Council candidate Dave Toth, a longtime Goodyear employee and self-proclaimed ball-cap and T-shirt guy, says Medicine Hat will never stop raising taxes if it can't raise the tax base.--SUBMITTED PHOTO
asmith@medicinehatnews.com
Council candidate Dave Toth says he has watched the city stagnate for a decade, and is ready to get things back on track.
Born and raised in Medicine Hat, Toth has always believed that if you desire a change, you need to be the one to put in the work to see it happen, which informs his decision to run for council. He has worked at the Goodyear plant for 39 years, serves as the president of the Medicine Hat Dragstrip and refers to himself as a “hands on, ball cap, T-shirt guy” who is active in the community and eager to get involved.
Looking ahead to what he hopes to be his time as a councillor, Toth’s first priority is restoring power to council to move projects along and building a team that can get results for the residents of Medicine Hat.
“What we need to do is give power back to city council so they can actually make decisions instead of going through everybody else, the city manager and administration,” said Toth. “I think we need to have the power to do that.
“I believe we need to remove red tape so we can get projects happening quicker and move things forward in the city, not waiting months and months to do anything.”
In turn, Toth believes this would lead into his second priority, which is helping the city attract and generate more jobs.
“We can put a package together. We can go to conferences and conventions and offer businesses and corporations tax cuts, utility cuts, to get them to move to Medicine Hat to create jobs,” said Toth. “If we don’t create jobs and incomes and this and that, our tax base is not going to go up, we’re going to have to keep raising taxes to pay for infrastructure and everything we do.”
With those jobs must come affordable housing and an answer to the crime and homelessness within the city, says Toth, as people need to be able to attain safe, reasonably priced accommodations within the city if they’re going to be part of the economic growth that is needed.
He says he has ideas in regards to modular homes and other low-cost development options to help more people attain housing, and would like to see more programs to address the roots of what leads to homelessness and criminal activity, as to reduce the levels of “catch and release” he has been hearing about from residents.
If elected, Toth promises to work hard to improve the city in the areas he’s identified, and keep Medicine Hat competitive with other municipalities in the region when it comes to attracting growth.
“If you drive down the No. 3 Highway, it’s all growing, from Taber to Coaldale to Lethbridge. It’s growing, growing, growing, while Medicine Hat is stagnant,” said Toth. “If we have no tax base, we have to keep raising taxes. That goes hand in hand, and nobody wants anymore tax increases. We’re all over taxed to death on everything we do.”
While he has lofty ambitions, Toth believes that “with the right team in place, and city council and the right leader at the top as the mayor, if everybody’s on the same page with no outside agendas, we can make all this stuff happen, and then some.”
Signage is already across the city encouraging residents’ to vote, and Toth will be doing his best to get to speak with members of the city leading up to the Oct. 20 election.
“I’m 100% a hands-on person and I believe to make change, you have to be involved and be hands on, on a day to day basis, and work hard,” said Toth. “That’s exactly what I hope to do for this city.”
