Whetham off and running
Feb 5th, 2010 | By Debbie Vitez | Section: 2010 Municipal CandidatesThis article ran in the KW Record… comments invited below.. ( Good luck Linda)
Ray Martin, Times Staff Feb 04/10
Following months of rumour, Coun. Linda Whetham has made it official. She’s running for mayor in this fall’s municipal elections.
For the past decade, Whetham has sat on council representing North Galt’s Ward 3. Since then she has sat on a number of committees and has become an advocate for arts, culture and seniors. She also currently chairs council’s general committee meetings.
“I’ve been there for three terms and I promised myself I’d only be there for two,” she said. “It’s time for me. It’s either up or out.”
Whetham posted her nomination papers Tuesday and will be up against three-time incumbent Doug Craig, who filed his nomination Jan. 4.
The new mayoral candidate said she intends to run a “clean campaign,” and simply wants to provide a different type of leadership style.
She is offering a more conservative leadership style. Given the reduction in revenues the city is taking in, Whetham said the city must be more cautious and selective in its spending.
“With the tax dollars we’re getting, we have to be careful with it,” she said and the focus must now be on “maintaining the services we’ve already got”.
Whetham believes the city should not be getting into provincial issues like Cambridge Memorial Hospital, where the city is investing $6.3 million to help build the hospital expansion.
“That money could have been used for a lot of other things this city needs,” she said.
Although she is a strong supporter of arts and culture, and is proud to have been involved in the development of the city’s cultural achievement award, Whetham is against spending money on the Drayton Theatre project or the proposed Venice Biennale, the cultural carnival from Venice Italy, which brings together art, fashion and architecture.
“We don’t have to go to that higher level playing field just now,” she said. “Especially, when money is so tight.
Early in her council career Whetham pushed for the installation of netting at city arenas to protect spectators from arrant hockey pucks.
She also battled to get city facilities in her ward and was behind the drive which created offices within city hall so female councillors had someplace safe to meet with their constituents.
She also went to bat for one of her constituents when the city decided to expropriate a farm in her ward to expand an industrial park.
Whetham believes: the city should strive to build a stronger working relationship with Waterloo Region while keeping Cambridge’s identity; work with the province to maintain programs like the Stroke Out patient rehabilitation program; and, partner with universities and colleges to improve quality of life for residents.
Although she has just announced her campaign Whetham said she already has a strong campaign team in place and is ready to go.
Asked what she thinks her chances are against a three-time incumbent, Whetham said. “I wouldn’t be doing it if I didn’t think I could win.”
link to story
http://www.cambridgetimes.ca:80/news/local/article/604781–whetham-off-and-running
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Question for Linda, her team and/or supporters (Deb, Bev, et al). In the article Linda is directly quoted as saying: …. “With the tax dollars we’re getting, we have to be careful with it,” she said and the focus must now be on “maintaining the services we’ve already got”. Whetham believes the city should not be getting into provincial issues like Cambridge Memorial Hospital, where the city is investing $6.3 million to help build the hospital expansion. “That money could have been used for a lot of other things this city needs,” she said….. My question; do you not feel CMH is a necessary service to Cambridge and why do you not feel the taxpayers of this City should partner with the Province and Feds to get this expansion built? After all, I have heard so often that “there is only one taxpayer for all levels of government”!
I agree with you Lary.. I was surprised at that comment..I know we need other services, but in my personal opinion the hospital and clean water remain number 1 on my bucket list..
Different levels of government are responsible for different services. Hospitals are a provincial responsibility. Linda is correct, municipal tax dollars should not have to be used to pay for provincial responsibilities and bills. Municipal tax dollars are for municipal responsiblitiesand the more they are diverted to non municipal responsibilities ( Hospital, University of Waterloo, Drayton Theatre and Venice Bienniel’s ) the less we have for things that we do need and are responsible for, water and sewer services, roads, parks, rec centres, senior centres etc.
The 6.3 Million pledge of good faith was made by our city 10 years ago when our hospital expansion was first promised and 10 years later we are still waiting. Will the province ever step up to the plate here or will they continue to downsize our hospital ( bed closures and layoffs ). Will we end up going to Kitchener for hospital services?
If our city has 6.3 Million in it’s coffers for our as yet to be seen expansion and this expansion does not occur, will this money be diverted to something else? P.S - The city must still find 5.1 Million for Drayton.
I guess this decision would be left up to whoever we elect as our Mayor and councillors in this years election.
