Thanks for any comments .

Has JohnsonStreetBridge.org heard anything about the reasons for their absences?

Of the two, prior to that vote, it seemed Councillor Hunter was the more adamant in her refusal to look at the less costly repair option.

I believe that Councillor Coleman was at least open-minded enough to have gone to the presentation by the Seattle preservasionist engineer, did he not?

Perhaps it was information gleaned at the 11th hour at the meeting that prompted his absence from the last vote on the Johnson Street Bridge…

Councillor Madoff may very well have just saved herself from certain electoral doom in 2011 by prudently voting with the leader of the opposition, Councillor Geoff Young.

Councillor Chandler also seemed to waver, with questions about the so-called ‘counter petition process,’ but finally voted for what can only be characterised as ‘unsustainable’ replacement anyway… perhaps she is unfamiliar with contemporary practical applications of conservation theory in terms of restoration of heritage architecture?

Pamela Madoff used to pride herself for her many crusades for these kinds of endangered heritage structures, so her votes to demolish the Joseph Strauss bridge must confuse and dismay many of her former fans… thus, this surprise vote against the ‘alternative approval process’ is counterintuitive, and indicates a rebelliousness that must drive the Mayor nuts.

Mayor Fortin thus had to rely on 3 ‘greens’ (Philippe Lucas, Sonya Chandler and John Luton) and 1 liberal (Charlayne Thornton Joe) to impose his irresponsible socialist undemocratic will on the 88% of Victorians who didn’t vote for him.

We will not forget this history in the next election, whatever happens to the Johnson Street Bridge.

I hope that by securing a referendum on the future of the Johnson Street Bridge, we may then go on to vote for it to be designated national heritage in conjunction with the federal monies already promised, and thus saved, and properly maintained for the Canadian people, in perpetuity…

Thank you for your extensive comments. The counter petition process puts the onus on the community to oppose. In a perfect world the City of Victoria would take this process directly to the voters through a referendum, which is where a winning petition might lead, but for now we have to rely on the incredible efforts of volunteers to staff tables, run events, and canvass door-to-door.

One of the results of this process are some intangibles for those city councillors who voted against holding a referendum. They will be remembered by Blue Bridge volunteers, supporters, campaigners and the media. Come 2011, the next civic election….?

Without introducing myself or proving that I was an eligible Victoria resident elector, I asked for some, without specifying a number.

‘The limit is 10,’ the lady said.

‘Will the City be sending these forms by mail to the resident electors in Victoria?’ I asked.

‘Oh, I don’t know about that,’ she said.

‘They can always download it from our website…’

I took 10 blank petition forms and headed over to the Cook Street Mocha House…

Just filled out one ‘alternative approval’ petition form myself, stuck it in an envelope, addressed it to johnsonstreetbridge.org, stuck a Christmas stamp on it, and took it directly to the nearest Poste Canada branch, which I believe is the same one on Fort Street where your poste box is located…

You are free to publicize that I have voted for the referendum to save Victoria’s unique ‘Joseph Strauss Bridge,’ if it will do you any good…

I think it is interesting for people to learn about who is supporting our cause, and why, and I hope that others may also feel free to identify themselves as having signed the petition to have a referendum on the future of the Joseph Strauss-designed Johnson Street Bridge.

Next step is to catch up with my hard-working wife, who is also, of course, opposed to the wasteful borrowing on ‘Fortin’s Folly’ when the needs of our homeless are still left unfinished…

I am not happy with the way the City Council is doing this ‘counter petition’ thing so far, and think we really need to encourage them to take it more seriously, and at least send out one form to each eligible voter by mail to inform them that the ‘alternative approval process’ is happening at all.

Increased active participation in democracy needn’t be an exercise in self-punishment, low turn-out or irrelevancy, but it does first require the active participation of the City government itself if this process is to have any real meaning beyond window-dressing.

As it is, if one does not have a good computer with a working printer, it makes it difficult to get a form without having to go all the way down to City Hall to pick one up…

I also think they must get more up-to-date on the technical side.

Having the form available in Pdf format is fine, but hardly seems adequate…

Surely there must be programmes available now that would enable secure online voting?