Growth, infrastructure, and transportation main issues at candidates meeting

By Brian Lockhart

A meeting held at the Alton Legion on Tuesday, October 11, gave some candidates for Caledon Mayor, Town Council, and Regional Council in the upcoming municipal election the opportunity to introduce themselves and explain their vision for Caledon and why they should be elected.

Each candidate was given the opportunity to address the audience and introduce themselves, provide relevant personal information, and explain what they think should be the direction the Town and Region should take, and what concerns they believe are the most important issues the next elected councils must tackle.

Each candidate was allotted three minutes for an opening statement.

That was followed by questions from members of the audience. The event was well attended and the Legion hall was packed.

Annette Groves was the only mayoral candidate in attendance. She is currently the Ward 5 Regional Councillor. The other candidate, Jennifer Innis, could not attend, but sent regrets saying she had other obligations.

Ms. Groves began by saying she was the only mayoral candidate that did not vote to support a tax increase and the only candidate that did not vote in favour of a Council salary increase. She said an increase in development, while not having the proper infrastructure in place to support it, is a concern.

She said the increased truck traffic on Caledon roads is a problem and must be addressed for different towns and villages in the community as each presents different challenges.

Ms. Groves said she would support an increase in paramedics, fire services, and police, to meet the needs of the growing town.

Christina Early, who the incumbent Ward 2 Area Town Councillor, is running for Regional Councillor, Ward 1,2,3.

Ms. Early has also been the alternate Regional Councillor for the past four years. She said this has built a good foundation for her being on Regional Council.

She said it was important to develop good relations with nearby Mississauga and Brampton Councils.

Ms. Early said she is “very aware” of the lack of recreational activities in the region.

As the current Official Plan has not been adopted, she said it should be examined, and good decisions made moving forward.

Ramat Gill is also running for Regional Council, Ward 1,2, 3.

Mr. Gill is a police officer. He is concerned about traffic safety in the Region, saying a growth in population will required more traffic calming measures.

Mr. Gill said the Region needs strong leadership to deal with the predicted population growth including adding more first responders. He also stressed the need for proper infrastructure to meet the needs of future growth and development.

Candidate for Regional Council Tom Sweeney explained his family has lived in the area on the same farm for 170 years.

Mr. Sweeney said that after knocking on thousands of doors and speaking to residents in Ward 1,2,3, the message he received was people feel like they are living in a “forgotten community.”

He said he would make sure they are included in the future of Caledon, and stressed the importance of building relationships at the Regional level.

Mr. Sweeney said the road systems must be addressed due to increased traffic passing through from other communities. He also said a well-planned infrastructure is important, adding there is a need for senior's housing.

Candidate for Ward 3 Councillor, Arjun McNeill, said he was bullied in school for his ethnicity, and doesn't want any other kids to go through the same thing.

He said he would like to see younger people involved in the Town's decision-making.

Mr. McNeill stressed the importance of affordable housing. He also said there is a need for more sports teams and activities in the region.

Candidate for Ward 3, Doug Maskell, is a teacher at Humberview Secondary School. He said the he was inspired to run after realizing other candidates did not live in Ward 3, and he thinks a resident should be the representative.

He said he was against the 25 per cent pay increase that Council voted in when other professions were only getting one per cent.

Mr. Maskell explained that he was very concerned about a coming “tax bomb” where residents' homes are currently being accessed at the 2016 rate and will receive a new tax rate that may cripple some home owner's finance to the tune of 40 to 90 per cent.

Anna Murray is running for Councillor, Ward 3.

Ms. Murray stressed the need for improved road safety and road repairs.

She said the problem with illegal truck yards must be addressed. Ms. Murray also addressed development and the need for well-designed neighbourhoods to avoid looking like other cities with urban sprawl.

She also said there needs to an improvement in infrastructure including available high-speed internet for local residents.

The meeting continued with questions from the audience.