Bev is mostly right. Interestingly the “granny suite” or basement apartment fee (John Newton’s issue), clean up of the Northstar contamination (Debbie’s issue), and the concern for the hospital and the current restructuring to what appears to be region based services are all provincial issues. That doesn’t mean the truly fearless municipal councillors won’t wade into these issues to protect their constituents. I have noticed in the postings of articles on the municipal candidates section, not a single one has been posted where Ben Tucci has directly taken on the province when it comes to fighting for our hospital or the recent Toronto Star article on the building of the Waterscape Condo that praised the Mayor and Ben Tucci for their relentless efforts to get the Brownfield turned into tax generating condos that will bring commerce to the core. Having had a front row seat to municipal politics all these years it’s my opinion that there are two types of politicians. Those that are willing to be controversial, to take the hits from those unwilling to take the time to understand all sides of an issue, be accused of having ego’s because they make the news, all because they understand what it will take to be an economically viable and attractive city that can remain independent. The other type plays it safe, voting consistently in a fashion that may show a complete lack of vision but plays out to a theme of cut taxes, these politicians don’t make the news or enemies for that matter. I am proud of my husband who falls in the first category.
Hello Catherine! Nice to ’see’ you on this site. You are, also, ‘mostly right’. The hospital is definitely a provincial responsibility. And when the provincial government fails in its responsibilities, I do think Cambridge council should make it a priority to fight for our healthcare; if we lose the fight with the province (which it appears we have) then, to protect our citizens it may be necessary to use municipal tax dollars for partial funding of CMH (certainly, before Drayton and Venice Bienniel…but not before City Council has met its own responsibilities to maintain and improve our municipal services.)
Catherine.
Just to clarify, my fight is not with Northstar per say.. My fight is for clean water..( and knowing where the Brownfield’s are)
This council and this Mayor have known for years and years now.. that 40% of us are drinking, bathing our children and ourselves, and cooking our meals in water that contains high levels of TCE..
I admit …I know nothing nothing about procedure pertaining to Politics.. But I know this..
If I had been on this council..( and no I have no intention of running for any form of office..)
But if I had been on board when The Bishop Street issue broke back in 2004..
(because that’s when all the important people knew about our situation in Preston.. )
Everyone just choose to not tell us .. They were forced to tell us and finally did in 2005
I would have been fired from council.. (if that was procedure), because I would have been all over those people, trying to help them…
THAT DID NOT HAPPEN IN CAMBRIDGE..
No one.. stepped up for those families, Even when the number of seriously ill people was only 50.. today it’s up to 70…(I’m not talking city wide.. I am talking a City Block in Preston)
The Ombudsman told me back then, when I demanded a Health Study..
He can not touch Municipal Governments Health Department..
So .. our local municipal government opted to ignore these families..
So my question is this.. Why isn’t Ben fighting for clean water..
I hear it’s going to cost 12 million to have this system installed..
Instead everyone is fighting for the downtown GALT core.. ( Drayton, Venice Biennial, Streetscaping)….
Meanwhile people are still ill, still turning up with cancers..
THESE ARE MY PRIORITIES.. ( why aren’t they the priority of this council.. any of them?)
BTW..I AM TIRED SO TIRED OF HEARING.. It’s not our problem, it’s provincial, then it’s federal.
It’s a people issue. The people in this city, our city deserve better treatment..
Thanks Margaret, we have considered you a friend for over a decade. We have always valued the input and opinion of those who don’t always agree with Ben’s point of view. Otherwise, how can one say they have considered all aspects of an issue?
Debbie, of course clean drinking water is an important issue, all of the Councillors are raising families in this city. Both the Mayor and Pam Wolf were teachers prior to getting into politics. It is hard to imagine that these politicians who devoted their lives to teaching (as we all know an underpaid and under appreciated profession) do not care about the health and well being of its citizens. By the way, the Health Department is Regional not Municipal, but never the matter, as you state it is too easy to shrug off responsibility on to another level of government. Something I can proudly state has never been Ben’s practice.
Debbie, on a couple of other postings you raise the issue of the Royal Hotel, the Glass Link and the homeless. I again feel I must set the record straight. The glass link was a mandated secondary fire escape route for all individuals but most importantly, those who have physical mobility issues. The dispute ensued as Heritage Cambridge was opposed to the glass link esthetically. The matter of whether an improved fire escape route had to be funded was not up for debate. On the issue of the homeless, this council has been responsible for a myriad of progressive changes to assist the less fortunate including; several affordable housing developments, the relocation of the Food Bank, the John Howard Society and, the Bridges (which Ben championed).
