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9 Friday , O ctober 1, 2010 O A KVILLE BEA V ER w w w .o akvillebeaver .co m worked with the other BIAs in Oakville and he wants to con- tinue the trend of collaboration with the BIAs if hes elected. One of the issues he wants to deal with while in council is, to see Lakeshore Road as more of a blend. So when you cross the bridge you lose that men- tality of east side-west side. He wants to work with the various BIAs in order to start a beautification project of the entire Lakeshore Road. Its to see how we can blend so that Lakeshore goes right across and visually you lose that thought of Im now on the west side. Once your mentality has changed people are going to say, theres more to this town than this six block area. Another issue for him is to properly use the Department of National Defence (DND) lands in Ward 2. He wants that prop- erty to have a blend of higher end, as well as more affordable, housing. He said another issue coun- cil will have to deal with is the change taking place on Speers Road, which will have more high-rise buildings. Its about keeping a higher population that can use GO trains to make it more afford- able to get around town, but as well as to Toronto, he said. Other high priorities for him are seniors issues and cre- ating accessibility for disabled people. Bruce Grant Another candidate in the running for the seat is 50-year- old Bruce Grant. The business consultant has lived in Oakville for 13 years and in Ward 2 for five. He has a busi- ness degree from the University of Western Ontario. Certainly with my business and financial back- ground, Im hop- ing to bring real accountability and fiscal responsibility to the council. Im completely independent. Im here just to represent my ward, he said. Grant said hes running because of what he calls a lack of accountability and fiscal responsibility at town hall. Grant questions the town for committing money to the new hospital without a firm plan for paying the money back. If Id been on council, I would have insisted we got to have a plan before we commit to this. It was such a large num- ber that I think it should have gone to the residents as a refer- endum item in this election. Im all for the hospital, but let the residents decide if they want it, he said. He is critical of the bus sys- tem. I live on Lakeshore and I see buses at all times of the day, not just at 11 oclock at night, these big, long buses that are running empty or near empty, he said. He said the subsidized cost of public transit is $7.39 per ride, or a deficit of $19 million this year. We need a system that is intelligent, eco friendly and cost effective because its not working right now, he said. He said possible remedies could include implementing the use of much smaller buses or even doing minivan runs at night. He questions whether coun- cil did enough to stop the power plant. Cheryle McCullagh McCullagh is running because she wants to fight traf- fic problems such as speeding, drivers not yielding to stop signs and speeding around sen- iors residences and school zones in her ward McCullagh has lived in Oakville and Ward 2 for 29 years. The 42-year-old is an Oakville business owner, who provides legal assistance to lawyers in drafting legal documentation, research and support. Residents in this area are concerned about speeding issues. I, being a personal injury law clerk, can concede to that, she said. Speaking specifically of the stop sign issue, she said, Now that senior kindergarten is a full-day program at Oakwood, they have more attendance of little people and little people run off. Thats a big concern. Another issue she sees is about getting youths and sen- iors involved in the community. She does volunteer work around the community and has heard from others that get- ting seniors involved is an issue. Seniors have time on their hands and they want to volunteer, but nobody approaches them, she said. I would like to pro-active- ly engage on the future impact of our town. I would like to keep moving things in Ward 2 as opposed to (the town) going north. She states, I will work my best to influence council to streamline our building per- mit and planning process for homeowners and builders, while ensuring that appropri- ate studies, architectural stan- dards, community input and common sense have been applied in decision-making so that new projects augment our town. My vision of Oakvilles energetic business community is to see steady growth and bal- ance of retail and commercial enterprises that will attract potential new residents and revenue. John C. Pilcher Pilcher said he would be a voice for his constituents and the go-to guy for their prob- lems. Im a go-to kind of guy. Id love people to come to me and I will find out what the resources are and what the solution is to their problem, he said. The 52-year-old has lived in Oakville for 15 years and in Ward 2 for five years. Pilcher owns and operates a local dry- cleaning and laundromat serv- ice in Ward 2 and has a 20-year background in commercial insurance. He has a general arts degree from the University of Alberta and has volunteered his time with local sports organizations, such as coach- ing lacrosse teams and in run- ning hockey programs. My biggest thing is to be a voice for the constituents, he said. One thing that Ive always done is make sure that when I say Im going to do something, I do it. He said he will be there for constituents to provide answers to their problems, good or bad, and that he will do the job that needs to be done. He wont make promises he cannot keep. When I tell people Im going to do something on their behalf, I will do it. Because the more Ive been talking to constituents, every- body has such a different issue, he said. Another major issue for him is fiscal responsibility and to ensure proper spending of taxpayer money. I think theres always an issue with the taxpayer dol- lars, he said. There always has been. I always said that if a North American housewife ran her house like any government does, wed all be bankrupt. He said he brings all his years of business running and insurance work to the table. Newcomers bring varied backgrounds to Ward 2 local race Bruce Grant Cheryle McCullagh John C. Pilcher Continued from page 8 C H I R O P O D I S T J. Richard Werkman Rick Werkman, D.Ch., B.Sc. Podiatric Medicine~Registered Chiropodist Exceptional footcare for all ages. Evenings and Saturday appointments available Sore Feet? Sports Injury, Painful Ingrown Toenails? Plantar Warts? We can help! 1495 Cornwall Rd., Unit 33, Oakville Located on northwest corner of Maple Grove Dr. & Cornwall Rd. 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