s+ IB MUNICIPAL ELECTION ROBERT GOTTARDI BELIEVES HE CAN = BRING THOSE SKILLS 270 THE TOWN OF E HALTON HILLS " HERB GARBUTT hgarbutt@metroland.com ills | Thursday, August 25, 2022 | After making a career out of managing money, Robert Gottardi believes he can bring those skills to the Town of Halton Hills. "The cost of living, the cost of driving is going up. Town property taxes keep going up, but there's no ap- preciable increase in ser- vices," said the ‘almost re- tired' investment portfolio ger, who became the fourth candidate for may- or after filing Monday. Gottardi also ran for RENOVATION CONTEST. A aN 264 Main St. North Acton, Ontario L MUNICIPAL ELECTIONY mayor in 2018, earning 15 cent of the vote to fin- ish second of the three andidates. This year, he will run against council- lors Bryan Lewis, Ann Lawlor, and Acton busi- nessman Norm Paulsen. And should he be elect- ed this time, Gottardi said idea about where the t town can save some money right away. “The mayor's salary is disproportionately high (compared to council), anc if I was mayor, the ae thing I would do is cut the mayor's salary. And if that wasn't possible, I'd donate a portion to charity or di- rect it to a town fund to help subsidize seniors’ Metroland file photo Robert Gottardi is the fourth mayoral candidate for Halton Hills. taxes." The mayor's base pay is $105,881, compared to ENTER FOR A CHANCE TO WIN $10,000 TO SPEND ON CASTLE ‘PRODUCTS AND SERVICES! 1w9 Ph: 519-853-1970 ¢ Fax: 519-853-2542 f $41,957 for town council- lors. The region also com- pensates the mayor and Join Our 2022-23 Season House League & U9/UTI Rep Programs Open for Registration Building Confidence, Developing Skills, and a lot of FUN! INVESTMENT MANAGER JOINS MAYORAL RACE the general two regional nl for sitting on the Halton Region council. Gottardi said tax in- creases (council approved 4.57 per cent increase last year) have outpaced the cost of living for too long. He said the town needs to find more effi- cient ways of doing busi- ness in order to keep taxes down and make life more affordable for seniors on fixed incomes. The new mayoral can- didate said he talked to members of more than 9,000 households during his campaign fou years ago, givil goo sense of what people on He said keeping communi- cation lines open between the community and coun- cil will benefit both par- ties, especially in present- ing budgets in a way that Register ily understand. iat we cane communicate and nity cnderstand what we're do. ing, they'll come to us more informed," he said. “We need to take the time engage people about what's going to happen in the near future and the next 10 years." Knowing that the town is growing, Gottardi s: the town needs to catch up in providing recreational opportunities and other facilities. He believes that an ex- panded transit system connecting the populated areas with the employ- ment oj ‘tunities in the Premier Gateway will help keep young people living and we the town rather than having to leave to find work. now