Earlier this year, a zoning bylaw came before West Perth Council that had a lot of residents talking. Like many of you who care deeply about the future of our town, I wanted to make sure my voice was part of the conversation.
So, I did what any engaged citizen would do. I sat down and wrote a detailed email to our local Mitchell Ward councillors, the mayor, and the deputy mayor, outlining my thoughts and concerns.
I waited for a reply. And waited.
Out of all the elected officials I reached out to, I heard back from exactly one.
Unfortunately, that experience wasn’t unique to me. When the meeting itself finally rolled around, attending in person made it feel even clearer: public opinion and citizen feedback weren’t actually being factored into the room. It felt like public consultation had been reduced to a box-checking exercise rather than a genuine part of governing.
I actually spoke at that meeting to voice those concerns directly. If you want to see how it went down, you can watch the clip from the council chambers right here:
A Catalyst for Change
That exact frustrating experience is one of the primary reasons I decided to step up and run for town council in the Mitchell Ward.
When you send an email to your elected officials, it shouldn’t disappear into a black hole. When residents take the time out of their busy lives to share feedback on local development, taxes, or community issues, they deserve the basic courtesy of a response.
That is why one of the first things I plan to do if elected is raise a formal motion to mandate that council must listen and respond. We need a clear, accountable rule requiring council members to acknowledge and reply to resident communications within a reasonable timeframe. No more ignored emails. No more radio silence.
Campaigning the Way I Intend to Serve
I believe in running my campaign the same way I intend to serve you. Over the past few weeks, I’ve shared my personal phone number, answered every message I’ve received, and stayed active online because I believe local government should be completely accessible. This is how I intend to serve you if elected. I will always be available to hear your concerns, answer your questions, and work with you to make our community the best it can be. On top of that, I understand that most people do not have the time to attend council meetings or go through the agendas and minutes. If elected, I will make every effort to bring the relevant information to you either through my blog, my social media, a newsletter or whatever feasible means that you request.
You shouldn’t have to jump through hoops to stay informed and elected officials owe it to you to try their best to communicate with you.
Over the coming weeks, I’ll be diving deeper into more of my platform points right here on the blog. In the meantime, my phone is always on at 226-457-2959, and my door is open. Let’s build a more transparent, responsive local government together.