute. I hope they will feel compelled to show us the way or at least join with us in finding solutions for us all.   Last Mayor re: campsite as a Boy Scout you are expected to leave your campsite in better shape than when you found it.In that same spirit I would like to add an addendum to our slogan  “ Touch the Past – Embrace the Future” the future might be bad and I wouldn’t wish to embrace that, so a few new choices are Create the Vision, Complete the Vision, Compose the Vision, Contribute to the Vision and my favourite Be Part Of  The Vision something we all can do.

Yes the title basically says it all. In an autocratic society it would be fine to remove ones contacts from their personal set of contacts, I am sure that others had cell phones or business numbers removed as well or perhaps they were told not to talk to THE MEDIA. In Hitlers day this was quite acceptable and if you didn't accept it well most know the answer to that question.TIME TO WAKE UP! This is not acceptable behaviour today and as a councilor I said I would be transparent, others said the same. I keep my word as those who know me will attest.I stated in my letter of intention to seek office that I have one mouth and two ears and I will add two eyes. One must listen and observe before one speaks and they must stop speaking in order to hear. A councilor must listen to their constituents and must also make every effort to keep them informed of what is happening in their town. How their money is spent whether on roads, garbage, theatres, recreation or parks just to mention the more obvious, there are many more.I welcome comments on the blog, on my email jdavis16@cogeco.ca or by calling me 789-3276. I will not tolerate obscenities on my blog or anywhere else so if you use them you will be banned. Otherwise if you are reading this please continue to do so and please help keep Huntsville a place you want to live in, work in and raise your children or grandchildren in.A councilor and a council is only as effective as the people demand they be. You must continue to support and to direct your council and not let your council control you but rather work hand in hand to achieve progress together.

>
> Bill Gates Got It Right!
>
Love him or hate him, he sure hits the nail on the head with this!

Bill Gates recently gave a speech at a High School about 11 things they did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good,politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the real world.

Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it!

Rule 2: The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3: You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.

Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.

Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.

Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.
Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life, people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.

If you agree, pass it on.
If you can read this - Thank a teacher!
If you are reading it in English -Thank a soldier!!

A little car news instead of just politics.If you have seen an inconvenient truth. Have a portion of real truth.

Warren Brown: Hello, Reston:

Poor misunderstood GM. GM has no excuse for not being out front with
hybrids. It does not need one. GM arguably has invested more money
than any other company in alternative fuel technologies, especially
hydrogen fuel cell technology, which is showing great promise, as
evidenced by the latest test fleet of 100 fuel cell Equinox vehicles.

The only mistake GM made was in public relations. And it was a doozy.
The company was so dedicated to coming up with what it still considers
the ultimate energy saving technology, hydrogen fuel cells, it fooled
itself into believing that the American public had patience for
anything that required more time and effort than turning out a
fast-food burger.

Toyota wasn't so silly. Toyota understood Americans better than
Americans understood themselves. Toyota knew that Americans were more
interested in sizzle and flash than they were in the sound finished
meal. Toyota introduced gas-electric hybrids--the least efficient
hybrids--as the answer to fuel economy problems, and the American
public--including its media and politicians--bought it and crowned
Toyota the Green King.

The same Toyota that only a few weeks ago in Los Angeles announced
that it, yet again, will go after the Americans with big, big,
gasoline-engine trucks.

The same Toyota that introduced the FJ Cruiser to counter the runaway
success of GM's H3 Hummer.

The same Toyota that sells as many gas-consuming SUVs and pickups as
it possibly can, while wearing the evangelical cloak of greenery.

Meanwhile, GM gets unfairly kicked for being a laggard in fuel
economy, although, vehicle category by category, it has more
fuel-efficient vehicles than Toyota. GM offers more cars in the USA
that obtain 30 miles per gallon or better that Toyota and Honda
combined.

I mean, geez, you should have seen the faces of the international
media in Los Angeles last week when GM announced that it was pouring
billions of dollars into the development of dual-model hybrid
electric, plug-in electric and other electric vehicles, including fuel
cells.

It was like someone had stolen their press badges. My God! What has
happened to the GM we all loved to hate? Who will now be our favorite
whipping boy for environmental recalcitrance and failed industrial
performance? Bring back that old GM, please! Bring back Kirk
Kerkorian, that selfish patron saint of American industrial
competitiveness. Bring back Jerry York, that self-proclaimed financial
genius who laid the groundwork for Chrysler to be sold to the Germans!
We have stories to write!

So, here's the true story:

The GM you loved to hate is gone.

The dual-mode hybrid being developed by GM will obsolete the current
generation of Toyota hybrids.

The electric car is not dead. As I've written in this space many
times, it never died.

The electric car will be here to stay for a long, long time, and it
will be here to stay because of GM.

There, I've said it. Bet against me. But just be willing to pay up
when events prove me right and GM comes out smelling like a Rose.

Well council has finally begun in Ernest. Mayor Doughty has set the committees and the members with the exception of the lay people. He also allowed the members of council to articulate their vision for this council. Some were very specific in their choices while others including myself were more general in nature each one wishing to set a tone for how they will contribute to this council. The big news was the report from the Mayor's ad hoc committee on "The River Mill Park". The report had little to say about the design and everything to say about the cost. The choices were set out but here is the synthesized version. If Evanco is satisfied with the by-law change to permit 16 townhouses the town will realize $570,000 towards the development of the park, if not the town could sell the four lots to a different developer for approximately the same money. The difference being we would not have to do anything to Queen street. Or so we were told. Members of the past waterfront committee will be coming to a finance meeting and I hope to a subsequent Council meeting to share their researches and insights on this very important matter. I do appreciate that the contract with Evanco has very stringent time lines and we must make every effort to comply with them. I know the Mayor sees this project as a way to save money and do a lesser job. I would hate to think we might end up with a landscape in this park similar to the property He developed across the river where the focal point seems to be the parking lot and the vehicles in it. Not the image I want visitors either walking to or boating to too take away from our town. The waterfront provides as it has in many towns a place where people meet, relax and enjoy the many splendors that Nature provides us. The water has spiritual, commercial, social and historical attachments to it and through all this, is now as it was in the past, the focal point for the Town. Time will tell how we proceed. I hope it is wisely. I will make every effort to see the end result is one we can all be proud of.

Inauguration went much as I expected we were all sworn in with the exception of Mr. Thompson who is on his honeymoon.
Fran Coleman was made Deputy Mayor no surprise and Bill Beatty was made chair of the Committee of Adjustments also no surprise.

Claude outlined the direction he wishes council to go in over the next four years and challenged the rest of council to dilineate their own set of visions at our next meeting December 14. He also handed out the committee structure and ask each of us to choose our desired committee on which we would either chair or serve and also to reflect on the committee structure and comment.

On a more personel note I was honoured to have Debi, Mandi, Amy, Abigayle and Victoria attend the Ceremony

Unfortunately I missed the learning session on Wednesday due to weather and a customers car problem. The main topic was pecuniary interest and seemed to create more questions than answers so I am sure I will hear more on the subject.

Yes I promised some pictures and if you go to thehuntsvilleforester.com you should see at least one

Keep watching this space for exciting news or just news.