Ward 8 candidate Jeffery Belo lists a mailing address outside of the ward.

Belo couldn’t be reached for comment, but his Ward 8 opponent Zeeshan Hamid, who lives in the ward, said he wishes there was an easier way to determine where candidates live, but he doesn’t think ward residency should be required.

“It’s something that voters should be able to decide…I hate to take options away from voters. If voters prefer someone who doesn’t live in the ward but has proven to be a better option, they should be able to choose that person.

“Wards are artificial boundaries. Sometimes you’ll see a single neighbourhood divided into multiple wards. In that case, living in a different ward is just a technicality.”

As Ward 8 candidate Zeeshan Hamid thanks his campaign contributors, Ward 2 candidate Jennifer Smith discusses the Town’s wind turbine project while Ward 6 candidate Mike Cluett rallies the CFL to consider moving the Hamilton Tiger Cats to Milton.

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“I would go as far to say town councillors should be required to have an online presence,” said Hamid. “For me, in this day and age, not having an online presence is like not having a phone number. It’s like asking people to physically show up (to meetings) and raise concerns. We grew up in the Internet era, where more communicating is probably done with email or texting than by picking up the phone.”

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Hamid himself maintains two blogs, one about Milton and his campaign and a personal blog, a Facebook fan page and Twitter account where his views about the town are out for the cyber world to see.

The software developer said since not all votes are counted at council meetings, it’s sometimes difficult to know what councillors think about certain issues.

“(Blogging) keeps people honest. By talking about things and expressing opinions about different topics, it’s hard to talk from both sides of your mouth. It’s hard to go back and un-say things you said in the past. It keeps people honest and that’s why I’m a big fan of it.”

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Hamid said his most effective method of campaigning is canvassing Ward 8.

“The new form of campaigning is more of a natural thing for me, but it doesn’t take anything away from traditional campaigning,” said Hamid. “An online presence complements (traditional campaigning). “A lot of the houses I go to, they know me. It helps because they’re more comfortable with me.”

A similar argument was made to council last month by Zeeshan Hamid, who’s vying to become the local councillor for the new Ward 8 in west Milton, south of Derry Road.

“In general, Milton needs to narrow collector roads and require traffic calming devices at least near elementary schools and parks,” stated Hamid in a submission given as part of a public meeting on the Town’s update to its official plan. “Halton police recently caught 127 speeders on Scott Boulevard, travelling on average 50 per cent faster than the speed limit. Recently, a seven-year-old boy was hit near P.L. Robertson school while he rode his bike.

The fundraiser is being organized by town councillor candidates Rick Di Lorenzo, Jennifer Smith and Zeeshan Hamid.

It’s not news, but still a cool plug from Chuck Charlton.  Check out MiltonDailyHomes.com.  He posts videos of home listings every weekday and talks about them casually.  I enjoy his sense of humour and honest commentary.

Recently, local blogger and candidate for Milton Town Council in Ward 8, Zeeshan Hamid has strung together a series of posts discussing the ‘beautification’ or lack thereof, in Milton. Hamid makes the case that Milton should position itself as an ‘Escarpment Community’ and that it’s future development and infill projects should take this into consideration. He’s essentially saying that Milton, from an urban planning and design standpoint, needs to separate itself from the rest of the urban sprawl west of Toronto.

The CN pedestrian bridge was to have connected the planned trails on the Union Gas easement, allowing residents west of the tracks to use the trail to connect to schools, the Milton Sports Centre and the new Community Park east of the railway.

Councillor Best said he still supports the bridge as long as it can be built cheaper than the scrapped CP bridge.

Ward 8 council candidate Zeeshan Hamid said recently he also supports the bridge concept.

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A local blogger has registered to run for the Ward 8 councillor seat in this fall’s municipal election.  Zeeshan Hamid is currently the sole candidate in the new ward, which is framed by Britannia Road to the south, Bell School Line and Tremaine Road to the west, Steeles Avenue to the north and the CP railway to the east. The Microsoft software developer said he was motivated to run for council because of his concerns about “the pace of growth, a lack of coherent urban design and an eroding town identity.” 

Announcing his candidacy was the worst-kept secret in town to those who regularly read the aforementioned forums, of which Zeeshan is both a frequent and much-appreciated contributor. His blog has become a must-read and you have to commend his passion for the community and for transparency and accountability in government. MiltonSearch.com would like to wish him the best of luck come election time this November.”