Ostrander has unfinished business in bid for third term as Brighton mayor

By Dan Jones, LJI
Northumberland 89.7 FM

A comprehensive taxation review may be coming to Brighton if Brian Ostrander is re-elected. Ostrander, seeking a third consecutive term as mayor, recognizes that municipal taxes have reached a point where people have had enough ofof increases and relief may be needed.

This review will ask residents which services they are willing to keep and which could be scaled back or scrapped.

“Really what I’m hearing is that taxation levels are just about at the point where people are kind of done. I get that,” Ostrander said. “Are we delivering the services that you need? Is there anything we can cut back on? Are we meeting your needs and or if you don’t want to pay as much as you’re paying today, what are you willing to give up?”

Tax fairness is a concept Ostrander is proposing to review whether rural residents are getting appropriate services for the price paid.

“I’m hearing a lot from our rural friends that they feel they are paying much more in taxation from a service delivery perspective than folks in the urban area,” Ostrander said.

He remarked that urban residents also get sidewalks plowed in the winter, but it’s unclear whether taxes are fair without further study.

Yet Brighton, like many other communities, has taken on additional services, typically outside municipalities’ mandates, such as physician recruitment. Healthcare is a provincial jurisdiction; however, the mayors and councils are pitching their communities and incentives to attract doctors to the region.

Ostrander suspects residents do care about doctor recruitment and other critical services and may want to keep paying for such initiatives.

“What I want to know from the people of Brighton through this review is, are we delivering the services you need and want, are you willing to give anything up?”

Ostrander lives in rural Brighton, but he said he was raised in urban Brighton, stating he understands both sides of the rural/urban divide argument. He said some rural residents do not believe their concerns are being heard at the council level. Not dismissing these concerns, Ostrander pointed to road upgrades of approximately 130 kilometers of the estimated 150 kilometers of the rural road network in the municipality. He supports the Coddrington Farmers Market and Coddrington Community Center.

Ostrander, campaigning for a third term, said he wants to accomplish or start priorities before leaving office, such as a new fire hall downtown once the southern substation is complete, and fundraising for a proposed recreational centre. He said his first term focused on planning for infrastructure needs. Term two focused on shovels in the ground and implementing the plan.

Ostrander is contesting for mayor against Bobbi Wright and Christina Bergmann.

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