Mission Statement
Hamilton is where I have built my adult life, and I believe our community deserves local government rooted in absolute integrity. Today, I am proud to call Ward 9 home, living near Felker’s Falls and Paramount Drive Park. I am stepping forward to run for City Councillor because it is time to restore transparency, equity, and trust to our local representation.
My entire 39-year professional career has prepared me to bring a different standard of leadership to City Hall. I spent 21 years as a frontline Social Worker, mastering the art of listening to people and fighting for fairness. Following that, I had the distinct privilege of serving our province for 18 years as a Justice of the Peace. On the bench, my daily responsibility was to uphold the law with strict equity, impartiality, and unyielding integrity. I know what it means to be a neutral arbiter of facts, to put public duty above personal interest, and to ensure that systems operate transparently.
That same commitment to accountability guided my work when I was appointed to the Ontario College of Teachers where I worked to ensure public trust. Locally, I’ve applied these values while sitting on numerous community boards and volunteering in youth recreation sports. Beyond my public service, I am a proud parent of three adult children, blessed with five wonderful grandchildren, I've published several children's books, and am a local small business owner right here in Upper Stoney Creek.
Voters ask me why I am running. The answer is simple: I have spent my lifetime working in public and community service. I still have much to offer. Our ward needs a representative who respects the boundaries of law, treats public funds with absolute accountability, acts with integrity and treats every resident with equity. With my background in both social justice and the judicial system, I am ready to bring steady, fair, and principled leadership to Ward 9.
A Message from Your Candidate:
- Welcome to our community’s digital home. Ward 9 – from our vibrant urban neighbourhoods to our vital rural landscapes – is growing rapidly. Change is inevitable, but how we manage that change is entirely up to us.
- I am running to represent you because I believe our local government should work just as hard as you do. My commitment to you is, I will advocate for a prosperous, affordable Ward 9 by pairing accountable spending with community-driven development. Real leadership doesn’t fit into a 9 – 5 schedule. I am ready to listen to your concerns and I will show up whenever and wherever our community needs me.
- Our Three Core Principles
- · Fiscal accountability: Your hard-earned tax dollars must be treated with respect, ensuring municipal investments are transparent, efficient and financially sustainable.
- · Community-Driven Growth: Development should be a collaborative process; we must ensure municipal planning actively welcomes your input to reflect what our families actually want and need.
- · Preserving Our Balance: We must protect the unique urban-rural identity of Upper Stoney Creek, ensuring transit and infrastructure decisions are fair to every resident.
- We can build a prosperous future by focusing on what truly matters; keeping Ward 9 thriving and progressive for the people who live here. I invite you to explore our vision, share your concerns, and join us in shaping a better future for our community.
- Platform: Growth with Purpose: Catching Up on Infrastructure and Schools
- Upper Stoney Creek is a fantastic place to live, which is why so many families are choosing to move here. However, our infrastructure has lagged far behind our rapid residential growth. We see it every day in clogged roads, delayed transit decision and severely overcrowded schools where portables have replaced playground space.
- Growth is inevitable, but it must be matched by responsible planning. Our campaign is built on a simple premise: we must stop playing catch up. We need a proactive councillor who will use strict fiscal discipline in any aspect of the decision making process, city infrastructure keeps pace with construction, and our schools remain livable spaces for our children.
- 1. Fixing the Infrastructure Lag – For too long, residential subdivisions have been built before the necessary roads, sidewalks, and community amenities are ready to support them.
- a. Smart Capital Prioritization: I will prioritize our local capital budget on widening key traffic bottlenecks, improving road safety, and extending basic infrastructure to growing neighbourhoods. I will ensure that tax dollars generated from Ward 9 are directly prioritized to fix Ward 9 issues.
- b. Proactive Planning Partnerships: I will work to achieve efficiency, streamlining the municipal planning process so that traffic impact assessment and infrastructure upgrades are completed in an effective and timely manner before major new housing phases are approved.
- 2. Tackling School Overcrowding: While schools are funded by the provincial government, the City of Hamilton plays a massive role in zoning, land allocation, and community planning. Our kids deserve real classrooms, not a city of portables.
