East Gwillimbury Mayor Virginia Hackson running for re-election in 2018

Hackson says she wants to finish what she started

Yorkregion.com
July 17, 2018
Simon Martin

The 2018 municipal election is right around the corner, and East Gwillimbury Mayor Virginia Hackson is ready to campaign for another term in office.

Hackson, who has been the town’s mayor since 2010 after serving as a councillor beginning in 2000, said she wants to see her work through.

“I want to finish what I started,” she said.

East Gwillimbury is about halfway through a huge influx of growth that started after 2nd Concession construction was completed, and Hackson said the town is in an enviable financial position.

“It’s gone about as well as it could have gone,” she said about the new developments in town.

Hackson pointed to a few key accomplishments over her eight years as mayor, including moving to a full-time fire service and building two new fire halls.  “One planned and one unplanned,” she said.

There has also been a substantial increase in parks and trail systems for residents to enjoy, she said.

The town has been able to do all of this while keeping its finances in good stead, Hackson said. “I am certainly proud of the financial management. We are a debt-free municipality and we have the highest reserves we have ever had.”

Hackson is looking to stay the course the next four years as the town further develops. One of the big items going forward is the new multi-use recreation centre planned for Queensville.

She said she wants to get East Gwillimbury residents the pool they have been desiring for years.

“We are the only municipality that doesn’t have an indoor pool,” Hackson said.

Another key item for the municipality moving forward is the progress of the Upper York Sewage Solution. Hackson said she was already making new MPP Caroline Mulroney aware of it before the provincial election and will be in touch with her in the future about the matter.

As voters head to the polls this fall, it is important for them to remember that they are participating in a new electoral system.

Hackson said she is happy with the new arrangement that has split East Gwillimbury into three wards with two representatives each. “It gives every community an equal voice,” she said.