Cobourg - The Next Four Years
WHY are you running again?
I did want to be a one-term Mayor. For decades, I've worked the way corporate leadership is supposed to work: come in to meet a specific need, fix a few big, well-known problems, learn new skills, then take that experience back to the private sector. It's why many CEOs move on after about five years. As a father, husband, downtown resident and business owner, I ran because someone had to speak up against the previous Council's path of "good intentions" before Cobourg slowly became the next Oshawa, Timmins, Peterborough or Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. I didn't accept the normalization of criminal drug behaviour, or everyday residents being publicly shamed for speaking out against it. And I was tired of a small, loud group insisting that people with addictions should be allowed to do whatever, whenever, to whomever. I thought no one on Council actually bought into these ideological fantasies, and all that was missing was the conviction and courage to say so. So I'd stand up for the silent majority, give back to a community that has given my family so much, put safety and the rule of law first, and add the missing services for people who want help. Then I'd go back to selling the best produce anywhere, in a town where my staff, customers and children feel safe to walk the streets, visit our beaches or go to a park. Instead, I found a culture that avoided accountability by blocking meaningful change and keeping the public in the dark. Outdated bureaucracies were propped up by political personalities tied to specific financial backers. I spent my first 16 months trying to get along instead of getting it done. Then I changed course and started focusing on the shareholders, the taxpayers, the very people who voted me in to change things. I'm running again because I haven't finished what I started, and because I value integrity over being liked. I am proud to speak my mind. I like working hard to solve hard problems and I don't mind the critics. I promise to keep working on the polish people expect from a politician to reduce some of the unnecessary distractions. My platform has no lofty promises, no unachievable goals and no word soup. There's nothing in it you haven't already heard from me before. I believe it speaks to the vast majority of Cobourg residents and only continues the work this community rallied behind. A movement that started with the "Enough is Enough" letter leading to this community rallying behind a town hall that raised the barriers and standard and culminating in a re-imagined County. I'm running because I love this town. I want to leave Cobourg better than I found it: a safe community, a town hall focused on residents' quality of life, and a real plan for growth that fits who we are. Let's bring back Ontario's Feel Good Town.
WHY no Teamwork?
When I first became Mayor I was beyond naive. I had absolutely no idea that I was or would be considered the “imposter mayor” because my win over the previous Mayor was only by 105 votes. That was the only number ever considered; my total votes of 3,391 never mattered to the insiders and my fellow council members. On my original lawn signs, teamwork was my number one position, because no matter the situation, job or role, as a leader I have always been able to foster a team approach. My career spanning emergency services, restaurant and bar consulting, entrepreneurial startups and a decade on multimillion dollar oil rig projects created a belief that everyone can find a way to work together. My initial defensiveness at the perceived hostility from certain members of both councils led to responses from me that frankly did not help to build bridges and I regret that very early mistake in this role. I had not realized the level of hostility I would face at the Northumberland County Council and Cobourg Town Council. Had I known even half of it, I can honestly say that I would not have run. I have now learned through this experience that teamwork and building a team approach is impossible when it comes up against someone's manifest destiny, when certain members of the team (council) feel that they are entitled, because of a certain length of service, to be the "natural" mayor. I have since learned that my surprised win disrupted this 'natural' order and I was never to be forgiven for it. I'm very proud to say that has changed at the County. We went through a great deal of public hostility from the previous County administration and leadership, and I think it's safe to say a great deal of conflict with current County councillors. Now we have real teamwork at Northumberland County Council. Like any level of government, we don't always agree, and we shouldn't. But we have the basic mutual respect and professional courtesy I always wanted, and that a year ago I thought was impossible. I still have a great deal of respect for the majority of members of the Town Council. I am hoping that, if re-elected as your mayor, there is a potential for some new members of council who are not biased by previous terms of council, personal ambitions or personal antipathies.
Priority One
Make Cobourg A Safe Community
What We Need to Stop
No Drug Campus of Care in Cobourg
No to Tiny Homes for Drug Addicts and Criminals.
