Summer Editorial Series – We Used to Be Friends, A Long Time Ago

With July nearing its end, thoughts turn ever so lightly to the offerings of Fall. It won’t be too long till those Back to School commercials start filling the airwaves, and stacks of spiral notebooks and printer paper start taking up the real estate once held by lawn chairs and barbeques (can you tell I once worked in retail?). But when September hits, it won’t just be school some of us are heading back to, but the polls as well.

The Ontario Provincial Election will unfurl over the six weeks leading up to the October 6^th polling date. Locally, Liberal Liz Sandals will attempt to defend her seat from the NDP’s James Gordon, the Green’s Steven Dyck and either Robert Demille, Greg Schirk and Bob Senechal for the Progressive Conservative Party. (NOTE: My Echo deadline was before this past Monday’s PC nomination meeting, so to find out which of the three is the one, head over to my blog at http://guelphpolitico.blogspot.com/)

You’ll notice that ‘P’ word in front of the Conservative. That’s important because the leaders and organizers of the Guelph-branch of the Ontario PCs want you to know they’re different. “One piece of information that’s important to know is that the PC Party of Ontario and the federal Conservative Party are not the same thing,” wrote Guelph PC President Allan Boynton to the Guelph Mercury’s managing editor Phil Andrews. Andrews posted the letter from Boynton on the “From the Editors” blog on the Mercury website.

Boynton’s sentiments were echoed in an e-mail we exchanged the week before. “I want you to know that this process is important to the City of Guelph, and it is our job as the local riding association to not guard our candidates but to make them available to you, and the people that vote here,” he wrote. Perhaps it should go without saying, but Boynton, who has some experience putting his name on a ballot after running for city council last year, knows that one can’t get elected in a vacuum of silence.

What’s strange is that Boynton has to make such assurances to begin with. It should be a foregone conclusion that a political candidate of any party should be available to reporters looking to talk to them. At some point a certain segment of the political discourse decided that the press was the enemy, and while some members of the press sometimes behave in a manner unbefitting of our noble profession (*cough*News of the World*cough*), the truth is that “gotcha journalism” is something made up by Sarah Palin to explain why she didn’t know stuff. We’re just asking questions.

That’s a shame because no matter the division that separates us in our politics, there’s always stuff we can come together and celebrate. For instance, I salute Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his appearance this week as a day player on the turn-of-the-20th-century crime procedural Murdoch Mysteries. The Prime Minister is a big fan, and says he’s never missed an episode of the show. After a nudge from his daughter, he reached out to the show’s producers, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Like a number of Canadian politicians, Harper has, in the past, shown no qualms about appearing on sketch comedy shows like The Rick Mercer Report, This Hour Has 22 Minutes, and The Royal Canadian Air Farce. It always amuses me when American politicians laud their own humorousness by appearing on Saturday Night Live or The Daily Show, while in Canada the interim leader of one of our major political parties once dived into a lake naked with a CBC TV host.

I’ve ranted and raved a lot in recent months about the cone of silence that the Conservative Party perpetuated during the last election, and I don’t just mean locally with a certain candidate that will remain nameless. To be clear, elections are about engagement, and included in that are press interviews and debate appearances. But even if there’s something not self-evident in that, Can’t we at least believe that we all mean well, and that we probably have a lot in common once we get past our political alignments.

You see, I, like the Prime Minister, also enjoy the intrepid Inspector Murdoch, who uses up-to-the-date scientific techniques, the then ever burgeoning field of forensics, to solve crimes in Victorian Toronto. It’s like a steampunk CSI. Now do you think that the stars and producers of Murdoch Mysteries were vetted for their politics before Harper arrived on set to play the bit part of a desk sergeant? I hardly think so. Why can’t the same be said for average citizens and journalists?

Stories to Watch for in 2011

1) Signs and Rumours of Dollar Signs.

