Platform
Below you'll find the 5 pillars of my campaign. Most if not all of the communities concerns can fit into one of the five following pillars.
Updating Community Infrastructure
Updating our community infrastructure is the number one priority for me and should be for the new term of council.
With the Inter Urban Water System making progress, council will look to take out a significant amount of debt in the coming years.
The Inter Urban Water System has a plan that is a cost effective, timely solution to addressing our water capacity and storage issues in our county.
We will look to:
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lift the development freeze
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stabilize our rates
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decommission old piece of infrastructure and
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meet our seasonal peak demands.
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But, we can't do it alone- we need funding from upper levels of government which leads me directly into my second pillar.
Positive Relationship Building
Our Provincial and Federal partners are critical to our success. This is evident as Norfolk County brought in a surplus in both 2020 and 2021 due to provincial pandemic funding.
As we look to upgrade roads, bridges, brick and mortar facilities and critical infrastructure like water and waste water facilities we need to have a better working relationship with upper levels of government.
It doesn't stop there. We need to restore positive relationships with many sectors across Norfolk County.
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Our Agriculture community is in need of support from their municipal partners- not more restrictions and hostility.
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Our Tourism community seeks a partner to promote only the positive in Norfolk.
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Recreation users wish to have steady service delivery.
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The Development community wants to trust that basic infrastructure will be made available and that we are a community worth investing in.
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Our staff are looking for job security and a positive work environment to bring new ideas forward to.
Restoring and Strengthening Norfolk's Reputation
Whenever our county is represented in the news it is always my hope that it is done in the best light possible. The Mayor of Norfolk County is the spokesperson of our County and represents our community at all times. If elected, I plan to highlight only the very best of Norfolk County given any opportunity.
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Over the last four years there have been several instances which I believe have not met that criteria. I think we have attracted attention but not the kind that supports our business community, our tourism industry or one that supports new investment to come and stay in Norfolk County.
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We are constantly asked as elected official how we will support new jobs and industry in Norfolk. This is where I'll start.
Appropriate Communication and Transparency
Although these are typical election "buzz words" they have been a common theme in Norfolk County over the last several years.
I have prided myself on being one of the only members of present council that campaigned on AND used several social media sites while elected to communicate with Norfolk County residents.
If elected as Mayor I will continue my commitment to positive communication with community members via my social media sites, phone and email.
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I've shared budget cuts with community members before they were debated.
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I've shared council clips online after the meeting.
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I've shared development file updates to ensure community participation on those projects before it was too late.
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I've shared the upcoming meeting agenda to keep you informed.
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I have made an effort to communicate good and bad news so the tax payers of Norfolk are informed and look forward to continuing to do so.
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Scroll to the top of the website and find my social media links posted.
Succession Planning for the future of Norfolk
Norfolk County needs a plan for our future.
Both for infrastructure and finances but also for continuity in services and operations.
Over the last year Norfolk County saw a 46% vacancy turn over rate with employees.
The April 12th 2022 staff report notes
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457 job vacancies over all.
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738 interviews occurred.
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647 job offers were made.
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While only 283 new staff members where hired
Why did the other 364 candidates turn us down?
View the staff report for yourself - here.
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With countless Norfolk terminations and departures over the last four years, many position remain unfilled or entirely revamped without any documentation of review to determine if efficiencies were captured.
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As we plan into the future we know that council and it's members will come and go-but staff will remain. Some staff members are nearing retirement and others have already gone leaving positions open.
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Ensuring we have appropriate leadership in our administration to pass on information, operations skills and historic knowledge to a suitable replacement is paramount. We must ensure new methods of operations and the hard work of right-sizing the budget and the financial struggles associated with doing so, is not for nothing.
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We must stabilize our corporation and begin proactively searching for our next leaders in the administration instead of letting positions sit vacant and reacting after the fact.
