Top row, from left, Deputy Mayor candidates Diane Huber, Don Matheson. Bottom row, from left, Vice-Deputy Mayor candidates Taun Frosst, Mike Myatt, Jim Stark.
Editor's Note: In the interest of comprehensive and informative reporting, we are publishing our coverage of the All Candidates Meeting in four parts. Here is the opening statements from the at-large candidates. Links to the ward candidates' opening statements, question and answer portion as well as the closing statements can be found at the bottom.
Please also visit saugeenshoreshub.ca/election2018 for council and trustee candidate profiles and podcasts and the soon to be published Ask a Candidate feature.
Hub Staff
Saugeen Shores Chamber of Commerce, together with the Canadian Federation of University Women (CFUW) hosted an All Candidates Meeting at the Plex September 25 in Port Elgin. The event was well attended with standing room only and approximately 300 in attendance.
Chamber President Kate Cammidge-Irwin opened the evening. "We hope you find this evening informative and help you make knowledgeable election decisions regarding the candidates that best represent you." Cammidge-Irwin explained that due to the number of municipal candidates, organizers had chosen not to include the school board trustee candidates but that candidates in attendance would be introduced and attendees could approach them individually if they wished.
The Chamber President reminded voters to check with the Town to ensure they are on the voters' list and to visit the Town of Saugeen Shores' election page for information.
She introduced moderator, 98 The Beach's John Divinski, who explained the evening's proceedings which consisted of opening statements, questions from the floor and closing statements.
Divinski introduced CFUW's Pat McCutcheon who acted as timekeeper.
MAYOR ELECT
Luke Charbonneau
Saugeen Shores Mayor Elect Luke Charbonneau was first to address the crowd. Current Deputy Mayor for Saugeen Shores, Charbonneau went unchallenged in his bid for the Mayor's seat.
Charbonneau remarked on the "spectacular crowd" and said anyone who thinks democracy is not alive and well in Saugeen Shores is wrong. He said that as a former councillor and as Deputy Mayor, he has approached his work with an understanding of the importance of local people, ideas and effort in the fastest growing community in the region and one of the best places to live in the country.
"As Mayor Elect I know that our next council will need to be more locally focussed than ever in order to continue and enhance the outstanding success that is Saugeen Shores," said Charbonneau, adding that it was the type of council that he intends to lead.
"A council that stands up to protect our vital local services by ensuring that they are well equipped, cost effective and, as much as possible, locally controlled; a council that ensures that our towns grow in a way that reflects the wishes of the people who actually live in them; a council that is collaborative and that communicates proactively with residents; a council that is strategic and active in its efforts to leverage local benefit from the regionally significant investments being made by Bruce Power; a council that recognizes the importance of local businesses and works to support the local people that they employ; a council that encourages volunteerism and prioritizes inclusion and accessibility."
Charbonneau closed by saying that he is lucky to live and own a business in Saugeen Shores and that he looks forward to leading the community as Mayor and working with council and staff to make Saugeen Shores an even better place to live.
DEPUTY MAYOR CANDIDATES (one elected)
Diane Huber
Current Saugeen Shores Vice-Deputy Mayor, Deputy Mayor candidate Diane Huber said that the community benefits when the public gets involved. Huber reflected on her own participation and said she has not missed many of the approximately 275 council meetings and 125 planning meetings she has been expected to attend and said it's going to be hard to explain the value of 11 years on council in a couple of minutes.
Huber said she has prepared for meetings, has read "hundreds and hundreds" of pages of material. She said she's visited properties, asked questions and done research. "I've never been hesitant about asking tough questions and at times voting 'no' when I've been the only member of council or one of a few members of council who's been willing to do that," said Huber.
She added that she's been supportive of initiatives and has worked to get important discussions onto the agenda. "All of this will continue if I'm re-elected," said Huber, adding that she no longer works full time so has the flexibility to be the next Deputy Mayor. She said she's grateful to her supporters and also to those who have been angry with her at times. "And those same people have also told me how much they respect that I speak up and pay attention to what goes on here."
