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== Kitchener Meet The Candidates ==
; Date: Sunday, 30 September 2018, noon to 2:00pm
; Location: St Matthews Lutheran Church, 51 Benton Street, Kitchener, ON

=== What is the role of government in the environment? ===
* Huge role! Especially Regional government
** Responsible for waste, eg. blue boxes and green bins
** But more than waste
* Manage (legislate) producers of waste?
** (Legislate) No plastic bags, single use packaging, straws
* Retrofit existing facilities (gov't, business, residential)
* Provide incentives for fleet cars (gov't, business)

=== What is the role for Regional government to regulate business? ===
* Contrast with other levels of government, eg. provincial, federal
** Regional government has a role for advocacy at those levels
* Provide tax relief for the environmentally conscious
** eg. citizens bring reusable bags to market
** eg. at restaurants bring your own takeout container

* Community advocates are knowledgable, eg. cycling

=== Transit ===
* Transit has a huge impact for the environment
* Who uses transit? (hands raised)
** Not everyone.
** Why? Not enough options
* Region could buy out Carshare and subsidize it
* Use mini-buses, and implement more routes
* Need longer service hours
** eg. Elmira has no service after 7:00pm
** eg. Sunday service to employment locations (Cambridge)

* Free, 100% subsidized transit?
** Would need to figure out subsidy (funding?), tax options, tradeoffs

=== Safe Consumption Sites ===
* What are the tradeoffs?

=== Economic Development and the Environment ===
* Economic Development is a tool for improving the lives of citizens
* The Region doesn't do Economic Development
** It is part of the social toolkit to improve the lives of citizens

=== Affordable Housing ===
* Gentrification?
** eg. Old postoffice
* Where is the affordable housing?
** No-one can afford it.
* Affordable housing is the biggest issue for Rob Deutschman
* "Build as many as possible, as quickly as possible"

* Defer taxes on empty lots
** Vacancy tax, property tax
** Defering taxes encourages new development

* The Region already partners with developers

* The Region needs an "Affordable Housing Czar"
** A liaison between those who need affordable/social/subsidized housing (social workers) and developers

* Affordable housing is not mandated
** Inclusionary zoning is not mandated, but it should be
** What role can cities and rural areas play?

* Can government take on developers?
** Unlikely. Government gives (has given?) too many tax cuts
** Developers are too powerful
* Kitchener Housing (?) has been in touch (with developers?)

* Developers want to help, but want make money
** So they're not "true partners"

* $10 million to remove conditions for affordable housing
* The building does get built, but the affordable housing does not

* Need to continue conversation
** Government cant' fund Affordable Housing on its own, needs partnership

* As things get more expensive we need new ideas

* Not building out
** The Region must not build outside the Countryside Line

* Regional Housing is not as easy as it used to be
** Developers are putting conditions on the deal
** Nobody (developers) is listening (to calls for affordable housing) because developer have got to make a buck
** eg. site for Trinity Church -- does it have no historical value?

* Some long-term developers who live and work in the Region are helping
** They are willing to have these discussions
** But it is not mandated

* Advocate for changing zoning bylaws to encourage Affordable Housing
** eg. reduce legislated parking ratios, reduce the $40K costs of building parking facilities

* Why is Co-operative Housing not possible?
** Market has made the funding too expensive
** 25-30 years ago it was successful

* Can't rely on developers (to implement affordable housing)
** But government should get on it

=== Role of Regional Government ===
* Too many layers: Municipal, Regional, Provincial
* We're sharing services, eg. Fire, Ambulance
** But Transit, Police are Regional responsibilities
** And Fire is a Municipal responsibility

* Urban Sprawl
** To rein it in needs discussion between Regional and Municipal governments
* Design of Urban Sprawl needs cooperation, consistency between municipalities

* Kitchener has the bulk of Regional social services locations
** eg. Housing, Public Health
** These access points to facilities need to be spread out across the Region

* Housing, space for non-profits has become unaffordable

* A 10% change in Affordable Housing is not going to make a big difference
** There is a seven year wait for supportive housing

* Region and Cities have to do a better job of Affordable Housing
** Partnerships: Developer puts housing in, Region monitors installation and takes over units for Affordable (Supportive, Social, Public) housing

* Is there a role for government to remove the commodity market of housing?
** There should be!
** There is a place for government to step in
** So that housing is not controlled by capitalist forces

* More diversification, distribution of affordable housing

=== Governance ===
* Giving representation to "Those who didn't vote for us"
* Divisive politics
** We have become more divisive as a society
** This works against the democratic process
** A single winner takes over, runs over minorities

* Proper democracy involves looking out for minorities

* The Region has been in place for 45 years
** It was a good idea when introduced
** Ensured equalization of services
** Inclusive of rural townships

* But who looks after what?

* Consolidate the Region?
** Not a MegaCity!
** Amalgamate Kitchener and Waterloo
** Combine some services
** Done in the past, eg. Cambridge Transit is now part of GRT
** Do we need a separate Kitchener Fire Department and Waterloo Fire Department?

* (to Tom Hiller): Why are you running?
** Almost 65 years old, have no kids, and lots of time

* Scale of Regional and Municipal government:
** We have more and more councillors
** The population has demanded more representation
** But for Waterloo Regional Council - Do we need this many councillors? Maybe not

* If we don't show improvement in our governance, it will be foisted on us (by the Provincial government)
* "Flavour of the day: Government is way too big"
** But tax revenues set a different level of governance for Toronto compared to Waterloo Region
* We need management of government sprawl
* More representation may result in more conflict
* The layers of government is holding back economic growth
** When restrictions to a business are removed then economic growth is improved

Notes taken by Bob Jonkman

[[Category:Social Development Centre]]

Meet The Candidates 2018 - Kitchener - Revision history

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