No 'Normalizing' Illegal Criminal Drug Behavior
I support addiction treatment. But I will continue to fight any large-scale drug rehabilitation centre anywhere within Cobourg's boundaries. Cobourg already hosts the County's emergency shelter, the warming room and a majority of County social services and their offices. As more services have been centralized here, our safety and security issues have grown. A regional drug campus of care would only be financially viable by bringing hundreds of people from across Ontario here for treatment, with no requirement that they stay on site. Picture 310 Division with no barriers, but instead of 45 bedrooms we would be adding 200 to 300 people constantly rotating through our community. If we're struggling with crime now, imagine what would happen with a "HART Hub." Stopping this from ever being built in a town as small as Cobourg is the number one thing any elected leader can do to keep Cobourg safe in the future.
I led the charge early in this term against the establishment of a permanent tiny home encampment being set up anywhere in Cobourg. This “initiative” was being led by the then leader of Greenwood coalition along with his known associates and including those involved with Moms Stop the Harm. One of their stated goals is to destigmatize criminal and dangerous drug use. Unlike some members of council, I did not try to flip-flop, nor did I 'try' to come up with “solutions” to indirectly support the terrible tiny home village idea I fully believed then as I do now, that this was nothing more than those groups working towards a permanent drug encampment based around untenable housing solutions. The organizers pointed to Kingston's cabin village as a success. Kingston's cabins began as a COVID-era pilot in 2020 and were moved between sites twice a year while waiting on a permanent home. In late 2023, Kingston council voted 10–2 to wind the program down. It is important to note that the genesis of the Northumberland Sleeping Cabin Collective was begun by the board chair and now Cobourg mayor candidate Nicole Beatty of Think Tiny Homes Northumberland. https://todaysnorthumberland.ca/2019/05/28/think-tiny-homes-northumberland-steering-committee-established-to-consider-solutions-for-affordable-housing/
Compassion for people with addictions should never mean accepting open illegal drug use, criminal behaviour or encampments as "normal' or acceptable. This is why I fought to close down all the longstanding well known drug houses in my first year. It is why I have been working with the CCSA, It is why I fought to make all encampments illegal in Cobourg. Recently I led the fight against the first draft of the Parks and Recreation Master Plan with all of Council unanimously passing my motion to remove language that; recommended syringe disposal bins and "non-stigmatizing" drug-use signage in our parks, framed encampments in parks sympathetically and conflicted with Ontario's new laws against public drug use. It's also why I tried in 2024 to prevent grant dollars from going to Moms Stop the Harm or the Greenwood Coalition as Tax dollars shouldn't fund advocacy that normalizes drug use in our public spaces. That motion was defeated, with only three members of Council in support. If re-elected, I will re-introduce it with the hope that more of council is ready to represent the will of the majority and worry less about the support of their close social circle.
What We Need to Keep Doing
Enforce the Laws Preventing Criminal Drug Activity
Enforce the ECE bylaw, ensure social service diversification
New Warming/Respite Centre
I believe all criminal activity should be met with the full force of law enforcement. I have demanded of our previous chief and the police board that arrests should have been made and I have always been met with opposition for this stance. I have been a vocal supporter of Ontario's Bill 6, Safer Municipalities Act, and as your Mayor I expect that this important public safety law to be followed at all times. I have fought against unsanctioned and illegal injection sites, including bringing forward motions to stop them. I have attempted to make sure through motions that organizations who try to shame those who want all people to follow the laws NO funding through the Town of Cobourg yet these particular motions were defeated in council led by Mayoral Candidate Nicole Beatty and her team from last term.
My original support for 310 Division is my single biggest regret as Mayor. So I did something about it. On my watch, Cobourg created a first-of-its-kind Emergency Care Establishment (ECE) Bylaw. It sets minimum safety and security standards for any emergency shelter in town, for the people staying there and the neighbourhood around it. When the Town enforced it at 310 Division, the pushback was relentless. I faced integrity complaints at the County, and the County's previous administration took Cobourg to court. Cobourg taxpayers ended up paying lawyers on both sides, and it was only after going to the Province for help, did the County drop the case on June 5, 2025. Twelve days later, more than 400 residents answered my call for a town hall and said together: enough is enough. The very next morning, County Council terminated its integrity commissioner's contract and voted to raise the barriers at 310 Division, closing the 24/7 drop-in hub and moving to a higher-barrier shelter with no drugs allowed on site. If re-elected, I'll make sure the ECE Bylaw stays enforced, and I'll hold the line on 310 Division and our ECE bylaw because I will always stand up for Cobourg.
