Well, that was short-lived.
Heralded as “a pretty good standout” among over 70 applicants, Michael Bradley assumed the city manager post at city hall on May 15.
Exactly five months later, a media release from Mayor Joe Preston announced, “City to begin recruitment for new city manager.”
Bradley has accepted the position of CAO with the City of Brantford – his hometown – and will depart his office at city hall in mid-November.
Before accepting the post in St. Thomas, Bradley had been the Commissioner of Community Development with the City of Brantford.
He also served for 11 years with the County of Brant, including a stint as CAO from 2018 to 2023.
Category Archives: Streetscapes
‘I’m not sure that it could have gone better, I smiled a lot’ – St. Thomas Mayor Joe Preston following this week’s AMO conference
It appears the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) conference at the beginning of this week in Ottawa proved productive for many communities in attendance.
In the case of the St. Thomas delegation, the gathering had Mayor Joe Preston smiling on more than one occasion.
At the beginning of June, we outlined some of the key meetings Preston and company had lined up with provincial ministers and the link to that item is below.
We caught up with Preston yesterday (Friday) to get an executive summary of what transpired, from a St. Thomas perspective.
“I took a very powerful delegation with me,” praised Preston.
Along with Preston were city manager Michael Bradley and councillors Lori Baldwin-Sands and Steve Peters.
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“We’re not really trying to truly fix blame, we’re trying to fix the problem – St. Thomas Mayor Joe Preston on homelessness and housing
The Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) annual conference begins tomorrow (Sunday) and runs through Aug. 21 in Ottawa.
At the beginning of June, we spoke with St. Thomas Mayor Joe Preston regarding which provincial ministers were a priority for the city’s delegation.
At that time, the key meetings would be with the Minister of Transportation, Prabmeet Sarkaria to discuss regional transportation; Attorney General Doug Downey to address concerns facing the St. Thomas Police Service; and the new Minister of Education, Jill Dunlop.
The latter was appointed yesterday (Friday) afternoon after the resignation of Todd Smith, in the portfolio for less than three months after a June cabinet shuffle.
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A Brantford development firm has become a solid St. Thomas supporter
Vicano Developments this week closed a deal to purchase 67 acres of industrial land on the southeast corner of Highbury Avenue and Ron McNeil Line, adjacent to the city’s new 1,500-acre industrial park, now known as Yarmouth Yards.
Vice-president Paul Vicano says they are working with Whitney and Company of Cambridge to find tenants for the site.
“This was the kick-off to our leasing campaign with Whitney, our listing team, to look for a tenant for either a single-use building or smaller tenants of multiple units or buildings.”
Space is available up to 1.4 million square feet for one large operation.
Sister company Vicano Construction was involved in building the city’s social services and housing hub at 230 Talbot Street.
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The 2024 St. Thomas draft budget comes in at under a 4 per cent increase. Can city council whittle this down further?
City council begins 2024 budget deliberations on Monday (Dec. 4) and the adjusted tax levy comes in at a 3.76 per cent increase.
Keep in mind this is a preliminary look at the budget and in recent years, council has been able to shave up to a percentage point off the initial levy figure.
The proposed levy for the coming year is a shade under $69 million, which is an increase of $4.2 million over this year.
When you factor in $1.7 million in additional growth-related tax, the levy increase drops to $2.4 million, which is a 3.76 per cent increase over this year.
Contractual increases in wages and benefits – $2.5 million – and wages and benefits for new positions next year – $1.4 million – are the biggest contributors to the tax levy increase. Continue reading
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Preventing the community from ever getting into this homelessness bottleneck again
In November of last year, Danielle Neilson reminded city council that the solution to homelessness is housing and housing with supports.
Neilson is the city’s Homelessness Prevention and Housing Programs Coordinator and at that meeting of council, she presented a thorough overview of the homeless situation in St. Thomas, including an analysis of unsheltered homelessness.
She observed, “. . . this is not only the result of increased demands on our emergency shelter beds, some of my firsthand experiences with people living unsheltered in St. Thomas revealed other factors as well.
“Such as needing lower barrier supports that are matched more appropriately to someone’s mental health or addiction challenges that may result in unpredictable behaviours.
“Having personal belongings or accumulating personal belongings at a rate that exceeds the shelter’s ability to store them.
“Having a complete desire to live unsheltered, even when housing options are available.
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St. Thomas municipal council asked to renew its commitment to addressing discrimination in the community
Members of council will receive a report for Monday’s (Feb. 7) meeting that unpacks the experiences of discrimination in St. Thomas and Elgin county.
It contains the results of a survey undertaken by the St.Thomas-Elgin Local Immigration Partnership (STELIP) and we spotlighted last week a pair of online presentations to be held this coming Tuesday highlighting the results of that survey.
Delving into the report should prove uncomfortable at times for our elected representatives on two broad fronts.
First, and foremost, the report points out “Discrimination is happening in locations that are managed by the City of St. Thomas and this reality needs to be addressed.”
Secondly, the report states the obvious, “With no immigrants, visible minorities, nor Indigenous People represented on the City of St. Thomas Council, this report can help all of us better understand how these groups are experiencing life in our community.”
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Security cameras will ensure a vibrant downtown as ‘a canvas for economic development’
Video surveillance will soon be keeping a watchful eye over the city’s downtown core. At Tuesday’s (May 19) meeting, members of council will be asked to endorse Phase 1 of a project that will see the installation of eight CCTV cameras along a two-kilometre stretch of Talbot Street, from CASO Crossing to Queen Street.
The locations were selected based on 2018/19 crime mapping data and motor vehicle collision reporting information.
In a report to council from city police, it is noted the CCTV program “is a proactive, local solution modelled on successful networks in other municipalities to enhance community well-being and assist the St. Thomas Police Service with solving crime.”
Right now when a crime is committed downtown, police need to canvass businesses to see if they have surveillance footage as evidence.
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A reprieve for now, but prepare for pencil sharpening next year on city budget
Is it a case of listening to the people or backpedalling in the face of stiff opposition?
The agenda package for Monday’s (June 3) city council meeting includes a letter from Premier Doug Ford with regard to cost-sharing with municipalities for land ambulance, public health and childcare services.
The proposed cuts to joint funding were to come into effect this year even though municipalities have already set their 2019 budgets and tax rates.
The funding changes are a move by the Ford government to address the province’s $15 billion annual deficit and $347 billion long-term debt.
