Month: Sep 2014

City Hall Reporter Wants to Become the Reported

Published on by Adam A. DonaldsonLeave a comment

All those years of reporting and blogging about local issues and the business of City Hall apparently gave former Guelph Mercury journalist Scott Tracey a kind of Stockholm syndrome. Or maybe he’s just now of the opinion that if he can’t beat them, join them. Or, the more likely, he’s being driven by a sense of civic pride and commitment. Regardless of the reason why, Tracey is throwing his hat into the ring for this fall’s municipal election running in the very busy Ward 4 race. Continue reading “City Hall Reporter Wants to Become the Reported” →

PRESS RELEASE – City and Urbacon Settle Out of Court for Over $6.5 Million

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If you’re running for re-election to city council this is probably both good news and bad news. Good news because with the announcement of a settlement marks the end of what can liberally be called a debacle for the City of Guelph; but on the other hand it puts the issue right back on the front page as it were. Continue reading “PRESS RELEASE – City and Urbacon Settle Out of Court for Over $6.5 Million” →

GUELPH POLITICAST #13 – John Legere, Mayoral Candidate

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The election season officially gets underway on Guelph Politico today with the launch of season four of the Guelph Politicast. This season will deal with the 2014 Municipal Election, and will predominately focus on interviews with the candidates running for Mayor of Guelph. At bat first is John Legere, a local businessman and family man who was one of the first ones in the race this past January. Legere’s main issue is the promotion of transparency in government, and creating what he calls a “a truly representative government,” and he’s launched a grassroots campaign to test the waters for his idea. Continue reading “GUELPH POLITICAST #13 – John Legere, Mayoral Candidate” →

With VIDEO – Farbridge Launches Campaign with Broadsides Against Front-runner

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Being ushered to the train station on the corner of Carden and Wyndham Streets by a brass quartet, one might be confused as to whether or not Mayor Karen Farbridge was kicking off her campaign with a joyful tone or with a New Orleans-style funeral procession. When she began to speak, however, there was no doubt that Farbridge is in it to win it. Ferociously defensive of her leadership-style and he vision as mayor, Farbridge made it perfectly clear that she’s out to secure her fourth term in office despite the polls or the perceptions of the pundit class. Continue reading “With VIDEO – Farbridge Launches Campaign with Broadsides Against Front-runner” →

Guelph’s New MedCannAccess Solution Centre Welcomed with Open Arms

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It was just four years ago that the Medical Cannabis Club of Guelph was shuttered following a police raid that saw many of its staff arrested and its clientele forced to look elsewhere for their medication. Today though, for the opening of the new Guelph office of the MedCannAccess Solution Centres, the tone was quite different. Continue reading “Guelph’s New MedCannAccess Solution Centre Welcomed with Open Arms” →

Guthrie Leads Farbridge in Forum Poll

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It must be an election because we now have polling data. In a Forum Poll released Tuesday looking at the Guelph Mayoral race, it seems as if current mayor, Karen Farbridge, had best be prepared to look for new work on October 28. Of course, this poll comes fairly early in the (real) campaign, and we all know the unreliability of polling in the last couple of years, but is it an indication that Farbridge may come up short for a fourth term in office, and that Cam Guthrie’s gambit to trade his Ward 4 seat for the mayor’s chain will work out? Continue reading “Guthrie Leads Farbridge in Forum Poll” →

Bell and Van Hellemond Confirm Re-Election Bids

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The final two questions marks on the current city council have been erased today with Ward 1’s Bob Bell and Ward 2’s Andy Van Hellemond both filing their papers to run for re-election in the October 27 Municipal Election. Bell and Van Hellemond were the last two undeclared members of council, which regardless of whether or not all the incumbents are re-elected next month will see a serious turnover of new faces at the first council meeting in November. Continue reading “Bell and Van Hellemond Confirm Re-Election Bids” →

Politics, Comic Books and Coins

Published on by Adam A. DonaldsonLeave a comment

The intermittent silence on Politico over the weekend stemmed from my time covering the National Fan Expo in Toronto for one of the culture vulture websites I get paid to write for. For those unfamiliar with Fan Expo, I basically describe it to the less nerdy as Canada’s Comic Con, an expansive event for all things nerdy including science fiction, horror, comic books, and video games. But since synergy is synergy, the occasion offered a compelling opportunity, for politics and nerdery to mix. Continue reading “Politics, Comic Books and Coins” →