Are you aware that Ben patrols with the police at night? It was as a result of one of these midnight patrols that Ben raised the alarm bells about the deteriorating situation at the Royal Hotel. As a result, the hotel was shut down and the residents relocated. The squalor, drug paraphernalia and extreme fire hazard conditions the residents were living in haunted him. He publicly stated that he could not live with himself if a citizen, a police officer, or a firefighter lost their life as a result of the city’s inaction. By the way, the news stories fail to mention that the emergency service’s responses to the Royal Hotel were costing upwards of $1 Million per year. As a result of Ben’s leadership, the city benefited overall. In addition, the corner will soon boast a commercial/residential development with new tax dollars being generated while at the same time ensuring heritage preservation.
In closing, while I don’t intend to reply to every posting, sometimes I feel the need to set the record straight.
Catherine……you must reply to every posting. That’s the rule here
Seriously speaking, you have as much right to defend council as the rest of us do to disagree with it, as much as you like. I, for one, have always thought Ben’s heart was in the right place, but (as you already pointed out) I sometimes disagree with his (and council’s) approach to spending my money.(But then again, I also object to how the feds and the province spend our hard earned dollars too………Maybe I should just shut-up and start a quiet ‘tax-revolt’:-)
First of all the waterscape was given tax free dollars by the city, which they don’t have to pay back. The residents in bishop street live on a toxic dump but the city turned its back on the residents. I know I was at all the meetings. If the hospital is so important then why Drayton?. Why do we give the hospital money, when we can’t even get representaion on the board? We need a change in this city, people have been on council for far too long.
Eight postings and not an answer to hy original question!!!………..so; on to my next question: Catherine, when is Ben filing and declaring his run for the coveted office?
Lary, perhaps Ms. Whetham feels that an answer here is beneath her stature. I don’t know. I do know I sent a “congratulatory note” (congratulations on her decision to run) to her personal email, several days ago. She hasn’t responded to that either. Oh well…………………………………………Maybe she only knows how to speak, not to write: Or……………………………perhaps she is getting very bad PR advice; not to respond to any of us (right now anyway). If that’s the case, she’s in political trouble, already:-)
Sorry for not taking the time to read all of the above opinons before creating this comment. All I want to say here is that charging seniors $3,000 for the privilage of living independently in the home of an adult child is “extorition” “edler abuse” “and a crime against humanity”. I have not found one other municipal government in Canada who is involved in this sort of scam against the elderly. If Mrs. Wetham supports this type of criminal activity, then I hope she never becomes mayor. The people of Cambridge should take back control of how they live within the confines of their own homes. Our municipal government should not have the power to dicate how we manage our private lives, especially inside our homes.
Hi to all who have taken the time to post your views on this site. While I may not agree with much of what is said, I do value the opinions and do not take them for granted.
Hi Larry! Your question about the Hospital is bang on and is deserving of an answer. The financial commitment for the $6.3 Million was made several years ago. It complimented the multi millions of dollars raised in our City and our region for the region hospitals. I supported it then and do now. I would never consider reneging on a financial commitment especially to our Hospital. If you don’t mind I’ll share my view on the question of CMH’s value to the community. We are a large urban centre and under the Places To Grow Legislation, the Provincial Government is mandating approximately 40 to 50% additional growth in our population. Yet they and their puppets on the Board of the Waterloo Wellington LHIN have failed to ensure that the funding has kept up with the population growth. While I can acknowledge some funding increases have been provided, it has not kept pace with the level of growth. The gap continues to widen. Anyone that has followed the printed press in the past 3 or so months will recall that I have been very vocal on the issue of funding inequity for CMH. I have voiced my concern at the Council table, made my views known on the Mike Farwell show along with John Bell former Chair, and I have written in the printed media including a 2nd opinion column taking aim at the former Minister Of Health David Caplan for ignoring the funding inequity. Few people know that I have also taken my concerns directly to the Provincial Ombudsman’s office. I have had several discussions with them on the funding question. We should be very concerned with what has already happened to CMH under the new regime and what is still to come. Our services are being eroded, beds are being closed, and jobs are being eliminated. Rumor has it that some vital services are being considered for elimination at CMH to be moved to St.Mary’s (Waterloo). I remain committed to the fight for CMH, including; for the long overdue expansion. We’re told the delay is due to budgetary pressures. That is from a government who allowed over a $1 Billion to be wasted in the E-Link scandal and, magically found $15 Million to save the Grace Hospital in Toronto from closing mere days before the recent by-election which they won.
On your question to Catherine about my plans on registering for the coveted office. If you mean the coveted office of Ward 4 Councillor, I will be registering for re-election this week.
Kudos to Mr. Tucci i say. I covered the CMH story in detail for the Echo and Mr. Tucci was a great support. i have called upon Mr. Tucci on a number of ocassions for info and also submissions for my column and he was back to me by email next day. Thanks Ben. Guess who never spent the time to answer me as a citizen, or as a hard-working columnist? Take your pick, Keifer, Cowsill, Price, …you get the picture. The absence of the rest of this city’s council on this site should tell you something. Just sayin’ is all.
