COUNCIL 101: One Councillor, or One Mayor, Doesn't Run a City

During election campaigns, you’re going to hear, and see, plenty of promises about taxes, roads, spending, development and fixing problems at City Hall. In the “friendly” space that is social media, I’ve even been called out for not making enough promises or laying out specific plans for everything.

Why haven’t I?

Because there’s something worth remembering when you’re doing your research and deciding who to vote for:

A councillor is one vote around the Council table.

The mayor is one vote around the Council table.

That’s why I’ve been reluctant to make big promises about things that no individual councillor or mayor can deliver alone.

What I can tell you is how I would approach the job: know the issues, ask questions, challenge things when necessary, work with the rest of Council, and make sure Northwood’s concerns are heard at that table.

If you know me, or heard me before, you know I’ve spent more than 10 years studying and reporting on the issues facing this city. I’ve asked hard questions of politicians from councillors to the Premier and the Prime Minister. I’m not afraid to ask hard questions. I’ve publicly challenged decisions when I believed it was necessary, and I haven’t hidden from calling out something I thought was wrong.

At the same time, through my career, volunteerism and community work, I’ve learned something equally important: how to work with people as part of a team to actually get things done.

I’ve followed that Council table for a long time. I’ve sat through six- and seven-hour meetings because I wanted the facts before giving my opinion on the air. I’ve watched good debates, bad debates, disagreements, compromises and decisions change because someone around that table was willing to listen.

I know disagreement is part of the job. So is finding enough common ground to actually accomplish something.

I’m not going to promise that one councillor can fix every road, lower every tax bill or solve every problem facing Northwood. That isn’t how municipal government works.

What I can promise is that Northwood will have someone at that table who knows the ward, knows the issues, does the homework, asks the questions and is prepared to work with the other 12 people around that table to get results.

That’s the kind of councillor I intend to be.

Those are the kinds of councils that get things done.

Choose wisely.

That’s Council 101