Byelection candidates square off during debate

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This article was published 28/04/2021 (1594 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In what might end up being the only campaign event for the upcoming Meadows-Waverly ward byelection for Brandon City Hall, candidates Sunday Frangi and Gordon McCrae went head-to-head in an online debate on Tuesday evening.

It was a sparsely attended affair that peaked at 11 participants, though that total included both candidates, host and moderator Kim Longstreet, a timekeeper, a Sun reporter and Mayor Rick Chrest.

For those who couldn’t watch live, Longstreet said the Zoom session was being recorded and a link would be posted online at a later date.

Asked about a wide variety of topics, both candidates tried their best to prove to ward residents that they would deal with three major issues facing them: drainage, sidewalk safety and speeding.

Opening remarks from both men thanked former councillor John LoRegio, who stepped down at the end of January to focus on his battle with multiple myeloma cancer.

The first question dived into a contentious subject: crime.

Frangi praised the work that Brandon Police Service does, but said city leadership needs to do more to address the root causes of crime like poverty and addiction.

In both his answer to this question and to others, Frangi said he believes that the revitalization of downtown Brandon plays a large part in addressing these root causes and should include attracting businesses back downtown to add jobs and reduce poverty as well as building affordable housing.

He said downtown businesses are wanting to leave the neighbourhood because of crime, making crime reduction and downtown revitalization work hand-in-hand.

McCrae said that his research indicates that a significant portion of local crime is made up of garage break-ins and petty theft.

To combat those crimes, he is in favour of reinstating the Citizens on Patrol Program in Brandon to give the Brandon Police Service a leg up in responding to crimes as well as partnering the program with the Brandon Bear Clan.

To address speeding in the ward, McCrae said he was in favour of a speeding assessment to see if more stop signs are needed on the city’s streets.

On the subject of economic development and downtown revitalization, McCrae said the 2021 Canadian census will provide a better idea of the current population and demographics of Brandon and lead to a better understanding of what kind of businesses would be a good fit for downtown.

“With that, we can actually start filling in those businesses with better interests on what people actually want to see downtown,” McCrae said. “We also want to try and get more events in parks downtown.”

Though it is a problem at the provincial level, both candidates were asked for their thoughts on Bill 64, which would see the province’s elected school division boards eliminated and the school divisions consolidated into larger entities.

While lower taxes could be one of the benefits of the endeavour, McCrae said that was about the only positive he has heard about the plan. A couple of teachers he has spoken with indicated that the proposed changes would negatively affect the way they teach.

His opponent was blunter, with Frangi saying Bill 64 would “ruin” Manitoba’s education system.

“Reducing the number of school divisions from 37 to 14, it’s not doing the province any good,” he said. “When focusing on the city, I don’t think our city officials should agree with that. We need to sit down with the provincial government and tell them this is not going to help our community.”

On health care, both men expressed a need for mental health services to be improved. Frangi said the city needed to put more pressure on higher levels of government to do more for mental health, while McCrae said people aren’t using currently existing mental health programming and it needs to be better marketed to increase participation.

With neither candidate currently living in the ward, though both men said they’d previously been residents, Longstreet asked them to name issues affecting the residents of Meadows-Waverly. 

Drainage was mentioned by both men as being especially important after heavy rains last summer led to buildings and basements across the city getting flooded. Both men also mentioned sidewalks in poor condition being tripping hazards, especially for seniors.

Where McCrae had earlier mentioned wanting to commission a speeding assessment as a first step in addressing the issue in the ward, Frangi proposed installing a traffic camera to help catch speeders.

Another heavy topic raised by Longstreet was how the candidates would promote social and racial justice.

Frangi pointed out that he participated in local Black Lives Matter demonstrations last year and said society needs to stop shying away from discussing topics that could unite it.

McCrae said the only way to move forward is open communication about these issues in a safe and respectful way without consequence.

The first chance eligible voters will have to cast their ballots will be Thursday, with advance voting running at Brandon City Hall between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.

Election Day is on May 5. Voters will be able to cast ballots at three locations: a drive-thru polling station at the Keystone Centre, First Baptist Church (3881 Park Ave.) and Richmond Park Church (1525 26th St.)

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