THUNDER BAY – Less red tape, a better grasp on spending and safe streets are at the top of the Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce platform wish-list for candidates for mayor and city council.
Organization president Charla Robinson on Monday unveiled the Chamber’s 2022 City of Opportunity Platform for Visionary Leadership, Economic Opportunity and Quality of Life for All, listing 10 pillars for prospective candidates to commit to should they be elected on Oct. 24.
Robinson said the Chamber will distribute an accompanying survey to all 59 candidates on the ballot, giving them until Sept. 21 to fill one out and return, with the results being posted in early October.
A similar platform was issued four years ago.
“The 2018 platform was instrumental in driving results, including the program and service review, the Rethink zoning bylaw and an improved citizen engagement process and policy, the reduction of the 10-year average annual tax levy increase from 3.36 per cent to 2.95 per cent, and the development of a digital services strategy that’s currently in progress,” Robinson said.
The 10 pillars are broken down into three distinct categories: visionary leadership, economic opportunity and quality of life.
In the first category, the Chamber is seeking councillors who lead by example, work to form partnerships, show openness and prudent spending habits.
In the second, less red tape, improved customer service standards and long-term thinking are the asks.
In the final category, great neighbourhoods, safe streets and diversity and inclusion top the list.
Robinson the latest platform builds on the work of the past four years, with community safety and well-being standing tall as the No. 1 issue of Chamber members, who responded to their own survey, providing the planks of the newly released platform.
Chamber members also consider fiscal accountability and transparency as fundamental to the role of city council.
Smarter spending is key to that, Robinson said.
“Understanding the real costs of city services enables effective decision-making and increases taxpayer buy-in when hard choices have to be made,” she said.
“We need our leaders to provide clear objectives that empower municipal staff to effect change, while also holding them accountable for reaching the goals that will move us forward as a city.”
Robinson said the platform is especially important in an election year which has seen five current councillors announce they won’t be on the ballot in 2022, including Mayor Bill Mauro, at-large Couns. Aldo Ruberto and Rebecca Johnson, Neebing’s Cody Fraser and Red River’s Brian McKinnon. There’s a real potential there will be more representatives new to council that returning.
That’s where leading by example, developing relationships on and off council and being prepared for meetings comes in, Robinson said.
“We think that’s going to be integral, because it is going to be a lot of new folks around the table and they’ve got so much to learn. They need to understand that this is important. And councillors that are returning, they need to know the same thing, that just because Coun. X is brand new doesn’t mean you shouldn’t listen to what they have to say. It doesn’t mean that you know everything,” Robinson said.
