Tag Archives: ontario

Mike Dancy on Running for Brampton Council

mike dancy
mike dancy

I’ve known Mike for quite some time. He’s a stand up guy who lives in Brampton and cares about his community.

When asked by the Brampton Guardian who he wanted to run this is what he said, “Originally, I decided to run since the incumbent, Pat Fortini, was running unopposed. Everyone needs a choice and I put my name in so that people would have an option. Once I realized what a regional councillor could do with helping people, I decided that I was going to put 110 per cent into this campaign.”

This was Mike’s first time running for public office. So I thought I’d ask him on what lessons he learned. Hope you enjoy this conversation.

Photo from Brampton Guardian.

This is Episode #274 of the Welcome! podcast.

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Politics in 2018 and 2019

Our next guest is a strategic leader in government relations, public policy and communications disciplines. Our guest joined Karim Kanji and Gregg Tilston in studio to chat about local, provincial and national politics in 2018 and what we can expect in 2019.

This is Episode #154 of the Welcome! podcast. Politics in Canada, many will argue, is boring. 2018 may have changed all that. One needs to look no further than this past year’s Ontario election.

According to most observers Kathleen Wynne’s Liberals had run out of time. Patrick Brown’s Progressive Conservatives were poised to take power. Then everything changed.

Brown resigned after allegations of sexual misconduct. Brown came back to run only to drop out and throw his hat into the ring for chair of the Region of Peel.

But then Doug Ford won the Progressive Conservative leadership and eventually became premier of Ontario.

Ford would cut the size of Toronto’s government and even scraped the Region of Peel chair. This would force Patrick Brown to run municipally in Brampton against an incumbent. And Brown won.

Our guest is one of Toronto’s most sought after political commentators. He joined us in studio to help all of us make sense of this and everything else that happened in 2018 in politics. He also gave us his insights on what to expect in 2019.

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Sarah Climenhaga: Toronto Mayoral Candidate Discusses 2018 Ontario Election Results

Sarah Climenhaga joined co-hosts Karim Kanji and Gregg Tilston inside the studio this past week to discuss the 2018 Ontario Election results and its potential impact on the city of Toronto.

This is Episode  #3 of the Toronto The Podcast and Episode #130 of Welcome!

Here are some of the things we discussed:

  • Why Sarah Cimenhaga does not think that the city of Toronto is as divided as the election results seemed to point out.
  • The many reasons why she is running for the office of the Mayor of Toronto.
  • Gregg Tilston is obsessed with Doug Ford’s “Buck A Beer” election promise.
  • How Sarah Climenhaga would work with Doug Ford should she be elected as Toronto’s next mayor.
  • Sarah Climenhaga’s candid thoughts on the strong mayoral system as advocated by Doug Ford.
  • Why Sarah Climenhaga thinks the King Streetcar project has been successful and what she would do to improve the experience of drivers.
  • Karim Kanji argues why the $0.10 reduction in gas prices will do everything to increase drivers and cars on the road, decrease the use of public transit, lower the revenues available to the Ontario government, decrease the chances of continued and/or increased investment (including ongoing service and maintenance) in public transit in both Ontario and Toronto.
  • Sarah Climenhaga’s thoughts on affordable housing, affordable child care, the environment, equity, civic engagement and so much more!

Listen below:

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Recorded live at Girth Radio.

Music by Afraaz Mulji.

If you liked this episode you will also like:

Episode #128: 2018 Ontario Election Primer with Dan Speerin

 

Welcome #44: George Smitherman

Last episode I chatted with Scarborough area MP Salma Zahid. In that enlightening conversation one of the things we learned about Salma was that her political mentor is George Smitherman.

Today, we talk with the one-time Toronto mayoral candidate, former Liberal MPP and Ontario’s first openly gay MPP and Ontario cabinet minister, George Smitherman.

Here’s my conversation with George Smitherman.

Music by Aafraz Mulji.

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10 things to do in Main Street Unionville

Main Street Unionville is very similar to Niagara-On-The-Lake. The only difference is that there are no Niagara Falls and no Shaw Festival. Other than that, there are great shops, lots of activities during the summer, and even plenty of spots to enjoy a picnic.

Here are my top 10 things to do in Main Street Unionville.

1.)  Ice Cream. The Old Firehall Confectionery (at 170 Main Street) specializes in a wide variety of old fashioned, handmade sweets and treats.

20150607_104627 ice cream in main street unionville | karim kanji

2.) Live music. Every Thursday evening, during the summer, you can find live bands playing under the Bandstand. Concerts start at 7:30pm until 9pm.

live music | main street unionville | karim kanji IMG_20150618_203229013

3.) Classic Cars. I don’t know what it is about Main Street Unionville. You will almost always find a classic car or two. Either driving slowly along the boulevard or parked just off the street.

classic cars | main street unionville | karim kanji IMG_20150618_203422057

4.)  Fun art installations. You won’t find anything huge. But you’ll see plenty of small and interesting pieces scattered throughout town.

art | main street unionville | karim kanji IMG_20150618_210833126

5.) Quiet places to read.

reading | main street unionville | karim kanji

6.) The Frederick Horsman Varley Art Gallery. The Art Gallery is named after Frederick Varley, an artist from the Group of Seven.

Varley Art Gallery | Main Street Unionville | Karim Kanji

7.) Shopping. Yes, there’s lots of shopping to do on Main Street. What would an old town be without shopping? 🙂

shopping | main street unionville | karim kanji

8.) Festivals. One of the best things about Ontario are the festivals. My favourites are the Markham Jazz Festival and Unionville Festival.

festivals | main street unionville | karim kanji 20150607_102015 20150607_110533

9.) Wildlife! Check out the pictures below!

turtles and loons | main street unionville | karim kanji 20150607_122406

 

10.) Too Good Pond.

too good pond| main street unionville | karim kanji 20150607_121720 20150607_121910 20150607_122011