David Mitchell, Candidate for Ward 11 in Hamilton Municipal Election 2010 - Raise the Hammer Elections

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Candidate Details
Responses to Questions

Candidate Details (top)

Name	Mitchell, David
Election	Hamilton Municipal Election 2010
Area	Ward 11
Party	N/A
Votes	4165
Email	mitchell11@mountaincable.net
Website	http://david-mitchell.ca/election/
Home	905-692-5379
Business
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Bio	David grew up on his family farm in Binbrook and was always very active in many community groups & local associations; Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority, Chairman of Transportation Committee for Canada's Outstand Young Farmers at the Royal Winter Fair in Toronto, Wentworth Soil & Crop Improvement Association, Past President, Junior Farmers' Association of Ontario, Past Provincial Director, Glanbrook Non-Contact Hockey League, President. Dave was instrumental in the Construction of Wetlands for Purification of Milk House wash water & manure runoff, (1 of 12 installed in the Province of Ontario). He also has the prestige of being the only Canadian chosen to be part of the International Rotary Group Study Exchange Team to Soviet Union in 1990 as well as holds such honours as Canada World Youth Host Family Farm; Canada's Outstanding Young Farmers' Ontario Winner and Wentworth County Farmer of the Year. David first entered into politics as Ward 4 Councillor of the Township of Glanbrook in 1986 through 1997. From 1997 to 2000, he served as the Township of Glanbrook, Deputy Mayor and Hamilton-Wentworth Regional Councillor and was elected City Councillor for Ward 11 in the new amalgamated City of Hamilton in 2001. As a member of City Council he has held positions as a member of and Chair of numerous sub committees for the City of Hamilton such as; Chair of Public Works, Environment & Infrastructure Committee; Chair & Vice-chair of Planning & Economic Development Committee. David is the current Chair of the Board of Hamilton Renewable Energy Corporation. He is a graduate of the Charter class of the Bay Area Leadership Program.

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Responses to Questions (top)

Question	Brief Response	Full Response
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?	Yes	I supported the airport employment lands. We need to attract and retain business, Hamilton needs to be open for business, our community needs 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 definitely support this, that is why we need Light Rail Transit (LRT) in the city which will increase ridership.
Is Hamilton doing enough to support and encourage new investment in our older neighbourhoods? If not, what should the City be doing?	No	Hamilton has created some excellent programs so far, for example like the ERASE program and interest-free loans (Downtown loans program) to refurbish unused commercial and industrial sites. These programs are steps in the right direction but we still need to do more. I would like to build on these and for the future we need to attract and retain more residential development to appreciate what downtown has to offer (i.e Art Gallery, Discovery Centre, Pier 4 park) and by doing that more commercial development will follow.
Should we spend the Future Fund to build a Pan Am / Ticat stadium on the CP Rail Yard lands? Why or why not?	No	No I do not support this.
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	Definitely, the only way we can deal with poverty is to get Hamilton open for business, we need jobs in this community, we must retain and attract business to this great City, so that it can become prosperous and then we can be able to help those in need.
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 I do. I thought it was. There is times though that releasing information from the Corporation of Hamilton can create huge lawsuits against the City and thus more money being spent on fighting and paper work than going into the infrastructure where it is desperately needed. Information must be looked at and gone over in many cases very carefully before it gets released officially as to not have legal problems.. I would say the process could be speeded up though.
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?	Yes	Yes I support the LRT, I am willing to meet with the provincial committee delegates who are going to make the decisions about the LRT in Hamilton. I will also have discussions with Richard Koroscil (Chair of the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce) who is our LRT representative for Hamilton to ensure that they are aware of the strengths Hamilton has to offer as well as the environmental benefits for this city by keeping more cars off the road.
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?	Maybe	Bike Lanes are an important part of Hamilton's Development. It does need to be done safely for both bike riders, pedestrians, runners and vehicles so no one gets hurt or is given a false sense of security. Hamilton needs to be planned and managed differently depending on geographical districts and the needs of the different communities. One size will not fit all.
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	I have always been supportive to Tourism Hamilton - we have so many great places to visit, Art Gallery, Pier 4, Dundurn Castle, waterfalls, bike trails and so much more, not to mention our beautiful rural areas and local farms, I have always promoted our many events in the city during council meetings.
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	We need a mayor who has strong leadership skills that will ensure council meetings run appropriately. with the new electronic system in place in the council chambers, this will enable the mayor to turn off any speaker who is being inappropriate.
For your campaign, will you be accepting donations from corporations or unions? If so, why? If not, why not?	Yes	Yes, as I have in past previous elections, I will be accepting campaign contributions from corporations. By law, a corporation has the same rights as a single individual to make donations to candidates, I do not wish to discriminate.