Residents had an opportunity to speak directly with candidates for mayor at a recent event in Timmins, where candidates outlined some of their priorities ahead of the Oct. 26 municipal election. The organizer said the event was designed to give voters a chance to hear from some of the lesser-known names on the ballot and ask questions directly. “If you’re not on Facebook, you can’t follow their platforms or anything,” said Sonya Biemann. “So we thought it would be a really good opportunity for people to go and ask questions to the candidates.” CTV News asked all six mayoral candidates about their main priorities. Michelle Boileau was unable to attend the event because of a prior engagement, but was interviewed separately several days earlier. Boileau said supporting Timmins Police Service and increasing its visibility in the city are among her priorities, particularly downtown. “I’d like to see us enhance our special constable program,” said Boileau, if additional sworn officers can’t be deployed immediately. Concerns about homelessness Nathan Boulet also focused on the condition of downtown Timmins, pointing to graffiti, homelessness and concerns about safety. “When you see the graffiti everywhere, when you see our fellow man lying on the street, when you see him laid over with a tarp over him, when you hear from everyone they’re afraid to go downtown,” said Boulet. “It’s a sorrowful condition that we’re in right now, and we certainly have to address it.” Robert Boucher identified safety as one of the city’s major concerns. He said he would like to change how the city’s safety grant program works so business owners don’t have to pay security-related costs upfront before receiving funding. “That’s just one small step. There’s a bunch of other ones,” said Boucher, also pointing to the need to relocate Living Space. Rob Knox said homelessness and addiction are among the issues Timmins needs to address, with housing playing a central role. “Certainly, it would be housing. Housing is so important,” said Knox. “If we don’t create housing, we’re never going to increase our tax base and help address shortages in our budget.” Housing crisis Chris McNeil said municipal decisions, including zoning, could play a role in addressing the city’s housing and homelessness challenges. He suggested considering whether Living Space could be moved to other areas while continuing to provide services, including transportation, if clients were located farther from the city centre. Lawrence Martin said residents have raised concerns about the rising cost of food and housing, as well as homelessness and the ability of people receiving social assistance to afford basic expenses. “Let’s put everything on the table,” said Martin. “Let’s choose which ones we can be able to work on as a team and make sure that we network.” The Oct. 26 municipal election will determine who will serve as mayor of Timmins for the next term, along with the councillors who will make up city council.
