Frank Leonard & Associates

Protocol – Know Your Place So I was in this movie.    Yes, while Mayor I signed up as an extra in a movie to learn about the economic impact of the movie industry.   I spent a day of waiting for a scene and didn’t learn anything that I didn’t already know but I satisfied my ego’s need to be able to say for the rest of my life ‘so I was in this movie.’ My scene was a parade to celebrate the dog becoming a duke.   Yes, the dog becomes a duke.   I’ve had a great deal of experience working my way to the front of parades, so that’s how the first take went.   The director was quite upset with me as no one was to be in front of the star – the dog – so for the second and final take I was back in the crowd applauding adoringly for ‘The Duke.’   I needed to know my role; know my place. It is ironic that politicians note the discipline within paramilitary bureaucracies when overseeing police and fire departments but don’t see the same rankings arou...

Family first, or at least a close second? A year after getting elected Saanich Alderman in 1986 I was elected to the Capital Regional District Board, and one year after that I became Chair of the newly minted CRD Environment Committee.   The environment was becoming a key political issue and we were struggling with two key issues: the need for sewage treatment; and the need for more landfill space.   Becoming Chair of the Committee that owned these files was a great opportunity and an incredible responsibility. My first weekend in this new position witnessed quite the setback.   Not only did we have a meager  recycling effort but the one facility we had to receive recyclables burned down.  I recall driving to the Borden Street location as only smolders  remained thinking that I really did have to tackle the reduction of waste from the ground up. My instincts told me that in order to expand the landfill we needed credibility on recycling. ...