Councillor candidates share their thoughts during forum

Jeff Helsdon, Editor

Red tape, their top priorities and homelessness were amongst the topics the 12 vying for one of six councillor positions wrestled with at the all-candidates night held on Sept. 30.

The event was sponsored by the Tillsonburg District Chamber of Commerce and Tillsonburg Post. Candidates for councillor and mayor positions answered questions about the questions ahead of time, which were selected from public and chamber member submissions, to research their answers.

Question 1: Navigating local bylaws can sometimes feel rigid or unclear for residents and business owners. What concrete steps will you take to ensure municipal policies are written in clear, accessible language, and how will you guarantee they are enforced with common sense, transparency, and strong accountability?

Clayton Curtis - Bylaws should be easy to understand and if a person needs a lawyer to understand a bylaw, it’s more complicated than it needs to be. Enforcement should be consistent, but there is a difference between ignoring a bylaw and misunderstanding it.

Dave Beres – On red tape, Beres used the example of the archeological study that has been delaying the town’s industrial park for two years. He suggests a blanket study should be done. With bylaws, Beres said all are on the town’s web site and suggesting phoning the customer service centre or staff if there are questions.

Dee Tosto – Bylaws need to be understood and written in plain language. She said council should be asking questions if a resident has to fill out multiple similar forms or waiting a long time for an answer. Tosto said enforcement should be consistent and there is a difference between ignoring a bylaw and misunderstanding.

Felix Nzemeka – Bylaws should protect the public interest without creating unnecessary barriers for residents, citizens and industries. He would focus on a regular review of bylaws to identify outdated bylaws or duplications, advocate for plain language, support consistent and transparent enforcement and said council must hold the system accountable.

John Gilvesy – One of Gilvesy’s six core priorities is economic vitality and fostering conditions that attract industries, developers, retailers and citizens. He believes bylaws should be written in plain language and examples provided, if necessary. Gilvesy is an advocate of the KIS principle, and he doesn’t believe policies should erode confidence to innovate, plan, build, and operate.

Katherine Englander – With a background in writing policies, Englander understands that clarity is important in rules. She would push for published service standards with turnaround times for common municipal applications like building permits, and business licenses. She would also want to see a review of the bylaws to ensure the bylaw is in proportion to the risk.

Kim Sage – Sage agrees bylaws can be confusing at times, but sees the need for rules to provide consistency and fairness. She would like to see enhanced communication and easy-to-understand language with bylaws. Sage doesn’t want to see all bylaws reviewed, but those that cause repeated issues for residents, or are outdated, should be.

Lindsay Ambrus-Mejaski – Ambrus-Mejaski is a fan of the town’s bylaw briefs because these explain bylaws in simple language, but believes more education would be better. She would like to see bylaws reviewed regularly for clarity and purpose. While she wants to see consistency in enforcement, she is also a believer in common sense.

Ron Gasparetto – He agreed bylaws should in plain language and simple to understand. While he realizes the town has to follow the Municipal Act, guidelines, he is all for red tape reduction. Gasparetto wants to see checks and balances in the system. He also wants to see accountability in enforcement.

Stephen Molnar – While Molnar believes bylaws written in clear language is important, he said a transparent and flexible approach by those in enforcement is more important. He wants regulations designed to assist opportunity, not restrict or punish creativity or investment. Common sense and communication should be used for enforcement he believes.

Chris Rosehart – Rosehart is an advocate of municipal bylaws that everyone can understand and should be able to understand without legal assistance. She would like to see better communication before enforcement takes place, and common sense in the system. Rosehart doesn’t want residents to feel they have to fight the system.

Chris Parker – Wants to see the town’s bylaws easy to understand and ensure residents are consulted when bylaws are updated or reviewed. Parker likes to see education first on enforcement, and ensuring people understand the rules before ticketing. On red tape, he likes a balance between removing unnecessary roadblocks to success and the right controls for consistency and fairness.

Question 2 - Looking ahead to the upcoming term, what are the top three major projects council must prioritize, what is your proposed timeline for delivering them, and why are they essential for Tillsonburg?