Unless the City of Guelph discovered the lost city of gold while digging up every other road in town this past summer, then we’re likely facing a similar budget crunch as the deliberations for 2010. Budget packages won’t be prepared for council until January 31st, but delegations won’t be heard on matters of the budget until the February 22nd meeting and a final vote won’t be taken on the capital and operating budgets until March 2nd. But those are the stats, the real question is what’s going to happen? Dominate economic trends haven’t changed much in the last year, and since all the councillors, as candidates, campaigned on smart fiscal management, the balance of spending and taxes is more precarious than ever.

2) All Systems GO

Let the countdown begin because hopefully, by this time next year, when I have to go to Toronto on a weekday morning, I can sidestep the increasingly frequent two-and-a-half to three hour commute and take the GO Train. It’s been a long time in coming and as a bonus it was announced last week that the City is looking at discounted fares for GO riders taking city buses to their trains. I’ve taken a bat to the City of Guelph for its treatment of transit and transit users this year – repeatedly – but this is a brilliant move. I hope this is the start of good things for transit users in 2011.

3) Dark Ford of the Sith?

The most talked about local politics story of the year may not have anything to do with Guelph. The election of Rob Ford as the Toronto’s Top Politico came to extreme disappointment to a lot of Hogtown progressives, and in return Ford has yet to fail to disappoint their disappointment. Ford’s latest trick is to muse an abolition of the 5 cent plastic bag fee, a “tax” (as Ford’s people call it) that according to some sources has spared the globe the garbage created by about a billion little plastic shopping bags. In an interview with the Guelph Tribune, Mayor Karen Farbridge says that she and other mayors of Ontario municipalities will be watching the Ford revolution in Toronto carefully to see what works, and more importantly, to see what doesn’t work.

4) To Vote or Not to Vote…

The Prime Minister may be planning a cabinet shuffle, if he hasn’t implemented one already, but the real question is if we the voters are going to get the opportunity to shuffle the government this year as well. Certainly since the Fall 2008 Federal Election there have been rumblings and grumblings of votes of no-confidence and possible replacement coalitions, but in the last two years, a lot of those opportunities came to not. (Certainly, we all remember the big anti-proroguing protests this time last year.) And the opportunities don’t look too bright in the near future. The Liberals seem perpetually stuck in neutral and the by-election last month in three ridings didn’t prove much. Although there’s been some talk of a showdown over the Federal budget this spring, no one party has the heft or reason to force an election. But if they were, the spring would be a natural time to do so since the nation’s most populace province will have other concerns in the fall…

5) …Like An Actual Election That We Know Will Take Place

One election that we do know will happen for certain in the next calendar year is the Ontario General Election, which will not only determine whether or not our MPP Liz Sandals will keep her job, but will determine if her boss, Dalton McGuinty, does as well. A third re-election for the provincial Liberals is not a sure thing though, especially in a year that saw the implementation of the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) and the announcement of higher hydro rates.

Having said that though, McGuinty’s government wasn’t as slammed over the HST as the B.C. government where referendums and court action have followed the HST turnover. In a recent Ipsos Reid poll in November, Tim Hudak’s Tories was up 41 per cent over the Liberals 32. But it’s worth noting that in an Angus Reid poll around the same time in 2009 had the Tories at 41 and the Liberals at 27. By mid-February, the Liberals were back up to 41, but it’s been a slow slide back down ever since. In other words, it’s still anyone’s ball game.

By the way, our local provincial and federal representatives will be holding a New Year’s levee on Sunday January 9th at the Italian Canadian Club from 2 pm till 4 pm. Who knows, it may be Sandals and Valeriote’s last levee together. Stay tuned.

Trees Saved, Critical Valeriote, and Washrooms Closed

A lot of time, effort and energy over the last month have been absorbed in that little snafu on the south end involving the Hanlon Creek Business Park, but that doesn’t mean time stopped through the rest of the Guelph Beat. Here’s what’s been going down in other areas of interest.

