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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 | 8 As part of the IFP's cov- erage of the 2018 Halton Hills municipal election, staff asked the candidates in the race to respond to the question: "What do you think is the top issue affect- ing Halton Hills residents and what is your strategy to tackle this issue?" Here's what candidates running for council, re- gional council, and mayor said: WARD ONE, MIKE ALBANO The No. 1 concern I hear often is the traffic/bypass issues. This is a real prob- lem, a problem that re- quires co-operation, input and funding from the prov- ince the region and possi- bly the federal govern- ment. The problem is not an easy fix and will take time. I have been very in- volved addressing the traf- fic issues and have been working with town staff and other councillors. Over the years there have been lots of talks about traffic; it was this council that moved forward to ad- dress and act on this con- cern. This council ap- proved the truck and traf- fic study and the town is currently undertaking Phase 1 of the study. Phase 2 is expected to examine the Acton Bypass options. The results of the Phase 1 study will be made avail- able in a report in 2019. RYAN MCLAUGHLIN I have had many rural residents email me to dis- cuss their concerns about things like garbage pickup. For them, that is a major is- sue. In going door-to-door over the past few weeks, many of the young families I've met have discussed their concerns around the pool in Acton and the lack of services for children and teens. For other people, the issue of seniors housing is top of the list. All of these are major issues that coun- cil needs to try and tack- le.As a financial profes- sional, I think the top issue facing Halton Hills is at- tracting new high-paying jobs and retaining existing jobs. The town has done a good job of attracting ware- house jobs and retail jobs. However, we need to con- tinue to look for new oppor- tunities to bring high tech, high-paying jobs. We have large growing communi- ties around us that are also trying to attract the same jobs and in order to stand out, our community needs to be cut above the rest with top flight facilities, services and skilled work- ers. The best way to ad- dress all of these issues is to partner with residents, businesses and all levels of government to try and move these issues forward. PETER DUNCANSON Acton and Georgetown, the two biggest urban cen- tres in Halton Hills, are fundamentally different. What is considered a major issue in one is a minor problem in the other. I am a candidate in ward one in Acton. The major issue in my ward, according to area residents, is heavy truck traffic coming down High- ways 7 and 25. It affects the stores, services and restau- rants in the downtown core. It makes parking dif- ficult and causes severe traffic congestion as large trucks try to turn at the in- tersection of Highway 7 and 25. There is no easy an- swer to this issue. A bypass will be expensive and even if approved tomorrow will be years away from com- pletion. There are other is- sues that are very close on residents list of concerns, but this seems to be the big one, as it affects many as- pects of life in Acton. I re- alize that this is not a big is- sue in Georgetown, but it certainly is to the town of Acton. JAMIE ADAMS We understand road safety, business growth, low taxes and affordable recreation for youth and seniors is important. A lesser discussed issue that council will need to decide on soon after the election is whether Halton Hills will opt-in to having storefront cannabis retailers. I'm committed to making an informed decision about recreational cannabis from the input provided by industry experts, and more importantly from our resi- dents. Public engagement isn't Town Hall telling us what they've decided and feel free to comment; it should be "give us your comment and we will make it our plan." As a mother of young and impressionable children, this discussion is challenging, but I'm very conscious of the fact we on- ly got here because of so- cial activism. This shift with cannabis was the de- sire of the public and that speaks volumes. We still need more information on the impacts and safety for our community, but I will listen to our residents and collaborate with council to NEWS WE ASKED AND THEY ANSWERED: CANDIDATES TALK KEY ISSUES IN HALTON HILLS Candidates are hitting the campaign trail in the weeks leading up to the municipal election. What should we ask them to find out if they're the best candidate for our vote? Shutterstock ALEXANDRA HECK aheck@metroland.com See - page 9