Doug Cornell
Your candidate for MAYOR. A 25-year Pickering resident, entrepreneur, and advocate who represented 40,000 GM/VCAW auto workers at Council as recording secretary for Benefit Reps. Member of the Negotiating team for local and National Contract. Represented workers in regards to WSIB and WCAT. Running a grassroots, resident-funded campaign with no developer money.
Infrastructure built with you. Not around you.
Click his five commitments for Pickering from the list below….
ROADS & TRANSIT
Fix What We Have, and Get People Moving
Repair the roads we already have first, with a multi-year resurfacing program and yearly public reporting. Coordinate construction with the Region, the Province and Metrolinx so detours actually work. Push at Regional Council for daytime bus service in established neighbourhoods that lost their routes in 2020, especially for seniors and teens, and for service into Seaton from day one.
BUDGET & SPENDING
Real Numbers Before the Bills Arrive
City debt was $58.6 million at the end of 2025, and the City plans $213.8 million in borrowing for the Seaton Recreation Complex & Library in 2027. Build it, but with an independent cost check before the Spring 2027 tender. Publish a plain-language financial dashboard, file the City’s financial returns on time, keep the City’s portion of the tax bill as low as responsibly possible with a published plan, and double the Low-Income Seniors Property Tax Grant from $620 to $1,240.
SMALL BUSINESS
A City Hall That Works With Local Business
Over 70% of Pickering’s businesses are small businesses. Give them one point person at the City who owns their permit file from start to finish, published approval times, and a simpler seasonal patio permit. Build a local hiring and apprenticeship pipeline with Ontario Tech., so Pickering residents get a real shot at the $26.8 billion nuclear refurbishment, and publish a yearly report on the jobs our employment lands actually create.
ENVIRONMENT
Protect What Makes Pickering Special
Invest in stormwater upgrades in flood-risk neighbourhoods, including Claremont. Protect the Duffins Creek corridor and the Lake Ontario waterfront, complete the Waterfront Trail to the Ajax border, and build climate resilience into every major City project.
NEIGHBOURHOODS
Growth That Improves Life, Not Makes It Harder
Roads before rooftops: tie new development to the roads, transit, stormwater and recreation it needs. Hold resident town halls before major decisions, not after. Work with the school boards to open new schools as families arrive, advance “Pickering for a Lifetime” seniors housing, and protect greenspace and waterfront access as the city grows.
Read the full platform, take the survey and sources at dougcornellformayor.ca.
Election day is Monday, October 26, 2026.