Huber mentioned three things that she feels are of particular significance during the next term. The upcoming Official Plan review, as it will "set the stage" for the next 20 years. She said there is a need to streamline some aspects of growth and development "but we don't need to throw out all of the rules and forget the past and forget the investments that people have made here, both business wise and personal wise for about 150 years plus," she said.
Secondly, Huber said we need public investments to see us through for a successful future, long term strategic investments for infrastructure on the "recreational and social side" such as the pool; long term reinvestments in assets such as the Southampton Town Hall. "We also need to invest in parks and other natural attributes in our community," she said. "We need to spend some money, maybe accumulate a little bit of debt towards these things because they're going to make a difference for 50, 75 or 100 years."
Lastly, Huber said council can improve communication with residents and tax payers. "We listen but we also need to hear what you're saying," she said.
Don Matheson
Up next was current Councillor, Deputy Mayor candidate Don Matheson. Matheson said he could list all the committees he's chaired and been a part of, "but I won't," adding that every person on the panel is involved. "I could say I'll continue to make council transparent and open but it already is. Our clerk is most diligent in ensuring we follow all the rules," he said.
Matheson said that he's done exactly what he said he would do four years ago. "I pledged to keep our taxes as low as possible," he said, adding that he knows some families in Saugeen Shores struggle to make ends meet. "I stood alongside Mayor Smith and said our taxes were too high. Staff took a closer look and they indeed came back lower, even lower than what I asked for," he said.
Matheson said he also pledged to look at recreation. "I believe an active community is a healthy community," he said, mentioning two motions he had made. "I moved to have a Recreation Master Plan created for the community and I made a motion for our Town staff to apply for the designation for a bike friendly community. Both motions were successful," said Matheson.
Speaking to wants and needs such as a new pool, ball diamonds and a rec centre, Matheson said, "I hear you" and added he would work with council and community groups to find the best, most efficient and most financially responsible way to make it happen.
"Saugeen Shores is growing and we must meet the needs of all those who want to live here. I believe it is time to look outside the box with some non traditional methods of building. I believe we can build our facilities better and at a lower cost," he said.
Matheson said he would like council to work with builders and county council to build more affordable housing as young and old alike say it is getting too expensive to live in Saugeen Shores. "Although we are not in the building business, we as a council are in a position to offer incentives to builders who are willing to build affordable housing," he said.
In closing Matheson said as deputy mayor he will represent all three wards and "be your voice on council."
VICE-DEPUTY MAYOR CANDIDATES (one elected)
Taun Frosst
Next to the mic was Vice-Deputy Mayor candidate Taun Frosst. Frosst said the Town has had its focus on "a lot of rec lately" and he'd like to see more focus on how we're going to pay for it. Frosst said he believes a lot of it is through savings which can be achieved through things like equipment and rebuilding equipment as opposed to renewing equipment "when it still has lots of life left in it."
He went onto say that there are roads and bridges with issues. "I think we can focus on those things with a friendly Provincial Government that we now have," he said. "With Lisa [Thompson] in as a Minister and Bill [Walker] next door as a now party whip, we have some friends in Queen's Park and we actually have a Premier that stated he's more for rural now," said Frosst.
"We need the help," he said, and added that the Highway 21 bridge should be returned back to the province.
Frosst said that with a government that will help we will have the money allotted by the previous council for things like a pool, a police station and ball diamonds. "As a town growing we're going to need spaces, I can see a request for a cricket pitch coming, we've got a lot of people in this town that have interest in outdoor sports but we have to save some dough and we have to look at where we can save it without cutting the services," he said.
Frosst then moved to the issue of traffic in Port Elgin. "We have to get around this town, everybody knows Goderich Street is just hell come summer time," he said and suggested two lanes going one direction in the morning and alternating in the afternoon as well as changing the parking around. "There's very little parking there now," he said.
"Nobody wants to see Bruce Street to be the bypass road, the town's businesses don't want to see us skirt the whole town so we've got to come to a compromise," he said.
