A Trusted Voice In Guelph For Over 30 Years

As I said in one of my early campaign videos, I have worn many hats during my 65 years living and working in Guelph, but it has been my role as a local freelance journalist, over the past 35 years, that gave me broad access and insight into what makes this extraordinary city click

To thoroughly and adequately report on any issue reporters are compelled to answer five questions: Who? What? When? Where? Why? and, whenever applicable or possible, a sixth question; How?

It only makes sense then that I should apply those same questions to myself and my campaign.

Ward 2

WHAT:

I am a certified multi-media journalist who has been covering news stories and writing features and profiles of people in and around Guelph since the late ‘80s. I am also a singer-songwriter, musician who started performing professionally with my four younger siblings at the age of nine. Our first paying gig was at the legendary Rockwood Jamboree in 1971.

WHEN:

I started writing as an arts and culture reporter in the late 1980s, mostly as a way to get into shows for free and meet artists I admired. I began documenting and publishing stories on Guelph politics for the Guelph Mercury in the early 90s, but this is my first foray into politics as a candidate.

WHY:

I see this as an opportunity to use the knowledge and experience I have acquired over the past three decades investigating and reporting about people and issues in Guelph. That has included extensive coverage of city politics at all levels and therefore it feels like a natural progression to become part of the decision making process and serve my community as an elected representative.

WHO: Troy Bridgeman

WHERE:

I decided to run for one of the two council seats in Ward 2 because I have lived and owned a home in this ward for 20 years. My daughter, her partner and my grandchildren live in Ward 2 as well.

HOW:

The council position is listed as a part-time job but I intend to do it full-time. In fact, I intend to approach it with the same commitment and resourcefulness I have taken as a freelance journalist. A good journalist is, in many ways, a public servant who holds those in power to account, keeps the public informed about issues and events that affect them, and factually records history as it is happening. Issues and events in the city occur 24 hours a day, seven days a week and throughout my career I have followed ledes wherever and whenever they occurred. Yes, I will be in my seat at City Hall for scheduled council meetings and committee hearings but the rest of my time will be spent in the community much like I’ve been doing already but with an extra level of commitment and accountability.

I intend to be a trusted, reliable and accessible representative for everyone in Ward 2 and to keep the public updated and informed on all City business in a variety of ways, including video updates, newsletters and regular town hall meetings.

When W

The 5Ws of Affordability

Who, What, Where, Why, When and sometimes, How

I have heard many concerns from citizens while I’ve been canvassing door to door or speaking with folks at public events. Nearly every conversation returns to the issue of affordability.

AFFORDABILITY - is the catch-all cornerstone the many issues plaguing Guelph and it's residents.

WHO:

All citizens of Guelph are impacted.

WHEN:

The problem started to grow exponentially during the pandemic. There are many reasons for this and experts and economists will be interpreting the data on how and why this is true, for decades to come.

Inflation is a feature of capitalism and every market economy so, rising costs for all monetized goods and services are to be expected. A properly functioning economy aims to maintain a balance between incomes and living expenses. That balance is off. Wages and other forms of income are not keeping pace with inflation. In many cases it is as simple as that. If you are working full-time and you can’t afford healthy food and rent, the system is failing.

WHERE:

Affordability is impacting everyone but low income, under-employed and unemployed people are affected the most. I have visited encampments in and around the city and I was struck by how many people “living rough” are working. They get up every morning and go to work and at the end of their shift, they return to finish out their day and spend the night in a tent. They form communities to protect the few belongings they have left and to keep each other safe from “intruders” with various persuasions. Very few would choose to live this way if they had better options

WHAT:

Affordability is the central issue and the primary contributor to low wages, poverty, homelessness, food insecurity, rising energy costs, declining support for environmental initiatives, all forms of property crime, human trafficking, illegal drugs, addiction, rising property taxes and nearly every other issue impacting the community.

WHY:

The high cost of housing and the rising cost of living are systemic. They are caused, in most cases, by a global economy that is manipulated by energy resources, competing political systems, conflicts and trade imbalances beyond our control. The scarcity of affordable homes in Guelph is a local contributor to the problem but not the only cause.

We Can Still Get There From Here!

THE ARTS AS A REVENUE SOURCE

Last century, during the 1980s, I was in a band called Cold War made up of family members and close friends. We were a writing band and most of our efforts were focused on writing our own material.

That made it extra hard to get booked at local bars who were looking for bands that played covers of the popular music of the time.

Rather than protest and complain, we started putting on our own shows and eventually established a non-profit called the Alternate Measures Associated Musicians of Ontario or as it was better known, The Cruel World Music Club. Our primary focus was promoting local bands, especially bands that were writing and performing original material.

The shows were a huge success and it didn’t take long for local bars and clubs to see there was a market for these bands. In some cases we worked in partnership with local bars and charitable groups to promote concert series and fundraisers.

I bring this up because I think raising taxes and cutting funding to essential services is a lazy and unimaginative way to balance the city budget.

Often the first thing that gets cut is support for the arts because they aren’t considered an essential service but that is the wrong way of looking at it.

Guelph is a city of artists, activists and innovators. They are a largely untapped resource not an expense.

We need only look at cities like Florence, Italy and Nashville, Tennessee for examples of how the arts can be a major source, even a primary source of revenue for the municipality.

We have the facilities, we have the expertise and we have an inexhaustible resource of artists of all kinds and musicians from every genre you can imagine.

We could be promoting the arts and generating revenue for the city at the same time. I know it can be done because we did it in the ‘80s and we were just a rag tag group of young musicians who wanted to play. Just think what we could accomplish if we tapped into the creative energy and imagination of the entire community.