THUNDER BAY – Shane Judge wants to save taxpayers money and stop reckless spending.
Whether it’s cutting the size of council from 13 to nine, or finding ways to cut spending to a level appropriate to Thunder Bay’s size, the second-time mayoral candidate says the city’s property taxes are among the highest in Ontario and definitely not sustainable over the long run.
It has to change, said Judge, who finished third behind Keith Hobbs and Ken Boshcoff in the 2014 mayor’s race.
Judge said a lack of progress on the economic front was one of the main reasons he decided again to seek the city’s top elected position.
“Our spending is getting a little high here with not any new money coming into the town through new investments,” Judge said.
“And I grew worried we’re reaching a tipping point. And to tell you the truth, I think I’m the only candidate who is really serious about making a smaller, more efficient government and actually doing something about it, by starting at the top and reducing the size of city council and eliminating the ward system and proceeding from there.”
Judge said his goal, over two terms, would be to remove $17 million from the annual $250-million budget, the equivalent of the dividend provided annually by Tbaytel.
“If we’d saved those dividends from the get-go, instead of spending them every year, which we do, we’d have over $200 million in the bank. We could do just about anything we wanted,” said Judge, noting he’d use that money at the start to pay down the city’s nearly $200 million debt.
“We’re paying something on the order of $13 million a year between rate-supported and tax-supported projects. That money could be better used, instead of paying interest, to actually build stuff.”
Judge, a retired journalist with both the CBC and the Chronicle-Journal, said he’s always been a city hall watchdog, turning over every stone to keep council and administration honest. It’s something he promised to keep doing if elected mayor.
“I think my ability to look for the thing that’s missing will be of real benefit to the community,” the 65-year-old said. “I pay attention to things.”
Judge sees plenty of opportunities for the city centred around the tech industry, centred around Tbaytel, suggesting the government of Canada could store data on servers housed in the city, as an example of the possibilities down the road.
When it comes to recreation and culture, Judge expressed doubts about two major projects in various stages of development, saying the Thunder Bay Art Gallery would have been better served to repurpose the former Eaton’s location instead of an ambitious $33-million waterfront build. He also thinks a proposed indoor soccer facility might be a little extravagant, noting that it makes more sense to rebuild a bubble on the CLE grounds.
“I do think there are options that are less expensive than the one being proposed. I have doubts about the tourism value,” Judge said.
The municipal election is on Oct. 22, with online and telephone voting starting on Oct. 9.
