Packed house for all-candidates forum

Jeff Helsdon, Editor

More than 300 people packed the Lion’s Auditorium at the Tillsonburg Community Centre for the all-candidates night ahead of the upcoming municipal election.

Sponsored by the Tillsonburg District Chamber of Commerce and Tillsonburg Post, the event was held on Sept. 30 and gave candidates for mayor and councilor positions a chance to speak and answer questions. Candidates received the questions ahead of time, which were selected from public and chamber member submissions, to research their answers.

Incumbent mayor Deb Gilvesy provided her background, highlighting her employment and business experience, as well as her time as a tobacco board official working with higher levels of government. She was elected to council in 2018, and as mayor in 2022. She has worked on remaining accessible during this time.

“I believe public service is not a part-time commitment, but a full-time job,” she said.

Challenger Kelly Spencer, a first-term councillor, is an award-winning business owner, and former registered nurse. She is also a long-time volunteer for several local organizations and started volunteering when she was nine years old. As a nurse, Spencer said she learned to work under pressure, which is important as a council member.

“These are transferable skills to get the job done,” she said.

The first question the mayoral candidates answered dealt with what they would do to ensure every tax dollar is spent as efficiently as possible.

Spencer said affordability is one of the most important responsibilities of a mayor, but she doesn’t believe saying “cut taxes” is the answer. She would like every town department to identify what is essential and what is discretionary, and what can be partnered on. Spencer wants to look at multi-year budgets and look for possible partnerships for procurement and if there are grants out there. She pointed to a motion she presented on a townwide sponsorship policy, which could present revenue opportunities.

As a strong mayor, she committed to working with all council members, and encouraging discussion on the budget. She wants council to ask whether spending is necessary before committing taxpayer dollars.

“My commitment is simple: responsible conservative budgeting, measurable results, competitive procurement and no assumption that because we've always done something one way, we have to keep doing it that way,” Spencer concluded.

Gilvesy said she would like an efficiency review across all town departments to identify duplication and modernization opportunities to find savings. She said council also needs to respect staff time, allowing them to focus on the roles of a municipality established under the Municipal Act. She said anytime council moves beyond its defined roles, there is a cost to taxpayers.

At the same time, Gilvesy emphasized fiscal responsibility doesn’t mean stopping spending, as the town’s infrastructure is aging and it must continue to follow the Asset Management Plan to maintain it.

She also called for controlling spending at county council, which also impacts local property taxes, saying the tax hikes at the upper tier have not been sustainable.

“My commitment is simple: ask the questions, find the efficiencies, repair infrastructure, and make every tax dollar work as hard as possible,” she said.

The mayoral candidates then wrestled with a question regarding how they will ensure council stays focused on core municipal issues and protect taxpayer dollars from being spent on issues outside council’s control.

Gilvesy said this is one of the most important responsibilities of a mayor and council.

“When a municipality moves outside its mandate, there is a cost of the taxpayer,” she said.

Using the example of health care, Gilvesy said council can’t control wait times, but its role is advocacy. She said one situation where she thought council needed to step up and show its commitment was funding the unattached patient nurse-practitioner-led clinic for a year, which led to the clinic's permanent establishment. But Gilvesy stressed that most of the credit for the clinic should go to the Ingersoll Nurse Practitioner-Led Clinic, the Oxford Health Team, and the Thames Valley Health Team.

Gilvesy believes the mayor’s role is to provide guidance and leadership when something is outside of council’s mandate and could cost taxpayers money, but not micromanage. She sees council as needing to understand the costs of moving out of its lane.

Spencer believes in council “staying in its lane”, but that doesn’t mean ignoring problems. She said council should investigate, collaborate and bring potential partners to the table.

She also cited the example of health care, and how the town's temporary funding helped establish a permanent clinic in Tillsonburg. Spencer also mentioned her motion on a traffic study on Highway 19 and homelessness as issues that aren’t local, but council can make an impact. Expanding on homelessness, Spencer committed to seeking funding and collaboration from existing organizations while accessing grants.

Spencer said she would expect council to ask three questions: is this our issue, is there a legitimate municipal role, and what outcome are taxpayers receiving for the municipal dollars.

