MEET THE CANDIDATES: Ward 3, Steven Petric

GuelphToday asked candidates for council in the Oct. 22 municipal election to provide a short biography and outline their platform and/or why they are running.

THE PERSON:  Steven Petric was born and raised in Guelph. I’ve spent the past eight years living in the Exhibition Park area of Ward 3, the same ward my Grandfather settled and started a family in.

For growing cities like Guelph, it is essential that we strengthen our community engagement, cherish the diversity of our community, and care about the future of our city.

I’m the right person to represent you on these and more. I’ve spent over 20 years working in the customer service field, which has afforded me great opportunities to listen and learn from people with various backgrounds and experiences. I value open, honest, and straight forward communication.

Being a candidate for councillor in 2000, 2003 and 2010, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to connect with my neighbours and listen and learn about their ideas and concerns. I’ve worked as a community advocate sitting on the Transit Advisory Committee and co-founding the Transit Action Alliance of Guelph. I’m also a member of the Guelph Collation for Active Transportation and the Guelph Arts Council. My past community involvement has included the Guelph Youth Council, New Years Eve Committee, Youth Centre Project, and Guelph Youth Strategy Steering Committee.

I look forward to meeting you and hearing about the issues that affect your lives every day. If I receive the privilege of earning your trust and your vote, I will bring all of my diverse skills as well as my passion for the community to work for and with you.

THE PLATFORM: I believe Guelph is an incredible community with so much to offer every one of us. It’s time that we all have a bigger voice in making that happen. We need more perspectives that accurately represent the population of our city and I want to do that by listening to you. I want to represent all people who live here and do what I can to make every voice count in our city government.

There has been a lot of negativity in politics lately and I don’t think it has to be that way. We are better than that. Building relationships with all people is important to me. I believe in the value of community engagement and will encourage and facilitate positive conversations that produce meaningful results.

We need to challenge the status quo in ways that are innovative, involving a collaborative approach aimed at finding compromise and/or consensus. We can work together and communicate with one another in progressive, significant ways to create outcomes that will have long term benefits for Ward 3 and our city.

I want ethical systems that are based on transparency in all areas of our local government. Our elected officials and staff must be held accountable for shortfalls as much as they are applauded for improvements. I’m committed to creating a truly open and responsive government.

My plan is to keep in touch with residents so that I’m kept aware of any issues, needs, or requests you have. I’ll also offer both online and in-person public forums, such as regular town hall meetings, to provide opportunities for ongoing engagement, so residents can give constructive feedback, ask questions, and understand what’s happening in their city.

There are exciting challenges and opportunities facing Ward 3 and our city. As our neighbourhoods continue to age, mature, and grow, we must continue to invest in their renewal and revitalization. Updates to community services and infrastructure must be done properly to maximize the long-term positive impacts, while balancing the current needs of neighbourhoods and their residents. This can only be accomplished with improved communication and collaboration between all stakeholders, along with greater accountability at city hall.

I value a well-rounded city with services and amenities that benefit a range of residents even if you or I don’t use them ourselves. Safety for all our children is a focus. I believe that the arts add value to our city.

Having the ability to get around in a variety of ways efficiently and safely means that I value an efficient transit system, safe cycling network, and great pedestrian connectivity, in addition to well maintained road networks. I want to make sure our seniors can age in the neighbourhoods they’ve called home for decades. I believe it’s important to take care of our most vulnerable.

I support diversification and attracting a variety of businesses. I also strongly believe in supporting local businesses. Value for tax dollars is critical; we don’t need to race to the bottom or top to get the quality services everyone expects in our community. Engagement on change in neighbourhoods is critical as are the relationships between all stakeholders.

We do have challenges and we always will. But with those challenges comes opportunities. By electing me on October 22, you’ll have new voice on council who will work hard to find compromise and/or consensus on the issues we face as a community and will make sure every voice counts in Guelph – our community depends on it.

We get to determine our future. We really do. I want to hear from you. Reach out to me at [email protected] or www.stevenpetric.com