Trees Saved (without protest)

Paradoxically, as the City was fighting to mow down some trees in the Hanlon Creek Business Park site, it was fighting to keep them up in the area around Goldie Mill. Last week, the City announced that a revised plan for the parking lot at the Guelph Youth Music Centre and the Goldie Mill Park will allow for the majority of the mature trees to remain. Moreover, the changes came in consultation with area citizens through comments and input at a meeting on August 5th. The City will implement measures to minimize construction impacts on the trees adjacent to the parking lot, said a City of Guelph press release. The City is also committed to replacing any transplanted trees that do not survive, and planting new trees adjacent to the parking lot.

Valeriote Gets Critical

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff announced last week that our local MP Frank Valeriote had accepted the role of Liberal Critic for the Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario. The agency, which will be based in Kitchener, had been announced in January’s Federal budget and will spend $1 billion over five years to promote new jobs and economic growth in Ontario. It was only on August 13th that Prime Minister Stephen Harper officially launched the agency along with Minister for Science and Technology, and Cambridge MP, Gary Goodyear. Valeriote’s first act as the new critic was to criticize what he called the government’s “inaction plan at work,” saying, “Southern Ontario has been waiting six long months since it was first announced in the budget to get this agency underway – the government has wasted precious time determining a site for it while thousands more jobs have been lost.”

Valeriote also talked about the sale of Nortel’s assets to Swedish film Ericsson, saying that if Goodyear and Harper really wanted to the Canadian economy a solid, they’d try and make sure those assets stayed in Canadian hands. “If Minister Goodyear is serious about Southern Ontario, he should turn his attention immediately to assisting Minister Clement with a review of the sale of Nortel’s wireless assets,” said Valeriote in a press release. “This review should exhaust all efforts to find a made-in-Canada solution involving one of Southern Ontario’s success stories, Kitchener-Waterloo’s Research-in-Motion.”

City Updates on Public Washroom Repairs

In the ongoing appraisal of public washroom facilities on city land following the death of a teenage girl earlier this summer, the City has released an update for the community. Based on the recommendations from the structural reports from Gamsby and Mannerow Engineers, the City of Guelph has contracted Action Construction Company of Kitchener for the demolition and rebuilding of the partition walls of the public change/washrooms at Guelph Lake Sports Field, Hanlon Creek Park, and St. George’s Park. The repairs began this week at Guelph Lake Sports Field and will be followed by repairs to Hanlon Creek Park and St. George’s Park with all repairs scheduled to be completed by the end of September. The City is also requesting a quote from Action for repairs to the public change/washrooms at the Norm Jary Splash Pad, and another company Group Eight Engineering Limited is performing the structural investigation work at the Larry Pearson Baseball Complex washroom facilities.

Winegard Walks, Lafarge Talks & City Haggles

Winegard speaks out on Harper

By the time you read this, either Stéphane Dion has seized power in a bloodless coup that undermines our democracy or Stephen Harper did the right, Canadian thing and ask the Governor General to put Parliament on hold till cooler heads prevail. Hopefully, whatever’s going down it’s not another election, but I can tell you one thing: Mr. Harper hasn’t made any friends after current events with at least one high profile Guelph Conservative. In an article for the Guelph Mercury, former Guelph Conservative MP (1984 – 1993) Bill Winegard told the paper that a coalition government is “a slap on the wrist” for Prime Minister Stephen Harper “and in my opinion one he deserves.”

Winegard, who’s still active in the local wing of the party, went on to say that the situation stems from people’s belief that Harper was going to put aside partisan politics for the good of the nation, out response to the global economic crisis. This did not happen though when Jim Flaherty gave his financial update to the House two weeks ago. “I think it's a most unfortunate situation, but regretfully Mr. Harper brought it on himself,” Winegard said. “People wanted assurances they would be protected financially … and what they got was a rather fighting document, which didn't address any of those things and instead addressed only party politics.”

