The Fruitland Road area resident has declared his candidacy for the municipal race against longtime councillor David Mitchell.

“I have noticed over the last few years that a lot of local concerns and issues within our ward haven’t been heard,” Chartrand said. “They have fallen on deaf ears or resolved without public input.”

As an example, Chartrand cites the future Fifty Road development, which includes a Wal-Mart and is being challenged at the Ontario Municipal Board.

“Councillor Mitchell said yes to this, yet residents were adamantly against it,” said Chartrand, 53.

“I wouldn’t vote for development if the majority of residents were against it. Development will come, but let’s make sure the majority of residents are for it before we go ahead.”

Chartrand says due to the ward’s large geographical size, one of his first actions as councillor would be to appoint area committees within the ward to address local issues.

“This is important. With a ward this size, you can’t rely on one person to deal with all of the issues. You need the guidance and support of the residents, farmers and business owners,” he said, adding he would meet with the committees bi-monthly.

Chartrand also sees existing and proposed truck routes as a major issue.

“Due to a pilot project by the Ministry of Transportation, the possibility of more trucks and even larger trucks may impact our city streets,” he said. “I feel it imperative that each truck route be re-examined to ensure that future use of the roads will be safe for all residents. By working closely with the city’s transportation division, we will be able to finalize safe routes for the future.”

Chartrand was born and raised in Stoney Creek and attended Mountain View Public School. He moved back to the area two years ago. He is married with three children and has been a technical analyst for the Peel regional government for 21 years.

“With my years of civil experience, I have the knowledge and capability that if a resident calls with a concern, I know where to go to get it looked after,” he said.

Coun. Mitchell said he welcomes the challenge from Chartrand.

“Any time someone new gets involved, it helps to get more of the community involved,” he said. “His experience is definitely different than mine, with farming and business and being here for four generations, so it will be interesting to see what happens.”

Coun. Mitchell was a ward councillor for the Township of Glanbrook from 1986 to 1997. From 1997 to 2000, he served as the township’s deputy mayor and Hamilton-We n t w o r t h regional councillor and was elected councillor for Ward 11 in the amalgamated City of Hamilton in 2001, acclaimed in 2003 and reelected in 2006.

Ken Chartrand’s election Web site is at www.election2010ward11.ca .