Name:

Nancy Branscombe

Occupation:
City Councillor Ward 6, City of London

Family information:
Nancy is married to London businessman Ken Kalopsis. Nancy and Ken and
their three young children live in Ward 6 in Old North.

Community work:
Nancy was elected to London City Council in November 2006 as Ward 6
representative, the university ward. Currently she serves as a Member of the
Environment and Transportation Committee (ETC), is the former Chair of
the Planning Committee, Trustee for the London Public Library Board,
Chair of the LTC Long-term Working Group, alternate for the Huron Water
Board, member of the Downtown Parking Committee, Chair of the Service
Review Committee, member of the Convention Centre Board, and Vice
Chair of the Town and Gown Committee. Nancy is a strong supporter and
patron of the Arts.

Would you support a four-year tax freeze (yes or no)?

No.

Why or why not?

I always work for the lowest possible tax increases because I understand that
Londoners do not want higher taxes. At this time I think it is irresponsible
to support a tax freeze. Based on our projected growth rate over the next
four years, a 0% tax increase (including a water and sewer rate freeze)
would mean cutting a minimum of $90 million from the budget
permanently. 33% of our budget is for provincial programs which we
cannot alter, 33% is for essential services like police, fire and ambulance and
the remaining 34% is for everything else. I don’t support those who advocate
the reckless gutting of essential services or core municipal services because
it is not a wise path for us to take. We shouldn’t be making decisions that
could negatively affect public safety, our quality of life, our AAA credit
rating (which keeps our cost of borrowing low), or our economic
development plans. Long term financial stability should be our goal. The
focus for me has and will be the wise management of taxpayers’ hard earned
dollars, cost containment, elimination of waste and increased service
efficiency. I’ve supported tax increases at about the rate of inflation in the
past. Value for our taxes is one of the most important issues facing Council
in the next 4 years and I will continue to work hard on this issue through the
Service Review Committee which I Chair.

Why do you want to represent Londoners at city hall?

Over the past 4 years on Council we have made a number of positive
changes to improve life here in the City of London. We have changed the
way we do business at City Hall and we have begun to make the changes
needed to take London into our next decade and beyond. Despite these
many successes, there still remains work to be done. We have moved to a
service based budget (the first in Ontario), a new governance structure of
Council (without Board of Control) and a forward-thinking economic
development plan. The next council will also face important questions on
issues such as the environment, protecting our neighborhoods and ensuring
value for taxes. I have enjoyed serving on Council and I look forward to
continuing to work for the residents of Ward 6 and all of London as a City
Councillor.

What do you consider a) the most important issue for London? And b)
the most important issue for the ward in which you’re running?

a. The most important issues facing the City of London are long-term
financial stability, cost control, economic development, sustainable
growth and improving the quality of life for our citizens. We need
strong leaders on Council who are focused and dedicated to executing
the long-term plans we have put in place over the past four years.
London has the potential to become one of the great, medium sized
 cities in the world.

b. Ward 6 has some of the most vibrant and exciting neighborhoods in

the City, including those connected to UWO, to the Old North and
Cherryhill, Orchard Park, Sherwood Forest and University Heights
communities. Ward 6 is a diverse blend of Londoners. With this in
mind, the most important issues in Ward 6 are still, protecting our
neighborhoods and related, ongoing “Town and Gown” issues. I have
supported and will continue to support aggressive city action on
related zoning and Official Plan changes, rental licensing, business
taxes, fines, bylaw enforcement, parking and following through with
the implementation of the recommendations in the ‘Great Near
Campus Neighborhoods” strategy that Council adopted last year.

___________________________________________________________

Name: Greg Munro

Occupation: Engineering Designer

Family information: My parents live in Chatham, Ontario.

My sister is in her third year at Western. My grandparents
live in the Cherryhill apartments. I have an aunt and uncle
with two younger cousins who live in Ward 6, and an aunt
and uncle with two cousins who live in Ward 14.

Community work:
 Undergraduate Engineering Society –
President??????????????????????????????????????????????
??????????????????????????????
· Represented over 1200 Undergraduate Students
· Selected and managed a council of over 50 people
· Collaborated with University and Faculty administration,
staff, and students
· Worked with Vice Presidents and Commissioners to plan
and organize all events for the year

Engineering Decanal Selection Committee – Student

Representative
· Reviewed applications and references and prepared a list
of candidates to be interviewed
· Consulted with faculty and students
· Participated in candidate interviews
· Chaired open meeting with students and each candidate
as well as a closed meeting with the student council
executive and each candidate

Undergraduate Engineering Society – Vice President

Student Events
· Planned and ran all social events and activities for the
faculty
· Developed and followed a budget for each event
· Ran or oversaw events ranging from a 500+ person
formal dinner and dance, to a 100 person dodgeball
tournament, to a 35 person paintball excursion

Engineering Orientation Program –

Soph??????????????????????????????????????????????????
· Volunteered as a student leader for the Orientation
program
· Assisted first year students with their transition to
University
· Served as a guide and mentor for students throughout
the year

Would you support a four-year tax freeze (yes or

no)? No.

Why or why not?

While I do think that a tax break would be nice and would
provide temporary relief I don't think that it would be
worth cutting services. I think it would be best if ways can
be found to cut superfluous spending and keep any tax
increase to the minimum required to maintain our current
level of services.

Why do you want to represent Londoners at city

hall?

I believe that London has tremendous potential, but that it

is not being fully realized. I want to be the next Ward 6
Councillor because I believe that with your support, we
can realize that potential. As a recent UWO Engineering
student I feel that I have a unique perspective to offer,
both to council and to the residents of Ward 6. I’ll bring
leadership, determination, common sense, and practical,
cost-effective solutions to the challenges facing London.

What do you consider a) the most important issue for London?

And b) the most
important issue for the ward in which you¹re running?

a) and b) I would consider jobs, or the lack thereof, to be the most

important issue facing both the city as a whole and Ward 6. London
has one of Ontario's highest unemployment rates and this leads to an
exodus long-term residents and students in order to find work. We
need to attract new economic development and employers. With the
large number of Feed-in Tariff projects throughout Ontario, and
especially near London, new manufacturers will be needed to meet the
Domestic Content requirements. London should continue to make
attracting as many of these manufacturers as possible a top priority.