Municipal elections are October 26 in Ontario. To help voters make an informed decision here in Cornwall, the editorial board of The Seeker has put together 10 questions for candidates seeking a seat at the municipal council table, whether as Councillor or as Mayor. To ensure fairness, the same questions were sent to every candidate. We sent a total of 10 and they had the option to answer all of them, or pick a minimum of 5. Their answers will be published in their entirety, in the order they are received. We will not edit, correct or modify any responses.
These are Todd Bennett’s Answers. He is running for councillor.
Who are you? Where are you from? What education do you have? What relevant experience do you have? (1 brief paragraph)
My name is Todd Bennett. I moved to here in 1979 and called Cornwall home ever since. I am a graduate of General Vanier Secondary School. Since then, I have worked for businesses that provided customer service and owned my own successful franchise for 9 years until I sold it to join the company I currently work for. Over the last 22 years I have worked for the same company and worked in different management roles up to my current role as the general manager. I preform some HR functions, prepare budgets and manage a team of just over 120 people.
In The Seeker’s poll asking constituents about the most important issue facing them, a large majority of respondents answered “taxes/affordability”. What would you do as a Councillor/Mayor to make Cornwall more affordable, and what city services or spending, if any, would you be willing to reduce, change or eliminate to keep tax increases under control?
Affordability is probably the number one issue being faced by many of our residents. Finding a way to balance needed infrastructure projects and quality of life projects has become increasingly difficult. Construction costs have risen 66-69% since Covid and can fluctuate by 10-15% year over year. We will need to budget projects spread out over several years to avoid going over budget. A project cost estimates this year will not be the same actual cost when the shovel hits the ground in 12-18 months. We will also need to ask for regular updates on major projects and hold the CAO accountable for cost over-runs that can’t be explained properly. The CAO is councils only employee, and we must hold that person accountable if they aren’t holding their senior team responsible for avoidable cost overruns. Having said that, many cost increases are unavoidable. As an example, a recent street reconstruction ran into an old water pipe that kept breaking. It couldn’t be replaced all in one and still provide water to the residents on the street, so it had to be repaired as we went. This unforeseen circumstance has driven up the cost of this project. These things can occur and will cause a budget overrun.
Over the past few years, many constituents have expressed concern that the city’s homelessness situation has significantly worsened. What would you do as a Councillor/Mayor to address this issue.
Homelessness has seen a startling increase since Covid right across the country. This isn’t unique to Cornwall. However, we have taken major steps to address this issue. We have built several low/geared to income properties in the last several years. We have purchased the Parisien Manor and will use this for emergency shelter as well as transitional housing. It will also serve as a warming center in the winter and a cooling center in the summer. We as a municipality had to step up to deal with a problem that should be falling under provincial or federal responsibility. But we can’t sit by and do nothing. We need to work closer with the upper levels of government to find better solutions to this issue. The one size fits all approach the upper levels are forcing us to use do not work for all municipalities. Each city has its own unique issues, and the solutions need to fit each municipality, not a one size fits all solution proposed by the upper tiers. We have been doing that work and will continue to advocate for ourselves for proper funding. We also need to provide the right incentives for private businesses to build affordable housing. Several contractors have taken advantage of some of these programs and have built apartment buildings that provide affordable units to our residents with many more on the way. The future is looking much better than what the last half dozen years have looked like.
Why are you running for Council? What is the most important issue facing the City of Cornwall today?
I am running for re-election because I feel I have made some positive contributions to our city over the last 8 years, and I have supported some major projects that are coming to fruition, and I want to see them to completion. As an example, we have approved several new projects that are addressing our housing crisis and have made strides in providing transitional and permanent housing for a large segment of our vulnerable residents. Housing was the number one issue in this last term and will continue to be a major focus in the next term.
Affordability and the role that aging infrastructure plays in creating pressure on our budgets, in my opinion, must be one of our top priorities going forward. People may not realize this, but we have water and sewer infrastructure under some of our streets that is over 100 years old. It is beginning to fail and putting a huge strain on our ability to get to it all before it fails. We have an asset management plan that is telling us what we need to do to address these things, but we can’t do it all in the timeframes that have been outlined. It isn’t feasible. We need to continue to apply for grants and financial programs offered by the upper levels of government to help pay for these projects and provide much needed relief to our residents. An example of this was a $30 million dollar grant received by the province to go towards the building of a secondary water intake that provides safe drinking water to our residents.
Many constituents have expressed concerns about accountability and controversy surrounding Council. What could you do as a Councillor/Mayor to improve transparency and accountability?
