Priorities

There’s a lot we can accomplish in four years on Regional Council. I want to focus on three priorities: Making Government Work, Connecting the Region, and Securing the Future.

 

For every major decision, I will ask whether it is sustainable in four ways:

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• Democratically, by being open and accountable to residents

• Socially, by helping people belong and thrive

• Financially, by making commitments we can afford to maintain

• Environmentally, by protecting the land, water, and climate we depend on.

 

That is how I will judge whether we are building a better Waterloo Region for the long term. There's more on these further down the page.

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Make Government Work

Waterloo Region’s eight municipal governments were created for a different time. I believe it’s time to reconsider how they fit together, but that doesn’t mean folding all eight into one big city. Perhaps we ought to end up with two muncipailities - one urban/suburban and one rural/agricultural.

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Over the next four years, we can examine the evidence, listen to residents and municipalities, and build a credible regional consensus on a better structure. With provinicial support, we should aim to have that structure in place for the 2030 municipal elections. The goal is simpler, more accountable government that works better for the people it serves.

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Connect the Region

Connecting the Region means completing ION to Cambridge and getting the Kitchener transit hub at King and Victoria built, so transit services connect as part of one regional network. This will require some reckoning with how we have approached homelessness in DownTown Kitchener.

 

It also means closing the gaps in our walking and cycling routes, so people can travel safely from one place to another. We cannot be limited to a few isolated stretches of good infrastructure.

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When more people have practical alternatives to driving, we take pressure off our roads and make room for the trips that still need a car.

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It also means having a conversation, probably difficult, about e-scooters and e-bikes, and where they fit in our transportation systems.

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Secure the Future

The water crisis should concern every one of us. It raises a hard question: has growth outpaced the systems we depend on? And if our water system is under strain, where else might we be vulnerable?

 

We must to assess our critical infrastructure now, identify the risks, and make a clear plan to address them. Residents deserve to see the evidence, understand the decisions, and know whether we’re making progress.​