Hamilton Councillors RAIN on local business owner

A decision to host a City subsidized truckload rain barrel sale was approved by members of Hamilton’s City Council today.  On the surface, it sounds like a great idea, but residents already have access to several truckload rain barrel sales offering equivalent products at equivalent prices without government involvement or taxpayer subsidies. So why would Councillors approve the investment of staff resources and tax dollars to host another rain barrel sale? Perhaps Councillor Pearson answered it best when she stated, “during the election campaign, constituents mentioned how much they like the rain barrel program.”

Many municipalities throughout Ontario have waded into the rain barrel waters by offering subsidies and providing bulk buying opportunities for residents. Hamilton City staff claim this is one of the reasons that Council directs them to host a sale; other communities are doing it, so why not Hamilton? Larry Pomerantz, owner of RainBarrel.ca made a presentation that clearly showed the City could save thousands of dollars by cancelling its taxpayer funded sale and residents would still have access to multiple truckload rain barrel sale events. Pomerantz asked “why should seniors, students and apartment dwellers see their taxes support a City-run rain barrel sale when local business is offering the same product and service at no additional cost?” Staff suggested canceling the City-run 2011 rain barrel sale, but Councillor Ferguson cautioned making any changes that would upset residents.

Three years ago Pomerantz met with City staff to ensure they were aware of his local business’ capacity to supply rain barrels. When staff informally invited three companies to bid, Pomerantz was left off the list. Over the past two years, the City has invested upwards of $80,000 to remove another $100,000 from the local economy by awarding rain barrel contracts to businesses outside of the region. Pomerantz states, “there is no way they can call this economic development”. “The City will once again use our tax dollars to compete against my local business in a clear attempt to gain voter approval for sitting Councillors.”  Pomerantz claims the rain barrel issue is a symptom of a much larger problem. “Governments at every level are not being held accountable for decisions made that benefit government at the expense of the taxpayer”. He encourages residents to call, email and write their Councillors, “to keep them honest”.

RainBarrel.ca has truckload rain barrel sales scheduled for Hamilton (April 16^th), Burlington (April 30^th), Waterdown (May 7^th) and Ancaster (May 21^st). Each sale benefits a local non-profit organization and all orders must be placed online, in advance through the RainBarrel.ca website or by calling 905-545-5577. Unlike past City events, there will be no proof of residency requirements, no limit to the number of rain barrels that can be purchased and a guaranteed supply of rain barrels, so no one leaves disappointed.

RainBarrel.ca reclaims food grade barrels previously used to import fruits and vegetables to be reused as rain barrels. Partnerships with local non-profit organizations result in fundraising truckload sales events for dozens of communities in Ontario. For more information, please contact Larry Pomerantz, Larry@RainBarrel.ca, call 905-545-5577 or visit www.RainBarrel.ca.