I brought forward the motion to create a permanent warming and respite centre known as Building 18 that is not anywhere near the downtown core. Until our bylaw officers and police have somewhere to take people 24 hours a day, seven days a week, their only option is to move them along. From Victoria Hall to The Park Theater, from the bandshell to the Ecology Garden back to a hallway or lobby. A proper respite centre is an intake point: somewhere people can be brought to connect with services. A respite centre does not mean a low-barrier centre. It can and should mean there are rules, staffing, standards, statistics, and appropriate consequences at a real destination and location for our police and bylaw officers instead of another move-along. Building 18 North at 700 D'Arcy Street is Town-owned, its second floor sits empty, and it is well away from the downtown and our residential neighbourhoods. The concerns raised about it are solvable. The two ground-floor tenants can be offered another location, and the accessibility work can be planned and scheduled. This council didn't act on it. Now County staff want to use the board room at 600 William Street, as a warming room. A boardroom is not the appropriate response or solution. For years I've asked the other mayors to host emergency respite centres in their own communities. Not one stepped forward, so once again Cobourg is asked to show compassion. If re-elected, I fight with conviction against allowing a drug campus of care in Cobourg. For as long as Cobourg remains the county's and regions drop-off point for all homelessness, addiction and mental health crises, I will make sure Cobourg decides where and if those services will be permitted. That means Building 18: away from our downtown, out of our parks, off our streets and out of our residential neighbourhoods. That is the solution.
Priority Two
Improve daily life in Cobourg
Snow Removal Pilot Program for Seniors
I moved a motion to create Cobourg's first Senior Snow Removal Pilot Program, set to start in the 2026 winter season. It came from resident input and as a result of a serious shortage of retirement beds in our community.
Helping seniors stay safely in their own homes for longer costs far less than the alternative, for them and for taxpayers. Council accepted the concept, then modified and adjusted it to the point where it no longer reflects the intent of my motion. Eligibility is now capped at 25 participants, with costs climbing into the hundreds of thousands.
Better Healthcare
Options
I directed the CAO to explore ways to strengthen healthcare in Cobourg: physician attraction and retention, alignment with provincial healthcare changes, and models of care not currently available to residents.
The work included public and stakeholder engagement, donated participation from local experts for prioritized recommendations reported to the incoming Council. This term's Council defeated that motion. Council's own questions show this information is needed, so I will bring it forward again and when the options are presented.
Continue Driving Economic Growth for Jobs and Investment
If re-elected, I will act on the recommendations that came out of the Mayor's Manufacturing Tour report. Our largest employers diversify the tax base and provide high-paying jobs, and staying close to them through recent international instability mattered. At every stop I heard the same three things: a shortage of tradespeople, workers who can't find housing here, and permitting that takes too long. Fix those, and our employers grow here instead of somewhere else. As a past local employer and business operator I will always work hard to make the hard decisions in support of local jobs.
Simplified Parking that works for Residents
I brought forward the motion for free parking across Cobourg eight months a year, with a simpler system during the summer high season. If Port Hope residents can park free, why can't we? What Council passed was a step in the right direction, but it wasn't what I put on the table. It can be simpler, go further for residents while taking revenue into account and increase the penalties even more for parking in a handicapped space without a permit.
ATMs and Safe Downtown Banking Options
If re-elected, I will again bring a motion to modernize ATM service at our downtown banks by allowing them to install machines outside their buildings and modernize their operations. In meetings with bank managers this past year, I heard clearly that Cobourg's outdated bylaws are holding back better banking options for their customers and our residents.
