So the cat is finally out of the bag, Moe Royer will be running for Councillor in Cataraqui District. I met with Moe Wednesday to discuss his future in Kingston politics as it was quite evident to me when I spoke with him at Mark Gerretsen’s theatrical campaign launch that Moe would be running for Councillor somewhere. The question really was where would he run. Moe currently lives and works in Trillium District, he ran against Mark in Portsmouth District in the 2006 election, and against Sara Meers in Cataraqui District in 2003.
It isn’t unusual for candidates to run in districts other than where they live. According to Councillor Bill Glover, at least 2 elected Councillors did not live in their districts in the 2006 election. I haven’t corroborated that information yet, so I won’t say which ones. The Municipal Elections Guidelines only requires that a candidate must be “a resident of the municipality, a non-resident owner or tenant of land in the municipality or the spouse of such non-resident owner or tenant” and “a Canadian citizen”. It’s legally ok for a candidate to be from another district, but would you vote for someone who lives outside your district?
I think it’s a matter of what you expect from your councillor. Do you want someone who can make sound decisions for the entire city, or someone who puts your district first at all costs? Personally I’d like to have a councillor who can look at the entire city and make good decisions for all Kingstonians. After all, I try to take advantage of all the great services Kingston has to offer no matter which district they’re in. My kids and I love swimming at Breakwater Park in Sydenham Ward, we’ve been to KGH countless times, we shop in many districts, visit my parents in Cataraqui District, and hike at Lemoine’s Point in Lakeside District. Each district has it’s unique advantages which all councillors should be promoting, and unique challenges which all councillors should be trying to solve. How do my readers feel about this issue? Please feel free to post comments below.
Back to Moe….
Before I was a twinkle in my daddy’s eyes, Moe was a public servant working on Parliament Hill. The list of who Moe has worked with in federal politics is quite long, I’m sure I wouldn’t do it justice by listing them all out. He worked with Corrections Canada for 20 years, and currently runs The Moe Royer Group, offering mediation services. Ever the public servant, Moe is currently a member of the Police Services Board, and has served on the Board of Directors for the Children’s Aid Society.
According to Moe, he offered to mediate the Barriefield affordable housing situation free of charge. He is concerned that once (and if) the housing is built, it’s going to take years for Barriefield residents to welcome the new families because of the way the whole situation was handled.
When asked about the current city council, Moe feels there are too many games played in council, and not enough trust amongst the councillors. In general, Moe feels “we’re not giving people faith to go out and do things for themselves”, he said this needs to change in order to give Kingstonians a solid foundation to build from. Moe is also concerned that residents “don’t seem to be excited about our city”, he would like more focused placed on showing off what we do have rather than complaining about the past, or what we don’t have. As he said, “K-Rock is built, support it, move on, stop saying I told you so.” I agree Moe, it’s time to look forward and be proud of what we have.