Dee Tosto – Infrastructure, transportation and connectivity, and workforce, skills and opportunity are Tosto’s three priorities. Expanding on these, she said infrastructure needs to keep up with growth; traffic flow and safety was mentioned, as well as transit and inter-community transit; and mentioning her own son, she said she would like to see more educational opportunities provided in Tillsonburg and closer to home.

Felix Nezemka – His priorities are affordability and fiscal discipline with an eye to target a the lowest responsible tax increase possible, with a zero target; economic development that expands our tax base while supporting community stability through actively marketing the town’s employment lands; and making transportation and infrastructure improvements that increase safety and mobility for drivers, cyclists, seniors and people with mobility challenges.

John Gilvesy – One of his first priorities would be readying for budget deliberations, calling for finding efficiencies and eliminating duplication; he would push for experienced representation on the ERTH board to hold it to its promises; and reconsider priorities before spending $6 million on a renovated town hall when the town has a shortfall in its asset management plan.

Katherine Englander – As a new councillor, she would gather information and evaluate to determine her top priorities. Community well-being - which includes infrastructure and roads, utilities and waste, emergency services, community spaces and public transit – is a the top of her priorities. One of her first priorities will be seeing the repair of the steps on the north entrance to the community centre repaired.

Kim Sage – Development of the new baseball diamonds; ensuring the infrastructure can keep up with the growth, as opposed to growing first and then catching up; and responsible growth that will protect Tillsonburg’s identity. Sage didn’t want to promise timelines, but she wants to ensure council is making responsible decisions, understands what it’s spending and the implications of the decision.

Lindsey Ambrus-Mejaski – Her priorities are a safe, clean and healthy community through keeping roads safe and dealing with homelessness through the county and province; planning ahead for smart growth and affordability to ensure the infrastructure is in place for growth; and ensuring the town remains affordable for residents. She would like to establish a plan in the first year and implement it through the next four years.

Ron Gasparetto – Gasparetto’s goals are maintaining infrastructure, responsible growth which will see coordination with the needed infrastructure and financial sustainability that makes it affordable for people to live, retire and enjoy life in Tillsonburg. He wants to establish the priorities of council and start implementation in the first year, and then follow with published updates.

Stephen Molnar – Molnar wants to see a regenerated focus on the community strategic plan incorporated into the 2027 business plan on day one; promotion of an open and accessible council; and responsible infrastructure investment to support balanced growth while controlling utility costs and user fees. Molnar also said his priorities are the priorities he has heard from the people.

Chris Rosehart – Seeing the completion of renovations to the customer service centre, which will save taxpayers money as compared to building a new town hall; ensuring there is enough electricity for businesses and residents, and planning for road and infrastructure updates are Rosehart’s top three priorities.

Chris Parker – Completing servicing of the VanNorman Industrial Park, which is key to attract new employers and strengthen the tax base; overall community safety by working with the police services board, county and province to make the streets safer; and expanding recreational opportunities through a feasibility study for a third ice pad and ensuring access to playgrounds and green space are Parker’s priorities.

Clayton Curtis – Creating a list for top infrastructure projects early in the first year, fostering responsible growth that will see council be proactive instead of reactive; and increasing municipal efficiency, which includes councillors asking if services are being delivered in the most efficient way possible, are priorities for Curtis.

Dave Beres – He would like to see a boundary adjust to allow for industrial expansion and more commercial opportunities; attract more family doctors by ensuring new graduates are welcome in town; and start planning to build a pipeline from Lake Erie along the railway line Tillsonburg owns a part of to town as the water supply is only certain until 2041.

"What stood out, and contributed to such a successful event, is how deeply invested both the candidates and audience are in our community and this year's election process,” said chamber president Lindsay Tribble. "The candidates came very prepared, spoke with clarity and directly to the community issues that matter the most and the audience listened intently, respectfully applauding after each and every response."

Councillor candidates were also asked questions on how quick they would respond to resident requests and on homelessness. See the entire debate on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThRa1g98EUI