Hundreds attended the Puslinch all candidates debate last week, though few questions were posed to the ward 7 county council candidates Bill Cloutis and Don McKay.
In his introduction, McKay, who has served on Puslinch council the last four years, said he has science and business degrees and worked for Environment Canada and an environmental consulting firm.
As a councillor, McKay said he strived be a facilitator and to use fiscal responsibility. If elected to county council, he pledged to work closely with Puslinch and Guelph-Eramosa councils and to sustain a level of services at a reasonable cost.
Cloutis, a self-employed consultant, said he has over 30 years experience managing multi-million dollar budgets. He said everyone is fed up with irresponsible spending and he wants a more transparent and accountable government. He vowed to scrutinize all county expenses and treat taxpayers as valued customers “and not as personal wallets.”
Aggregate operations
When asked if there is any way municipal governments could set up an independent committee to monitor and inspect local gravel operations, McKay said the answer is no.
He explained the gravel industry is regulated by the Ministry of Natural Resources and if private citizens or groups have concerns, they can contact the ministry.
Cloutis said McKay is correct on who’s jurisdiction it is, but he doesn’t see why a committee can’t be formed to explore the legality of the idea.
Taxes
Cloutis said the best way to keep tax increases in check is to reduce costs and not purchase “luxury” items when “regular, everyday” items will do just fine. He said he intends to spend county money as if it were his own.
McKay said he would meet with all department heads, review programs and see if there are any areas that could be cut back to keep county taxes at a reasonable level.
Dangerous intersection?
One resident said he brought up a concern four years ago about safety at the intersection of the Hanlon Expressway and County Road 34 and he wondered why nothing was done.
McKay, who said he’s familiar with the intersection, was unaware of anything being done right now to address the problem. He vowed to work with the county roads department to see if a turning light could be installed and why one isn’t there already.
Cloutis said because he is not currently on council he cannot answer the question. He said he was not aware it was an issue, but he would be willing to discuss it with county and Ministry of Transportation officials.
