Elections
Michael James Baldasaro, Candidate for Mayor in Hamilton Municipal Election 2010
Details page for this candidate.
In This Page:
Candidate Details (top)
| Name | Baldasaro, Michael James |
|---|---|
| Election | Hamilton Municipal Election 2010 |
| Area | Mayor |
| Party | N/A |
| Votes | 2892 |
| michaelbaldasaro@Live.ca | |
| Website | http://www.iamm.com/baldasaro.for.mayor.htm |
| Home | 905-522-3247 |
| Business | |
| Fax | |
| Bio | Born at Little Current, Manitoulin Island, May 23, 1949. Resettled to Hamilton in 1949.
Schooled at St. John The Baptist, De la Salle Oak lands (Camp), Delta High School and Universe University. Worked as an Operating Engineer, since 1967, Family Construction Business, Baldasaro & MacGregor Ltd. (General Contractors) and with the International Union of Operating Engineers as an out-side Contractor in Stelco, Dofasco, Westinghouse, International Harvester, McCoy and other Foundries. Experienced in road, sewer, water main, tunnel, building construction and demolition. Minister Plenipotentiary, Church of the Universe since 1979. Professor Legal Self Defence, Universe University. Civil, Criminal, Constitutional Litigation. Human Rights Activist since 1967 and an aspiring servant to my fellow human beings, all my life. |
Responses to Questions (top)
| Question | Brief Response | Full Response |
|---|---|---|
| Some cities have committed recently to publishing their public data in an open format that citizens can directly access. Should Hamilton pledge to become an "open source city"? Why or why not? | Yes | Yes, Hamilton should become an "open source city" to promote more understanding of where we stand financially and to identify and better communicate on the issues affecting everyone within the Greater Hamilton Area. |
| Do you believe that poverty is the most critical issue facing Hamilton today? If so, please outline your solutions. If not, please explain your reasons. | Yes | Poverty is the most critical issue facing the Greater Hamilton Area today. First and foremost, we must stop sending millions of Federal, Provincial and Municipal Tax Dollars out-of-country to every disaster as they happen, when in fact we are facing a national disaster in our own Country and throughout the G.H.A., our food banks are empty and due to the current downturn in our economy the numbers of homeless and the hungry grow.
The solution is simple, return to growing Hemp (English), Chanvre (French), Marijuana (Mexican), Canvas (Dutch). Jobs, Jobs, Jobs in the food, fuel, cloth, paper and medicine Industries ad infinitum. Throughout two World Wars our farmers were paid and encouraged by the Government to grow Hemp, Marijuana for the War effort. Our Soldiers uniforms, hats, belts, shoe laces, tents and parachute harnesses were made of hemp. Upon food lands, farmers grew rows of Hemp, Marijuana, in between their crops as fire walls to keep them safe in dry hot weather. If fire broke out Marijuana's fire retardant oils would serve yet another useful process as a natural break wall to save the crops. Our Greater Hamilton Area, and/or as even Bob Bratina admits "The Greater HEMP Area" would flourish and become once again "the industrious City" leading Canada in the way of self sustaining ourselves during the hard times that seem so immanent (see what is happening in England and France, Government Layoffs and closures of Courts, Humanitarian and other vital services). We must answer hunger and homelessness with jobs, in Growing, Harvesting, Manufacturing, Spinning Mills, Bio-Fuels, food for our tables and seed to feed our livestock). We must have gardens and chickens in our back yards once again, just in case we have to feed ourselves and we must stop Urban Sprawl, NO BUILDING PERMITS ISSUED UPON FOOD LANDS. |
| Is Hamilton doing enough to support and encourage new investment in our older neighbourhoods? If not, what should the City be doing? | No | No, Hamilton is not doing enough to support and encourage new investment in our older neighbourhoods.
As I said in The Hamiltonian's extensive Online Survey of Mayoralty Candidates, "The City must put an immediate end to urban sprawl onto food lands. This will raise property values of our inner city and encourage its clean up and rebuilding throughout." http://www.thehamiltonian.net/2010/09/mayoral-candidate-michael-baldasaro.html |
| Should we spend the Future Fund to build a Pan Am / Ticat stadium on the CP Rail Yard lands? Why or why not? | No | The Future Fund should not be used to build a Pan Am / Ticat stadium on the CP Rail Yard lands, especially in light of our $120,000,000 deficit for 2010 and the fact that I heard, first hand, from the Tiger Cat Football Clubs Vice President that Ivor Wynne was good for another 25 years. In reality, it should last a lot longer seeing as concrete takes 100 years to cure before it even starts to deteriorate.
In any event, we have at least another 20 years to save up to pay for a new stadium. The 10 million the Club is offering leaves us still short 30 to 40 million and that is not enough. As you can see in this documentary video below, when I spoke with some of the footballers the response I got was to put some parking across the street in the vacant Scott Park School and adjacent yard. Ivor Wynne is a Win-Win-Win: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VKrl_XeHeM |
| Will your term change people's first impression of Hamilton, and make that first impression more attractive to visitors, students, commuters and newcomers? If so, how? | Yes | Yes, I believe my term in office will change everyone's first impression of Hamilton and make that first impression more attractive to everyone.
