Mayoral candidate Patricia Mills spent the summer on her Listen Learn Lead tour to speak with voters about what matters to them.
This week she released something to let people know what matters to her. The questions and answers are below.
1. Why are you running for mayor?
I love our city and I am very proud to live here. I came to Greater Sudbury 32 years ago after my first husband died of cancer. I was a 28 year-old stay-at-home mother, and suddenly I was a widow, with a 6 year-old daughter to support and no formal education. I came here to attend Cambrian College where I studied journalism.
Those early days were a struggle. I didn’t know anyone. I was a single mom. I didn’t have money or an education. But I didn’t feel sorry for myself. What I did have was determination, an incredible work ethic, a passionate commitment to raise my daughter well, an unwavering belief that I could make a difference with my journalism, and a burning desire to help create a good life in my new home.
This city gave me a new start in life when I needed it most, and now I want to give back and give our city a new start.
2. What unique qualities can you bring to council chambers?
As a journalist, I learned to be tough and tenacious. As a business operator, I learned that you have to deliver real results. I can move our city forward. I want to build an economically vibrant city that attracts and keeps young people here and allows our older citizens to live comfortably on fixed incomes without being taxed out of their homes. To do that, you need strong leadership. I have a track record for creating successful businesses that help build a community. I have a passion for progress, the vision to see what can be, and the grit to make it happen. Most of my successes have been visionary ideas that came to life because I surround myself with the right people and I just don’t give up.
3. What do you think your role would be as mayor?
How do you plan to represent the city? I think the mayor’s chief role is to be the voice of the community. People vote for a mayor to represent them at city hall. It’s easy to get caught up in all the bureaucracy and the politics, but as mayor, you are there to represent the taxpayers. Every decision you make, every plan you undertake, should be with the aim of spending and investing our taxpayer money wisely. As for how I plan to represent the city, I will be a fierce champion for the City of Greater Sudbury. We are the capital of Northern Ontario yet we aren’t acting like it. We need a progressive vision of being a city that is a magnet for business, tourism, entertainment, as well as healthcare and education. If we have all of these parts moving in the same direction, the possibilities would be endless.
4. What is an acceptable tax increase? How will you achieve that?
Taxes and user fees are the only source of revenues that municipalities have control over. Grants from federal and provincial governments are dependent upon the government of the day. In recent presentations, I’ve heard Dominic Giroux say that there is a zero projection of population growth for Northern Ontario. That is a sobering thought. It means our tax base is not growing and existing taxpayers continue to shoulder the full burden of repeated tax increases imposed by the city. In the past three years, our water rates increased by 22.2 per cent and they are scheduled to increase again by another 7.4 per cent in January. Our property taxes have increased by 10.5 per cent in the past four years. We need to make sure we are spending and investing every dollar wisely. We need a sound business plan that is based on the reality of our economic health, our city’s demographics and input from the community. This kind of thoughtful planning must be the basis of determining the level of taxation that is acceptable for our community.
5. What is your position on the Kingsway Entertainment District?
That decision has already been made by council. There is an appeal process underway and we’ll have to pay close attention to how that unfolds and what it will mean for all of us who want to see a new arena get built in our city. This has been such a divisive issue in our community, which is unfortunate because it’s a project people should really be excited about. I believe poor leadership and the lack of good clear information about the project have led to a lot of the dissention. I’m still waiting to see a business plan for the project. With $100 million of taxpayer money on the line, and maybe even more when the final bill comes in, it is important for all of us to know what we’re getting for that kind of investment.
