Growth, housing and leadership top of mind for Ritsma this election
CONNOR LUCZKA, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Martin Ritsma is once again vying for the City of Stratford’s top spot.
Ritsma was first elected as mayor in 2022, though served on Stratford city council for 12 years before that – including eight as deputy mayor. He told the Times he wanted to run again to see some projects council undertook completed, and some others pushed further along.
“I'm not a one problem mayor,” Ritsma told the Times. “Stratford is a very eclectic place … It has a lot of moving pieces, and so do I get buried on one? No, because I know there are other pieces that have to be addressed as well. So certainly, (voters can expect me to be) hardworking and transparent, certainly empathetic, but also pragmatic.”
In terms of his track record, Ritsma pointed to the city’s manufacturing sector, which has either been shored up or expanded in some cases, the tourism sector’s bounce back post-COVID-19 pandemic and the large capital projects the city has kickstarted.
Despite worsening trade relations with the U.S., Stratford has seen growth in its manufacturing sector the last few years, which Ritsma argued is partially due to his advocacy with domestic and international partners, upper levels of government included. After the pandemic, the Stratford Festival has continued to see rising numbers and attendance numbers are reaching pre-pandemic levels, and the city as well is working to make Stratford a year-round destination. Additionally, two major gaps in the city’s assets are on the way to being developed: a new police station at the former Scotiabank data centre on Wright Boulevard and the historic Grand Trunk site.
While both of those capital projects are huge, expensive endeavours, Ritsma is proud of the direction council has taken and his leadership in moving them forward – as well as the financial piece behind them. Council has moved forward with a capital plan that will see all of the city’s assets funded with a nominal yearly tax increase, including the Grand Trunk renewal project and new police station, but also its roads and sewer mains and the like.
When asked if he’s confident the course this current council has chartered will be sustained, whether or not he is re-elected Ritsma said he was. He believes it would be difficult for anybody to look at all the reports, the history of the projects, the opportunities they provide and – perhaps most importantly – the numbers, and not continue in advancing that direction.
“We also have to be fiscally responsible, and for a new council to come in and say, ‘No, we want to do this, this and this.’ Well, okay, that's a good idea, but does it go on the tax levy?” Ritsma asked.
In his tenure as mayor, the city’s property taxes have increased dramatically; however, Ritsma points to the 2026 budget, the only budget he guided with strong mayor powers, as what citizens can expect from another term of his leadership. The tax rate increased by 3.19 per cent and had no expansion of services unless they lowered costs for the city.
Housing is perhaps Ritsma’s biggest concern. Under his leadership, the city opened a warming centre in the winter at the Stratford Connection Centre, a stop-gap measure for the city’s unhoused that didn’t or couldn’t want to take advantage of the emergency stay system it already has.
During the interview with the Times, Ritsma once again put forward supportive housing as the only feasible solution for Canada’s homelessness crisis, though acknowledged there is still much more work to be done – and much more funding to be secured.
“The long and short of it is, relationship building is key to me,” Ritsma said. “And that relationship building comes at a cost with regards to time and energy, where it’s one-on-one conversations. Sometimes it's a large conversation around a big horseshoe.”
To that end, anyone interested in getting in touch with Ritsma can do so via his email: martinritsma@gmail.com.
Comments