An alternate option for the BIA

Dear Editor,

Mr. Labricciosa certainly stirs a lot of controversy in our community for a person who doesn’t live here. I knew he was the CEO of OPUC and I knew he was also the board chair of the Oshawa BIA. What I just found out, it was City Council that appointed him to the position. How is it not political that the CEO of the city’s solely owned asset is put in charge of the Downtown Business Improvement Association?
His operation of the OPUC is controversial: Under cover of COVID he laid-off unionized customer service employees; fired 10 per cent of the workforce, and now customers can’t get through for service resolution for days, weeks or months. Litigation, grievances, arbitration and debt (an additional $15 million at the OPUC/2018) are left in his wake. Now he has the downtown businesses up in arms and questionable practices come to light.
The city should continue funding to support the one paid BIA employee and an office space with associated expenses. Forget about a survey of the downtown businesses; make BIA membership and contributions voluntary. The BIA could then work within its’ resource limit rather than compound difficult times with levies for half-baked decorating schemes.

Rob Goheen