Priority Three
The Future
Reduce reliance on local Tax base for Infrastructure costs
This term, I have shifted how the town pursues infrastructure funding, and it has worked. In under two years, Cobourg Council and staff have secured more than $35 million in provincial and federal grants. This is more than the previous decade of grant funding combined. Another $28 million is in front of the province now, with a decision expected in the coming weeks. If it lands, this one change in approach will have brought in over $60 million that current and future Cobourg residents don't have to pay for. That success can't rest in one term or with one Mayor. If re-elected, I will have these lessons, this approach and the winning formula written into Town policy to ensure economical growth.
Keeping Cobourg's Charm and Protecting our History
I rent a heritage home, and I spent a small fortune restoring a heritage commercial space downtown to open a modern grocery store. I've only lived here ten years, but this town's history got hold of me, and I was recently honoured to be named Patron of the Cobourg Historical Society. That's why the work now underway matters and one of the reasons I created the new Development Department. I wanted a team in Cobourg that could keep adapting as the province rewrites the rules in order to protect this community's charm. That team has written to 94 listed property owners to begin the designation process, and if re-elected, I'll continue to see our history and heritage protected and celebrated.
Continue Fixing the Pier and our Harbor
We finally got 5 million dollars in federal funds secured for the break wall, now we need to offset the additional 17 million before we can start funding the pier.
Our Marina, Harbour, Yacht Club, Campground, Centennial Pool and Waterfront are some of what make this community so special. Our dredging program needs to be improved or offloaded, we need to decide what we are going to do about the pool and we need to have some honest conversations about what we both want and can afford our waterfront to look like in 20 years. These aren't going to be easy decisions but they will require a willingness to make them and move forward.
FACT - I am the Cobourg Mayor who had approved the least number of developments in recent Cobourg History
I've signed fewer development agreements than any Mayor in Cobourg's modern history. That isn't because I'm anti-development. It's because when I was elected we were in a deficit with no plan, and I knew we had to build a foundation first. The agreements signed in the final year of the previous term were ambitious, with no plan to pay for the infrastructure they required. In year one, I didn't have basic information about our reserves and debt levels, so no real planning was possible. I've spent this term fixing that, and you can see it in the staffing changes and policy updates in our finance department, and in our change of auditors. It also became clear that the only way to cover the previous Council's commitments was through provincial and federal grants. That is why our new funding approach was needed. Meanwhile, the province has rewritten the development process, and every community in Ontario is under the same pressure. Getting it wrong is expensive. Several recent Council decisions are now headed to the Ontario Land Tribunal at a cost of hundreds of thousands of tax dollars. At Brookside, I worked with the former director for months to build a third option that would have avoided the fight we now face, but Council listened to well-meaning advocates instead of the professionals in the room. When the province changes the rules, you don't throw up your hands and quit, and you don't pick unwinnable fights just to appease critics. You learn the new game and you play it to win. If re-elected, I'll keep bringing my private sector strategy and leadership to the fights with developers that Cobourg needs to win, and steering us away from the ones we can't. That's how this town grows properly, with a Council willing to listen and a mayor willing to stand up for Cobourg and a staff team of professionals willing to adapt and change.
Developing Cobourg the Right Way
Introduced the idea of an Interim Control By-law
To protect Cobourg's heritage and downtown charm I brought forth the idea of an Interim Control By-law (ICBL) to Council that has since been put in place. This will now limit high-rise development in the specific areas of our town and community that we want to protect from high-rises. I will continue to prioritize keeping Cobourg's identity, charm and streetscape intact.
Created Development Division
I created a dedicated Development Department, after the most recent departure of our director of Planning and the results speak for themselves. The Comprehensive Zoning By-law had been stalled for a decade. The new team finished it in months, and it passed in 2025. That department is now fully staffed and meeting provincial timelines on applications, which protects us from costly appeals. The shift in economic development is paying off too, with taxpayers getting far better value from the assets we own and sell. Good departments don't happen by accident. If re-elected, I'll keep building the team that makes this possible and cost effective.
Launched the Official Plan Review
Council launched the Official Plan review, the document that sets where and how Cobourg grows for the next generation. Getting that started was key but getting it right is how we protect our neighbourhoods, our downtown and our waterfront all while still meeting provincial rules. If re-elected, I'll see the Official Plan review through, with real public input, so our growth follows a plan residents actually helped write and not one that is meant to benefit builders, developers and their investor friends.