The 155 - Hamilton Ontario's News Podcast
Sep 29, 2026 · 34 min · 11 segments
Ted McMeekin is running for Hamilton City Councillor in Ward 15. Find more information about McMeekin and other candidates at HamiltonVotes.ca
Ted McMeekinGuest
Joey ColemanHost
Well, I'm a native Hamiltonian, a graduate of, uh, Mohawk College and McMaster, Wilfrid Laurier.
35 of those years have been, uh, in the ward, where both my wife, a retired, uh, family physician, and I worked entirely professionally for those years.
I ran a bookstore, uh, worked with the United Church, was mayor [chuckles] you know, for a couple terms, and even had the privilege of representing the good people of Flamborough for 18 years at Queen's Park, and I know the ward very well.
I've been a community volunteer, an educator, an award-winning businessperson, uh, the only, uh, person in Flamborough history who's, having been elected mayor, was reelected mayor, the only two-term mayor.
I worked at Queen's Park, in particular at, uh, as Minister of Community and Social Services, Minister of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.
That's not a bad combination to take to the, uh, the council horseshoe, that background and experience and skill set.
Well, uh, bottom line, I, I, I think it would be fair to say is, uh, nobody knows the, uh, ward as well as I do.
Uh, you can't live, work, raise a family for 35 years in a community, uh, be a businessperson there, serve as vice president of the, uh, Flamborough Chamber of Commerce, uh, chair the BIA, and do all of that stuff and not be considered a, a good candidate.
What are two of your citywide priorities for Hamilton, why, and how will you achieve them?
In the City of Hamilton, we have a declared mission, uh, goal to be the city best able to age in place and the best place to raise a child.
You know, I think, 'cause you've been around a long time, that 20% of our citizens, based on socioeconomic factors and postal code, die 20 years quicker than the rest of us, and that, uh, of those living below the poverty line, 41% are children under the age of 14.
And as a kid who, uh, growing up was, uh, seen as, uh, I don't know, not likely to succeed, child of limited means but unlimited potential, who happened to get lucky with a lot of very kind, uh, mentors over the years, uh, I'm very concerned about young people who will never get the chance to be all that the good Lord meant them to be.
And the other, I think, is, gets down to, uh, how we approach the overall budget, uh, of the city.
As you know, the horseshoe has kind of legislatively ceded authority for, uh, budgeting to the mayor through the super mayor powers, and that's created a dynamic that has been, uh, to be blunt, uh, quite dysfunctional.
I hope that whoever gets elected mayor will jettison very quickly that, uh, uh, option.
The legislation suggests that if the mayor doesn't, uh, present his or her budget by mid-February, it defaults to the council.
Well, I'm a native Hamiltonian, a graduate of, uh, Mohawk College and McMaster, Wilfrid Laurier.
35 of those years have been, uh, in the ward, where both my wife, a retired, uh, family physician, and I worked entirely professionally for those years.
I ran a bookstore, uh, worked with the United Church, was mayor [chuckles] you know, for a couple terms, and even had the privilege of representing the good people of Flamborough for 18 years at Queen's Park, and I know the ward very well.
I've been a community volunteer, an educator, an award-winning businessperson, uh, the only, uh, person in Flamborough history who's, having been elected mayor, was reelected mayor, the only two-term mayor.
I worked at Queen's Park, in particular at, uh, as Minister of Community and Social Services, Minister of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.
That's not a bad combination to take to the, uh, the council horseshoe, that background and experience and skill set.
Well, uh, bottom line, I, I, I think it would be fair to say is, uh, nobody knows the, uh, ward as well as I do.
Uh, you can't live, work, raise a family for 35 years in a community, uh, be a businessperson there, serve as vice president of the, uh, Flamborough Chamber of Commerce, uh, chair the BIA, and do all of that stuff and not be considered a, a good candidate.
What are two of your citywide priorities for Hamilton, why, and how will you achieve them?
In the City of Hamilton, we have a declared mission, uh, goal to be the city best able to age in place and the best place to raise a child.
You know, I think, 'cause you've been around a long time, that 20% of our citizens, based on socioeconomic factors and postal code, die 20 years quicker than the rest of us, and that, uh, of those living below the poverty line, 41% are children under the age of 14.
And as a kid who, uh, growing up was, uh, seen as, uh, I don't know, not likely to succeed, child of limited means but unlimited potential, who happened to get lucky with a lot of very kind, uh, mentors over the years, uh, I'm very concerned about young people who will never get the chance to be all that the good Lord meant them to be.
And the other, I think, is, gets down to, uh, how we approach the overall budget, uh, of the city.
As you know, the horseshoe has kind of legislatively ceded authority for, uh, budgeting to the mayor through the super mayor powers, and that's created a dynamic that has been, uh, to be blunt, uh, quite dysfunctional.
I hope that whoever gets elected mayor will jettison very quickly that, uh, uh, option.
The legislation suggests that if the mayor doesn't, uh, present his or her budget by mid-February, it defaults to the council.
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