The Affordability Crisis: a Municipal Context
Property Taxes
Water & Wastewater Rates
Like many rural municipalities in Ontario, Quinte West has had significant fiscal challenges over the previous years. I've said many times during this term of council that, "we cannot tax our way out of this problem". That is to say that these challenges cannot be solved by simply raising taxes on the community more. Especially during this Affordability Crisis, our businesses, young people, seniors and working families need a balanced approach and I have a plan to accomplish that over the next term of council.
In Quinte West, water and wastewater bills are not merely a reflection of usage, but of the infrastructure required to deliver those services across a large, less-dense area. The high cost of these utilities is driven by three primary factors: provincial mandates, the "density deficit," and the reality of aging infrastructure. Rate increases have been especially high over the past five years. We need to bend the curve to ensure our businesses are competitive and households can make ends meet. Policy details to follow.
Capital Levy
Development Charges
In 2022, Quinte West instituted a capital levy of 1% added to property tax rates to better fund our existing assets and infrastructure costs. This levy has increased many times and is the principal driver of property tax increases currently. We must address the asset management gap to wind down the levy and return to "inflation rate or better" property tax increases. More policy details will be rolled out during the campaign.
Development charges (DCs) have become a driver of housing costs because they act as a "front-end" fee for the infrastructure required to support new residents. When DCs rise, they are typically passed directly to the homebuyer, increasing the sticker price of a new home before a single brick is laid. Too high DCs and home and apartment building becomes more expensive but too low DCs and existing property tax payers can be on the hook to make up the cost of infrastructure upgrades. It's an important balncing act that we must get right.
Prioritizing Primary Healthcare Access
For at least the past 20 years, Quinte West hasn't had enough family doctors and nurse practitioners to serve the community. Now is the time to fix it. Family doctors are the gateway to our healthcare system and without them, patients and families suffer. Recent data shows that our City is approaching a 20% unattached rate. That means that one out of every five residents does not have a family doctor. That is unacceptable to us all as Canadians.
When one-fifth of our neighbors don't have a doctor, the entire community feels the impact. People are forced to visit the emergency room for simple ailments and chronic conditions. This increases wait times for everyone. And even if you have a doctor today, many locally are near retirement age, there may not be anyone to take over the practice.
It also hurts our local economy. Businesses are less likely to move here or grow here when they know their employees will struggle to find medical care. We cannot treat this as the "new normal."
Healthcare is technically the responsibility of the provincial government, but cities across Ontario have spent years bidding against one another to attract doctors from the limited pool available. This alone has not been effective in Quinte West. There are so many more steps that we can take to move the needle on this issue. My plan is called the "ABCD" approach.
- Advocacy: We must work closely with our MPP and the Hastings Prince Edward Ontario Health Team (HPEOHT) to ensure that the Ministry of Health prioritizes rural primary care. We need the province, who is investing in this issue, to create programs that will benefit Quinte West and understand our unique challenges.
- Building Community: We need to strengthen our ties with local clinics and healthcare providers. By aligning our interests and fostering a supportive environment for the doctors we already have, we make Quinte West a place where medical professionals want to stay and practice.
- Communication: We need to help our residents navigate the system as it is, ensuring everyone is signed up for Health Care Connect is a big one. Being on that official waiting list is vital because it shows the province the true level of need here, which helps unlock more resources.
- Developing high ROI Investments: We need a holistic strategy that brings everyone to the table: community champions, med students, doctors/NPs and the organizations that employ them. Developing programs that deliver results and move the needle is key, not just throwing more money at the problem.
I've spent the entire four year term on the Physician Recruitment Committee listening to community members and industry professionals. I've learned what works. Other neighbouring municipalities have seen success by being proactive, and I know we can too.
So let’s roll up our sleeves and get to work. Because everyone in Quinte West deserves primary healthcare that works for them.
(Photos feature medical students on physician recruitment tours).
Strategic Physician Recruitment
Attainable Housing for Every Resident
I'm committed to addressing the lack of affordable and attainable housing head-on. Council has made significant progress on this issue over the last term but there is more work to do. My platform focuses on supporting and expanding the city's existing Housing Action Plan policies, including municipal land disposal and the housing CIP program. Read more about the city's plan here
Our Democracy Needs a Checkup
Council Work and Media Coverage
Doctor Recruitment Incentives
Operational Efficency
Community Safety and Well-Being
Environmental Stewardship
I'm also proud to serve as the Chair of the Environmental Stewardship Committee. I'm been proud of the work we've accomplished this term. Most notably, the committee established a standardized waste diversion framework to eventually be extended to all city facilities. It ensures Quinte West be a leader in environmental stewardship and sutainability by maximizing waste diversion and minimizing landfill usage.
The committee also established the annual Environmental Stewardship awards to be given to community members, businesses and non-profits/institutions that contribute positive to our city'snatural environment and sustainability.
I am the Chair of the Community Safety and Well-Being Committee. This term we undertook an update of the Quinte West CSWB Plan in partnership with the Loyalist College’s Centre for Healthy Communities. They also plan to help the city launch an information dashboard that will allow decision makers to allocate resources and track trends within the community more accurately.
https://www.quintenews.com/2025/06/04/quinte-west-developing-a-pulse-check-community-tool/