Lafarge talks remain secret

Things might be moving forward on the Lafarge front, although to what extent we have no idea because there’s at present a media blackout on the top level negotiations between a number of players. Apparently talks resumed between the city, 6&7 Developments, Armel Corp., the Howitt Park Neighbourhood Group and the Lafarge developer last week in an attempt to resolve the development stand still through mediation. The hope is to have a deal in place before the Ontario Municipal Board hearing on January 12; if mediation fails, the OMB is the next hope to resolve the matter.

In case you can’t remember, the debate is as to whether or not a 400,000 square foot retail part will be built on the land at Silvercreek Parkway South. The city and the HPNG are against the current plan, but the debate is fairly open as to what sort of things could possibly be built there instead. The media blackout will continue through the mediation, although the HPNG will be holding a meeting tonight at Guelph Bible Chapel, 216 Silvercreek South, to discuss the outcome of mediation talks. Everyone is invited to come.

Council haggles over budget

After last Monday’s council meeting, the budget, as presented in its current form, calls for a 5.3 per cent tax increase for the 2009 fiscal year, but that might not be the end of it. The 5.3 per cent increase translates to about an extra $12 per month for the average taxpayer, but that might not be the end of it. Ward 2 Councillor Ian Findlay put forward a motion to direct city staff at seeing if that increased tax burden could be reduced to 3.75 per cent, in order to respond to his constituents’ concerns. The motion was passed unanimously, and options will be presented at the December 15 council meeting where the budget will hopefully be voted upon. Chief administrative officer Hans Loewig, while promising to look at options, stressed that given the turbulent economic waters, it’s important for council to pass a budget before the end of the year.

Amongst the items already modified from previous budget discussions is the deferment of the purchase of land for the new library and Baker Street redevelopment project until 2010 and the air quality monitoring project from the Hanlon will be spread over nine years rather than two. Basically, new and future services projects will be targeted for money saving initiatives. The city’s also looking at increased user fess, delaying capital projects and using reserve funds in order to make ends meet. The Guelph City Council - 2009 Operating & Capital Budgets Deliberation & Approval meeting takes place on Monday, December 15 at 7 pm in the main council chamber in City Hall.

The Election Post-Game

The fascinating results of the Federal election have forced me to take the Guelph Beat column into very familiar territory one last time. As I’m sure you’re all aware, local attorney Frank Valeriote beat the odds both locally and nationally to become Guelph’s new Liberal MP. Not only was Guelph one of the ridings to watch leading up to Election Night, it was also one of the ridings to watch On Election Night as Conservative hopes for a majority government came down to several tight races across the country. In fact, the Guelph race was so tight, final results weren’t made known until the midnight hour.

Victory was never a foregone conclusion for Valeriote as the polls constantly demonstrated. It was always a toss up between the Liberal nominee and his Conservative rival Gloria Kovach as the lack of incumbency in this riding opened it up to an anything can go attitude that contributed to a ten name long ballot. Also contributing to the uncertainty is the rise of Mike Nagy, the Green Party candidate had serious momentum going into the September 8th by-election, with many observers expecting a win for Nagy who was mounting his third campaign.

In the midst of all this uncertainty, Valeriote had played the odds and prepared both an acceptance and a concession speech, he told the Guelph Mercury. Arriving after midnight at the Italian Canadian Club for his now-victory celebration, Valeriote had no compunction about his party’s decision to push the Green Shift, only regrets that there’d be no Liberal government to see it through. Valeriote did, however, reiterate his desire to build bridges with the other centre-left parties and listed his priorities as child care, climate change and the economy in no particular order. “We have to deal with all of them,” he said.

Meanwhile, a short distance away at her campaign office, Kovach admitted defeat. In what had to be a profound upset for the veteran city councillor, she came out with a 1,792 vote difference between her and Valeriote. She was also locked out of a seeming Conservative sweep of Southwestern Ontario; Guelph is the only red spot on the map surrounded by blue after Conservative victories in Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge, Brant, and Wellington-Halton Hills. While Kovach closed the gap with the Liberals, following the 5,300 vote difference between Liberal Brenda Chamberlain and Conservative Brent Barr in the 2006 election, the Conservative share of the popular vote remained steady at 29 per cent.

