Council candidates: Matthew Hartney

Introduce yourself to readers. Who are you?

My name is Matthew Hartney. I was born in St. Thomas, Ont. and moved with my family to Stratford in 1987 – this is my hometown. I grew up here and after high school trained at the Stratford Chefs School. I later studied pure and applied science in Montréal and attained bachelor and masters degrees in architecture from the University of Waterloo. I have spent my – as yet brief – career in the hospitality and architectural design fields.

What are the core issues you are focused on this election?

The focus of my campaign is on city building and transparent, accountable governance. Stratford is set to grow to 50,000 people in the next 20 years and if that happens in an irresponsible, 1950s suburban fashion, as it has been for some time, we will be stuck in a property tax trap that forever increases the levy beyond the cost of inflation. We need dense urban development and need to utilize vacant land to build new housing. As to proper governance – we require community outreach, open door meetings and a rejection of “strong mayor” powers and other anti-democratic measures …

Next year’s budget, like last year’s, will be presented and guided by the mayor. As a councillor, what will you do to keep the tax levy low?

Having studied the current year’s budget and projections for the next five years, it seems difficult, if not impossible to freeze property taxes at their current rates. Stratford residents are subject to a very high levy already and so the goal of council should be, at the least, to keep property tax increases indexed to inflation. It is also important to ensure that the tax burden is fairly balanced between businesses and industry and residents. We need to generate more economic activity in the city, but I do not support tax deductions for this …

Housing and homelessness in Stratford continues to be a challenge. What, in your opinion, is the strategy the city should be taking in building more homes and/or improving affordability?

I support the city’s efforts to build supportive housing at 398 Erie St., but this is just a start. We require more facilities to house vulnerable people and I would support acquiring existing vacant buildings (the former Wild Rose tavern at Downie Street and Kent Lane comes to mind) to build additional facilities. Stratford needs dedicated spaces for youth who are experiencing homelessness and I would like to see a focus on this from the next council. I am not an expert in this field, so my goal if elected would be to work with those who do have expertise …

Are you in favour of the current council’s direction on the GTR? If not, what strategy would you be in favour of?

The current strategy has all of the right parts but lacks focus and direction. It seems that the city and other private proposals are looking for a magic answer. That answer is not coming. We need to start right now. I have released campaign videos on this topic that go into further detail, but generally we have an incredible building that can be redeveloped in phases, turning a liability into an asset. This will require private partners. The city should finalize a site plan for the building and then move to partner with outside investors to gets things moving …