Could Doug Ford be Kawartha Lakes’ next mayor?

Doug Ford is throwing his hat in the ring in a bid to become Kawartha Lakes’ next mayor on Oct. 26.

No, not that Doug Ford.

This Doug Ford is a longtime resident of the city and a self-described “blue-collar guy” who’s spent the lion’s share of his 25 years in Bobcaygeon.

But he says he doesn’t mind sharing a name with Ontario’s colourful Progressive Conservative premier.

In fact, Ford said he thinks it works in his favour.

“Kawartha Lakes is primarily a blue voting city, so the Doug Ford name, in my mind, isn’t hurting,” Ford told Kawartha Lakes Weekly.

Confident and enthusiastic, Ford says the time has come for new faces on council, and he’s the right man to sit in the mayor’s chair.

“As a young guy, I think that we need some young blood in that office, and I’m willing to give it a shot,” he said.

Ford’s campaign is focused on four key areas: establishing 90-day building permit decisions, freezing property taxes and utility rates, creating budgets that eliminate waste, and developing new revenue streams to prevent tax increases and attract investment.

On building permits, Ford says his 90-day guarantee would be achieved through additional permit staff, digital tracking and greater accountability for municipal delays.

“That doesn’t mean shovels in the ground in 90 days, but you’ll have a decision and know what you need to do in 90 days, and if the city doesn’t, we’re going to hold people accountable,” Ford said.

Another area Ford said he’s concerned about is the city’s $138-million debt that supports a $5.38-billion asset base. While the city says this figure is “well within healthy limits,” Ford disagrees.

He said the city needs to look at creating new revenue streams – not increasing taxes for residents. If elected, Ford said he would support an immediate tax freeze. One idea he has to make up for the revenue brought in by tax dollars is to bring more events to the Lindsay Exhibition.

“The LEX calendar must be full at all times,” he said. “Right now, there’s two to three weeks in between events. We need to have that going every weekend (because) that’s a big money-maker for the community.”

If elected, Ford said he would also launch an independent audit of city spending within his first 90 days, followed by a zero-based budgeting process requiring departments to justify their spending. He said the goal would be to reduce waste and improve accountability.

While Ford is not bringing a track record of political experience to this election race, he said he does have real-life experience with how infrastructure and planning work, having spent four years as a Hydro One worker.

“I have some knowledge and insight about what slows down projects and what (governments) are doing with red tape that I can bring to the table,” he said.

And has Ford been hearing plenty of comments about sharing a name with Ontario’s premier?

“Oh, yes, I am,” he said. “But you know what they say, there’s no such thing as bad publicity.”