Victoria Stewart

On her campaign website, Stewart says her years working in Wallaceburg brought her into contact with residents, businesses, volunteers and community organizations and exposed her to concerns about infrastructure, economic development, services, community safety and whether Wallaceburg is heard.

She describes a councillor’s role as listening, asking questions, researching financial, legal and practical considerations, changing position when new information warrants it, and ultimately making decisions that can be explained and acted on. She says effective Ward 5 representation requires both strong local advocacy and constructive relationships across Chatham-Kent Council.

Stewart’s published priority is to attract investment while supporting existing businesses and entrepreneurs, strengthen downtown Wallaceburg, advance the long-term Wallaceburg South Side Secondary Plan, and consider agriculture, agri-business, food production and related industries in the area’s growth strategy.

She presents the Wallaceburg hospital redevelopment as a healthcare investment and a broader community-development opportunity. She acknowledges that Council does not operate the hospital, describing the municipal role as partnership and advocacy.

Stewart says Council should distinguish needs from discretionary wants, look for efficiencies before seeking more from taxpayers, pursue provincial and federal funding, and scrutinize major projects before committing public money.

For infrastructure choices, she identifies condition, urgency, public safety, long-term cost, community or economic benefit, and the cost of delay as decision factors. She says both urban and rural Ward 5 needs—including roads, bridges, drainage, servicing and utilities—must be represented. The page does not attach a quantified tax target, project list, cost or delivery timetable to this priority.

Stewart distinguishes homelessness, addiction and mental illness from conduct that threatens public safety. She supports enforcement responses to illegal drug trafficking and behaviour that puts people or property at risk, while arguing that enforcement alone cannot resolve the causes of recurring crises.

Her website calls for coordinated outreach and emergency response, reporting and remediation of unsafe conditions and drug-related hazards, prevention and housing stability, transitional and supportive housing, and cooperation among municipal services, police, Public Health, healthcare providers and community organizations. She also calls for measurement of safety and stability outcomes and for provincial and federal governments to meet responsibilities that fall outside municipal control.

Her housing discussion includes affordable rentals, deeply affordable and rent-geared-to-income housing, supportive and accessible housing, and options for individuals, families and seniors. She refers to municipal land, planning tools, partnerships and senior-government funding but does not publish unit targets, costs or timelines on these pages.

Stewart connects retention and belonging to nearby healthcare, parks, recreation, trails, waterways, sidewalks, transportation, community spaces, accessibility and a range of housing. She again limits the municipal hospital role to advocacy for the Sydenham Campus redevelopment and long-term future.

She says accessibility should be considered from the beginning and describes municipal government as able to remove unnecessary barriers and build partnerships with community organizations, service clubs, volunteers, festivals and events. Her stated commitment is to listen, examine information, set priorities, work constructively and explain her decisions; the page does not present these commitments as completed municipal outcomes.