Trina Jones - Mayoral Candidate

*copy of speech script

Good evening, everyone. Thank you for being here. 

Today was a reminder for me of why I keep choosing to do this. I was invited to participate at the Children's Parliament held in Florenceville with about 200 students from grades 3 to 5 from across our region. And I'll tell you, there is nothing more energizing than being in a room like that.

 

The questions are honest, sometimes very honest. They can absolutely fact-check you on the spot as they are learning how their communities work in a way many of us didn't get the chance to. Which is an important point, because one of the biggest challenges we face today isn’t a lack of opinion, we usually get lots of those, it's a lack of understanding of how local government actually works and our processes.

 

So when I see kids already learning that, already engaging, it gives me hope and reminds me what this job is really about. It's about building a community that those kids will be proud to grow up in - and maybe even want to lead one day. 

 

Over the past three years, this council has been working through one of the biggest transitions in our history. We more than doubled in population, expanded our boundaries by 3,500%, and increased our responsibility essentially overnight. 

 

And let's be honest, the province didn't really leave us a 'how-to-manual'. We had to get up to speed fast, and we had to learn to work together quickly.

 

In a little over three years, we've managed to do a lot. We strengthened our financial systems to improve tracking, reporting, and accountability. We've invested over $2 million in water and sewer infrastructure. We've increased the paving budget each year with a plan to do approximately $1.2 million this summer. We've upgraded our facilities and equipment to better support our employees to ensure everyone has proper working conditions and the tools they need to do their work. We continue to upgrade our recreational assets and grow our partnerships with organizations and nonprofits that support our community.

 

We've had to make some difficult decisions to address long-term financial pressures. We're working hard to advance major housing projects - because growth will help generate more revenue and expand our community.

 

We are preparing to expand the Woodstock Police Force to provide consistent service across all wards and a sustainable model to deal with policing needs today and into the future.

 

And we've been working hard to improve how we communicate - which is an ongoing, daily effort to be as transparent as possible. 

 

We've had to hire a few key people to add the level of expertise we need in our organization. There was a lot of directors wearing a lot of hats, and although it allowed the organization to appear lean, the town did have to outsource a lot of that expertise at a high cost. So we made an effort to bring that expertise in-house where it was necessary.

 

I can keep going on and on, but I'm going to stick to my four minutes. So with major projects underway, three union contract negotiations in progress, the police expansion underway, and a number of studies being done that we don't want to end up on a shelf, this election isn't just about ideas, it's about the momentum.

 

And I'll say this clearly-

Right now, I have the experience, the skillset, and the capacity to do this job. I have the time and commitment right now to see this work through. I understand the files, I understand the challenges, and I'm really good at getting people to work together.

 

I truly love this role, even on the really tough days, and I believe in our community. So I'm asking for your support again so I can help continue to move all of this forward.

 

You can check out my platform, all of the information about me. Please look at my videos and learn. And follow me on social media. Check out trinaformayor.com

 

Thank you very much.