Mayoral race in Vaughan to choose its new Mayor

Michael Di Biase and Linda Jackson: last appeal to voters

Like two prizefighters in a heavyweight bout, Vaughan's mayoral candidates stood behind a podium earlier this week at the Venetian Banquet Hall in Concord, hoping to send their opponent to the canvas.
For two hours, the mayoral candidates stood shoulder-to-shoulder, smoothly answering more than a dozen pre-selected questions from the Vaughan Chamber of Commerce while trying to secure as many votes as possible in the standing-room only event. While each candidate received sporadic outbursts of applause and jeering, no candidate managed to deliver a knockout punch.
And since many of the spectators in the audience were wearing their mayoral preferences on their sleeves, or in this case as a campaign button on their lapels, it remains to be seen whether the debate will do much to sway public opinion for any single candidate.
The debate was the last chance to see incumbent mayor Michael Di Biase square off against his main challenger, regional councillor Linda Jackson, but it was the third candidate Savino Quatela who nearly managed to steal the show.
Wearing a red t-shirt with an inscription touting himself as Vaughan's "second Robin Hood," the diminutive Quatela scored the loudest cheer of the night when he asked rhetorically "What's the priority? A new city hall or a hospital?"
However the debate was really a showdown between Di Biase and Jackson, and after the moderator asked about allegations of misconduct at city hall halfway through the debate, Jackson fired the opening shot at her opponent. "We have serious problems at the city of Vaughan. That's why I'm running for mayor."
Before she could finish speaking, Jackson (daughter of former mayor Lorna Jackson) was drowned out by her very vocal supporters and a handful of booing dissidents. Jackson continued by promising to hire an integrity commissioner, implement a taxpayer's bill of rights and a complete audit of all city departments if elected.
Di Biase responded by saying that Vaughan has always complied with the Municipal Act and added that Vaughan is recognized by the province as one of the top five municipalities in Ontario for transparency during the past two years. "If anybody has anything to say, don't just say innuendos but state the facts."
In her 30-second rebuttal, Jackson called Di Biase's comments "curious" and disagreed with that assessment, claiming the Ontario privacy commissioner has received "thousands of complaints" and that the audience ought to check out their website. Di Biase responded by telling the public to call the city's legal solicitor if they want to know the truth.
It was a brief exchange and the only reference to an ongoing investigation by York Region into how emails and 23 pages of correspondence from Jackson's computer ended up on Di Biase's doorstep during the Thanksgiving weekend. Also uncertain is why a York Region officer was secretly discussing sensitive issues with Councillor Jackson in the first place.
Other issues that were discussed in greater detail during the debate were rising property taxes, regional pooling, gridlock, public transit and need for a hospital in Vaughan.
Di Biase, in his opening speech, explained he was running on his record as mayor for the past three years and as an elected politician for the past 21. He reminded voters that the city receives only 12 percent of their taxes and that Vaughan continues to have one of the lowest tax rates amongst the GTA municipalities. When pressed on the issue of building a hospital, Di Biase said that Vaughan Healthcare Foundation has already raised over $3-million for a hospital and it will become a reality within six years.
In response, Jackson scoffed at Di Biase's timeline, saying "At the rate we're going I'm going to be dead before a hospital is built," before reiterating the need for more funding from Queen's Park. Di Biase countered that he'd never spend a penny of taxpayer's money on a new hospital, since healthcare is a provincial responsibility and beyond the scope of city hall.
And while Jackson touted the importance of small business, Di Biase extolled the virtues of "sustainable growth" and described his efforts to move Vaughan away from being a primarily residential city to one that entices business to the city above Toronto.
Taking a break from questions of policy, the debate's moderator asked each candidate what quality makes them a strong candidate for mayor. Jackson managed to refer to her late mother, Lorna, stating she's had "a lifetime of politics in my history," which resulted in a loud chorus of boo from the Di Biase's supporters and he responded by mentioning his 14 years working with the popular former mayor: "I was lucky enough to have a great teacher to teach me how to lead."

Publication Date: 2006-11-12
Story Location: http://tandemnews.com/viewstory.php?storyid=6760