Crowded field vies for open council seat in Scarborough Southwest

Voters in southwest Scarborough head to the polls in a week to pick a new city councillor, with a crowded field of candidates vying to replace the city's former budget chief.

Residents of Scarborough Southwest, Ward 20 will select a replacement for former councillor Gary Crawford on Thursday. The byelection was called after Crawford stepped down in the fall to pursue a seat at Queen's Park in a byelection triggered by former MPP Mitzie Hunter's run for mayor of Toronto.

Twenty three candidates are seeking the city council seat, and you can check out the full list at the bottom of this story. With such a jammed race and a multitude of issues important to residents, a community group in Scarborough is trying to help voters get up to speed on the election.

Ron Parkinson, one of the founders of Scarborough United Neighourhoods, said the group hashosted four candidate forumssince the byelection kicked off earlier this fall. Itwill host its fifthand final event Thursday night, ahead of advance polls over the weekend.

"We need people to vote because, guess what, politicians look at who's voting and if no one's voting in Scarborough, nothing gets done," he said.

Parkinson said the non-partisan group formed in March to act as a link between neighourhood associations and community groups across the suburb. And the issues in the riding are as diverse as the people who live there, he said.

From housing to transit, to jobs and affordability, many people who live in the ward are struggling, he said.

"There's not just one issue," he said. "With inflationand COVID, people have lost their jobs. The food banks are busy, as you know. And in Scarborough Southwest, it's really affected everybody."

"We need more social services," he added."They're cutting back all the time. And this is a time when [Scarboroughneeds]these services.... So our next counselor has got a bar that has to go pretty high."

WATCH | Scarborough Southwest candidates say transit remains top issue ahead of byelection:

Improving transit is a priority, these Scarborough Southwest byelection candidates say

12 months ago

Duration 1:50

Voters in Ward 20, Scarborough Southwest, will head to the polls on Nov. 30 to cast their ballots for a new city councillor. Three candidates running to represent the ward told CBC News transit is among the key issues they would work to solve, if elected.

Feed Scarborough founder makes bid for seat

The founder of one of those food banks is a candidate in the race. Suman Roy started Feed Scarborough in his back yard during the pandemic. Itnow feeds more than 7,000 people a week, he said.

"Housing and food are the two basic human rights," he said. "And as a councillor, we need to actually make sure that everybody in our community has food to eat and a place to live. It is hard."

Roy said that he's hearing from many residents who feel like they don't have a say at city hall. The former chef and current member of Toronto's Board of Health saidthe job is about accountability.

"People want to have a say," he said. "They feel that their elected officials, when they get to council, they forget who their real bosses are."

Runner up returns for second shot at council

The runner-up in the race for the ward's council seat in 2022 is taking another shot at the job. Former Toronto District School Board trustee Parthi Kandavel said he and his team havebeen working hard to secure the support that helped him capture nearly 30 per cent of the vote last fall.

Kandavel said transit is a serious issue in the ward. If elected, he says he will push to see the plan for a separated busway, off city roads and on a dedicated right-of-way, completed something people across Scarborough want to see materialize.

WATCH | With no Scarborough RT, CBC Toronto tests the fastest way to get around:

What's the fastest way to get around Scarborough?

1 year ago

Duration 3:46

With the Scarborough RT down, CBC Toronto put three modes of transportation to the test to see whether driving, cycling or transit would be the fastest way to get from Kennedy Station to Scarborough Town Centre.

"Right now, traffic on Kennedy and Midland and all across our city is becoming an increasingly big issue," he said.

Kandavel said he is also concerned about affordability and residents' ability to pay for property tax increases. The city must address its $1.5 billion budget deficit, but it may need revenue tools other than property tax hikes to do it, he said.

"I think that's where we have to be careful and thoughtfulon whose backs do we rest the need for new revenue," he said. "Should it be on the working and middle class?"

Rupasinghe promises focus on affordability

Another candidate from last fall's race for the council seat is returning. Kevin Rupasinghe said he's hearing about the cost of living as he canvasses, and city council needs to do more to address it.

"People can't afford to keep a roof over their head to keep food on the table," he said. "A lot of people are not sure, no matter if their names are on a mortgage or on a lease they don't know how they're going to get from one month to the next," he said.

Rupasinghe, who holds a master's degree in cities engineering from University of Toronto, has been an advocate for improved transit for Scarborough for years. But he said he would also bring a renewed focus on pedestrian safety to city hall if elected.

"One of the issues here in Scarborough that's really pervasive all across is how dangerous our streets are," he said. "I've worked with families who've lost loved ones and it is something absolutely the city can move forward on."

The Scarborough United Neighbourhoods final candidate's forum runs from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Oakridge Community Recreation Centre at 63 Pharmacy Ave.

Election day is set for Nov. 30 with voting open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Advanced polls take place this weekend from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. You can find out more on how to votehere.

Here is the full list of 23 candidates vying for the Scarborough Southwest council seat:

• Malik Ahmad
• Corey David
• Malika Ghous
• Thomas Hall
• Peter Handjis
• Jessica Hines
• Marzia Hoque
• Alamgir Hussain
• Anthony Internicola
• Syed Jaffery
• Naser Kaid
• Parthi Kandavel
• Walayat Khan
• Angus MacKenzie
• MD Abdullah Al Mamun
• Suman Roy
• Kevin Rupasinghe
• Sudip Shome
• Anna Sidiropoulos
• Sandeep Srivastava
• Trevor Sutton
• Reginald Tull
• Manny Zanders