The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

th ei fp .c a Th e IF P -H al to n H ill s | T hu rs da y, O ct ob er 4, 20 18 | 14 NOITIUTEERF ac.gninraeltludahnl 0022-378-509 KROWROFSLLIKSRETUPMOC HTAM,GNITIRW,GNIDAER NOITARAPERPTSETDEG ECAEGELLOCNADIREHS term of council. I would continue working toward that vision, as we move for- ward. I believe my experi- ence will be an asset in working toward that end. KIM ROY The first thing to get straight is the definition: What do we mean by af- fordable housing? If we mean housing whose total cost does not exceed 30 per month of a monthly salary, how do we go about con- trolling that? The answer varies whether you are dealing with young profes- sionals, seniors, people with disabilities, single parents, families, or home- less. Complexity like this re- quires creative thinking to deliver the progress that the community needs. We need to work with the town to understand how we could leverage unused lands and buildings avail- able for housing. I would examine unconventional solutions that take advan- tage of already existing in- frastructure, so that we can act sooner to assist our residents. One idea is HomeShare: co-living within current resident homes in our com- munity for those willing to help or looking for support themselves. I've been talking with many, and several are do- ing this already. I would say that the municipality holds the key for the simple reason that it bridges the gap between the develop- ers and those who need the housing, determines the citizens at need, the hous- ing resources available, and facilitates matchups. The municipality acts as the centre of communica- tion for the entire commu- nity. ANN LAWLOR The top Issue in the next term of council will be managing growth and maintaining the small town feel that is so impor- tant to us. Since the prov- ince has determined that Halton Hills will grow, a new neighbourhood is be- ing planned and new homes will be built in southwest Georgetown, be- ginning in about 2021. By 2031, the scope will be simi- lar to that of south George- town. Council is aware of the importance of our small town character, and en- sured that the vision for the new neighbourhood complements that style. It will have several schools, commercial areas, parks, a library/community centre and a mix of housing. The dominant housing will be single family. A central core and walkable, tree- lined streets will contrib- ute to a traditional town at- mosphere. Phased construction will occur so the impact of new building will be re- stricted to certain areas and away from established neighbourhoods. Phasing will ensure that new resi- dents have timely access to community amenities such as schools, parks and shopping close to home. Growth will require bet- ter transportation. Road- ways such as Trafalgar are expanding to make travel easier in and out of town. We continue to advocate for two way all day GO ser- vice. RON NORRIS When meeting with peo- ple, in my ward, the prima- ry concern has been traffic. Speed and flow.Speed: It is well subscribed that one cannot legislate common sense. On quiet residential streets, impatient driving, combined with distracted pedestrians is a tragedy waiting to happen. I would bring together council, concerned residents and Halton Regional Police to determine the most effec- tive ways to create road calm. North American studies suggest that there are creative solutions, but they do require co-opera- tion from all.Flow: As weekday traffic on High- way 401 continues to be bogged down, vehicles, in- cluding trucks, are in- creasingly using Highway 7 through Acton and Georgetown as an east- west alternative. Initially, we have to address and re- route the large trucks that are turning at the four cor- ners of Acton and in the village of Norval. Truck bypass would have been a spinoff of the cancelled GTA West Corridor 400 se- ries Highway, but the long- term opportunities for a bypass still exist. It will take time, but "A journey of a 1000 miles begins with a single step." ABE VERGHIS Our youth are our fu- ture, and I fear that sub- stance abuse and mental health problems are plagu- ing our youth especially within our high schools. With legalization weeks away, this issue will be fur- ther exacerbated by its availability through legal channels. My call to action is to urgently further en- hance our current recre- ational activities such as basketball, tennis and in- door soccer and to have them affordable. The es- sence of this strategy is to promote constructive use of their time and to ac- knowledge successes and abilities, while at the same time creating drug abuse awareness. D'ARCY KEENE The biggest problem facing Georgetown this election is some of the peo- ple currently on council that want to change our town into a large, sprawl- ing suburb like Brampton or Mississauga. The worst example of this misguided, busybody thinking, is the current sneaky attempts to bring in a bus system. This must be stopped at all costs. No one in George- town is asking for a bus system.My strategy is to elect people to town coun- cil who will fight to pre- serve the great quality of life we have here today. Ward three and four re- gional council JANE FOGAL The top issue identified by residents while I have been door-knocking is speeding on residential streets. People want to see a physical change in the road, such as speed bumps or stop signs. The Town has a protocol in place to determine if traffic-calm- ing measures are warrant- ed, and if so what measures are recommended. The issue of speeding is common across all munici- palities and it is having an effect on the safety and en- joyment of our neighbour- hoods. There is a lack of civility and care as people rush through someone else's neighbourhood to get to school or work or home. One strategy to address speeding is to work through the schools. Many of our biggest problems are near schools. I think we should put together a pro- gram aimed at changing at- titudes and behaviours to make people more aware of the side effects of their speeding habits. We should work with the school trust- ees to design a messaging program and tie it in with their program to get stu- dents walking and biking to school. There could also be public partnerships le- veraged to reach a larger population. Simple things such as Facebook groups could be recruited to help reinforce the message. JOHN COOKE An efficient transporta- tion system and an ade- quate supply of decent af- fordable housing, coupled with diverse job opportuni- ties, comprise the three legs of the foundation upon which rests the future prosperity of our town. There are a number of town initiatives and pro- jects currently underway to address these issues: The Intensification Oppor- tunities Study to identify where more residential building can occur within our existing urban bound- aries; the Transit Strategy to respond to current needs and future growth; Vision Georgetown regarding the development of the 1,000- acre parcel of land to be home to 19,000 residents. All of this encompassed within the town's strategic plan. Tackling this issue will require keeping an open mind to emerging technologies and new ap- proaches. MARK LOCKWOOD MAYOR, RICK BONNETTE There are several key is- sues affecting residents. They can vary from family to family, based on partic- ular circumstances. How- ever, I believe the top issue is ensuring that we main- tain and continue to raise our high quality of life. We need to continue to make Halton Hills as af- fordable as possible, while providing services our res- idents want and need. We have done this with the new skateboard park, three new ice pads, trails playgrounds and more. Part of my strategy to maintain Halton Hills' high quality of life is to invest in services that engage and support youth. Halton Hills is open for business. My strategy is to continue to implement economic de- velopment and have our economy as diversified as possible. REGIONAL CHAIR ,GARY CARR The top issue is what chair has the strong expe- rienced leadership with the proven track record to lead Halton Region and keep Halton Region the best. Since I have been elect- ed hair, Halton has the best record in all of Canada for keeping taxes low. Since 2007 Halton's yearly tax in- crease have averaged 0.5 per cent. In addition, Halton Re- gion is one of the safest communities in Canada. All of us at Halton Region are proud of the efforts we have made to keep Halton residents safe, including the launch of our award- winning Community Safe- ty and Well-Being Plan, which addresses key issues that impact our communi- ty. We will continue to work closely with police and community partners to ensure Halton remains a safe community now and in the future. NEWS Continued from page 9 CANDIDATES HIGHLIGHT TOP ISSUES AFFECTING COMMUNITY