New Hamilton council hits road for rolling meeting

Mayor Andrea Horwath hopes Hamilton's new council has a greater appreciation for priorities in all wards after a citywide bus tour.

Horwath and councillors boarded the bus at city hall Wednesday morning for a livestreamed day of official business through 15 wards.

What I was hoping to do - and I think many of the folks that were on the bus will feel that it was accomplished - was to create that sense of ... the bigger picture, if you will."

A strong motivating factor in organizing the tour was that 10 representatives, including herself, are new this term, Horwath said.

You don't want to make assumptions about people's understanding of the complexities, the diversities, as well as the commonalities that exist across our vast city."

As the bus traversed wards - passing through urban, suburban and rural areas - councillors took their turn explaining challenges and highlights alike.

The tour really reaffirmed how vital pedestrian and road safety" is for all wards, Coun. Alex Wilson said. I think that really is something that unites us all," the first-term Dundas councillor told reporters during a news conference.

Wilson emphasized the importance of Hamilton's interconnected natural systems - whether wetlands or streams. And if we start carving out sections or parts of our natural system, it has an impact on the whole system."

More than one councillor pointed to a need to expand the city's public transit system, noting workers and employers in business parks suffer from inadequate service.

Realizing a plan for frequent rapid transit to Ancaster's business park on Wilson Street West by Highway 52, for instance, would be huge," Coun. Craig Cassar said. People have to get here by car because transit is not a feasible option."

The province's decision to override the city's plan for a firm urban boundary and instead expand into rural areas, as well as proposed Greenbelt cuts, also loomed as city politicians and senior staff eyed large tracts of farmland.

When I look at that, it makes no sense," Coun. Mark Tadeson said about potentially losing green space to development along White Church Road East in Glanbrook.

In the northeast end, water director Nick Winters hopped on the bus at Woodward Avenue to offer highlights of the ongoing multimillion-dollar revamp of the city's water and wastewater treatment plant.

For Coun. Tom Jackson, the tour echoed one he took with city politicians upon Hamilton's amalgamation in 2000.

That created a brand-new entity" and brought newcomers to city hall. So I think it was the newness thing to get to know each other a little better that we did the bus tour," said Jackson, who was first elected in 1988.

Teviah Moro is a reporter at The Spectator. tmoro@thespec.com