Introduction
Thank you Lloyd and Jane, ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for this opportunity.Good evening my name is Maria Pezzano and I am running for council for ward1. Committed, Collaborative and Community driven, with a fresh positive voice for change, that's me. My deep family roots, diverse communities and unique neighbourhoods in the Ward have provided me with a sense of pride for all of Ward 1. How we are growing is just as important as our history. My campaign is not issue driven, it is community driven. I organized and mobilized my community to create a successful and unprecedented collective voice for over 4 years, I brought together our community, City Staff, City Council, Kilmer and Fusion Homes. We influenced the outcome for Fusions MetalWorks at 5 Arthur St.S. We insisted that the development fit into our neighbourhood.
My campaign is based on integrity and the truth, sincerity and respect.
Questions Ready for Live Debate (General Candidate Discussions)
Managing Growth
BMA Consulting has provided the City of Guelph a report showing our debt to reserve ratio improving, Standard and Poors has awarded a AA+ credit rating, and our tax increases have been declining in recent years but are still above the rate of inflation. How is the City of Guelph financial management helping or hurting growth of business and residential development?
An incredible achievement yes that is true we did get a good rating. One of the reasons is because we have a strong economy, which makes this so attractive to businesses, it speaks to predictability it speaks to confidence and stability. It shows Guelph is able to service the debt and we have strong financial management. A perfect example is WURTH who recently brought their business from Germany, and opened their 100,000 sqft facility in the Hanlon Business Park.
The provinces Places to Grow legislation has allocated 50,000 more people and 31,000 more jobs to Guelph between 2006 and 2031. City Council approved a 10 year economic development plan: Prosperity 2020 back in 2010. To attract people and business this plan calls for Guelph to be “business friendly”. How can City Council help us to achieve this growth and positive attitude to business?
We've all agreed to grow the city differently than before. We as a community adopted the Places to Grow framework. It's not without its new challenges though.
The city manages greenfield development through the Development Priorities Plan (DPP). We need to get better about talking about growth across the whole city however as thats what we're into now.
I think controlling our boundary is a good thing. But it means we have to think differently about our city
MetalWorks at 5 Arthur St. S. is a direct result of places to grow, infill intensification in the heart of downtown. Business and residents living side by side within a new devepment that houses a very important heritage building. Look out for more of this type of development in Ward 1.
Energy Cost and Supply
In 2007 the City of Guelph approved a Community Energy Plan, which is now the Community Energy Initiative. Ontario energy costs have dramatically increased over the past few years. Guelph is now looking at a district energy system to reduce energy consumption. How can the City of Guelph help business keep energy costs under control?
This is one of the most significant pieces of legislation in the last 50 years and will impact the next 50 years. Just like water consumption is going down due to local initiatives, the same can be done with energy system.
Guelph is the first city in North America to announce and pursue a long-term plan for a city-wide thermal energy network—a kind of central heating and cooling system for the entire city. It works a lot like the power grid we use for electricity; allowing multiple buildings to connect and share an energy supply from a number of sources.
It’s all part of the Community Energy Initiative; we’re changing how cities think about energy. The District Energy Strategic Plan is an essential step toward creating a reliable and sustainable economic future for Guelph.
A perfect example is Tricar being the first to implement our district energy initiative.
Does Guelph have the right waste water management and billing policies?
While we own our local utility, we have to recognize that currently energy costs are largely out of our control as most of the rate is set by provincial bodies.
The community energy plan does allow us to see how we can take more control of this over time and in the long run build more independence from the big producers.
Green infiltration infrastructure is in use across Ontario. Guelph, for example, offers a $2,000 rebate for large capacity rainwater harvesting systems. As well as reducing costs, green infrastructure generates other benefits, which include removing undesirable chemicals from stormwater, increasing green space in urban environments, converting carbon dioxide into oxygen, and providing natural habitat.
It's a Guelph solution and its good for business.
Tourism
What plans could Guelph pursue to increase visitors to our city?
The Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ Policy Statement on Social-Economic Development states that “arts, culture and heritage improve the ability of municipal governments to influence local economic development by attracting and retaining a skilled and talented workforce.”
Art on The Street, July 12, total amount if visitors for 1 day-5000, in downtown Guelph, eating, shopping and more.
Award winning Guelph Hillside Festival, 30 years running. 2 major events Dates combined 8000 in attendance approx 1350 volunteers -
Award winning Guelph Jazz Festival,21 years running-attendance 2013 - over 16,500. 50% from Southwestern Ontario and Guelph and 50% tourists from across Canada and the US . The Guelph Dance Festival 2500 on the event weekend, 10,000 through combined efforts during the year. Including the MMF and the EMWF, over 1.5 million dollars was generated in the past year.I Look forward to working with the new appointments to the recreated tourism advisory committee and implementing their recommendations as quickly as possible.
Approval and Permits
The City of Guelph initiated an Operational Review focused on improving processes, approaches and systems dealing with development and business inquiries. City staff is currently working with stakeholders on implementing changes. What role can City Council play in improving processing times for development approvals and permits?
Approvals are tricky as local community expects good things and yet business wants and deserves good service.
Integrated Operational Review, The review of the planning engineering and economic development support processes at city hall -- tries to streamline approvals and development issues, is in place to help. Council should be out talking up these efforts - and promoting guelph as the place to be.
Downtown Renewal
Guelph has plans to develop St George’s Square, the Baker Street Parking lot, add parking garages, and stimulate investment in existing buildings. Is the development of the downtown the right focus for Guelph and if so, how should it be financed?
There's been great success but there's still lots to do.
A town without a downtown is no place to invest.
Downtown is unique. It's not suburban like most of Guelph is. And that means different solutions may be required a lot of the time. But as the overall city grows, and we start to intensify not just downtown but in the suburbs, downtown solutions will start to be the norm across the city. We need to see it as a test bed for the city as a whole.
Questions Ready for Live Debate (Ward Specific Discussions)
The Guelph Chamber of Commerce has been holding Business Zone meetings across Guelph. From these, some specific concerns have come up.
Ward 1 (South East and Downtown Business Zones)
Downtown parking, cart system implementation, and accessibility are all issues voiced by downtown businesses. What should be done to address unique concerns in the downtown given its strong heritage and importance to the community?
Downtown Parking - really needs to be systematically addressed this term. It's going to be a hard discussion but it's essential in order to make progress on investments and dealing with neighbourhood issues.
The introduction of waste karts system has to be closely monitored downtown. May be a square peg situation and we have to be prepared to support other solutions.
Downtown development is our quickest return on investment and will have benefits across the community as we move forward.
As a neighbourhood stakeholder, we agreed that heritage combined with business and residential were of extreme importance on Fusion's Downtown MetalWorks at 5 Arthur St. S.The 40, 000 sqft heritage
building on site can have multiple uses, for example it can be a combination of restaurant, business, residential and more. This type of building repurposing is extremely exciting and full,of potential. The heritage component is the factor connecting past and future.
Closing
I am a native of Guelph. This is the most important city election We will experience. We have a critical choice to make. On October 27th we will choose what kind of Guelph we're going to have, what kind of Guelph we're going to be. We need to protect what we've built together - a prosperous, sustainable, nationally respected and caring community. We need to keep Guelph moving forward not backwards. I pledge to be a part of this forward thinking Guelph. Committed,Collaborative, and Community Driven. October 27 Vote Maria Pezzano for Ward 1.
