This election is your chance to have your say
The Municipal Election is on October 27. This is our opportunity to elect a better City Council and secure a more positive future for the citizens of Peterborough. On Election Day, we seek your help to create a more sustainable vision of Peterborough and Change the Balance!
Peterborough Greenspace Coalition Endorsements
We want to see change at City Council and the best way to achieve this change is to clearly endorse no more than two candidates in each ward in an effort to focus the vote. After much consideration, these new candidates have been selected based on their stated commitments to sustainable urban planning, support for a strong and vibrant downtown, progressive and new ideas, willingness to engage in dialogue, collaboration and exchange of ideas, and their dedication to the issues, not politics, and what’s best for the citizens of Peterborough.
Endorsement for Mayor
Maryam Monsef
Endorsements of new candidates by Ward
Ward 1 Otonabee: Kim Zippel [PGC Profile on Kim Zippel]
Ward 2 Monaghan: Jocasta Boone [PGC Profile on Jocasta Boone]
Ward 3 Town: Diane Therrien; Dean Pappas [PGC Profile on Diane Therrien]
Ward 4 Ashburnham: Paul Teleki; Kieth Riel [PGC Profile on Paul Teleki]
Ward 5 Northcrest: Bill Templeman; Stephen Wright [PCG Profile on Bill Templeman]
Other candidates who are against the Parkway are Donald Fraser (Ward 4 Ashburnham) and Jim Hendry (Ward 3 Town).
Do you know your Ward?
Voters may be unsure what ward they live in. This is not surprising because the map is fairly complex. The city has a helpful downloadable map showing ward boundaries.
Incumbent Candidates & how they Voted
If the future of the Parkway is an important factor in how you will vote, it is important to remember how the current council voted. The final vote was 8-3 in favour of building the Parkway including a four-lane bridge through Jackson Park.
Those who voted for building the Parkway were:
Mayor Bennett and councillors Andrew Beamer, Bob Hall, Henry Clarke, Bill Juby, Dan McWilliams, Len Vass and Lesley Parnell. (Lesley Parnell and Henry Clarke voted against including a bridge through Jackson Park, but when that amendment failed in a 6-to-5, they then voted for the final motion which included the bridge).
Those who voted against building the Parkway were:
Councillors Keith Riel, Dean Pappas, and Jack Doris
The best strategy for you as a voter, if you want to stop the Parkway, is NOT to vote for ANY of the incumbents who voted in favour of it. Rather, support only the incumbents who voted against it and those new candidates who have said it is part of their platform to oppose the Parkway. This means that in some wards, even though you can vote for two councillors, you might decide to only vote for one. Voting for a second candidate who is in favour of the Parkway would literally cancel out your other vote.
The Choice
Peterborough is at a crossroads. If it continues on the path set out by the majority of the current council, we will end up being another 905 urban sprawl community of endless suburbs and box stores, ruled by the influence of developers (many of whom are NOT based in Peterborough). As the costs of fossil fuels continue to climb and climate change worsens, suburbia and the dispersed city will no longer be sustainable. The costs of maintaining the vast increases in infrastructure necessary for such a car centered culture is already driving up taxes across North America and forcing many cities into massive deficits.
OR
You could help elect a majority from the candidates listed above, all of whom have a different, greener, more sustainable vision for our City’s future—A City with a vibrant revitalized downtown and greater incentives for inner city redevelopment, one with walkable mixed zoned neighborhoods.
The choice is up to you.
Change the Balance!
Are you on the Registered Voters List?
Voters must have a voter ID registration card to vote in person or online either in advance or on election day, Oct. 27. The city has an online tool which tells you if you’re on the voters’ list. If you are not, there are instructions on how to sign up.
Other Perspectives
Voters may be interested in an election blog called A Bridge Too Far whose link was sent to us by a source called the Natural Path Crew. It covers current election issues as they arise including the Parkway. While the Peterborough Greenspace Coalition is interested in the research and overall intent of this website, it does not approve, review or endorse all of its points or its style nor are we in any way responsible for its content.
