The future is something we build together.
Neighbours, it’s been an incredible term of council. Thank you again for putting your trust in me as one of your council representatives, and a special thank you to everyone who has reached out to me with your concerns, hopes, input, and feedback. You’ve made this term powerful, productive, and personally quite enjoyable!
With your support, I would love to come back for a second term. In 2022 I campaigned on a platform of Vision, Communication, and Collaboration, and strove to address key issues of environmental sustainability and housing affordability. I am tremendously proud to say that this council has largely fulfilled those priorities, and that I’ve played a key role in many of them; but many of them remain incomplete, and I want to see them through. I also want to realize the value of the training, experience, skills, and network that I’ve developed over this term: I’ve learned to make myself useful to my community, and I’m part of many projects and programs in process in Brighton and across Northumberland County to which I would love to continue to contribute.
I can’t do it without you. If you have questions, concerns, or issues you’d like me to address, please scroll down to the Contact form to reach out; my efforts are for nothing if they don’t align with the needs of my community. If you’re willing to support my campaign, please let me know!
A Vision for 2026-2030
The thing about vision is that, like a community, it is always changing and growing. If it didn’t, it would be dead. At the same time, I still hold the same values that I did four years ago, and my vision for the community should always be informed by my values. And while much has changed in Brighton since 2022, much remains the same, and much of the work that we’ve started this term has not yet been completed. So I offer you this, my work-in-progress vision for the coming term, knowing (and hoping!) that it continues to evolve.
Building
Planning
Embracing Change
Images of Brighton by L. Turner
Building
The future is something we build today. And as I watch dump trucks drive down main street, I’m reminded that this isn’t just figurative! There’s a ton of building going on in Brighton right now, including several key projects that will carry over into the next term. Much of the actual work of council and staff over the next four years will be shepherding the physical development of our community, and in particular:
The Land Banking program now includes acreage on the east side of No Frills. We’ve hired Urban Strategies Inc to design a mixed-use, mixed-income, complete community at transit-level density; and to design a business model that maintains this land as a municipal asset, allowing us to direct development there rather than just turning it over to developers. That means that we will get to choose what is built there, by whom, and for what purpose. This is perhaps the thing I’m most excited about for the coming term!
The Secondary Plan outlines how greenfield development within our urban boundaries will proceed into the future. The draft Secondary Plan is very exciting to me, and the way that it is implemented when developers want to build new neighbourhoods on the edges of our community will be a major theme of the coming term of council. Streetscaping, management of the urban tree canopy, and sustainable and accessible design are all critical to support.
The Transportation Master Plan will be finished this year, and will guide all future roadwork in Brighton. In the coming term of council we will begin the project to build an overpass over the tracks at John Street; we’ll implement speed controls through the way that we design our roadways (since effective fines have been taken out of our toolbox); and we’ll make infrastructure choices that encourage either driving or transit as we grow our community.
Planning
This term of council had a tremendous amount of planning, but we’re far from done! Plans are valuable once they are completed, providing frameworks for all future decisions; but they’re just as valuable in the process of creating them, as they orient us to the current and future needs of the community. Some key planning work in the coming term includes:
An updated Strategic Plan to reflect the priorities of the community in 2027, and the new council. This process is critical for keeping our vision for the community alive and growing, but it’s also really helpful in the way that it brings the new council together, allowing us to set the tone for the entire term in a collaborative vision that incorporates all of our ideas.
We will hopefully begin reviewing the Official Plan (OP) before the end of the term, and the robust new Secondary Plan will give us a big head-start in terms of updating the policies of the OP. But I expect that the OP update will stretch into the new term, and will include collaboration with other Northumberland municipalities. The OP is one of our most important documents, so this may well be the most important thing the next council does.
This term we began working with consultants to create an Integrated Community Sustainability Plan (ICSP). By its nature, a sustainability plan must continually grow and change with the needs of the community and environment; but this plan also acknowledges that it is only a first phase, as sustainability is a massive concept, too big for a comprehensive plan. Implementing it and building on it will be key tasks of the coming term.
