My response to the 17 questions from Sharon Terry of Sustainable Brant

1. As an elected official of the County of Brant I would vote to keep the land as a greenbelt.

2. I will never support such amalgamation and the current provincial government is not in favor of any further amalgamation in Ontario.

3. In February of 2010 Dave Levac was pushing the province to designate Brant a Green Energy Hub, a centre for the development of green energy. Community partners are: Brant/Brantford Chamber of Commerce, The County of Brant, Brantford, Six Nations, Brant County Power, Brantford Power, Laurier Brant University, Nippising University Brantford and Mohawk College.

They were working to get a grant for $24,500.00. There is information on the internet about the Green Hub and how it is progressing. B) I believe the information should be put on the County of Brant web page.

4. In April of 2010 Mayor Ron Eddy made it clear that The County of Brant is not considering an incinerator. I will support the process of incinerating our waste.

5. We must look after our own waste and should not permit industries to locate in the County of Brant that may cause an environmental disaster.

6. The Provincial goal for waste diversion is 60%. The County of Brant recycles and composts 36% of its waste. The County has set a goal of 60% waste diversion as our target. When we reach this goal we will move to increase the waste diversion. I have spoken to many people in Ward 2 that have stopped recycling when the County went to a 2 week pickup. We need to have a weekly pickup and drop off areas if we are going to reach goal.

7. The County cannot control the sale of land, however we can control what the land will be used for. When our framers have worked the land all their lives and want to sell the land, it should be up to them who they sell to. They can receive the money they need for a good retirement from land bankers. If they want to sell their farm to another farmer they may not receive as much money for retirement. The County must not change the designation on farm land if we are to continue to eat well.

8. I support our farmers by purchasing locally grown products. I believe that we should have a open farmers market in the County of Brant.

9. We need to be united as a community to determine what type of development we will allow within the County of Brant. Information needs to be open and assessable to all members of the County of Brant.

10. I do not know enough about this process and would have to study the effects before taking a position on this topic.

11. I do not believe that we need to extent the greenbelt into the County of Brant. We have the power to control where and what type of development is built in the County. We need to protect our farm land and in our official plan we have taken the steps to do that.

12. I support culture in the County of Brant. Art and culture is an important part of every community. If we forget the past how will we plane for the future?
In these tough economical times when we have people losing their jobs, plants closing their doors and more people having to use the food bank, it would be irresponsible to spend tax dollars on culture and heritage. The County of Brant has an infrastructure that is in need of repair and will cost the County millions of dollars. I believe that we need to turn to the private sector for help in raising the need funds to purchase and preserve our heritage buildings. Our publicly owned heritage buildings should be maintained properly so that they do not fall into a state of disrepair.

13. I have not received any donations from anyone who is in control of land in the County of Brant.

I believe a ban on donations from corporations and unions for election campaigns is a good restriction and I would support such a ban.

14. I have attending meeting on the proposed brick factory. The information that has been presented and is well within the acceptable standards. The County will monitor toxic emissions and will take steps to shut down the plant if they are in violation of the standards.

15. I have read reports on P3s and at first look it appears that they do not work well. There are reports that show delays, cost overruns, legal disputes and poor quality work. There needs to be more studies on this type of partnership. At this point I am not in favor of the County of Brant entering into this type of partnership.

16. I believe that the people need to be well informed. On the County of Brant web page there is a lot of good information. I would like to see council meetings broadcasted on Rogers community channel. This would give the people more information about what is going on the County. It will also allow the voters to see how their elected representatives are working for them. Delegations to council are one of the best ways for council to understand what the people want. There are times when in camera meetings are required. Many are not required and should not be held so I will support a more open council.

17. I support the building of a new 424 Hwy. to remove the average 700 trucks that go through the residential streets and downtown of Paris The government needs to look at the current Hwy 24 and how it could join up with the 401.

John L. Timon