Mississauga’s leading mayoral candidates took a more collegial approach to Thursday’s debate than in past face-offs, responding to a mix of challenging and light-hearted questions from residents.
Mayor Carolyn Parrish, former Mayor Bonnie Crombie and councillors Alvin Tedjo and Dipika Damerla previously shared the stage on Oct. 1, when the debate centered around food insecurity and cost of living was overshadowed by heated exchanges between the candidates.
“The last time the four of us got together, it wasn’t so friendly,” Tedjo said in his opening statements of the debate at the Christ First United Church in Port Credit.
“I believe we deserved a better debate and we got that tonight,” Tedjo told reporters at the end of the night.
The councillor called it an “incredibly respectful debate.” Candidates spent nearly an hour taking a diverse range of questions from the audience.
Parrish challenged on new arts facility plan
Parrish was asked whether her proposal to build a new arts facility would undermine the current Living Arts Centre and hurt local performing arts companies.
The current mayor defended her plan, saying the current performing arts centre would cost over $100 million in deferred maintenance. Parrish said it would be more feasible to build a new facility with a mix of public and private development to avoid burdening taxpayers.
The other candidates opposed that plan. Tedjo questioned the necessity of a new facility with the current arts centre still functioning, saying he would cancel the project if elected mayor. Crombie also said she would cancel the the project.
Damerla argued that concert halls in Toronto are struggling to sell seats and the same would happen in Mississauga if another centre is built.
Peel separation hopes refuelled?
One resident asked both the current and former mayor what they would have done differently during their terms.
Parrish stood by her track record, highlighting that she’s worked to separate shared services in Peel Region, including by fighting for municipalities to download waste collection services by 2027.
“What I haven’t finished yet is a complete commitment from the premier, who promised me in his backyard that he will fix the imbalance [in the police budget],” she said.
Mississauga pays around 62 per cent of the Peel Regional Police budget, with the city saying it subsidizes Brampton when it comes to policing and that the police budget should be closer to a 50-50 split based on their population size.
All the mayoral candidates have agreed that Mississauga pays too much for policing compared to Brampton, and have pledged to advocate for a more favourable funding formula if elected mayor.
Crombie responded by saying she wished she could have completed the separation of Mississauga from Peel, blaming Premier Doug Ford for not sticking to his “promise to Hazel” McCallion of making Mississauga its own city.
Damerla said Mississauga “didn’t get the divorce, but we got a separation,” adding the biggest obstacle left is the police funding formula.
However, Tedjo said he thinks the provincial government won’t change its mind on dissolving the region, having already gone back on the idea once. Instead, the councillor said he would focus on making sure Mississauga gets a better deal when it comes to the funding formula for policing in the region.
The four leading candidates will now set their eyes on election night.
There are 14 of candidates running to be Mississauga’s mayor. A full list can be found on the City of Mississauga’s website.
Mississauga residents head to the polls on Oct. 26.