The first impression of Hamilton will be, what the Hell, these people are survivors and know how to live well. Today we have a dysfunctional Council and City Services because our Leaders have not been capable of working with and communicating with Council or City Employees. As Hamilton's Chief Justice of the Peace, I will run City Council as the Court and Civic Parliament it is and should be. I will work to place time limits on Councilors submissions accordingly. We must do our homework at home and bring to the Council Table short concise submissions, just as we do when we run as Candidates for Office. We will once again be known for our prosperity, fairness and innovation, especially in the Industrial fields due our employment of vacant buildings and U.S. Steel and other workers in order to make equipment to supply our new found Industries for harvesting, handling, research and processing Hemp/Marijuana products. We will provide Bus Depots/Stations where Buses will service and reside throughout each City of the G.H.A., Ancaster, Dundas, Flamborough, Glanbrook, Hamilton, Mount Hope and Stoney Creek. Our fleet will all run on bio-fuels grown and developed within the Greater Hamilton/Hemp Area. We will be known for our ingenuity by creating the Office of 2 Councilors per Ward, one of whom will be wo-man-dated to be a female. This will reduce the need to throw away millions of dollars we now spend on Consultants and will raise the bar for contenders seeking Office while providing greater representation more evenly for everyone so we may better find solutions to the problems facing everyone in our Area which should and will be rated fairly and equitably. We will build condos, residences and entertainment at the West Harbour and a Crystal Palace as it was when Gore Park was glassed in. Indoors and out-door walkways from Gore Park over top Jackson Sq. all the way down to the West Harbour. Hamilton will be a destination for to enjoy year round. inside and out. |
| Hamilton's Cycling Master Plan has Council approval. However, the implementation timeline is very long and ward councillors can block individual bike lane projects. Do you support accelerating the completion of a continuous bicycle network and other initiatives like a bike sharing program and better access up and down the Escarpment? Why or why not? | Yes | Yes, I support accelerating the completion of a continuous bicycle network and associated initiatives throughout the Greater Hamilton Area.
As bicycling has become more popular and with some, more necessary, to me, it is imperative that the bicycling network be completed as soon as possible. If elected Mayor I will work with the Councillors to get their acquiescence and approval for any bike trails that have been laid out. Bicycles are best ridden on trials and old rail lines. They make very usable bicycle and walking paths and are much safer than riding on the street. A cyclist can peddle up the escarpment behind the Chedoke Martin Golf Course and end up at Upper Paradise on Mount Forest. The reason I refer to the Hamilton Mountain as Mt. Forest is because Hamilton, and the Golden Horse Shoe surrounding it, is actually located at the foot of Mt. Forest. The Town of Mt. Forest, on #6 Hwy. North, is the highest elevation in Southern Ontario. It is near the top of an ancient mountain, better known today as the Hamilton Mountain, and we live at its foot. Lower Hamilton is approximately 350' above sea level "asl"; Upper Hamilton 600' asl; Guelph 1,000' asl; Fergus 1,380'; Mt. Forest, 1,560' asl. |
| For your campaign, will you be accepting donations from corporations or unions? If so, why? If not, why not? | No | No. I will not be accepting donations from corporations or unions to support my campaign for Mayor of the G.H.A., "The Greater Hamilton Area". I am not asking for and/or accepting donations from anyone and will spend between $500.00 and $1,000.00 of my own money, running on my name and word of mouth.
The reason I refuse to seek funds from my fellow Constituents to fund my Mayoral Campaign, is because I do not believe in begging, i.e. putting my hand in the pockets of those I am looking to represent and enrich, the Citizens of the 'G.H.A.". I believe in putting money in everyone's pockets through responsible and accessible Leadership, working together with Council, Municipal Workers and the Citizens we serve equally throughout the G.H.A. |
| Council is poised to vote on the Airport Employment Growth District, a 3,000 acre plan to expand the urban boundary around Hamilton International Airport for employment lands. Do you support this plan? Why or why not? | No | I do not support the Airport Employment Growth District. We cannot afford the infrastructure, sewer and road construction that goes along with it and we must stop eating up our food lands and grow Marijuana/Hemp/Chanvre for food, fuel, cloth and medicine, jobs, jobs, jobs. |
| The City of Hamilton has committed to doubling transit ridership by 2020. Do you support this goal? If so, how would you realize it? | Yes | I would move to create bus stations within each of the 7 Cities, connecting them to the Center of the G.H.A.
This would improve ridership in the outlying areas, Ancaster, Dundas, Flamborough, Glanbrook, Mount Hope and Stoney Creek and seeing as Bus Stations act as Community Centers, this would give us a place to meet for coffee and get to know one another as we wait to connect with our ride. More buses looping the 7 Cities and a line whose only purpose is connecting them all to the core on a regular daily basis. |
| Many observers argue that Council meetings could be more respectful and professional. Do you agree? If so, what will you do to change this? | Yes | I agree. Council Meetings could be more respectful and professional. What I will do to change that is to seek the agreement of Council to time limit submissions to 1-5 minutes depending on the subject matter and complexity. Home work should be done at home and Members should be able to keep it short just like they do during All Candidate Debates. The less time we spend getting to the point means the more time we have to read up and study the problems and articulate our replies. |
| Do you support Hamilton's LRT proposal? If so, what will you do to ensure Hamilton's success in building LRT? If not, why do you oppose it? | No | No, I am not for funding LRT in the present economical circumstances.
At this time, the infrastructure underneath our roads requires repair and much improvement before we spend any more tax dollars by changing the entire concept of public transportation in the G.H.A. Especially, when improvements can be made to bring the present system up to standard. |