The real Cinderella story of the night though is Nagy’s strong, third place finish. Nagy more than doubled his 2006 totals, finishing with 12,456 voters desiring to send him to Ottawa as the first, elected Green MP. With 12,000 plus ballots in his favour, Nagy secure a little over 21 per cent of the popular vote; a significant showing despite the fact that he didn’t secure a first or second place finish. It took three elections to get here, but at his post-election soiree at the Fox and the Fiddle in Old Quebec Street, Nagy seemed to indicate that he was done. "I think this is probably it for me," he said. "I think we had it on Sept. 8th and Stephen Harper knew that.”

Finishing fourth, in what was surely an upset in an otherwise positive night for the party, was NDP candidate Tom King. King, a popular author and radio personality was considered one of the NDP’s star candidates, an impression helped by the fact of party leader Jack Layton’s frequent visits to the riding during the by-election. "The disappointing thing was coming from a by-election into a general (election) campaign," said campaign manager Justin Gniposky. Like Nagy and the Greens, the NDP expected the fact of the by-election and no incumbent to generate enough excitement for Guelph to elect its first New Democrat to the House of Commons.

Rounding out the results are the Marijuana Party’s Kornelis Klevering with 129 votes; Libertarian Philip Bender with 159; Communist Drew Garvie got 77 votes; and Animal Alliance Environment Voters Party’s Karen Levenson had 73. Meanwhile, John Turmel secured his place as the most losingest man in Canadian politics with his 67^th loss, but he did however beat Marxist-Leninist Manuel Couto, who I’m still relatively sure doesn’t really exist.

That Election Feeling...

I’ve lived through a couple of Federal elections in Guelph, but never in my life have I encountered the paradox of this by-election. On the one hand there’s a great deal of excitement, and on the other there’s the standard by-election response of apathy. After all, how much can one seat change the government?

Well, it seems from the chatter that what this by-election will reap, not just here in Guelph but in the two ridings in Quebec also going to the polls, is an indication as to whether Canadians want to roll the dice on a general election this fall. Either that or we’re going to do this in staggered bits as in the recently announced September 22 by-election in Don Valley West.

Now, the wonderful thing about the by-election has been the cavalcade of special guests that have passed through out humble abode upon the Speed River both before and after the writ was dropped. Under ordinary circumstances of a general election, we in the Royal City must usually count ourselves fortunate if a party leader does a drive-by while swinging through our region. In 2006, then Prime Minister Paul Martin talked to University of Guelph poli-sci students before pulling up to Molly Blooms for a pint with then MP Brenda Chamberlain and the unwashed masses.

In this by-election though all the major party leaders have popped in at one time or another, some of them put heavy emphasis on that “another” category. Take our old friend Jack Layton, par example. He returned to Guelph this past weekend for a canvassing blitz/barbecue, preceded by a press conference in John Galt Park. Unless I’m mistaken, Layton’s been here on average about once a week since the start of the by-election on July 25.

Not to be outdone, Green Party leader Elizabeth May has come in second with most number of leader visits, and from what I’ve been told by a well-placed source in the Green’s national office, she’ll be here two or three more times in the weeks to come. This will include a weekend long stopover the weekend before the election, the originally scheduled date of the party’s national policy review which was put on hold when the by-elections were called.

This brings us to the leaders of the top two parties and apparently for Stephen Harper visiting Guelph is a lot like seeing The Godfather Part III – once is enough. Harper made a campaign-style swing through southern Ontario last week, with a stop in Kitchener where he rallied with Guelph Conservative candidate Gloria Kovach. There’s historical precedent that states that a sitting Prime Minister does not stump in a riding holding a by-election, so I guess it could be said that the PM exercised a loophole in that tradition and campaigned in the next town over instead.

