Getting to know Polhill
London City Councillor Bud
Polhill has been on council for 24
years. When he's not at City Hall,
he's at his auto shop in Ward One.
"Sometimes it's tough to keep sane,
but I always tell people at City Hall
that I have an advantage over them,
because when I've had a really tough
night, I can always grab a hammer
and beat the hell out of something."
As councillor, Polhill has seen quite a few city elections, and through that, he has learned when to talk and when not to talk. "You can get caught in a lot of the statements you've made when you don't think before you speak."
Polhill did revisit London losing their Board of Control, "It was one of our biggest mistakes." Polhill described the Board of Control as a 'sober second thought.' The Board was the only one in Canada, which Polhill said was one of the reasons Londoners got rid of it. "That doesn't mean it was wrong ... a lot of people who wanted to get rid of it are now saying, 'Oh, that was a mistake.'"
When asked if he thinks City Council is going in the right direction, Polhill responded, "Yeah, I think so. It's a struggle, because of all the outside influences, but I think if you focus on what you're supposed to be doing instead of what everyone else is doing, I think we'll be fine."
So, what keeps the 24-year experienced councillor coming back?
Polhill described it as a challenge, but being a 'workaholic' helps. "As long as you can keep improving things, accomplishing things, I think that's what keeps you coming back."
To be a city councillor, you need to be voted in by the Ward constituents. Polhill said that he thinks that keeping accessibility is one of his strong suits, which is how he keeps being re-elected. "Too many politicians want to tell people what they think instead of finding out what the voters think."
The London city councillors have been going back and forth; to tweet or not to tweet? Really it's more about councillors requesting other councillors to pick more appropriate time to go on social media — perhaps not in meetings. Polhill is not a social media politician, and it doesn't look like he ever will be. "Twitter and Facebook, you can put something on there and it can be taken out of context … you get into too many conversations that are not relevant. That's not going to happen to me."
"There is nothing like talking in person one-on-one … you can write letters, email or go on Twitter, but there is nothing like being face to face."
As councillor, Polhill has seen quite a few city elections, and through that, he has learned when to talk and when not to talk. "You can get caught in a lot of the statements you've made when you don't think before you speak."
Polhill did revisit London losing their Board of Control, "It was one of our biggest mistakes." Polhill described the Board of Control as a 'sober second thought.' The Board was the only one in Canada, which Polhill said was one of the reasons Londoners got rid of it. "That doesn't mean it was wrong ... a lot of people who wanted to get rid of it are now saying, 'Oh, that was a mistake.'"
When asked if he thinks City Council is going in the right direction, Polhill responded, "Yeah, I think so. It's a struggle, because of all the outside influences, but I think if you focus on what you're supposed to be doing instead of what everyone else is doing, I think we'll be fine."
So, what keeps the 24-year experienced councillor coming back?
Polhill described it as a challenge, but being a 'workaholic' helps. "As long as you can keep improving things, accomplishing things, I think that's what keeps you coming back."
To be a city councillor, you need to be voted in by the Ward constituents. Polhill said that he thinks that keeping accessibility is one of his strong suits, which is how he keeps being re-elected. "Too many politicians want to tell people what they think instead of finding out what the voters think."
The London city councillors have been going back and forth; to tweet or not to tweet? Really it's more about councillors requesting other councillors to pick more appropriate time to go on social media — perhaps not in meetings. Polhill is not a social media politician, and it doesn't look like he ever will be. "Twitter and Facebook, you can put something on there and it can be taken out of context … you get into too many conversations that are not relevant. That's not going to happen to me."
"There is nothing like talking in person one-on-one … you can write letters, email or go on Twitter, but there is nothing like being face to face."
