Pointe-Claire's mayoral candidates go head-to-head in live debate
Garbage pickup, taxes, and business economy discussed in live debate on CBC Daybreak
As Quebec's province-wide municipal elections creep closer and races get heated, Pointe Claire's four candidates hashed it out in a debate on CBC Montreal's Daybreak, last week.
The city's 31,000 residents will elect a fresh face as mayor as outgoing leader Morris Trudeau will not run in this election.
The debate, hosted by Daybreak's Mike Finnerty, took place last Friday and addressed Pointe-Claire residents' concerns, including strong smells, garbage pickup, which was reduced from once a week to once every two weeks in 2015.
Tax increases are another topic of interest, as is the local business economy.
Let's meet the candidates.
John Belvedere
In his second run for the mayor's seat, Belvedere is focusing on a "citizen first" approach to his potential city leadership. He won 46.6 per cent of the vote in 2013, coming a close second to outgoing mayor Morris Trudeau.
The former businessman has lived in Pointe-Claire for 25 years and says he wants "to bring the citizens back into the equation."
On garbage: Belvedere said a majority of citizens he's spoken to are concerned with the garbage issue.
During the debate, he proposed a short-term solution: picking up the garbage once a week in the summer, and once every two weeks during the winter.
Long-term options, like education on environmental waste initiatives, would come down the road, he said.
On taxes: Belvedere said he believes Pointe-Claire is well-run financially.
"We offer a lot of services to seniors, we have a lot for the youth, a lot of sports facilities. Can we do better? Yes, we can always do better," he said. "But at what cost?"
On business: Belvedere says he supports the development of small to large businesses in Pointe-Claire, and would like to create a committee that would liaison with the Chamber of Commerce.
"If the people come, the businesses will come," he said.
Teodor "Ted" Daiev
Daiev has lived in Pointe-Claire for 19 years with his family. He runs a consulting and auditing firm, and has a background in engineering.
"My feeling is that something is deeply wrong in the management of our city," Daiev said.
On garbage: Daiev's stance focuses on resolving the garbage problem in a "novelty approach." He believes the city is wasting money concentrating on the "nanosense of the issue."
On taxes: Daiev says he wants to lower taxes by at least 20 per cent, something he believes is possible without cutting jobs.
"The solution is quite simplistic," Daiev said. "How? … Instead of keeping a job-job of somebody who is just turning the clock … you split the tasks between knowledgeable guys."
On business: "Let's not try to lie. [Businesses are] just dead in Pointe-Claire," Daiev said. He advocates for smart city development, which would include harnessing technology and data, to stir up economic growth.
Aldo Iermieri
Iermieri, a district councillor, has been in Pointe-Claire for 27 years and has been involved in several of the city's committees and community groups.
"I want to keep Pointe-Claire the number one city in the West Island," Iermeri said.
On garbage: Unlike some of his opponents, Iermeri does not believe garbage pickup should happen more frequently, thanks to the green bin.
"By doing it properly, the waste goes out every week," Iermeri said.
On taxes: Iermeri said he aims to keep taxes low by maintaining the industrial and commercial parks.
On business: Iermeri addressed the major developments happening along Cartier Ave., saying "a couple of parking [spaces] have been lost."
"We will work on that and we will bring more parking, we have a project where we will bring more parking closer to the village," he said.
Timothy Lloyd Thomas
The owner of an antique store and a resident of Pointe-Claire for 19 years, Thomas has worked as a policy analyst and is fighting the establishment of a Business Development Corporation in the Pointe-Claire Village.
"I've heard what other candidates have said to resolve [problems], and I think I have better solutions."
On garbage: Thomas argued that the administration's implementation of fewer garbage pickup days was on the right track, but that it was put in place too soon.
"Although it's a good initiative, I think we should respect their wishes and go back to one a week in the summer months when it can really smell, and reduce the composting in the winter months, compensating cost-wise that way."
On taxes: Thomas said commercial taxes are too high, though "residentially, we're not horrible," adding he didn't want to upset city employees.
On business: Thomas said this issue is dear to his heart as a business owner and a motivating factor in his campaign.
"Simple" aspects like public washrooms and parking have been "forgotten," he said.
"Even losing one parking spot is horrendous for a business anywhere."
With files from CBC's Laura Marchand