Mark Gerretsen

I will never forget who this victory belongs to – it belongs to you.  I know you didn’t give your support just to win an election and I know you didn’t do it for me. You did it because of what we all believe we can do together for Kingston. Without your support, time and energy that you’ve put into my campaign for Mayor, this wouldn’t have been possible. It’s been a very humbling experience to see so many of you back my campaign and believe in both myself and in my vision for our great community. Your support, loyalty and dedication has been overwhelmingly positive. I can’t wait to get started and I’m greatly looking forward to the next four years as your Mayor.

It was amazing to have the support come from all across the municipality. It came from the east, west, north, and centre of the city, which is incredible to see. I want to bring our city closer together by working with all members of council. There will be four familiar members of council – Rob Hutchison, Dorothy Hector and Bill Glover and Lisa Osanic. And, five new members of council – Jeff Scott, Sandy Berg, Brian Reitzel, Liz Schell and Bryan Paterson, along with three who sat on previous councils – Rick Downes, Kevin George and Jim Neill. Congratulations! You all ran great campaigns!

I’m looking forward to building relationships with every councillor and sitting down to listen to their ideas and the issues that voters in their districts want addressed on council. In order to lead council effectively, it is imperative that I understand and consider every angle on every matter that these twelve councillors bring to the table. The first two priorities from my platform that I look forward to addressing immediately will be revamping the budget process to make it more open and accountable, as well as, building more affordable housing.

I also want to congratulate everyone who ran in this Municipal Election. It takes a lot of courage to run for office and put your name on the line to stand up for what you believe in. I had the chance to meet many of the people who ran in this election and I couldn’t be more honoured to have campaigned side by side with these men and women.

It’s been a great ride to get to this point, but I know our journey is just getting started.

Thank you again for your support.

Mark

First off, I would like to thank each and every one of my supporters for their dedication, enthusiasm and commitment to my campaign for Mayor. Thank you to my friends and family for both believing in me, and in my vision for our great city. Without your belief, my campaign wouldn’t be where it is today on Election Day.

Our city is among the best places to live in the world and, if elected Mayor today, I can’t wait to get to work to make it an even better place to live, work and play for us all. I believe with your help, we can work together to enhance the economic, social, environmental and cultural well-being of Kingston, which will lead to the progression of our great city. I am committed to working together with all members of council, while respecting the opinions of others around the table and within our community to find realistic solutions to help improve our environment, create a vibrant cultural community, foster prosperity for our residents and construct a more sustainable world for future generations.

There’s one final issue that I would like to address before you cast your vote today. Towards the end of this Municipal campaign, one of my opponents has suggested that the Lake Ontario revitalization project, which was approved by 12 out of 13 City Councillors, will be cutting down 200 year old trees to make way for a pond. This statement made by my opponent is inaccurate and couldn’t be farther from the truth. The finalized plan actually states that there will be no living trees cut down when this project commences this fall. Part of the plan highlights the need for lots of nature and green space, which will be accented by the historic trees that have been occupying this land for over two centuries. I just wanted to clarify this before you head to the polls today to cast your vote and let you know where I have stood on this issue since day one.

Speaking of voting, my campaign team will be providing rides for anyone that needs a lift to their polling station today. We’re so lucky to live in a country where democracy is valued and cherished. Voting is the most precious right we have as a citizen and, in my opinion, it’s important we exercise our right to vote.  If you’d like a ride to the polls, just give us a call 613-507-MARK and we’ll make sure to give you a drive to and from your polling station. Don’t hesitate to call. We’d love to help you get to the polls and get your vote in!

Tonight you can catch all the Election results on Cogeco TV (Channel 13) starting at 8pm. I know my campaign team and I will be tuning in as we are very excited to watch the results come in tonight.

Thank you again for all your support!

Mark

It’s a rainy afternoon in Kingston, but that hasn’t stopped me and my campaign team from continuing to pound the pavement this weekend in one last push before Election Day on Monday. I want to thank everyone who has volunteered their time this weekend to help lend a hand with my campaign. You’ve been an awesome help and this campaign wouldn’t be where it is today without your support and dedication!

I want to send a special thank you to my family who has traveled to Kingston this weekend to help with my campaign. My cousin, his wife and their two daughters have made this weekend extra special with their presence and support as you can see from the two pictures.

Since my campaign for Mayor was launched three months ago, I’ve been taking the time to answer your questions you have sent me via email and have been posting them on my website here.

I’ve been asked many times about the K-Rock Centre and if I voted for it. However, I was not a member of Council when the K-Rock Centre (at the time it was called LVEC – Large Venue Entertainment Centre) was decided upon. The previous City Council whose term ran from 2003-2006 voted in favour of it. I was elected as a City Councillor in the fall of 2006, after the project was already started.

Another question that is on the minds of voters is our need for a 3^rd crossing. The traffic problem obviously already exists and will only continue to get worse. I am a firm believer that the city is going to continue to grow east and, in my mind, resolving the east-west traffic flow is a must. However, infrastructure projects of this magnitude take a considerable amount of money from all levels of government. If I’m elected Mayor, I will strive to work with both the federal and provincial governments to maximize the funding they provide for this project.

The one issue that has stood out to me the most over the last three months is that taxes in our community are increasing at a higher rate than our income. Currently, Kingston’s tax base is made up of about 70% residential and the remaining 30% commercial, industrial and payments instead of taxes from other levels of government. We need to bring Kingston more in line with the mix seen in other municipalities, which is closer to 60% residential and 40% commercial, industrial and payment in lieu of taxes. To make this happen, we must strive to ensure we are attracting more businesses to Kingston as well as getting what we deserve from the provincial and federal governments to help supplement of all the public sector lands in which they do not pay property tax on. This will make sure we can continue to deliver the services we all need while having our residential taxpayers carry less of the burden.

For more information on these issues, and other questions that I have been asked over the course of my campaign, visit my website to read more.

My campaign team and I are really excited for Monday and we can’t wait to see the results. On Monday night, Cogeco TV (Channel 13) will be airing Election Night coverage starting at 8pm. So, you can tune in there for all the Election results.

Have a great weekend and thank you for your continued support!

Mark