Stéphane Dion, meanwhile, seems to be more focused on a national campaign as he tests the tenor and desire of Canadians’ willingness to go to the polls a year early, although he did return to Guelph last Friday for some old fashioned canvassing. His Guelph candidate, Frank Valeriote, seems to be doing fine though running a seemingly bizarre kind-of grassroots campaign, for a member of the Official Opposition Party, I mean. since the writ was dropped, the Royal City’s only been visited by Scott Brison at Valeriote’s campaign office and a number of high-profile members at the Ontario Young Liberals’ Summer Fling at the U of G a few weeks ago.

And as of last Monday, the final slate of candidates is officially listed as follows: Libertarian Party of Canada - Philip Bender; New Democratic Party - Tom King;Marijuana Party - Kornelis Klevering; Conservative Party of Canada - Gloria Kovach;Animal Alliance Environment Voters Party of Canada - Karen Levenson; Green Party of Canada - Mike Nagy; Independent - John Turmel and Liberal Party of Canada - Frank Valeriote.

For more by-election coverage, visit my blog at http://guelphbyelectionbeat.blogspot.com/

Gloria Kovach: Ready to Win

Gloria Kovach is no stranger to tough races or Federal politics. The stalwart city councillor has represented the people in her ward for 18 year now, as well as representing the interests of Canadian urbanites nationwide for a times as President of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. Now her desire to take things to the next level and be elected as the city’s first Conservative Member of Parliament since 1993.

“Certainly I’ve had a lot of exposure in representing cities and communities across Canada at the national and international level,” says Kovach during our phone interview last week. “I’m dedicated to building a better and stronger Canada and I think that my experience in Guelph, both as an elected official and in my other capacities, will help me fully represent Guelph’s interests in Ottawa.”

Aside from her high profile work on behalf of Guelph and other Canadians, Kovach highlights working in Uganda with women’s and children’s groups, dealing with emergency planning and waste management issues in the Czech Republic, and working with people in El Salvador, Columbia, and Vietnam as examples of her qualifications. Back home on council though, she’s most proud of her work in creating the youth council as a way to bring the needs and concerns of young people to the floor. “Also being a nurse and working directly with the people in a healthcare field, understanding the challenges they face, their needs, and just directly working with people on the ground is good experience,” she says.

As for making the shift to Federal politics now, Kovach says she was asked to consider running eight or nine years, but like a lot of women with young families, she didn’t like the idea of being away from home and doing all that travelling. “I’m a roll up your sleeves kind of person,” she explains. “It’s a huge dedication. For me it was important for my children to be grown before I entered into the Federal field.” She adds that, “This is the best time for me and given my experience this is the time for me to run federally.”

Kovach says that those years working and living Guelph has given her an appreciation for the diversity of the city as well as its needs as outlined by the people. Getting out and meeting the people has been key to her campaign, says Kovach. “Our focus is still getting out with the people of Guelph and door-knocking and seeing what issues are most important to them. So I’ve continued to do that and I’ve continued to go out to events and really connect with the people of Guelph.”

The big issue and challenge that people are concerned about, Kovach says, is taxation, and whether the Liberals proposed Green Shift plan will have negative impact on their pocket book. “People are concerned generally about how they’re going to be able to afford to continue to live in their homes, or perhaps purchase a home, or how their children are actually going to be able to afford to live with the increased cost of living,” she says. “They’re concerned with the overall picture, they don’t necessarily differentiate between federal, provincial and municipal.”

Kovach says that she’s concerned about the Liberals assurance that the Carbon Tax, as outlined in the Green Shift, will be revenue neutral saying that, “If you look at the Gun Registry, that cost us billions of dollars and that was supposed to be neutral as well.” She believes that under the plan, families will have to struggle, and writes off the plan as simply “a way for rich people to not have to reduce their green house gases and be able to buy their way out.”

