The ‘Gang of Nine’ and business as usual at city hall

In the early 1990s, after the province reduced the number of municipal wards in Winnipeg to 15, critics spoke at length of how a theoretical “Gang of Eight” could control all decision making at city hall. In subsequent years, there were various incarnations of a Gang of Eight, although it was never conclusively shown that eight members of city council could consistently stay on the same page long enough to dominate civic affairs.

That is an apt tale to consider now, as Winnipeg city hall welcomes nine rookie councillors, the largest number of non-incumbents elected in more than 30 years.

Theoretically, this new group of councillors could band together and push through various reforms. It’s a highly intriguing scenario for anyone who has watched the city, on occasion, shun riskier strategies in favor of status quo politics.

However, as was the case in the early 1990s, the chances of that happening begin to fall apart once you consider the work of building and sustaining a coalition of rookie councillors who come from a broad array of backgrounds.

It’s also worth considering that many of the new councillors do not know enough about the politics and bureaucratic machinations of city hall to even consider organizing a voting bloc to convert new ideas into policy.

Re-elected Mayor Scott Gillingham said the first few months in the life of a rookie councillor is like “drinking from a fire hose.” Fortunately, there is evidence the newbies are aware of just how steep the learning curve will be.

St. Norbert-Seine River councillor-elect Ray Dubois had the courage to admit to the Free Press that “I don’t know what powers a city councillor has, having never been a politician. I don’t know, but I’m certainly going to unpack that.”

There is no reason to suggest Dubois, or the others in his position, won’t become excellent councillors. However, his admission does describe the challenge facing new councillors who have no experience with elected office or government.

That lack of experience makes new councillors particularly vulnerable to the will of the veterans. Even though re-elected incumbents, including Gillingham, are fewer in number, they benefit from the gravitas of having “been there, done that” at city hall.

While they learn their new profession, the newbies should be cautious about accepting as gospel any assertion that “this is the way things get done at city hall.” Such cautions may be well-meaning, but the electorate was quite clear in pre-election polling that it does not care for the mindset of city council.

During the campaign, newcomers identified priority issues that would require city hall to take different approaches.

Many expressed a desire to fix Winnipeg Transit, which has suffered from a poorly executed reboot of its routes and schedules. Many of those same new councillors also identified public safety, homelessness and affordable housing as key files. If those are the issues on which they were elected, it’s incumbent on them to demonstrate a lack of delayed gratification when it comes to finding solutions.

Fortunately, not all of the new councillors are new to the machinations of city hall. Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry councillor elect Jeff Palmer is an urban planner who has experience working with institutions and agencies focused on downtown redevelopment. He has made homelessness and affordable housing his priorities, and he has the background to serve as a subject-matter expert on both files.

Only time will tell if the new councillors — whether they operate independently or as a “gang” — have the will and the courage to change the course set by preceding councils. New councillors should, however, go forward with the confidence of knowing the people who voted them into office do not want business as usual at city hall.