We simply need to do better with our communication. No decisions are made behind closed doors, so the fact that people feel that way speaks volumes to our communication. We have been taking steps to address this with a dedicated person to look after pushing out information through multiple media channels and updating our city website to better address the information people are looking for. I would also like to remind our residents not to hesitate to reach out to me or any member of council with your questions and concerns. That is why our contact information is on the city website. If I don’t have the information you’re looking for on hand, I will direct any question and concern to the people that can give you the right information.
We constantly hear about the Art Centre and the water meters. Many residents have expressed the view that these were bad decisions on Council’s part. Both projects are being implemented, but they remain a sore spot for some voters. Would you consider revisiting or changing decisions made on those projects?
The water meters were inevitable. We were the only municipality in Ontario our size that did not use them. As it is now, residents are subsidizing businesses and large industry with the fixed rate system. Industries are not paying their fair share, and they are doing it on the backs of homeowners. It isn’t their fault; it’s just the way the old system was built. Water meters will balance that deficiency because everyone, businesses included will be paying for what they use. It’s a utility no different than gas, oil and electricity. All homeowners and businesses pay for what they use. All those utilities charge a flat rate on top of the usage charge. Water billing will be similar. The argument that large families will pay more is only used for water. Nobody uses that argument when discussing gas, oil and electricity. Water meters will balance the playing field when it comes to water usage and billing. A couple living in a house should not be paying the same rate as a family of 4 next door when they are using half as much water.
What would you do to improve our relationship with Akwesasne? What does Truth and Reconciliation look like to you? Explain how Cornwall can take steps toward it.
I think this current council is doing what we can to improve the relationship between our two communities. Council and staff have had Indigenous Training on a couple of occasions to help us better understand how we got here and where we need to go on our path to reconciliation. We should all take the time to visit Akwesasne for special events like Friendship Days and visit their businesses. A trip to the Native North American Traveling College is a great source of information. They have artifacts and the story of what colonialism has done to their communities right across our country, not just in our own backyard. Above all, just listen. Listen to their stories and learn about the racism they have faced, and the damage Residential Schools have done to generations of families. If you take the time to listen, you will better understand what it is they have been fighting for. It really comes down to respect. Respecting their culture, and their right to exist.
In addition to that, Akwesasne and Cornwall are co-owners of the harbor lands. We are looking into what kind of a venture we can partner together in, to enrich both of our communities regarding sharing their culture, attracting tourism and have a positive economic benefit for both Akwesasne and Cornwall. I am on the board of directors of the Cornwall Harbour Development Corporation, and we are the partners to the Akwesasne Harbour Development Corporation in this joint venture where we hope to build tourism driven infrastructure on the harbour front lands.
Cornwall’s municipal government relies on experienced and qualified staff to deliver services to residents. What would you do as a Councillor/Mayor to ensure the city can attract, retain and support the best possible people in senior positions?
The mayor and council have one employee that answers to us. That is the CAO. It is the CAO’s job to staff the corporation with the right, qualified people to deliver the best possible experience to our residents. Our job is to hold the CAO responsible for the hirings that effect the day to day lives of our residents. It is our role to make sure the CAO has the tools and budget to staff the corporation with the best people possible. We as a council we have to be willing to budget properly so that the CAO is successful in attracting top talent.
Healthcare is primarily a provincial responsibility, but access to healthcare is a major concern for Cornwall residents. What can the City of Cornwall realistically do to help improve healthcare access, and would you make it a priority as a Councillor/Mayor?
Sadly, municipalities have had to pick up the slack left by the province regarding attracting doctors to our communities. Cornwall has been particularly successful in this regard. Since 2022 we have signed 11 new doctors to come to Cornwall and set up their practices. We have 3 more doctors who we have funded some of their schooling with an agreement that will have them set up their practice in Cornwall when they graduate. The Mayors Task on Medical Recruitment has identified a several important initiatives we can take to attract more doctors to come here. I look forward to exploring these recommendations and expanding on the success we have had attracting new doctors to Cornwall if I am re-elected.
Many residents are concerned about crime, vandalism, drug use and a general decline in their sense of safety. What can the city realistically do to address these concerns, and where should municipal responsibility end and provincial or federal responsibility begin?
I am currently the council representative on the Police Services Board. I can tell you that we have a new strategic plan that has identified our regions unique challenges regarding community well-being and crime prevention. We have active partnerships with the OPP, RCMP, Akwesasne Police among others to address some of our unique challenges. Recent stats are showing progress with some serious crime while other stats show we still have work to do. I am confident that we are going in the right direction and doing all that we can with the resources we have to provide a safer community for all of us to live, work, and play in. For us to do more with less is unreasonable. We as a council have and should support the police board and the police service in their efforts by lobbying the provincial and federal governments for all grants that are available to us to help with our daily efforts to make Cornwall safer. We have excellent people working for the CPS and we need to give them the tools and resources they need to do their jobs as safely and efficiently as possible.
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