What I’m Hearing

Residents want to feel safe walking home, running a business, using our parks and simply going about their day. I’m hearing concerns about homelessness, the toxic drug crisis, mental health, public drug use, theft and disorder, and the pressure these challenges are putting on our neighbourhoods.

How I’ll Approach It

We are not going to arrest our way out of homelessness, addiction or mental illness. We need better access to housing, outreach, treatment and mental health supports, and stronger coordination between the organizations and governments responsible for providing them. Somerset cannot be expected to carry a disproportionate share of these challenges on its own.

At the same time, compassion cannot mean ignoring crime or behaviour that makes people unsafe. Police have an important role when crime or immediate safety concerns are involved. I want residents, businesses, community organizations, outreach teams and police working together, with clearer accountability and a shared focus on making our neighbourhoods safer and healthier for everyone.

Compassion and accountability need to work together.

What I’m Hearing

People are worried about rising rents, being priced out of their neighbourhood and whether the next generation will be able to afford to live here. Residents also recognize that Somerset needs more housing, but want growth that contributes to the community around it.

How I’ll Approach It

We need to build more housing, including genuinely affordable and family-sized homes. I support thoughtful intensification, particularly near transit and on underused properties, while making sure growth is accompanied by the parks, transportation, infrastructure and services a larger population needs.

The City also needs to use the tools it already has more effectively. That includes making better use of public land and underused buildings, supporting non-profit and community housing, protecting existing affordable rentals, exploring office conversions where they make sense, and helping genuinely affordable projects move forward faster.

More housing matters. So does building complete communities around it.

What I’m Hearing

Sometimes it’s the everyday things that make the biggest difference. Residents are talking about garbage, graffiti, lighting, sidewalks, trees, parks, recreation spaces and whether the public spaces around them feel clean, welcoming and cared for.

How I’ll Approach It

I want the City to get the basics right. That means cleaner streets, reliable lighting, well-maintained sidewalks, more trees and shade, better-maintained parks and recreation spaces, and faster responses when something isn’t working. Residents shouldn’t have to make the same service request over and over before a basic problem gets addressed.

But this is about more than maintenance. As Somerset grows, we need to invest in the public spaces that make dense urban neighbourhoods great places to live. I want to look for opportunities to improve parks, recreation, public washrooms, gathering spaces and underused areas throughout the ward.

Our public spaces shouldn’t just function. They should be places people enjoy spending time.

What I’m Hearing

Whether people walk, bike, take transit or drive, I’m hearing that getting around needs to be safer and more reliable. Residents have raised unreliable transit, speeding, dangerous intersections, gaps in cycling infrastructure, sidewalk conditions and parking.

How I’ll Approach It

There isn’t one transportation solution that works for every street. I want decisions to reflect how people actually use their neighbourhoods, with a focus on safer intersections, reducing dangerous speeding, accessible sidewalks and better-connected cycling routes.

Reliable public transit also has to be part of the equation. People need to know that the bus or train they depend on will actually get them where they need to go, with accurate information when something goes wrong. At the same time, we need practical conversations about parking, deliveries and access, particularly on streets where residents and local businesses are competing for limited space.

Our transportation network should be safe, reliable and practical for the people who use it every day.

What I’m Hearing

Local businesses are a huge part of what makes Somerset special, but many are dealing with rising costs, construction, safety and cleanliness concerns, and a downtown that still needs more people and activity. Residents want our main streets to feel vibrant again.

How I’ll Approach It

Supporting local business starts with getting the fundamentals right: clean and welcoming streets, safe public spaces, reliable City services and predictable access during construction. I want the City to work closely with businesses and BIAs, listen when something isn’t working and reduce unnecessary barriers that make it harder to operate downtown.

We also need to give people reasons to come downtown and reasons to stay. That means supporting festivals and community events, improving our public spaces, finding creative ways to activate our main streets and continuing to bring more residents downtown. More people living here means more customers for local shops, restaurants and services throughout the week, not just during special events.

A thriving downtown needs thriving neighbourhoods and local businesses.