6. Which city issues are top of mind for you?
There is a lot of frustration throughout the community with what feels like 20 years of growing pains since amalgamation. We have terrible in-fighting between neighbourhoods in our beautiful city. Instead of pitting one against the other, we should be working to make each of those neighborhoods the best it could be. We are stronger as a city if all parts of our community are strong. We should have a vision for each area of our city, and then figure out how we are going to work those plans in a financially responsible way. We keep hoping that a new mayor will be able to bring everyone together. I believe I am the person to do that. I also think we need to keep our young people here. They want different things than 60-year-olds who are thinking about retiring. They want things to do and places to go throughout the neighborhoods of our greater city. They want the environment to be protected and they care deeply about social issues such as poverty, mental health and addiction. They want to know that if they invest in their first home in Greater Sudbury, their property will increase in value. Our city’s work paradigm is shifting. Not everyone works in an office 9 to 5, nor do they necessarily work underground in swing shifts. We are evolving into a tech centre, so we can’t think like we are still living in the 70s or 80s. We need to make plans that will suit the needs of our population not only today, but also in 20 years from now. Lastly, I am really concerned with how the city is managing the budget. We are not spending taxpayer money wisely. For example, Brian Bigger recently boasted that he doubled the spending on roads with an unprecedented $300 million in spending. But if you ask most people, they’ll tell you that our roads are in the worse shape ever. Our primary and secondary roads are crumbling. And the potholes in our roads have moved from being a nuisance to a serious hazard. If they doubled the spending on roads, we should be seeing far better results.
7. Can you talk a little about your background and expertise?
I had a very unique job as publisher of Northern Ontario Business. Travelling the North for more than 20 years, meeting with businesses and governments from every facet of the economy, I got to see firsthand how wealth and jobs are created and how local government can foster an environment of growth and innovation, or stall progress with limited vision and red tape. I was a member of Canada’s first women-led business group to travel to the U.S. for trade talks. That led me to launch the Influential Women of Northern Ontario Awards. I launched events, conferences and programs all geared to move the business community forward. Many times these events led to partnerships, business deals and expansions across the North. I have a track-record for getting things done and delivering real results. I also launched and expanded events to honour our citizens who are making a difference, like the 40 Under Forty Awards and the Community Builder Awards of Excellence. These events are geared to celebrating the successes in our community, the wonderful expertise we have here, and the genuine talent that makes us great. Running a business, I was accountable for achieving financial targets and delivering a profitable budget. There was no such thing as a deficit. I know how to budget, how to generate revenue, how to keep costs down, how to be innovative, creative and visionary. I was in a very competitive market with less than half the resources of my competitors, but I always met or exceeded the financial targets. This took diligent planning and fiscal agility along with hiring the right people with the right skills to get the job done. At the same time, I continued learning and growing by taking courses over 24 years. When I retired from media to launch the NEO Kids Foundation, I embraced this new career path because it allowed me to work on an important cause for our city. Today, only three short years later, NEO Kids Foundation is an ambitious and successful Foundation. I know how to conceive of an idea, how to articulate it, market it, develop it and be accountable for its outcome.
8. How do you like to spend your downtime?
My children, grandchildren and my canine friend Anna are my rocks in life and I spend as much time with them as I can. I have three wonderful, smart, beautiful daughters and two amazing granddaughters. They keep me grounded and motivated. I feel compelled to be their example in life so they know, as girls, they can do whatever they set their minds to. I love the outdoors. I enjoy gardening, walking, biking and swimming. I also like spending time with my friends. I read a lot, and I paint, mostly flowers and seascapes. Travel is a passion and I try to take one trip a year.
9. Tell us about someone who has inspired you in your life.
I greatly admire Hazel McCallion, who was mayor of Mississauga from 1978 to 2014. She was a businesswoman who wanted to do more for her community. Her nickname was Hurricane Hazel so that tells you something about her character. She was feisty, tenacious and very colourful. I admired her spunk for many years. But my mother was my biggest inspiration. She grew up in an orphanage, raised eight children, worked full-time her whole life and loved each of us as if we were her only child. She was strong, soft, loving and the most hard-working individual I ever knew.
10. What are you reading right now?
"Rebirth – Political, Economic and Social Development in First Nations," edited by Anne-Marie Mawhiney, and "The Promise of Canada," by Charlotte Gray. I always read two books at the same time (one is by my bed, the other by my reading chair).
