Key Issues and Community Updates
Staying connected. Taking action. Focusing on results.
Residents in Richmond Hill are facing real challenges, from affordability and rising taxes to safety concerns, growth pressures, and local service issues.
This page reflects what I am hearing from residents, where I stand, and the kind of practical action I believe is needed.
My focus is simple: clear communication, accountability, and real results for residents.
For more detailed commentary and submissions on local issues, please visit the Media section.
Property Taxes and Affordability
Residents are concerned about affordability and rising taxes.
A consultant report warned that Richmond Hill may face property tax increases of 6 to 7 percent annually. That is not a one-time concern. If increases continue year after year, the impact compounds and becomes a much heavier burden for homeowners, seniors, families, and small businesses.
When residents face financial pressure, they make difficult choices. They delay non-essential spending, review priorities, and focus on what they can afford. City Hall should apply the same discipline before asking residents to pay more.
My position:
Tax increases must be justified, manageable, and tied to clear value for residents. City Hall must control costs, review spending carefully, and focus on responsible decisions.
Before asking residents to pay more, Council should show that it has reviewed non-essential spending, reduced unnecessary process, and focused resources on work the City can actually control and deliver.
I would push for a line-by-line review of major spending pressures, clearer priority-setting, and a stronger distinction between what is essential, what can wait, and what residents can realistically afford.
Residents deserve affordability, transparency, and disciplined decision-making.
Community Safety
Concerns Near the Youth Centre at Yonge and Crosby
Residents have raised ongoing concerns about safety and quality of life near the youth centre at Yonge and Crosby.
Concerns I have heard include:
- Discarded needles
- Suspected drug activity
- Petty crime
- Break-ins
- Trespassing
- Public disturbances
Why this matters:
Everyone deserves to feel safe in their neighbourhood. Residents, seniors, families, local businesses, and those using support services all benefit when safety concerns are addressed early and responsibly.
My position:
Community safety requires more than meetings, panels, or one-time safety events. Residents need clear action, follow-up, and accountability.
The City should coordinate directly with York Regional Police, service providers, local residents, businesses, and the youth centre to address the concerns being raised and report back with concrete steps.
Safety measures should include stronger on-site supervision, a visible safety presence, and regular monitoring of the surrounding area to help prevent problems before they escalate.
Given the ongoing concerns, the City should also review whether the current location, operating model, safety measures, and neighbourhood supports are working as intended.
This does not mean turning our backs on vulnerable youth. It means making sure support services are delivered responsibly, with proper supervision, community coordination, and respect for the surrounding neighbourhood.
Compassion and public safety must go together.
Safer Streets
Residents regularly raise concerns about speeding, traffic congestion, pedestrian safety, school-area safety, and the growing use of e-bikes and other motorized devices on sidewalks.
These are not minor issues. They affect how safe people feel walking to school, crossing the street, driving through neighbourhoods, or letting children and seniors move around safely.
I have seen electric bikes and motorized devices moving quickly on sidewalks, sometimes faster than nearby traffic. This creates real risks for pedestrians, especially seniors, children, and people with mobility challenges.
My position:
The City needs a more practical and responsive approach to road and sidewalk safety. That means reviewing problem areas quickly and using the right tools where needed, such as better signage, traffic calming, speed cushions, curb extensions, protected crossings, school-zone improvements, pavement markings, education, and enforcement.
Sidewalks should be safe for pedestrians. As e-bikes, scooters, and other motorized devices become more common, the City should review whether current rules, signage, enforcement, and public education are keeping up with what residents are experiencing on local streets and sidewalks.
But safety measures must be designed carefully. If poorly planned, they can create new problems, such as loss of needed parking, difficult access for visitors, longer walking distances for seniors or families, and streets that feel less welcoming.
A safe city should not become an unfriendly city.
Before changes are made, residents should be clearly consulted, the trade-offs should be explained, and the City should consider practical impacts on parking, access, emergency vehicles, snow clearing, and neighbourhood livability.
Safer streets require follow-through, not just studies and delays. They also require common sense, proper design, and respect for the people who live on those streets.
Development and Growth
Growth is coming to Richmond Hill, but growth must be planned responsibly and managed properly.
Residents have raised concerns about development across the community, including:
- Traffic and congestion
- Pressure on infrastructure
- Building density concerns
- Loss of neighbourhood character
- Approved projects that do not appear to move forward
Residents are not against development. They are concerned about development that adds density without enough attention to infrastructure, services, neighbourhood character, and quality of life.
Residents also become frustrated when projects are approved but sit for years without clear progress, visible benefits, or proper explanation.
My position:
Development should respect infrastructure capacity, community needs, and long-term planning.
The City must ask harder questions before approving major changes: Can the roads handle it? Are services ready? Does it improve the neighbourhood? Are residents being heard? What happens if the project is approved but delayed for years?
Responsible growth means planning for people, not just projects.
Growth must be supported by clear timelines, realistic infrastructure planning, and better communication with residents.
Growth must work for residents, not just appear on paper.
Local Economy and Commercial Areas
A vibrant city needs more than housing. It needs places where people can shop, eat, work, gather, and support local businesses.
Many residents are concerned that some commercial areas lack balance, variety, and long-term planning. In some places, the mix of businesses does not create the kind of main street or destination atmosphere residents want.
Richmond Hill also needs to be honest about the condition of parts of its downtown. If we want a stronger local economy, we need cleaner streets, better streetscapes, safer public spaces, and planning that encourages restaurants, small businesses, and community-friendly destinations.
Parking is also a major issue in the downtown core. On-street parking along Yonge Street can contribute to congestion, while limited parking on nearby side streets makes it harder for residents and visitors to stop and support local businesses.
If we want a stronger downtown, we need a practical parking and access strategy that supports local businesses while also improving traffic flow and pedestrian safety.
My position:
The City cannot force specific businesses to open, but it can create better conditions for business success. That means improving the public realm, reviewing zoning and planning tools, supporting small businesses, encouraging a better mix of uses, and making commercial areas cleaner, safer, and more attractive.
A stronger local economy starts with places people actually want to visit.
A successful downtown must also be a safe and welcoming downtown. If residents do not feel comfortable bringing their families, walking after dinner, visiting local shops, or spending time in public spaces, then we have not built a true destination.
At the same time, compassion and public safety must go together. People facing addiction, homelessness, or crisis need support, but those supports must be delivered responsibly, with proper planning, supervision, cleanup, and respect for nearby residents and businesses.
A downtown cannot thrive if people avoid it. Richmond Hill must create places where residents want to come, stay, dine, visit, and support local businesses.
Staying Connected
Good decisions come from real conversations.
I believe residents should be heard before decisions are made, not after problems appear.
That means listening, following up, and keeping people informed.
Have Something to Share?
Your voice matters. If you have a concern, question, or idea about Ward 2 or Richmond Hill, I welcome hearing from you.
Email: votesigmund@gmail.com
Phone: 416 833 4347