This community’s second all-candidates meeting attracted about 75 ratepayers to Main Place on Oct. 7, with an audience also listening to the live broadcast on Erin Radio.
The session offered the chance to hear and question the contenders for mayor, county council, and the public school board. Erin Radio’s Jay Mowat acted as chairman.
The race for the mayor’s chair, with county councillor Lou Maieron challenging incumbent Rod Finnie, drew the most interest from those present. Due to the number of questions from residents, Mowat extended their allocated time by 20 minutes.
Maieron described himself as a fisheries biologist and businessman. He is seeking the mayor’s chair, he said, to improve how government is run. He noted Erin is largest area in Ontario without sewers. In general, he likes the way Erin is at present, but conceded some growth, and particularly commercial and industrial growth, is both necessary and desirable.
Finnie said sewer capacity and high-speed internet are necessary to attract future non-residential growth.He would like to see a farmers’ market established for the benefit of residents and tourists. Erin’s development policies need to be reviewed and updated. On a general note, he wants to restore civility to relations and negotiations with the City of Guelph in addressing the ambulance issue.
The first questioners asked about the vision for growth over the next couple of terms of council, and development policies. Finnie stated Erin cannot expect a growth boom in the coming decade. Over the short term, he said, the county official plan forecast 40 more residences, and reviews of the planning process and objectives for Erin are under way. For the long term, he wants to see a better mix of development, including affordable housing units aimed at young families and seniors. The water systems in Erin village and Hillsburgh would be more efficient, he noted, if they were each supplying about 300 more houses.
Maieron said the province has mandated more growth for Erin, and all the new growth must have water and sewer services. Small systems are much more costly per household than larger ones. New development must make better use of land, he noted. The days of the one-acre estate lot are over.
In the planning process, Finnie stated public input is essential, but council must assemble information before going to the public. He is willing to explore private investment in providing new infrastructure to reduce up-front costs to the township and to reduce borrowing by spreading the costs over time.
Maieron agrees on the necessity for extensive public input. A limiting factor on growth, he believes, is the carrying capacity of the upper Credit River to accept sewage effluent without significant environmental impacts. He stated the municipality must maintain control of the direction of development. If not, Erin could be pushed into a situation where “developers will call the shots.”
One voter was interested in the respective leadership styles of the two men, and asked each to explain how his style differed from his opponent.
Finnie observed that a mayor should not be a dictator. Rather, he should draw out the opinions of all those around the table. It was as necessary to listen as to speak at meetings. He suggested his opponent does not always listen to the opinions of others at county council.
Maieron said he always presented a clear platform of his opinions during an election. He said he disliked the “baby step process,” and admitted he is often accused of trying to move too far, too quickly. He wanted discussions that heard all opinions on an issue. After a vote, everyone should shake hands and move on to the next matter.
Several voters wanted to know what the next mayor could do to solve the ambulance issue. Maieron declared that after endless discussions with Guelph he has lost his patience. He had been speaking with provincial officials, he said, and hoped to ally with Georgetown or Orangeville. He stated 80% of the ambulance responses are already coming from outside the county, rather than from Guelph. His comments drew prolonged applause from the crowd.
Finnie cautioned that the framework of ambulance service is dictated by the province, and consequently, a municipality cannot move arbitrarily to another area, as Maieron advocates. Finnie said he would continue to work with Guelph, and hoped to build an improved relationship with the city’s new council after the election.
“We have paid for ambulance service and we will get it,” he promised, and the only way to do that is to fix the county’s relationship with Guelph.
Another questioner sought remedies for the constantly increasing property tax burden.
Finnie said Erin had been prudent in recent years, with average tax increases in the range of 2.5%. He admitted the situation is different at the county, noting he had presented 10 ideas to reduce county taxes. As chairman of the county roads committee, he noted the county had managed to look after more roads at lower cost than 20 years ago.
Maieron asserted the county has a serious spending problem, and he has voted in favour of only one county budget over the past seven years. He cited the assessment structure as being very unfair to Erin, due to much higher assessments there than in the north of Wellington. He said Erin sometimes does not get its share of benefits commensurate with the amount of revenue it supplies to the county.
A voter was interested in local policies regarding climate change. Maieron said Erin has the highest commuter rate in the county, with 66% of the workforce employed outside the municipality. He wants to tie new growth to an increase in local employment opportunities to reduce that figure, along with better shopping and recreational facilities at home.
Rod Finnie thought sewage capacity and high-speed internet service would play a big part in attracting new employers to Erin, and thereby lower the amount of commuting. He also advocated a local building code that exceeds the provincial one in energy efficiency. There was much local knowledge and expertise that could be tapped to improve local energy efficiency, he said.
On the related subject of commercial and industrial growth, Finnie predicted Erin would find success most easily by retaining existing businesses and building on what is there already. For example, the proximity of Toronto makes food processing a potential industry for Erin. He said potential industrial and commercial firms would rather pay development charges up front, rather than face the alternative of higher property taxes year after year.
Maieron thought Erin should be much more aggressive in promoting itself and emphasizing its strengths and unique qualities. Development charges are excessively high, he believes, and that cost Erin several good opportunities. He said Erin is competing with Georgetown, Brampton and Orangeville for industrial growth and should be charging less than those centres.
The final question asked was what could be done to improve roads while keeping costs down. Maieron favoured paving roads when federal and provincial grants are available. He said Erin did not take advantage of such grants years ago when such money was more available, and the municipality is now paying the price.
Finnie told the crowd Erin has been doing some paving in recent years, and those projects should continue. They were costly, but the benefits came in drastically reduced maintenance costs in later years. He cited some $3-million in reserves that can be tapped when additional grants become available.
As well, he thought Erin should investigate acquiring its own gravel pit. The annual bill for gravel is currently in the range of $250,000 to $300,000.
In summation, Finnie said he was basing his re-election bid on his ability to build teamwork, his personal integrity, his experience and his leadership qualities.
Lou Maieron recalled that he had, a decade earlier, worked for Finnie’s election. He thinks now is a time of critical change for Erin, and Finnie had accomplished little to achieve his goals over the past 10 years. He was seeking the mayor’s chair to guide Erin on a new path.
