Citizens for Halifax survey finds most mirror views of residents

Halifax, NS, October 16, 2008 -- Most municipal candidates are in touch with the interests of citizens and have a clear understanding of what Halifax needs to become the most vibrant and livable city in Canada, according to a recent poll conducted by Citizens for Halifax (CFH), an independent, non-partisan organization dedicated to encouraging citizen engagement and government accountability in the Halifax region.

Citizens for Halifax conducted the informal electronic poll of municipal candidates in recent weeks to see who supports its seven central positions -- positions that represent collective feedback from a series of citizen forums held within the last year. The poll found that 21 out of the 32 candidates who responded support at least six of the seven positions. This included mayoral candidates Sheila Fougere and David Boyd.

“It tells us the majority of candidates are on the right track when it comes to what citizens want and what this city needs,” said Malcolm Fraser, chair of Citizens for Halifax. “The general consensus is that Halifax needs a streamlined, sustainable municipal government, and tax rates that are more in-line with services delivered. We know what has to be done and this helps us identify who the right leaders are to get us there.”

Jim Connolly, Glenn Dodge, Andrea Hilchie-Pye and Dawn Marie Sloane are the candidates who agreed with all seven of the Citizens for Halifax positions, which include restructuring municipal government into more manageable units, tax reform that more closely matches services, development of the arts and cultural sectors, a comprehensive transportation system, and a more transparent and streamlined development process.

“We intend to work with like-minded candidates to achieve some of these strategic goals for the city. As citizens, we all need to work together to make sure the right people get in, and then stay engaged to help those leaders achieve change,” said Fraser.

Comments from the candidates indicate they strongly support the need for improvements to the current council structure, even though a majority (75%) are currently against dividing the municipality into two units.

In a simultaneous online poll of more than 500 Halifax area residents, Citizens for Halifax found that 62 per cent of respondents support the division of the municipality into two units, with smaller councils to better serve the rural and urban communities.

“Candidates and citizens have slightly different viewpoints, especially when it comes to dividing the municipality into two units,” adds Fraser. “But most candidates and citizens agree we need to make improvements to the governing structure, the tax system and the development process, and we need to put more muscle behind the arts, immigration and sustainability efforts.”

Key findings from the two polls include:

• 67 per cent of citizens who responded support changing HRM’s name officially from Halifax Regional Municipality to Halifax. The strongest support for the name change came from Timberlea-Prospect (79%) and Dartmouth (80%).
• 78 per cent of citizens and 72 per cent of candidates support tax reform that more closely aligns taxes with the actual cost of services delivered.
• 78 per cent of candidates and 77 per cent of citizens support more aggressive development of the arts and culture sectors by committing a minimum of one per cent of the annual municipal budget to this sector.
• 71 per cent of citizens and 72 per cent of candidates said yes to creating a chief sustainability officer position with the necessary authority and budget to ensure Halifax becomes the most sustainable city in Canada by 2020.
• Almost all candidates (97%) and three out of four citizens (75%) agreed with the development of an integrated intercultural strategy to attract and retain immigrants and to better support disadvantaged groups within our community.
• 84 per cent of candidates and 87 per cent of citizens said yes to the creation of a transportation authority to develop and implement a long term comprehensive transportation strategy that integrates all modes of transportation.
• Nearly nine in 10 candidates (88%) and eight in 10 citizens (80%) support adopting a more transparent and streamlined development process as proposed by the HRM By Design initiative.

Click here for detailed survey results from the candidates.