Editor's note: OrilliaMatters has asked council candidates in neighbouring Oro-Medonte, Ramara and Severn townships to provide a synopsis of why they are running in the Oct. 24 municipal election. The following was submitted by Phil Brennan, who is acclaimed in Ward 3 of Severn Township. For more election coverage — including candidate profiles and other election news — visit our 2022 municipal election page by clicking here.
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I have spent 35 years as a forester and senior manager with the Ontario Public Service and have lived in North Bay, Bracebridge, Algonquin Park, Aurora, Toronto, Newmarket and Markham. But Severn is my home now, for almost a decade.
My career has provided me with a strong background in dealing with complex issues; the private sector, all levels of government, non-government organizations and First Nations. I led the team that implemented the Lake Simcoe Protection Plan – the gold standard in watershed planning.
Since moving to Severn, I have worked with local charitable organizations and at the director level with regional environmental groups that are committed to making Simcoe County a great place to live. I led the successful 2016 campaign to restore quality library services to over 1,300 Severn residents.
I ran for councillor in Ward 3 four years ago and placed a close second in that race. It was a great experience and I learned a lot about the people in Severn after knocking on just about every door in the Ward.
As a councillor, I want to support the people in our community and I believe that now, more than ever we are on a threshold in developing a new sustainable lifestyle.
The recent provincial election has made it clear that citizens are concerned about the cost of living, the need for affordable housing, improvements to health care, the economy, creating good jobs, and want to keep taxes from going up. At the municipal level we need a strong political voice that fights to get our share of the money for all of these big-ticket items.
We also need good internet infrastructure in Severn to position the local economy to attract forward looking businesses that encourage our youth to stay here.
We must be a key player in finalizing our Official Plan – one that balances social, economic and environmental requirements. We also need to effectively deal with Orillia’s plans for annexing part of Severn Township.
Finally, we need to deal with challenges related to road safety, floating cottages, short-term rentals, and the impacts of aggregate operations. The fact is, there are no easy solutions to all of these challenges that are both cost-effective and fair, but we must aggressively move the yardsticks on these matters. This will take a strong commitment to public service, positive disruption and service delivery.
