Candidate Response – Jonathan Reid

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Positing Running For: Mayor

 

I am running for Midland Town Council because…

Midland is my home and always will be. I have a young daughter and family and I plan on being in this area for a long time.  This town needs revitalization; I want to be involved in making Midland the town its residences deserve and they can be proud of.

My vision for Midland is…

To be a stay point instead of a waypoint. A place where there are ample oppournities for the citizens of midland, were jobs are plentiful, well paying and fulfilling. Our waterfront that is the jewel of Georgian bay that can host a variety of functions, concerts, shopping, a splash pad, beaches etc. and most importantly no condos.

I will accomplish this vision by focusing on the following three things…

I will accomplish this vision by focusing on the following three things.
a)        Following through on the KPMG study’s recommendations. This is absolutely huge, this cannot be understated.
b)        Making the tough decisions that our current council is unwilling or unable to make, with the input from everyone.
c)        Bring jobs to town, it is unacceptable to follow the trend, just because the economy for many municipalities is down that does not mean we just sit around and wait for things to turn around. We have to fight for our future, we have to go out and make it happen. We need a fresh set of eyes with a new enthusiasm/ new perceptions.

Describe your top three accomplishments that make you a good candidate for Council. For current or previous members of council, please focus on your top three in that role.

a)        I have never failed to accomplish a goal I have set my mind to that has been within my control.
b)        I have a long history of working well with others, whether it’s volunteering my time toward an important cause, working with difficult people or encouraging and empowering people to be the best they can be.
c)        I have owned property in Midland for ten years now, I love this town and am eager to get started in bringing this town back to life.

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Read Other Candidate Responses:

Mayor

Gord McKay (incumbent) | James Downer | Sid Hutchinson | Stephan Kramp | Jonathan Reid

Deputy Mayor

Malcolm Dilts | Ruth Hackney | Bob Jeffery | Doug Reed | Mike Ross

Ward 1

Jim Attwood | Scott Campbell | Patricia File | Andrew King | George MacDonald | Jonathan Main | Steven Marks | Zena Pendlebury | Drew Plaxton

Ward 2

Glen Canning | Jack Charlebois | Jack Contin | Carole Nichols | Cody Oschefski | Ute Schmid-Jones

Ward 3

Frieda Baldwin | Stewart Strathearn

6 Comments on "Candidate Response – Jonathan Reid"

  1. We need new Ideas and we have to get young people involved in council, they are our future. He can’t be any worse they what we have now. Mike is the youngest person on council and he is 50. You can’t argue with his platform.

    • I agree, we need new blood representing Midland. A quote I love is “Fat, Dumb and Happy”
      That’s what Midland council has become, so comfortable running the town their way.
      Developers pull out of here because they can’t deal with the town of Midland.
      We need some big changes and it’s not adding more parks, we have more than we need.
      Midland was once such a nice place, but now the reputation is not a great place to live, taxes are too high, no jobs, zero growth.

  2. Why is it that all these candidates are saying how important implementing the KPMG study is? Have they not looked at the records and seen that almost every item has been addressed? As well, was this study not completed in 2012? Are we too busy looking at the past to look forward into the future? These candidates need to pull their heads out of the sand and say something with some type of substance. “Bring jobs to the town”. How do you plan to do this? “Ample opportunities for the citizens of Midland, where jobs are plentiful, well paying and fulfilling”. How would you accomplish this? This isn’t a platform, it’s a bunch of fluff from someone who is saying what the people want to hear. Can you tell us how you expect to accomplish these things?

  3. Jonathan Reid | October 5, 2014 at 1:58 pm | Reply

    KPMG recommendations have largely been ignored; Switching to OPP will save roughly 1.5 MILLION DOLLARS!!!!!!!!!! Consolidating admiration services with PUC and the town of Midland will save 1 MILLION dollars!!!!!!!!! Taking advantage of the impending retirement curve will save over 1 Million dollars in town employee salaries, without anyone losing their jobs. KPMG identified 26 positions that eligible for retirement with full benefits. We don’t need that many town employees. Staffing costs are up 39% but yet are population has not changed in 15 years. WHY?. There is no good reason that’s WHY. I’m sick of paying the highest taxes in Simcoe County we deserve better than this.

    TAX BRAKES incentives will bring companies to town and tax and business friendly policies will keep them here, and that’s what I’m going to bring to the table. We need to work with people not do everything we can to scare them away, because that’s what were doing now.

    • Just wondering where you got the $1.5 million savings by switching to OPP. The KPMG report says roughly $700k. It also says it is an estimate and that there may be other charges associated with the change. Can you say ‘buy-out of current contracts’? There will be many expenses to the changeover. How about using Midland’s infrastructure for policing and develop a regional police force between the municipalities? Kitchener doesn’t have their own police force. Waterloo doesn’t have their own police force. They have the Waterloo Regional Police Force. Some of the candidates talk of economic alliances with the townships and smaller towns, maybe this is a start.

      When it comes to tax breaks to bring companies to town, where does the lost revenues come from? As well, what sort of tax breaks can you give to companies?

      While I agree that Midland has a high tax rate, and things must be done about it, perhaps looking in the past (2012) instead of looking forward is the wrong way to approach it. Economic development is created by looking into the mirror first. It isn’t created by cutting back. New income needs to be created for the town and to start by creating added costs isn’t the way it should start.
      When was the last time someone from Midland went shopping downtown. How about creating incentives for property owners to do something with their vacant storefronts? How about streamlining business services at town hall to make it easier for someone to ‘one-stop’ for their business? If we spend too much time and money trying to bring new business into town and forget about the ones that are here, we may be going down a slippery slope.

      • Trevor, first I want to say I appreciate your writing style and the fact that you are not attacking me, I can tell you are curious and I want to talk so here goes,

        The last time I read the KPMG study they out lined 750000 dollars in estimated sayings, and you are wright in that fact that they are estimated but that estimated is back by real professionals with experience, It has been publicized roughly over the last year that the OPP has changed there pricing structure and that it will have a positive effect on smaller cash strapped communities such as Midland, The OPP announced that for some communities there fees would be cut in half, so that’s were I’m getting that information. Nothing is set in stone but that does seem to be realistic and make sense, so that’s were the 1.5 million is coming from. The point is it should be substantially cheaper.

        2nd, WE need and I want to explore ALL options and do what makes the most sense and what is best for everyone. If there are not obvious advantages and savings I would not support going with the OPP but it sure looks like that is the case right now. Partnerships are great and I will guarantee you that I will try to form partnerships every were and any were I can. We are all in this together.

        3rd Any money we lose from developmental charges we will get back through following through with the KPMG study recommendations. That will more than cover any losses of developmental fees, I want to help our business in every way I can with less red tape, business friendly policies, eliminating down town parking fees, trust me I mean business. I will always ask, listen and react with common sense solutions that benefit everyone. Midland is my home and I want the best for everyone, and that is coming from the heart, it really is. There is no shortage of common sense from me. Please call me, I would love to chat with you and bounce ideas off each other. we are all in this together.

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