Obviously, there’s a lot of hope amongst the Conservatives to make a breakthrough in Guelph, which could hopefully lead to an increase in the Tories fortunes throughout Ontario. Apropos, a number of highly-profile members have come to the Royal City to offer support; from Defense Minister Peter MacKay to Environment Minister John Baird to the Prime Minister himself. “There’s been a lot of support coming in from my colleagues and I’m very appreciative to them,” says Kovach. “[They] are very understanding of meeting with everyday Canadians and finding out what their issues are and what they’d like to see.”

To follow the campaign and get news and commentary on the by-election, please visit my blog at http://guelphbyelectionbeat.blogspot.com

Frank Valeriote: Building Bridges

It’s Thursday morning, the day before Stephen Harper announced the date for the by-election in Guelph, and Frank Valeriote has the appearance of a man ready to get campaigning. The first time Liberal candidate faces a long and winding road down the campaign trail. Even though Guelph is currently coloured red on the electoral map, Valeriote himself says that he’s not taking anything for granted. “I make no assumptions,” he says. “I’m working for every single vote that I get,”

In the spirit of not taking anything for granted, Valeriote says that there is no single issue that he favours above others, comparing it to being asked which child he loves more. Naturally, it’s hard to have any conversation with a Liberal candidate without bringing up the centrepiece of the party’s platform: the Green Shift. “Personally, I think Mr. [Stéphane] Dion hit the bullseye in such a way that he’s left no more room on the target for any of the other parties to shoot at,” he says, calling the plan bold, visionary and comprehensive.

The Green Shift has not come without its share of controversy, but according to Valeriote people are beginning to understand that they’re not going to be paying more, but paying differently. “A large majority of people say we have to do something and they recognize that it can’t be done without some sacrifice.” Valeriote believes that Guelph can be the epicentre of growth here in Canada and that a lot of research being done at the University of Guelph offers prime research and development opportunities in the creation of a greener economy.

It all fits into Valeriote’s vision to improve the future and help the people of Guelph. On the economy itself, Valeriote says that government needs to be more intentional with its efforts and offer more support local industry. Of course the Green Shift will help in this regard, as Valeriote explains, tax credits and incentives will drive research and innovation which will translate into jobs and increased investment.

In terms of social issues, Valeriote wants to see a re-investment in early childhood learning and says that part of Dion’s plan for Canada is a commitment to cut by 30 per cent the number of people living below the poverty line within five years. Valeriote’s also in favour of expanding programs to help new immigrants. He remembers his grandparents’ own difficulty settling in Guelph and wants to make it easier for the large number of immigrants coming into the city to become a part of the community.

You can tell the issue’s personal to Valeriote, who’s lived in Guelph for 53 years, the last 26 of which as co-founder and senior partner of the Smith/Valeriote law firm on Silvercreek. “It’s not what you say but what you do,” explains Valeriote, who adds that his skills as a lawyer and an advocate make him a powerful candidate. “If you look at my record you’ll see that I’m a doer not a sayer.”

His only previous elected position is as a member of the Catholic School Board. It’s here that Valeriote says he cut his teeth and earned a reputation as a conciliator and bridge-builder. He served on the Board during the tumultuous Mike Harris years, which saw much strife between teachers and school boards. “I entered into teacher negotiations saying ‘this is going to be a win-win,’” Valeriote remembers. “And it was made very clear that when you announce at the beginning of your negotiations what your goals are – that everybody will leave this table with something – then you work towards it.”

Mostly though, Valeriote is anxious to tackle problems and look for solutions rather than participate in partisan arguments and joining a polarized parliament. He had some harsh words for Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty saying that he was “taken aback” by the minister’s comments about Ontario as “the last place” anyone should want to invest in. “I cannot, embrace someone who’s dismissive in their approach to every issue that’s brought before them. It’s discouraging that what was promised: openness, transparency and honesty, has been anything but.”

Valeriote’s up against some pretty high profile competition this election, but he’s confident that he’ll stand out from the crowd. “I think the people of Guelph will look for substance over profile and they’ll see substance when they look at me.”

Stay tuned next week for another candidate profile. And for daily election coverage go to my blog: http://guelphbyelectionbeat.blogspot.com/