Elections

Jim Davis, Candidate for Mayor in Hamilton Municipal Election 2018

Details page for this candidate.

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Candidate Details (top)

NameDavis, Jim
ElectionHamilton Municipal Election 2018
AreaMayor
PartyN/A
Votes0
Email jag__64@msn.com
Website (no website listed)
Home289-396-1263
Business
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Responses to Questions (top)

QuestionBrief ResponseFull Response
Hamilton has a legacy of multi-lane, one-way arterial streets dating back to the 1950s. Do you support accelerating the conversion of these streets to two-way? Why or why not? No One-way streets were created to empty out traffic at a quicker rate. When industry was booming in Hamilton it worked, one-way streets to mountain accesses got people home faster. I read it cost $250,000 to convert each intersection from one-way to two-way so in the case of Wentworth St. I don't think the cost out weighed the improvement. In fact, it just increased the dangers to the students at the two schools on that street. Although stats say more people are hit on one-way St. than two-way St. (because they compared ratio instead of auto/pedestrian accidents) its common sense that it is easier to cross a street when you only have to deal with the flow of traffic from one direction. Certain areas of the city should be converted to two-way streets, like south-west of James St. but don't put parking in the middle of the street with the bike lane next to the curb. This increased the dangers to cyclist with no repercussions to the passenger that opens the door and takes them out.
Bonus question: If LRT goes ahead, what will you do to ensure Hamilton receives the maximum benefit? Yes I would change the route. The fastest way from point A to point B is a straight line. My vision of LRT is straight down Main St. from Mac to Gage Ave. It is wide enough to support it and with little retail business on Main St. as opposed to King, less chances of losing businesses during construction. At Gage it would elevate so from Ottawa to the Linc it would be overhead. This now allows for street space to remain the same and gives Hamilton a new look for movie shoots as we can now become Chicago. We can continue it from the Linc to Jones road on the street as it is wide enough. At Jones Rd there is a vacant lot for a turnabout and HSR can take passengers to city limits, eliminating Trans cab. By stopping at Eastgate, we shorten the full potential of LRT linking our extended city. By traveling in a straight line, we save on material and allow to extend the track. With a more common sense route and less money being spent on property would sell Metrolinx and the Province on this route.
The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act mandates that cities must be completely accessible by 2025. What changes would you make to ensure Hamilton complies with this mandate? Yes BFA is a must in new construction so there isn't much to do with new buildings. As for existing buildings, just speed up the process.
Do you support improved public transit in Hamilton? If so, what changes do you propose? If not, why not? Yes HSR has to be overhauled. Most of the routes of HSR have been the same for the last 50 yrs and they don't work anymore. The city has grown and we need to expand the service to all areas of the new boundaries. There are way to many overlapping routes and to many buses end up in the same spot. Seems all the buses come down the hill creating longer travel time and more fuel being used. Create East/West routes that do just that and why do all the upper buses have to go downtown? Have them travel to different parts of the lower city so there is more North/South routes in the city.
Since the 1950s, most new residential and commercial development in Hamilton has been single-use suburban sprawl. Do you believe Hamilton needs to concentrate new development within the already-built area? Why or why not? Yes Being in construction, I have seen other cities build commercial/residential projects for a while now and don't understand why Hamilton hasn't adopted the same kind of projects. Milton has been building these for some time now where commercial is at street level and residential is built above it. In the case of downtown, we can only build upward for residential so why not adopt this strategy to grow the downtown core
Global warming is an existential challenge facing humanity. Do you think Hamilton should play a role in addressing climate change? If so, what should the city be doing? If not, why not? Yes Global warming is everyone's responsibility and by keeping our industries in check to follow the guidelines is a starting point. Our upper Governments have to push the auto industry to move faster on removing the internal combustion engine, one of the top polluters in North America.
Should Hamilton be trying to attract more young people to live, work and start businesses here, including the 60,000 students studying at Mohawk College, McMaster University and Redeemer University? If so, what should we be doing? If not, why not? Yes Most people stay in the areas they are raised in so attracting younger people shouldn't be that difficult. Friends attract friends to live in their area. To attract new business is the challenge. On average, it takes 5yrs to establish a new business so maybe a 5yr tax break could influence new businesses.
Do you support phasing out area rating for transit? Why or why not? No Area rating should be left the way it is. Why should people pay for things they don't receive? In the case where they have Trans cab then they should pay for the service but beyond the Trans cab service, they should be exempt.
Do you support the "Vision Zero" goal of eliminating traffic fatalities and serious injuries in Hamilton? If so, what specific actions would you take to implement this policy? If not, why not? No Traffic accidents will always exist until we can come up with a computer system to keep cars at a safe distance. We seen the other day pedestrian/auto accidents will always be an issue until people start crossing in the designated area.
Council has voted dozens of times since 2008 to advance Hamilton's light rail transit (LRT) project, including voting to submit the plan with a full funding request to the Province in 2013, and voting to accept full funding and implementation from the Province in 2015. Do you support completing the LRT plan? Why or why not? No I support LRT but I do not support the route it is taking. We see King St. can not support the LRT because it has to buy up property to make it fit and by doing so, money is being wasted and Metrolinx has lost interest.
Hamilton has been experiencing a slow-motion crisis in housing affordability. Do you support an expanded role for the City to provide more affordable housing? If so, what should Hamilton do? If not, why not? Yes I have spoke with a third party over the yrs to create 0 labour cost to maintain the houses that already exist in the housing program. This can also be used to build new houses on city owned properties. By building new homes we could set up a lottery program where people could purchase the homes with no down payment. As for private rentals, we could set up a program with set rates and if owners join this program we could offer concessions.