Now YOU get to decide who will spend your tax dollars. Do your homework and make informed choices.

By Pepper Parr

September 13, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

So – who is it going to be? And does it matter?
Nominations closed yesterday afternoon and the city Clerk can now begin the task of preparing all the papers and getting the ballots printed. And residents of the city can begin to learn something about the people who put their $100 on the counter, signed a bunch of papers and are now going door to door to tell you who they are.

Does it matter? You bet your bippy it matters – they spend all those tax dollars you send to the city. If you live in an apartment building you might not see that tax bill but it is a large part of your rent.
Does it matter? Should you need care at the hospital – know that the city put a special tax levy in place to collect the $60 million it had to come up with to pay for the hospital. Early in the mandate of Mayor Rick Goldring he learned that – Burlington was going to have to come up with that $60 million. The city manager at the time said it was the largest financial undertaking the city had faced.
Which roads get paved – the people you elect decide that.

The PIER – yes it is built and it is nice – but was it worth twice the price it was supposed to cost? When the bill is set at more than $6 million and the final bill comes in at more than $14 million – questions need to be asked and answers need to be given. If you made a goof of that proportion in the real world you would have been fired. This is your opportunity to fire some of the people who are now on Council.

So – what are your choices:
Ward 1:
Patrick ALLEN,
Jason BOELHOUWER,
Rick CRAVEN,
Katherine HENSHELL,
Gary MILNE
Margaret Anne STEISS,

Ward 1 boundaries

Rick Craven is the incumbent; he has been on Council since 2000
We have written about Henshell and Boelhouwer. A note on full disclosure, Henshell has done and is continuing to do some legal work for the Gazette. We will write about Milne, Steiss and Allan in the days ahead

Ward 2:

Kelly ARNOTT,
Marianne MEED WARD,
Philip PAPADOPOULOS,
Andy PORECKI,.

Meed Ward is the incumbent and was first elected to Council in 2010.

Ward 2 boundaries

We have written about Arnott but not yet as a candidate.  We will write about the other candidates in the weeks ahead.

Ward 3

Jeff BROOKS,
Lisa COOPER,
John TAYLOR.

Ward 3 boundaries

John Taylor is the incumbent.  He is the Dean of this Council and has served for more than 20 years. Lisa Cooper has been a candidate in the past, Jeff Brooks is new to the election game.  We will publish the interview we did with Lisa Cooper and will interview Jeff Brooks in the very near future.

Ward 4

Jack DENNISON,
Carol GOTTLOB,
Doug WILCOX,

Ward 4 boundaries

Jack Dennison is the incumbent and has served on Council for more than 20 years.  He has been a controversial candidate and brings a distinct style to serving as a Council member.

Carol Gottlob is new to the political scene and struggles to get a campaign team together.  When people meet her they appear to be impressed.  we have written about Gottlob.  Doug Wilcox was a last minute candidate and does not live in the ward.  While that may not make much of a difference to those in the northern part of the ward – for those south of New Street it is a very big deal.  The residents in that part of the city are well organized and have two community organizations.

Ward 5

Paul SHARMAN,
Ian SIMPSON,
James SMITH.

Ward 5 boundaries

Paul Sharman is the incumbent and is completing his first term.  He has been strong on the financial matters that come before Council and certainly changed the tone of the debate.  He is adamant about data – no date he says – then no decision.

James Smith has run for public office before – ran in ward 4 and missed the brass ring by a couple of hundred votes.  He has been a frequent delegator at city hall where he speaks about transit and planning.

Ian Simpson is an unknown to us.  He has had his nomination in place for a number of months but we know little about him.  We will interview Mr. Simpson.

Ward 6

Angelo BENTIVEGNA,
Jim CURRAN,
Pardeep Kaur DOSANJH,
Jennifer HLUSKO,
Blair LANCASTER,
Jivan SANGHERA,
Shoaib SHAMS,
Ishar THIARA,
Mina WAHIDI,
Vanessa WARREN.

Ward 6 boundaries

Blair Lancaster is the incumbent facing nine people who want that Council seat.  Lancaster was first elected in 2010 in a ward that includes the Air Park and the Alton community that was not as developed as it is now in 2010.

We have written about Bentivenga, Curran, Hlusko, Sanghera and Warren.  We will publish the Wahidi interview in the near future and interview the other candidates – most of whom nominated in the very recent past.

Are there any upsets possible?  Lancaster is certainly at risk.  Sharman could be in trouble.  Dennison has name recognition that is so high he will be difficult to beat – but if his record is looked at carefully the citizens of Ward 4 might go for some fresh blood.

Should Meed Ward be defeated it will be the upset of the century for this city.

Craven can be challenged – beaten?  That one is going to be an interesting race.

There is a race for the Regional chair; Mayor Goldring has been challenged by at last one creditable candidate – and there are school board trustees to be looked at.