“If something is outside municipal jurisdiction and there's no meaningful municipal role, we shouldn't spend municipal staff time and money pretending otherwise,” she said.

Both mayoral candidates answered a quick-fire question about how quickly they should respond to constituent questions in similar but different ways. Spencer said residents deserve acknowledgement of their questions with a day or two, although it may take longer to get a full answer, and believes being an elected official means “being accessible to all.” Gilvesy said, “as quickly as humanly possible. Residents deserve timely responses.”

The mayoral candidates were also asked about their three strategic priorities in the coming election.

Gilvesy said safety is important, and the fire hall needs updating, which is planned for the 2027 budget. Her second priority is moving the VanNorman Industrial Park second phase forward, after a two-year hold-up for archaeological studies. She explained industrial growth provides jobs and provides tax revenue to the town. Her third priority is bringing town-owned land behind the cemetery into town limits.

However, Gilvesy said she would not impose her priorities on council, and would sit down with council to host a think tank where all of council partakes and sets it priorities.

“Strong leadership isn't about one person deciding everything; it is about bringing seven people together, establishing clear priorities, and then working together to get the job done,” she said.

Spencer’s three priorities are infrastructure and responsible growth, affordability and financial sustainability and a stronger downtown and local economy.

She explained she would encourage commercial zoning around downtown and support the Station District development, which has 40,000 square feet of commercial space. With only one per cent commercial vacancy downtown, Spencer believes there is potential for industrial growth tied to the St. Thomas Volkswagen giga-factory, and will ensure Tillsonburg is part of it. Besides providing jobs, Spencer sees commercial and industrial growth as an opportunity to increase tax revenue beyond residential.

“Someone recently called me Can-do Kelly because I look for ways to find solutions and results,” she said, adding that her priority will always be the residents of Tillsonburg.

With homelessness being a hot topic, although it is more a county and provincial responsibility, the candidates were asked how they would collaborate with upper levels of government to find local solutions.

Spencer said homelessness shouldn’t stop at the municipal boundary, and neither should the town’s response.

She pointed to the United Way’s Lighthouse, which has provided seven beds to help get 40 people off the streets over the last three years.

While Spencer acknowledged that homelessness is primarily Oxford County’s responsibility, she said what has been done isn’t working. She cited the St. Thomas example where transitional housing is provided for 16 individuals. In conversations with St. Thomas Mayor Joe Preston, she was told this has reduced the number of calls to first responders.

She plans to hire security or safety ambassadors who have a social service background. They will remind people of bylaws on private property and bring in first responders when necessary. They would ask if those on the streets need food, mental health intervention, addiction services or a place to stay.

“They would help assist businesses, employees, as well as customers to feel better and maybe provide a trusted face for those that are struggling,” Spencer said. “When I spoke to businesses downtown about my plan, they said this would be a powerful asset.”

She wants to support all affordable housing developments. Spencer said the centre in Woodstock is a couple of years away and action is needed now.

Gilvesy pointed out there is a loophole in the law where it is illegal to be intoxicated by alcohol in public. Still, it is not illegal to be intoxicated by drugs. The local police services board has sent a letter to the province pointing out this loophole and asking for a solution. It also sent a letter to the owners of the Tillsonburg Town Centre with suggestions to enhance security. Gilvesy said the town does not qualify for funding from any level of government to combat the problem, as it is handled by other levels of government.

Saying “behind every statistic is a person”, Gilvesy outlined the many initiatives the county has undertaken to tackle the issue, including doubling funding for subsidized housing and creating 50 more spaces in the HART Hub for homeless people in Woodstock. Locally, the police services board has doubled foot and cruiser patrols, has a parks bylaw that has prevented encampments like in other municipalities, and council just passed a nuisance bylaw that should help bylaw officers with enforcement.

Gilvesy spoke against Spencer’s concept of hiring a security guard, saying it would create a cost and that any potential security guard would have no authority to lay charges or remove homeless individuals from downtown.

In their closing remarks, the mayoral candidates summarized their positions. Gilvesy said important work remains, and she has listened and learned from the people - who are the mayor’s boss. Spencer said she will listen and collaborate with people, while remembering who she works for.