Your Midtown KW Neighbourhood

The All Candidates Meeting for Ward 10 was held on Sunday October 2 from 2 – 4:00 pm at the Downtown Community Centre. For those who were unable to attend, we recorded the meeting and the videos are available here.

This event was organized by representatives from three Neighbourhood Associations within Ward 10 (Olde Berlin Town NA, Central Frederick NA and Mount Hope – Breithaupt Park NA). It was moderated by Roy Cameron. The candidates who attended were Aislinn Clancy, Peter Davis, Stephanie Stretch and Phong Tran (Daniel Fife declined attending because of our requirement to wear a mask and we were told Lana Hiscock was ill). All NAs reached out to their membership/residents and asked for them to submit questions about issues they felt important. Our ‘committee’ then refined the main questions for clarity and to cover a range of topics. The meeting’s Part 1 video has all these questions. Those attending the meeting also had the opportunity to write out questions that were presented to candidates and those are located in the “Part 2” video. Here are the questions submitted by residents in order which allows you to more easily locate specific topics.

QUESTIONS ASKED TO ALL CANDIDATES

• 1. Can you please tell us about yourself, describe your past involvement in Ward 10, your experience in municipal affairs and what the primary challenges are for Ward 10?
• Preamble to questions 2, 3, 4: The following three questions are about housing.
  • Given that Kitchener is a city with affluent and marginalized communities, urban and suburban areas, issues around intensification, homelessness, and substance abuse, please consider this complexity as you answer your questions.
• 2. Affordable housing has become a significant issue. What strategies do you see that will help resolve the lack of affordable housing?
• 3. What is the right balance of enforcement and accommodation for dealing with the tent city and other homeless encampments, and what will the situation be in one year and two years from now?
• 4. An argument has been made that intensification will eventually lead to more affordable housing. An opposing argument is that no amount of intensification will produce affordable housing. What are your thoughts?
• 5. What is your position on winter sidewalk snow clearing, and what, if anything, would you do differently to make our community more safe, accessible, and equitable year-round?
• 6. Kitchener and Waterloo have implemented new speed limits indicating that speeding is a major concern. While research and best practices suggest that a more rigorous approach to traffic calming is needed, Council and staff have been reluctant to adopt such measures. What is your plan to enhance street safety in a meaningful way?
• 7. What will you do as a councillor to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Kitchener?
• 8. Are you familiar with the Transform Waterloo Region Report and how will preserving our natural green spaces, wetlands and forests create a sustainable, resilient community?
• 9. Ward 10 includes one of the most historical areas of Kitchener. With intensification high on both the region and city agendas, how will viable and stable neighbourhoods be maintained in the downtown and surrounding neighbourhoods, including preservation of heritage buildings?
• 10. What is your direct experience working with racialized and Indigenous communities, and what are key elements of your plan to work toward reconciliation?

ENJOY!

Voting Day is Monday October 24. If you need any information about Voting, visit the local website here.

Thanks you!

to the Neighbourhood Associations that organized this community event! BIG thanks!!