Steve Mahoney, 66, is the President and CEO of the Radiation Safety Institute of Canada, a national organization dedicated to advancing radiation safety in the community, environment and workplace.
He states: “We need to look at who is running for mayor to replace Hazel, and the one word I hear everywhere I go in the city is experience. We need someone with experience to get the job done and hit the ground running on day one.”
Spirit of the City: Why did you decide to run for mayor?
Steve Mahoney: I’ve been interested in being the mayor of Mississauga for 30 years, and with Hazel not running again I think the decisions we make over the next few months leading up to October will be extremely important for the city going forward for the next four years and beyond. I believe we need experience and strong leadership, and I provide both.
SC: What are the key components to your platform?
SM: The most important aspect is to build public transit. I will complete the Hurontario LRT and immediately look at how we can improve east/west transit. Ultimately, my long-term vision is to have the subway run to Mississauga. We need to improve the transit routes along Dundas and Burnhamthorpe.
We want to focus on promoting the strong village concept that we have with our successful BIAs in Port Credit, Clarkson and Streetsville. Malton has a new BIA that is doing well.
I want to establish a waterfront corporation so we can develop the city’s waterfront in a proper manner. The waterfront corporation would work with the community to make sure we develop a legacy project that people can be proud of and draws in everyone from the GTA.
I want to change Mississauga from being a suburb to a “huburb,” where we create a hub of entrepreneurship, innovation and new jobs for young people. I will appoint a digital officer to work on social media and new digital platforms that young people are using today.
When mayor, I’m also committed to creating an ambassador position to make Mississauga a global outreach port so that we can do business around the world and help new Canadians settle with the right qualifications for our economy. We want to try to smooth the process with both the provincial and federal governments.
I’m going to appoint a blue-ribbon panel of experts from the private and public sectors to do a full service review to determine what the City can do better and perhaps stop doing.
SC: What will Mississauga look like in the next five years?
SM: I think in terms of 20 years. If you look at our City Centre 20 years ago and look at it today, it’s quite remarkable. Imagine it 20 years from now—it’s going to be world class. It’s going to be walkable and will have [more] facilities. I want to see major sports programs in our City for young people. I want to improve opportunities for elite soccer players, who seem to go to the United States to play soccer at a certain age.
I see Mississauga continuing as a family community, which is how it has been built. A large part of this family community are now of a senior age and we need to provide affordable transit for them with good access to our facilities.
SC: What are your favourite things to do in the city?
SM: I love to watch my grandkids play sports. We try to keep the family engaged as much as possible, supporting them as they grow. We also enjoy many of the festivals—Carassauga was phenomenal this year. The activities at Celebration Square are literally world-class and they’re happening every day in the summer. There was a major car show with 300 fantastic vehicles from across the province on display, most of them from Mississauga. My wife and I enjoy walks in our beautiful walkway system in Erin Mills. You can walk on beautiful green walkways kilometre after kilometre without having to go on the street.
SC: How would you differentiate yourself from Hazel?
SM: It’s not about setting myself apart from Hazel; I think she’s done a tremendous job with the city. People love her and she’s been a close friend of my wife and I—we consider her family.
For more information, visit votemahoney.ca.
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