Affordability, housing and municipal transparency instrumental to Haylestrom in Trent Hills election
By: Dan Jones, Northumberland 89.7 FM News, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter.
Affordability and connectivity are central themes to Steven Haylestrom’s election platform, as he seeks to become mayor of Trent Hills in the Oct. 26 municipal election.
The Warkworth native is asking what the future of the area is going to be for young people.
Housing is top of mind for Haylestrom who wants to build homes to which people are looking for.
“When it comes to development, we really have to think about what is needed in Trent Hills,” he said. “What are people really looking for?”
He points to proposed projects in Campbellford and Warkworth, which received pushback for being too expensive.
Haylestrom is committing to fast tracking municipal permitting for Additional Dwelling units so, “seniors can downsize on their own properties and families can create comfortable intergenerational housing, without anyone having to live in a basement.”
Haylestrom alleges Trent Hills has cell phone dead zones, suggesting one such area is outside the municipal building.
He proposes treating cell service for the safety of infrastructure, bringing carriers and all levels of government to one table for discussions and to map out dead zones.
Haylestrom said the municipality relies too much on consultants, rather than internal expertise in making impactful decisions. He points to what he calls mistakes by the previous council in demolishing the outdoor pool, before a replacement is constructed and mismanagement with the new recreational complex build. Haylestrom is competing against Michael Metcalf for mayor of Trent Hills.
