Just hours before the nomination period closed on August 21 for the October 26 municipal election, Rob Hailman entered the race to become the next mayor of the City of Peterborough.
Hailman is one of seven candidates in the running, with the other six being Michael Eamon, Brian Lumsden, Jacob Méthot, Neil Morton, Keith Riel, and Rebecca Schillemat. The day before the nomination period closed, incumbent mayor Jeff Leal announced he would not be seeking re-election for a second term.
In a recent in-depth interview with kawarthaNOW, Hailman admitted that “to come from nowhere” on the final day of the nomination period “is an extra big swing, but I’m going to do the work to make it happen.”
A longtime council critic makes the case for investing in public services
Known locally for his role as the director of operations for Trent Radio and as a musician and broadcaster, Hailman is also the business manager for Trent University’s student newspaper Arthur.
A longtime community-based advocate, Hailman will be familiar to anyone who has watched city council meetings. He has been a regular delegate over the years, as well as a frequent harsh critic of the existing council.
His comments at council have sometimes raised eyebrows, such as when he spoke at the June 1 general committee meeting when council debated whether or not to defer a winter shelter response plan. After reading an excerpt from German philosopher Friedrich Engels’ 1845 book The Condition of the Working Class in England, which equates systemic neglect and starvation to “social murder,” Hailman accused the majority of council of being “wilful murderers” for their reluctance to approve the plan.
“I’ve been an active participant and I’ve gotten some attention for some of the things that I’ve said in the council chamber as a delegate,” Hailman told kawarthaNOW. “I recognize that a lot of the time I was a little bit outside of the political mainstream.”
Over the past 15 years, Hailman has given a number of delegations to council on topics ranging from homelessness to governance to transit.
“The first delegation I gave to council was in 2011 about cuts to public transit,” he recalled. “I have, for better or worse, had to give that same delegation many, many times over the years.”
Investing in public services such as transit is a central part of Hailman’s platform, as he noted that public transit drives economic development and quality of life. In particular, he said, high-quality public transit supports unhoused individuals who have no other means of transportation.
“We need investment in core public services, in public transit, in libraries, in policing when it’s appropriate, and in other social services,” he said.
Putting people first in street design and housing priorities
Hailman looks to the Bethune Street bikeway as an example of person-centred road design that has not only improved the appearance of the street but also met functional and structural needs for flood mitigation.
Stretching from McDonnel Street to Townsend Street, the bikeway has features like curved gardens that enhance traffic safety by slowing traffic, while providing garden spaces that absorb runoff and are home to native plants that support pollinators. Underneath the street is a 1,600-metre “box culvert” sewer system that diverts floodwaters from Jackson Creek to the Otonabee River, safeguarding downtown homes and businesses from floods.
Using this as an example, Hailman outlined his approach to renovations on Hunter Street, Charlotte Street, and Park Street.
“The next time we have to do road work on Hunter Street, let’s permanently rebuild it to look that way,” he said, referring to the city’s annual summer patio program that expands outdoor dining and pedestrian space.
On the issue of homelessness and the housing crisis, Hailman has been particularly critical of some current councillors.
“Some of the opinions expressed at council really haven’t met the standard of recognizing that people have human rights, and those rights include the right to life and the right to security of the person,” he said.
Hailman added that funds should be diverted from other projects to focus on creating affordable public housing that supports individuals transitioning out of homelessness. He looks to current council expenditures on projects such as the proposed $170-million downtown multi-use sport and event centre and the $41-million police budget as places to redirect funds to the housing crisis.
“It’s really interesting that, when there is something that is the priority of city hall or is the priority of council, there’s no shortage of money to do it,” said Hailman. “If we have that kind of money to throw around, we also have money to throw around to build public housing.”
Hailman said he takes a human-first approach to all issues and a housing-first approach to solving the homelessness crisis.
“Fundamentally the questions that we have to ask ourselves are: what are the priorities we have as a community, and what are the choices that we’re making to try to achieve those priorities?”
Attracting businesses by building a community where people want to live
Hailman said his approach to economic development is to attract businesses by investing in the existing community rather than to try to entice them to locate in the city.
“A mistake that I feel like the city’s made in the past, and not just in Peterborough, is we see specific industries or specific businesses and think that we need to attract those,” said Hailman.
“It’s kind of like making a bet on where the future is going to be, and that’s worked really badly in Peterborough. If you’re trying to pick a sector that’s going to be the big thing to stake your future on, you’re always at risk of having collapses happen.”
Hailman specifically spoke about the lack of progress in securing large anchor tenants at the CleanTech Commons at Trent University and the Peterborough Regional Airport.
If elected, Hailman said he would focus on making Peterborough “a community where people want to be” to organically attract new business.
“A community that’s desirable to live in, and thriving and vibrant and has good social services and arts and culture, are all things that I think make a community worthwhile and are for their own sake also economic development tools,” said Hailman.
He also said that the city being a consistent and reliable partner will be important to attract new businesses.
“It’s a constant frustration that you hear that Peterborough city hall isn’t a great place to deal with if you’re trying to establish a business,” Hailman said.
“We have to look at how we’re doing — how we’re arranging these processes — to be predictable and to be fair to people who are looking to set up business here, because I think too often we fail to meet those standards.”
Championing citizen engagement, whatever the election outcome
Having been a frequent delegate at council and an active community member, Hailman said he values public input.
“I think it’s been really disappointing to see the changes that this council has made around community participation,” he said, referring to recent amendments to council’s procedure by-law that have reduced speaking time for both delegates and councillors.
Regardless of the outcome of the election, Hailman said, he will continue to be a citizen advocate and a frequent presence at council.
“There’s a lot of power in being a citizen and being on the public side of the table in advocacy work,” he noted.
Entering the mayoral race at a time when some of the other candidates have already been campaigning for weeks or even months, Hailman said he recognizes this places him at a disadvantage.
However, he added, participating in the electoral process is an achievement in and of itself.
“Win or lose, whoever becomes the next mayor of Peterborough, there are going to be debates and I’m going to be at them,” he said. “There is going to be news coverage of the election and my voice is going to be in it.”
Hailman will officially launch his mayoral campaign in the lecture hall at Sadleir House from 6 to 8 p.m. on Monday (September 14), delivering his remarks at 6:30 p.m.
