Sudbury council aims to make city 'even happier' with new projects

Sudbury city council and senior staff spent all day Friday in a strategic planning session, mapping out where they want to take the city in the next 3.5 years.

There were few specifics, but the group did say that by the time of the next election in October 2018, it hopes to have made the city "even happier," helped increase the population, attract new businesses and build an unspecified "new major city facility."

"We all have our own agendas," said Ward 11 councillor Lynne Reynolds."This was the first time we've had a chance to hear and to vote on what's important to us."

Others though were hoping to get going on setting the priorities and making then happen,ahead of the January date when a final priority list is to be set.

"I'm anxious to get going on some of the projects," said Ward 1councillorMarkSignoretti.

"I'm encouraged, I'm enthused, but I'm a little concerned about the timeline," said AlSizer, thecouncillorfor Ward 8."January is a long way away and a year into our mandate."

Mayor Brian Bigger said one of the reasons to wait until January is the effort by staff to cut $6 million from annual city spending, which is expected to make its final recommendations to council in November, leading into the 2016 budget talks early in the new year.

Morning North24:22Interim CAO Bob Johnston on how to bring Sudbury from "good to greater"

Some frank words from Greater Sudbury's interim chief administrative officer Bob Johnston at the start of the city's strategic planning session Friday.

Interim chief administrative officer Bob Johnston started the session off with a speech that touched on everything from thatongoing attempt to shave $6 million off the annual cost of running the city to how to improve relations between employees and councillors.

"How do we pitch our recommendations without overstepping our bounds?" asked Johnston.

"We understand council will make decisions. That's not the issue. It's respect."

Johnston also went into specifics, saying he can see the merits in borrowing money, maybe as much as $100 million, in order to pay the bill for big projects and essential infrastructure. That's what mayoral candidate Dan Melanson ran on last fall, a policy which now MayorBrian Bigger warned could "bankrupt" the city.

Johnston also made his pitch for council to make one of its prioritiesthe revitalization of downtown Sudbury and the implementation of the four-year-old downtown master plan

"We're good. We could be greater," he said, arguing the downtown can be an economic driver for all of the communities of Greater Sudbury.