Nice too see you here Michael,
Don’t get me started on Keifer.. I hear he plans to run for the region..
Take the pay cheque do nothing.. It’s shamefull.. Considering the people of Preston stuck by him, by voting for him..
But he jumped ship when they needed him most ( in my personal opinion and experience)
Tracy Hipel was right when he said.. They have been there too long and forget why they were voted in.
What does that tell me Mr Cahill? That unlike us they have better things to do than read this site? But to be nice, could you please go back to writing for ECHO, your replacement sucks, it’s reading advertisements. But that is my opinion.
Margaret, if I responded to every post slamming council, I would quickly become very tiresome to the readers :-). But please be assured I read the postings at least weekly with interest. Ben and I discuss the issues raised and I get a better appreciation for why he took a particular stance on an issue. I encourage individuals with issues/concerns to do the same.
Oops that last post was from me Catherine, I forgot to change the name back to mine -we share a computer.
Re: Glass Link
A mandated secondary fire route is a necessity but it does not have to be a Glass Link. This Glass Link project was voted on and won in a vote of 4 to 3 and I believe the final bill for this project was 1.8 Million Dollars.
Hi Bev youre right on the ball. If you take the price of the great glass link the price of what has been put out into the old city hall reno and the cost of the new cityhall I would be very squimish at the total cost.Whoever gets in the next council must show fiscal restraint in the time that is needed the most. Elderly people who are on a fixed income cannot afford to keep paying out because our council wants to do what they want and not what the taxpayer wants.This will force edlery people out of their houses because they cant simply afford to stay there
Lary mentioned earlier that mayoralty candidate Linda Whetham had not yet answered a question he had posted here. I chimed in that Linda had not responded to an email I had sent her several days ago either. She did telephone me last night, and left a message. Thank you, Linda.
In Linda’s phone message, she mentioned that her campaign manager had seen my posting on “some site”. He gave her the message and so she called. She indicated that she had not received (or seen) my email. I wanted to clear up that she did respond. Whether she will respond to questions here; I have no idea. But it seems her manager does visit the site.
Dear Mr. Gonzalvez, sorry if i misspelled your name. Yes, i agree with you it is amazing how few counclilors ever read the local print/web media. In particular my own efforts in this area, ha, ha. That being said, and i don’t generally support anyone (or publicaly vilify anyone) in print. Except for Mr. Tucci who is always energetic, involved, supportive, and engaged. In other words, doing the job!
I quit the Echo cause i was bored. It paid (unlike the Times) but it was not fun anymore. You should know that Mandy was my hand-picked sucessor and she will do great things. It would be hard to explain but mandy and her posse are THE target audience for the Echo in C.Bridge. There is more to Cambridge than prop.taxes and urban pole-walking. Mandy is the future of urban culture in this town, i hope. (my last weeks column in the Times notwithstanding).
I know we are way off topic here, but I read the Echo on a regular basis to find out what is going on in the area. And I have to agree with Tony, The Cambridge Beat is not the same since you left it, to be honest it does suck. So if she is the future of Urban Culture in this town, I guess it is time to forget about culture in this town. And i so enjoyed the rant line..i will miss that.
Gosh, it’s nice to have admirers. People seem to enjoy it when i type the none stop back to back words over and over again. But the Echo is not the Times or the Advocate. Last fall a 74 yr old woman stopped me on the street and told she how much she liked my column in the Echo!!!!! The Echo demographic is 18 to 39, Mandy speaks to that audience which is why i chose her. And yes, beleive or not Cambridge has an urban culture that does not wear tartan, does not morris dance and does not worship at the altar of a psuedo-celt culture that died 20 years ago. My apologies, i think this thread has exhausted itself.
l am happy to see our city booming with so many jobs and future jobs coming in. The combined jobs l have so l can pay my taxes, put gas in my car, and allow me to watch downtown Galt recover and all the other nice expensive things coming to our city make it worth going without vacations, a drug plan, dental plan or even a night out. This is not funny this is reality. l am just happy to see others will get the chance to enjoy our taxes at work. Me l am just happy to make it to months end. Before l leave this earth l would like to see our city get an N.H.L. team, so keep that in mind for the next budget. l would truely love to see our city get all the things they want. Really l would. l just can not afford to go to or be any part of Cambridge Galt’s success. Best wishes to all that get to see Drayton l hope it brings much enjoyment to some. lt brings back memories of what my papa used to say. Never have so many done so much for so few ,let them eat cake.