Businessman Larry McCabe still has his eyes set on city hall, but has decided to run as a city councillor after initially filling out the paperwork and declaring a run for mayor of Stratford.
McCabe decided the challenges of running a business – he is owner of Pazzo Pizzeria and Café Bouffon – amid the ongoing effects and complexities of the pandemic required a shift in political plans.
Throw in a competitive field seeking the mayor’s chair, including two sitting city councillors, and McCabe reached the decision that it is best to run for one of 10 city council spots available in October’s municipal election.
“For the mayor’s position, you really need to be focused 24-hours, it’s full-time,” he told StratfordToday. “I really thought I had a plan in place with my team, but things are still really wobbly in the tourism industry here and I felt I could better use my voice as a (city councillor).”
“It would have been incredibly difficult to defeat the two council incumbents without having the experience. So this gives me time to get myself some experience on council and speak openly and support the ongoing needs for tourism businesses and the city in general.”
Martin Ritsma and Kathy Vassilakos are the veteran city councillors running for mayor. Architect Robert Ritz is the third candidate in the mayoral race. Stratford mayor Dan Mathieson announced last year he will not seek re-election in October. There are at least five open spots for city councillors based on declarations from the current group about future plans.
McCabe said due to the big changeover, he has encouraged colleagues in the city with civic experience to run for council and he expects some of them to enter the race in the coming days. The candidacy deadline for the municipal election is Aug. 19.
“I have heard from the councillors that are leaving that there needs to be some people with some civic experience in Stratford stepping forward. There seems to be a number of people who are fairly critical of (current) council but they don’t have the experience. It is easy to sit on the sidelines and say they are ruining the city, but I don’t think that is true. There are a lot of good people on council.”
McCabe said the city’s tourism industry will face another few years of challenges as it recovers from the pandemic, including recruiting and retaining staff and living with a drop in tourists coming to Stratford. He wants to ensure the downtown core stays strong and doesn’t lose any more businesses.
He has advocated for increased residential housing in the downtown core, the possibility of ‘building up’ on the former Cooper site property by adding housing density, possibly condos, on site.
McCabe engaged with focus groups before deciding to run for city hall, to hear from residents about what their concerns are for the city. He continues to listen and learn during the campaign.
“I am happy to throw myself into the role (of city councillor) to learn, which is important. I have been speaking to other business people who have been on council and they have been helpful in helping me understand how I can contribute.”
