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

4- The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday October 7, 2006 www.oakvillebeaver.com The view from Ward 2 By Krissie Rutherford OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF www.ourkids.net GO TO SCHOOL Canada's essential guide to private education presents Canada's largest PRIVATE EDUCATION Oakville 25 schools already exhibiting Sunday, October 15 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, October 28 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Toronto 78 schools already exhibiting Oakville Conference Centre (near Holiday Inn Bronte) Roy Thomson Hall F I N D T H E R I G H T S C H O O L F O R YO U R C H I L D GET TO KNOW THE SCHOOLS! LEARN ABOUT admission process TALK TO school representatives chance students to media partner: by visit value each ) ing SCHOO Our Kids L FAIRS It's a three-man race for Ward 2 Town and Regional Councillor: a political veteran is up against two candidates looking to make their council debuts. Current Councillor Fred Oliver, who has served 20 years on council, is facing competition from candidates Glenn Woolfrey, who works in Ward 2 for an employee search and staffing firm called Adventis Personnel Inc., and John Hogg, a property assessment and tax consultant, and the lone candidate who lives in the ward. "I think my past service would be satisfactory to continue," said Oliver, a former Oakville police chief. "I have a great deal of experience to offer, both at the Town and the Region, and I'm available, as I have been for a number of years." After serving 32 years on the police force, in 1980 Oliver was elected as Regional and Local councillor and remained a member of council until he moved in Glenn Woolfrey 1994. He later returned to Oakville, was reelected to regional and local council in 2000, and continues to serve today. There are a few issues Oliver hopes to address on behalf of Ward 2 residents. "I'm concerned about traffic and infilling, and trying to retain the taxes as low as possible, providing the needs for the public," he said, adding if elected, he'll discuss those issues with the staff and make recommendations from there. Among Oliver's other contributions to the community are a 50-year membership with the Lion's Club, service as president of the Oakville Golf Club and the Oakville Senior A Hockey Club, and general chairman of the Canadian Open, where he's volunteered for 17 years. Oliver also founded the Town of Oakville Water Air Rescue Force and has been involved with the boards for both Sheridan College and the Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital. Hogg, who has run twice in Ward 2 in the past ­ in 1994 for local and regional council and in 1997 for local council ­ is seeking election again this year because he sees "a whole bunch of improvements that need to be made." The biggest issue for Hogg: preserving the town's heritage. "It seems to be going out the window, and we need to be very concerned about what Oakville's going to turn into," he said, adding developers need to be made aware of Oakville's heritage. "We need to sit down with developers and stakeholders to come up with a compromise before we even go to the OMB." The 23-year Ward 2 resident, who has been active in the community as a coach in both minor and little league baseball and chair of a Boy Scouts committee, also wants to "put trust back into the property assessment and tax system." Hogg's background in finance is extensive, having FREE! Seventh Annual Lakeshore Art Trail Clarkson to Port Credit Sat. & Sun. Oct. 14 & 15 10am to 5pm Visit 26 Artists at 14 Stops www.lakeshoreart.ca for map download or call 905-822-9060 sponsor: 1 of 4 Tablet P Cs ($ 2 ,799 Win LEARN more about exhibiting schools and register online for FREE admission www.ourkids.net served as president of the Oakville Chamber of Commerce, the Federation of Oakville Residence Groups and West Oakville Ratepayers Inc. and co-chair of the Oakville Citizen's Committee on Property Tax Reform. "I want to ensure citizens aren't paying for services they're not receiving," he said, noting one example is that property assessments in Halton have been put on a "two-year hiatus," so citizens shouldn't be paying for those services. Other issues he'd address if elected include creating Fred Oliver more live/work opportunities in Oakville and ensuring that new developments in the town pay for themselves ­ that "growth pays for growth." One of the biggest items on Hogg's political agenda is establishing "transparency, openness and accountability" in government. He wants to establish an open book policy, which he says "doesn't seem to be evident right now." "I would try to develop that for all of Oakville's staff, so that when they were dealing with the public, everything was open and transparent and accessible for our citizens." Along those same accessibility to citizen lines, Woolfrey, a 13-year resident of Oakville, is running his campaign based on active representation. "I feel it's important that I get out and about and meet the people and talk to them, because at the end of the day, John Hogg those are the people I'll be representing," said Woolfrey, who's running for office for the first time, but has assisted with political campaigns in the past. "If elected, I'll be on the job full-time, and I'll be accessible." Among the key issues he's focusing on is revitalization. "There are a lot of areas right now that still require some work," he said, adding Hopedale Mall is undergoing full renewal and Kerr Street is also coming alive. "There's quite a bit of development going to happen with infill...The residents are concerned about how that's going to affect them, they want to hear about it, and I want to be their conduit of information through council." And if revitalization is to continue, he says community safety is "essential to attract jobs, investment and economic growth." Woolfrey, who has spent more than 25 years in the insurance business and now serves in an executive role with the Canadian Naval Reserve, has a lot of experience with safety. He's been a member of the safety team over the past 20 years at the CNE Air Show and still serves with the organization, he took charge of the underwater security as a military reservist during the 1991 Royal visit, and has served with the Auxiliary Police in Peel, having worked in the past with Halton's current Chief of Police. Safety, Woolfrey adds, "is an integral part of the lifestyle that Oakville enjoys and wants to sustain." In 2000, Woolfrey was recognized with the Order of Military Merit for his work within the Canadian Forces and his contributions to the community, which includes serving on the Santa Claus parade committee, being a key organizer in Ecole Pine Grove's Guinness Book of World Record juggling attempt, coaching minor soccer and helping raise funds for Big Brothers and Sisters of Halton.