- a. Fast-Tracking Our New School: I will strongly advocate to fast-track the location, land acquisition and building of a replacement elementary school safely away from the GFL landfill footprint (the former Taro/Terrapure dump).
- b. Securing School Sites Early: I will ensure that when new master-planned communities are designed, optimal land parcels are aggressively set aside and protected specifically for future school builds. This process must explicitly evaluate all aspects of environmental safety concerns from day one.
- c. Safe Routes to Schools: The school infrastructure lag doesn’t end at the classroom door – it stops at the curb. As a grandparent, the well being of our children is personal to me. With some of our schools operating at as much as 169% capacity, the school busing system cannot keep up. I will demand immediate accountability from the school boards and ensure our children are transported safely, reliably, and on time.
- Our Progressive Vision for Ward 9
- Managing growth isn’t about stopping progress; it is about protecting our quality of life. By pairing strict fiscal accountability with community-driven development, we can ensure that Ward 9 remains a thriving, livable community for generations to come.
- 3. Safeguarding Our Environment & Health in Ward 9:
- Ward 9 is a unique, beautiful community nestled above the escarpment, bordered by natural treasures like the Niagara Escarpment and Felker’s Falls. However, our environment and quality of life are under direct threat. As your representative I am committed to fighting for clean air, preserving our local ecosystems and protecting residents from corporate negligence.
- a. Enforcing Air Quality Accountability – I will aggressively hold GFL Environmental accountable for the persistent, toxic hydrogen sulfide odours that violate our community’s right to clean air. I will advocate for strict municipal air-monitoring, push for heavier financial penalties, and back our residents’ demands for compliance and eventual closure.
- b. Preserve & Protect Local Green Spaces – our community is defined by our access to the Eramosa Karst, Felker’s Falls, and the Niagara Escarpment. Rapid development means we must be vigilant in defending these natural heritage sites from encroachment and over-development. I will strongly advocate for the preservation of vital conservation lands and local marshes against urban boundary expansions that degrade watersheds and increase flood risks.
- c. Enforcing Hamilton’s Biodiversity Action Plan - Our ward is a magnificent, delicate balance of urban neighbourhoods and pristine natural landscapes. I fully support the implementation of the Hamilton Biodiversity Action Plan and I will ensure it is enforced right here in Upper Stoney Creek. I will use this plan to mandate strict wildlife corridors around our expanding housing phases and protect the sensitive headwaters that feed Felker’s Falls.
- 4. Breaking the Upper Stoney Creek Traffic Gridlock: Our roads are at a breaking point. Rapid housing growth on Stoney Creek Mountain has fundamentally outpaced our infrastructure, turning daily commutes into a gridlocked nightmare. This structural strain is compounded by unexpected bottlenecks – such as the prolonged closure of Dewitt Road which instantly paralyze surrounding detour routes. Simultaneously, our family neighbourhoods are being overrun by heavy industrial dump trucks moving to and from the GFL Landfill, accelerating road damage and threatening community safety.
- a. Upload the Red Hill Valley Parkway: I will lobby the province to take over the ownership, maintenance, and widening of the Red Hill Valley Parkway and the Linc. Since the province took over Toronto’s Gardiner Expressway and Don Valley Parkway, Hamilton taxpayers deserve the exact same financial relief. This upload will free up millions in local tax dollars to widen our critical mountain bottlenecks.
- b. Expansion of Rymal Road: Upper Stoney Creek cannot wait until 2034 for the completion of the planned expansion of Rymal Road. This is an $88 million dollar project with a four phase funding schedule. Prioritizing the needs of Ward 9 residents is paramount. We need this traffic relief now, not in 8 years. Ensuring the province takes over the maintenance and expansion of the Red Hill Valley Parkway would allow for this project to proceed.
- c. Reroute Landfill Trucks Immediately: I will use the Truck Route Master Plan to force GFL dump trucks to enter the facility via Mud Street or Upper Centennial Parkway. Rerouting the traffic is an immediate fix, but the ultimate goal is full closure.