Embracing Change
The 2022-26 term of council involved a lot of catch-up on longstanding issues and rapid-fire changes, like wastewater systems and planning regulations, respectively. But we also laid the foundation for a massive amount of growth and change that we know will be coming our way, and the 2026-30 term is when we’re going to see that growth happening. A key role of council this term will be to anticipate those changes, and sit with residents in the feelings of change.
Community growth involves a lot of change in our built environment. Fields or woods that people grew up playing in, or enjoyed looking at from their living rooms, will become new neighbourhoods. Council will need to affirm the rights of property owners to build, without dismissing the frustrations and concerns of neighbours. This is always a delicate balance, and one that I hope to improve upon in the coming term, not least because I think we’re going to see more of it.
Brighton faces growth pressures from major developments outside our community, too. We’re expecting that CFB Trenton will increase in size and workforce over the coming term as military spending more than doubles into the foreseeable future; and it’s possible that we’ll see the development of a new nuclear power facility begin in our region before the end of the term too. These projects will result in more people moving to Brighton, and we need to be ready for that growth.
The demographic changes of our aging population are difficult on an individual level, but also at a community level. How can we support seniors in our community, so that they can age in place? How can we support mobility for residents who may be facing restrictions on their ability to drive? How can we maintain a lively and connected community through amenities and events? How can we help aging Brightonians to pass the torch to their children and grandchildren?
About me
I’ve been engaged in politics and social action at every level for over a decade. The 2022-26 term was my first on council, and I’m tremendously proud of my work here. In addition to council and committee meetings, this term I have volunteered in various capacities to support our community in Brighton and Northumberland County, including:
I was one of the founders, and the first Chair, of the Northumberland Inter-Municipal Task Force on Housing and Homelessness. This volunteer group, which includes delegates from every municipality in Northumberland, meets monthly to explore ways to facilitate more affordable housing and to support unhoused residents, and we’ve successfully brought planners from across the county together to improve our planning processes.
I sit on the Northumberland County Food Policy Council, a volunteer group that includes farmers, community organizers, health professionals, economists, and a few politicians to envision a sustainable food system for Northumberland, and make policy recommendations to help us achieve that vision. In this capacity I have lobbied for changes to the planning system at the county level, and Brighton council has agreed to regularly appoint a member to the Food Policy Council in the future.
I have actively advocated for unhoused residents, bringing delegations to County Council and committees and engaging in radio interviews to shine a light on this issue and the current state of our communities in Northumberland. I’m currently part of a committee of the County that is redesigning our Community Safety and Well-Being Plan, with a goal of integrating Asset-Based Community Development principles in order to achieve a plan with more opportunity for grassroots engagement and community support.
This term I voluntarily completed the Diploma in Municipal Administration from the Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks and Treasurers of Ontario, in order to better understand the role of municipalities and municipal staff. This program includes four certificates: the Municipal Administration Program, Municipal Law, Municipal Finance and Accounting, and Municipal HR. This education has helped me better understand and appreciate our incredible staff, and made me a better councillor for it!
I believe that knowledge is power and that power belongs to the people, so I value communicating expertise to the public. That’s why I’ve spent my career translating complex ideas and jargon into plain language.
I hold a Master of Arts degree and engage in academic circles, but I also write regularly in popular media such as the Brighton Beacon. I’ve taught courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels, and continue to educate myself: during my first term of council I completed a Diploma in Municipal Administration to better understand municipal governance. I like to bring theory and practice together and make it accessible to everyone.
I believe that we have everything we need to solve our problems, but only if we work together and share our skills and perspectives. I want to hear yours!
I’m happily married and the father of two lovely children. I believe that the future is something we make today, and I’m committed to making the best future we can offer to our kids and theirs.
I want to hear from you
This is where we connect. I’d love to hear from you, and work together to build the future we want for Brighton. Let me know if you’d like to join my newsletter, I hope to continue to write about current events and topics of interest throughout the term.