Mike Myatt
Current Saugeen Councillor, Vice-Deputy Mayor candidate Mike Myatt was next up. Myatt remarked that over the last four years he has listened to concerns, "not only as your Saugeen Township Ward Councillor but as a Saugeen Shores Councillor for all three wards," he said.
Myatt said the next Vice-Deputy Mayor needs to recognize that Saugeen Shores is made up of three "very unique" communities and if elected he can guarantee that he will make informed decisions on behalf of all three wards. "I will continue to look at each and every project based on their own merits," he said.
He and members of his campaign team have knocked on over 5,000 doors, Myatt said. "If I haven't been to your house, I hope to be there soon. I take this campaign and position of Vice-Deputy Mayor very seriously. Our door to door campaign has allowed me to hear what residents are thinking and if elected I will continue to listen to your concerns," he said.
Myatt added that these are challenging times for Saugeen Shores. "Our population is projected to grow to over 18,000 in the next 10 years and while this will create lots of new assessment, rapid growth, it also brings new demands for infrastructure," he said.
Myatt said the next council needs to be aggressive and lobby all levels of government. "It's time to provide Saugeen Shores with our fair share of infrastructure funding for additional long term care beds, affordable housing, replacement of our aging pool and for bridge replacements in Saugeen Township, just to name a few," he said.
"I served as your Director of Community Services for a period of 10 years and over this period of time I learned that quality of life is important to you, our residents," said Myatt. "Over the past four years I have learned that quality of life continues to be an important factor by people who choose to live here in Saugeen Shores."
Myatt said that while curbs, gutters and road asphalt is important, "it's the amenities that we are able to provide that are also important. It's the 40 kilometres of trails, it's our aquatic facility and our beaches, it's our parks and community centres and our libraries," he said, adding that important services contribute to the rich quality of life.
"And let's not forget about our rural needs in Saugeen Township. As agriculture contributes in a huge way towards our quality of life," Myatt added.
He said that time is running out on the aging aquatic facility and if Saugeen Shores wants to continue to promote healthy lifestyles, "let's move forward with a pool replacement."
In closing, Myatt reiterated his promise to make informed decisions, provide a strong voice for all three wards and "continue to listen to your concerns so your voice is heard," he said.
Jim Stark
Vice-Deputy Mayor candidate Jim Stark spoke next and said he has lived in Southampton for 50 years and sat on the Southampton Council prior to amalgamation.
"Eight years ago I received the Merit of Excellence Award from the Bluewater Board of Education for my hundreds of hours of volunteer work in our schools helping our youth," said Stark, adding that for the past 20 years he has been on council and a Warden for St Paul's Anglican Church in Southampton "where we focus on outreach," he said.
Stark said he has played a major role in planning and building the church's new Parish Hall and in 2018 "celebrated 40 years of building a very successful business, learning when to save money, learning when to spend money, learning what to invest in, always planning for the future," he said.
As a member of council, Stark said he will be committed to helping to build a safe and inclusive community and a team that is "dedicated to serving all the people of all our three distinct communities, always keeping in mind all the economic levels of our citizens."
Stark highlighted the importance in practicing strong fiscal responsibility. "Council must remember that the tax payer always pays the bills," he said, and added that council must act on the wishes of the majority "not just small interest groups."
He too made mention of Saugeen Shores' unprecedented growth. "It is so important that we have a strong, skillful, people focussed and open minded staff to help us plan through this growth," he said.
"We need to stop the loss of parking on our main streets. Why not bring back the train? Let's help Bruce Power find a better location for their training centre in Southampton," said Stark, adding that parks and beaches need to be kept pristine and safe, that clean and accessible washrooms should be located in all parks and that everyone in Saugeen Shores needs to do a better job of recycling. "There are millions of dollars in savings when we protect our landfill site," he said.
"As we plan to go forward with our existing and new facilities, it is important that council does not go into direct competition with our local businesses that have supported our community for so many years," Stark said, adding that council needs to help businesses thrive and help developers provide low and moderate housing.
Mayor Elect Luke Charbonneau was the first to address a full house at an All Candidates Meeting held September 25 at the Plex in Port Elgin.
98 The Beach's John Divinski acted as moderator.
See also:
