Meet the Candidates: Carol Boileau
Municipal Elections are taking place in October. As one of the main media outlets in the City of Cornwall, The Seeker is always eager to getting to know the candidates. As such, we send each candidate a questionnaire requesting for them to give their position on the most pressing issues near and dear to you, our readers. During the upcoming weeks, we will be publishing the answers from each candidate who choses to respond. Every candidate was sent 11 questions, penned by our own, Jason Setnyk. They can chose to answer as many as they want. We will post them online as they come in. Here are Carol Boileau’s Questions and Answers. Click on any question to reveal the answer.
1 – Please give us a brief biography / tell the readers about yourself.
(e.g., work/family/education/experience)
I am a native of Cornwall and have been in a wheelchair since 2011. My interests are many shown by the types of committees I am on (Accessibility, Transit, Transition Cornwall +, Heritage/Patrimoine, Arts Collective, Senior Friendly, 5 committees on Poverty under the SDC) and on board of directors (Centre Charles-Émile Claude, FM 92.1). I was a Mathematics and FSL teacher for secondary and adult literacy and tutored in those for over 35 years.
2 – If you were on Council the previous term, tell us about your accomplishments during the past four years. If you were not on City Council this last term, please tell us why you are running and what you hope to accomplish.
Without being on council, I was able to push for sidewalks (new one on north side of 11th Street and repaired one on west side of Marlborough from 4th to 7th). I believe I can do so much more if I was on council myself. I would push for the safety and affordability of living in Cornwall. Being in a wheelchair may be more convincing. I would try to make sure residents know where their tax dollars go and why.
3 – With rents skyrocketing, what can City Council in Cornwall do to prevent renovictions like those at Cumberland Gardens that have impacted many in our community?
The situation with Marlborough Gardens is awful. The landlord should have discussed it first with the city and together, maybe a solution could have come up to help the residents. As for high rentals, I am not happy that landlords from out of the city try to raise rents to equal those in big cities like Ottawa or Toronto. That is not acceptable for this area. I am also not happy about all the condos coming up, adding to the rise in rents.
4 – In 2018, the City of Cornwall purchased the old Bank of Montreal building in our downtown for $450,000 as the future home of Cornwall’s Art Centre. In 2019, Council heard a report that renovations would cost an additional $4 to $6 million dollars. In addition to the fundraising already being done, will you support some public tax dollars going towards a Cornwall Art Centre, or should the municipality pause any additional financial support?
The Arts Collective which I am a part of has done excellent fundraising and I am certain it will continue. I agree that the city should help financially in some way since once completed, the Arts Center will be a tourist attraction and will be used by many organizations in the city for either arts, theater, concerts and other events. It will be very beneficial for the city in the long run.
5 – Post-pandemic, what can Council do to improve Economic Development for the city and support existing businesses?
I believe that the city can help small and midsize businesses with some kind of financial incentive or help with advertising or any kind of support they may need to keep afloat and keep going. We need to encourage these businesses and try to avoid as many closures as possible.
6 – What are your thoughts on the McConnell Medical Clinic closure? Although health care is a provincial issue, is there anything Council can do to attract more doctors and nurses to our city?
The closure of the McConnell Medical Center was hard on me since it was my main clinic for health care. It was a busy place so closing it due to lack of medical staff is not easy to accept. Cornwall has to do a better job at attracting not just medical staff for the hospital, which it has done, but family doctors or nurse practitioners. Too many residents are without a family doctor due to retirements and the lack of new doctors.
7 – While climate change is a global issue, what can the City do locally to keep our neighborhoods cool and protect natural resources like the St. Lawrence River?
Plant more trees. They can be planted in empty lots, more can be added in residential areas and more in the city parks. I am a member of Transition Cornwall + and we try to encourage a bigger tree cover, better recycling (which the city has to deal with better), gardening and composting, and active living.
8 – Many City businesses are open on Sundays, and many events happen on Sundays. Do you support Sunday service for Cornwall Transit?
Right now, Transit has changed their buses to hybrids to be more environmentally friendly. Being on the Transit committee and myself being in a wheelchair, transportation on Sunday would be a bonus mostly during major events. Just know that Transit is working on it and once the budget permits, there will be a trial at least.
9 – What can we do to improve social services in Cornwall? Examples include but are not limited to Cornwall Transit, childcare spaces, or LTR spaces.
Vibrant Community under the Social Development Council has 5 different committees dealing with poverty, housing, health services and mental health. The social services organizations attached to these are involved in meetings and we are working on improving partnerships and services.
10 – Do you support keeping tax increases to a bare minimum? If yes, where would the savings come from, and would you support reducing some services? If you do not support keeping tax increases to a minimum, explain your reasoning why.
Yes I do believe in keeping tax increases to a minimum but I also would like residents to know where their tax dollars go. It is up to the city also to make sure that the services offered are appropriate and well done (garbage collection, snow removal, road repairs, etc).
11 – How can candidates contact you? Please provide a phone number and/or email and/or one website (or one social media link).
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