Local municipal leaders are sharing what matters most to them as the Feb. 27 Ontario election approaches.
CBC Kitchener-Waterloo chatted with mayors and officials from every local municipality, and almost all agreed they want candidates to focus on affordable housing, homelessness, healthcare access, and infrastructure funding.
Other topics that came up were the rising cost of living, education, and public transit.
LISTEN | Waterloo region mayors talk about their priorities for this provincial election:
The Morning Edition – K-W8:04Waterloo region mayors talk about their priorities for this provincial election
How will this Ontario vote impact local municipalities? CBC K-W’s Karis Mapp looks into some of the main concerns across Waterloo region’s cities and townships, plus what they hope gets tackled after election day.
“What I really hope during this election is that every candidate and every party is talking about the concerns of municipalities,” regional Chair Karen Redman said.
She pointed out that while the region’s priorities might overlap with those of the cities and townships inside it, they each handle different services.
The cities and townships – called lower-tier municipalities – take care of things like recreation programs and certain road maintenance, whereas the region handles social services and transit.
“We want to make sure that we continue to solidify the quality of life for people who live in the region,” Redman added.
Housing & Homelessness
A point-in-time count done in October 2024 found over 2,300 people experiencing homelessness in Waterloo region – twice as many as in 2021.
Waterloo Mayor Dorothy Mc Cabe said it’s been tough trying to manage these growing numbers with limited funding.
“Ontario is the only province or territory in the entire country that this responsibility has been downloaded to us,” she said. “The complexity of this is not something that municipalities can fund on our own.”
Mc Cabe also asked political parties to review a report from the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) released Jan. 9. It showed there are 80,000 known homeless individuals across Ontario – a 25 per cent jump from 2022.
To keep those numbers from climbing even more, residents have raised alarms about a shortage of affordable housing options.
“Housing is a tough one,” Woolwich Township Mayor Sandy Shantz said. “We can try to create the atmosphere for housing but we need developers and the region to set that up.”
Healthcare
By July 2024, about 2.5 million Ontarians didn’t have a family doctor.
That figure comes from the Ontario College of Family Physicians who noted an increase of over 160,000 people since their last count six months earlier.
While many people struggle across Ontario to find medical care, rural areas face even bigger challenges recruiting health professionals.
WATCH | Hundreds wait outside in cold looking for family doctor in rural Ontario:
Hundreds wait outside in cold looking for family doctor in rural Ontario
Over a thousand people lined up through snow in Walkerton on Wednesday hoping for a family doctor spot – but only half got one.
That’s what’s happening in Wellesley Township too.
Mayor Joe Nowak explained there’s a small nurse practitioner clinic nearby in Linwood. A community group wants to build a new office but lacks staff.
“So we made that request to the government at the ROMA (Rural Ontario Municipal Association) conference,” Nowak said.
“They have committed $1.8 billion to have everybody connected to a doctor, so we have to wait and see if that transpires.”
Infrastructure
As more people move here , local leaders say old roads and bridges are becoming a real concern.
Cambridge city manager David Calder says they’re facing an infrastructure gap.
Even though they’ve put roughly $51 million toward capital improvements this year , Calder says Cambridge still owes over $100 million on needed repairs.
“We’re behind when it comes renewal work or having enough money to fix things ,” he told Cambridge Chronicle while Mayor Jan Liggett was unavailable.
Nearby , North Dumfries Mayor Sue Foxton mentioned her township’s roads get heavy traffic since it’s used as a shortcut between other places.
This became clear when Cambridge banned trucks downtown , forcing them onto Footbridge Road ’s main bridge in North Dumfries.
“This bridge needs infrastructure funds badly. It’s going cost us around $12 million just for repairs , so we need promises help cover those costs ,” Foxton said.
Municipal Funding
To support each area’s priorities , mayors want more money from province.
Some say current municipal funding rules are outdated ; they’d like fresh talks on how money flows between governments – kindof like deals Toronto or Ottawa already have with province.
Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic put it plainly : “We can’t be dealing with twenty-first century problems with nineteenth century legal and fiscal framework.”
“We need tools available plus resources needed deal with these issues without just hitting property taxpayers harder.”
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That issue’s top mind Wilmot Township where councillors wrestle finalizing annual budget.
Staff report Dec twenty four revealed township faces fifty percent jump property taxes.
Council meetings keep searching ways reduce hike ; budget expected finalized later month but Wilmot Mayor Natasha Salonen says residents shouldn’t bear whole burden alone.
“We don’t have funded capital plan that’s through multiple years financial decisions led here ,” she stated.
“With larger economic situation ongoing , folks can’t afford filling gap single year.”
Voters head polls Feb twenty seven.
