On Oct. 24, voters in Barrie, Ont., will head to the polls to elect councillors in 10 wards as well as a mayor to form city council.
To help voters ahead of this election, Global News reached out to all of those running for city council and mayor in Barrie with available online contact info. Those running for office were emailed a list of seven questions, and in the coming days, the responses for every candidate who replies will be shared.
Four candidates have put their hats in the ring for Ward 9.
Wards 5 and 7 were acclaimed, so Global News will not have profiles for those wards.
What follows are the responses received from those running for Ward 9 councillor, with the candidates being listed in alphabetical order. (This page will be updated if more candidates choose to respond.)
Norm Costello
Q.1 Please give a brief background of yourself, including what you do for a living and how long you have lived in the area? (If you are an incumbent, please state how long you have held the position.)
I am 63 years old and have lived in what is Ward 9 now for over 21 years.I am married to my wife Kim of 40 years and we have two grown adult children Scott and Sheena. We also have a beautiful toy poodle whose name is Finnigan, he has been blind since birth.I am a production manager of a corrugated box plant in Vaughan.
Q.2 Why do you believe you are the right person for the job?
Yes I feel that I am the right person for the job because of my business and life skills. The incumbent and the two others running in my Ward do not have the experience I have to get the job done in Ward 9. The incumbent has 8 years as a councillor with minimal success.
Q.3 What do you think is the most important issue facing your ward and the city as a whole?
I think our most important issue facing our city is our Homelessness, Mental Health and Drug Addiction crisis. We need to provide aid and assistance for these people to help them during their crisis. We need facilities to help them fight the addictions, the homelesseness and the Mental Health issues they live with every day. This needs the cooperation of all levels of government, including Simcoe County for us to succeed. I will fight for these people, the way they have been treated up to now is inhumane.
Q.4 Looking down the road, what are your long-term goals for the city?
I see this city as a place to live, work and play. We need to bring manufacturing jobs to this city that pay well. We need to use our beautiful waterfront to make it a vibrant place to go including our downtown. residents shouldnt be afraid to go downtown after 8pm.
Q.5 What are the pillars of your campaign?
My pillars of my campaign are the Homlessness, Mental Health and Drug Addiction crisis.
Snow Windrows, the pile of snow left at your curb should not be your problem. The city can deal with these piles of snow by adding an attachment to the plow which eliminates the windrow.
Buses, Too many of our buses drive around our city empty. We need to streamline our routes and sizes of buses that make sense.
Our Beaches need to be kept clean and accessible for our city residents.
Traffic Lights, Traffic flow and timing of the lights is a problem at many intersections in the city.
Speding and Noisy Vehicles, We need to put a stop to speeding and noisy vehicles through enforcement and fines.
Community Policing, we need community policing. It would increase our level of trust in our police force. It would consist of smaller, more localized stations or hubs, Better chance of knowing our officers.
Multi-Use Zoning, I think we need to consider multi-use zoning to help alleviate our need to drive everywhere we go. Multi-Use zoning will help people Work and Play where they live.
Ending Legacy Projects, No more projects just for the sake of leaving politicians a legacy.
Q.6 What do you like to do in your spare time?
I enjoy golfing and spending time with my wife and our dog Finnigan at our trailer on the weekends in the spring, summer and fall.
Q.7 What is your favourite thing about living in your city/ward?
I think it is critical that as a councillor that you live in the ward you represent. I love how Ward 9 feels like a suburb but has the city amenities. I think we have a long way to go in our ward with all of the projected growth. We need to make sure we keep up with the required infrastructure and hold developers accountable to the end.
Sergio Morales
Did not respond to Global News’ request for comment.
William Rome
Did not respond to Global News’ request for comment.
Adam Wilcox
Did not respond to Global News’ request for comment.
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