The lack of affordable housing is the greatest crisis this city has faced since the end of the Second World War. If elected, I will donate half my salary to the construction of affordable housing in order to call attention to this urgent problem.
It is time for The HRM and the Province to take action.
Homelessness is not an expensive problem to solve. Please read my paper for an example of how an integrated emergency and tiny home shelter system can provide dignity for all and end homelessness within the HRM.
An End to Homelessness (pdf)
DownloadThe HRM's charter authorizes it to build, own, and operate public housing as well as to form housing partnerships with other organizations and levels of government. Under my leadership, the HRM will work creatively and cooperatively with its partners to solve the housing crisis.
I will advocate for portions of the the Cogswell Street interchange, as well as other surplus municipal lands, to be made available for public housing in partnership with other agencies on a $0/year lease basis for the land. I will also explore land swaps with private developers to obtain lands in other areas of the HRM and work in conjunction with the federal government to do the same for the Shannon Park lands.
I will push for practical solutions to climate change, like district heat, combined heat and power systems, waste heat capture, wood-gas, bio-gas, methane abatement, and greater use of “environmental energy,” to immediately cut local GHG emissions and reduce energy costs.
Almost all fruits and vegetables at the farmer’s market cost less than at the grocery store. Wholesale prices are 30%-50% less than retail. I will support new farmer’s markets and food purchasing cooperatives to help lower local food costs.
I will hold monthly town hall meetings to discuss municipal affairs and topics of interest or concern to the community. I will also hold additional meetings on all local infrastructure and development projects, especially as they complete the final stages of the planning process, so that you will always have the final say.
While avoiding necessary expenditures only results in greater future costs, I understand the value of money and how hard it is to earn a living. I promise to put careful and cautious thought into all municipal expenditures and to think creatively to find ways of providing municipal services in a better and less costly fashion.
Government exists to serve the needs of its citizens. Therefore, every citizen has the right to be heard. I promise to respond to all communications and to make sure your voice is represented in the decision making process.
I will take the time to explain my decisions and seek community feedback through my office and regular public meetings. I do not have all the answers. I know that I am fallible. That is why I believe it is so important to seek the opinion of others in order to try and prevent mistakes.
I recognize the danger and harm that is presented to members of our community in the form of domestic violence, racism, and gendered-based discrimination, and I will work to help ensure that the HRM is a welcoming environment for all whom seek peace.
I have spent many years researching and developing practical, cost-effective means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Heat, the energy used to warm buildings, produce hot water, and to drive many industrial and commercial processes, represents 60% of total societal energy use whereas electricity only accounts for 20%. Waste heat is one of the most abundant sources of energy on the planet, yet very little is put to good use. Capturing waste heat, along with greater use of natural heat sources, can produce large scale reductions in both emissions and energy costs.
The HRM should draw upon the natural human desire for self improvement and to contribute to the well being of others and enlist citizens to directly participate in various district-improvement projects, such as creating and maintaining curbside rain gardens and improving the natural or ornamental quality of our parks. Many people would be willing to contribute time and financial resources to such projects, serving to benefit both the participants and the broader members of the community.
One of the North End's greatest virtues is the quality of life offered to its residents through parks, recreation, community services, architecture, a rich history, and opportunities for personal growth. I will work to preserve this character and charm that make the north end's existing neighbourhoods home.
I am a strong supporter of preserving and establishing new public green spaces, the “rewilding” of our city, and better use of rainwater and human-generated waste water to help create as rich and as abundant natural environment as possible within our city.
I take a strong interest in history, and I support the preservation of heritage buildings and historical sites across this city. Our local history is a tremendous resource through which we can gain so much insight into the world events that shaped this city through direct experiences with the buildings and locations important to those events and the stories that go with them.
Transit will always be an inferior option so long as it includes walking to the bus stop in the rain and getting wet. By combining the taxi service with public transportation, it is possible to replicate the comfort and ease of private automobile ownership with the efficiency and low cost of public transportation. Rather than changing how we power private commuter vehicles in order to try to reduce emissions, we should simply change how we organize commuter transportation to produce something that is also better, cheaper, and faster.
Elevated gondolas are in use in many remote locations around the world where they function with a very high degree of safety as well as the systems presently used to provide public transportation as in New York’s Roosevelt Island Tramway. Such systems are substantially less costly to build than a fixed bridge, and they also have the advantage over other forms of public transportation in that such a system is the equivalent of many vehicles but is powered by a single power source. This makes it much easier to employ clean energy sources and capture the waste heat it produces to power local district heating systems.
The HRM is in possession of a rare treasure-trove of historical artifacts but has no way to display them. The history of Halifax can be used as a lens to study many of the major developments and important periods of world history dating back over 300 years or more. With a history of human habitation stretching much thousands of years, there are not many cities in North America with a history as rich as ours, and the HRM should do more to study and preserve it.
Combined Heat and Power Heat Consumption and Total Electrical Output in Nova Scotia (pdf)
DownloadMunicipal Passenger Shuttles and Rapid Bus Networks (pdf)
DownloadBloomfield Social and Recreational Common Proposal (pdf)
DownloadRainwater Heat Storage Experiment (pdf)
DownloadConnecting the North End to Downtown A Route for Cyclists (pdf)
DownloadHistoric Bloomfield Booklet (pdf)
DownloadWinter Solar Heat Production and Storage (pdf)
DownloadWasted Waste Water (mp4)
DownloadTo help support my campaign, please send a small donation via Interac-etransfer to the email address above. I greatly appreciate your contribution and vow to run a thrifty campaign so as to donate as much of the remaining funds as possible to affordable housing. Please note: all donations above $50 require an address be included as part of the HRM's official election rules. You can see details on the HRM's campaign fiance rules via the link below:
info@davidfrightfornorthendhalifax.ca Phone coming soon Facebook | Instagram