2026 Oxford County Municipal Election
Tillsonburg — Councillor
We asked. Stephen Molnar answered. You decide.
Answers are published as submitted.
I. Candidate & Municipal Governance
1. Candidate Introduction
Please introduce yourself to the residents of Oxford County. Briefly tell us why you are running for municipal office, what principles or values would guide you as an elected official, and what you believe is the most important issue facing the municipality you are seeking to represent. What would you do about it?
My decision to seek election to the position of Councillor is based on my personal commitment to every resident of Tillsonburg that I will once again accept the responsibility with all the time and energy I have demonstrated in the past. Tillsonburg deserves experienced commitment for sustainable results. By working together we can ensure that Tillsonburg can be the “Place to Build Your Future.”
I was born, raised and consider it a privilege to live in Tillsonburg with my wife Colleen. I was educated locally and continued my further studies at Wilfrid Laurier University, graduating from the School of Business and Economics in 1982.
Over my four terms as Mayor of Tillsonburg it was an honour to represent the interests of our residents and stakeholders on a daily basis. A focus on respect and trust within the Council Chamber can ensure we achieve all priorities in our Community Strategic Plan.
2. Local vs. Provincial Authority
Municipalities are increasingly affected by decisions, policies and requirements established by the provincial government. What degree of local discretion do you believe municipalities should have when provincial direction affects decisions within municipal jurisdiction? When, if ever, should a municipality challenge or oppose provincial direction? Please explain.
Local municipalities are creatures of the Provincial Government and exist and operate under the regulations of the Ontario Municipal Act. Notwithstanding this, a responsible municipality, as supported by their local stakeholders, should do whatever is in the best interest of their community. By developing and maintaining positive relationships with senior partners, any challenges, as referenced, have not been necessary in the past. With respect to Bill 3, which often refers to Strong Mayors Act, there remain inherent issues that cannot be allayed by a local governance structure based on trust and respect.
3. Accountability & Access
Once elected, how will you maintain open communication and accountability with your constituents? What level of access should residents have to you, and what responsibility do you have to explain and defend your decisions and votes, particularly when constituents disagree with them?
I have always been available to all constituents of our community. Over my four terms as Mayor, I remained available practically 24/7. Those responsibilities are different than the expectations of a Councillor. It is important for a Council member to listen to issues and ideas from constituents, while understanding you are not established outside the Council Chamber a decision maker. Respecting the values of our educated and experienced operational team and ensuring governance decisions are made at Council meetings will ensure proper process equals results. I am always available to “explain” decisions, however more important is that subsequent to a vote at Council, all members, including those who voted in the minority, support the decision and move forward as a cohesive team.
4. Staff vs. Elected Council
What do you believe is the proper division of responsibility between municipal staff and elected council? What decisions should be made by staff, what decisions should be made by council, and what responsibility should elected officials retain for decisions recommended or implemented by staff?
This is a primary focus of any municipal governance model. There must be an absolute separation between Operations and Governance. Failure to respect this is the sign of a fragile environment, and creates a system that can be fractured and unmanageable. A majority of responsibilities for Council members is established within a local Procedural By-law. It is also important to understand that Council speaks through resolutions as introduced, debated and decided at a properly called meeting. Transparency is also key to ensure corporate business is conducted with full access of the public to view, with input, decisions that impact their daily lives.
5. Candidate Social-Media History
Have you ever deleted, hidden or substantially altered past social-media posts or other publicly available online content because you believed it might affect how voters viewed you or your candidacy? If so, what did you change and why?
No… Social Media can be a valuable tool when used properly, however from a local governance perspective it is best used as an operational tool to ensure accurate and consistent messaging.
II. Taxes, Growth & Development
6. Taxes & Services
What annual municipal property-tax increase do you consider reasonable over the next four years? If maintaining existing services would require an increase above that level, what principles would you use to determine which services or expenditures should be reduced, delayed or eliminated instead? Please explain.
Respecting the taxpayers in every decision that impacts their daily lives must be a priority. With solid financial systems in place, satisfied with responsible growth that supports the local and regional Strategic Plans, mitigating pressures on our residents is achievable.
Financial stability involves a responsible Asset Management Plan, ensuring that Town has infrastructure in place to provide for any anticipated, balanced growth. There are a number of financial tools available including reserves, special levies, debentures, assessment growth and 3rd party funding sources (Provincial and Federal). Local taxation is not the only revenue source available. A balanced approach to mitigate taxation increases is achievable as it has been in the past. (Average taxation increase 2019-2023 – 1.8% / 2023-2026 – 4.04%). The ability for balanced growth is incumbent on available resources like water and wastewater infrastructure and electrical capacity, areas that are recently challenged in the Town of Tillsonburg.
7. Population Growth & Agricultural Land
Oxford County’s current planning projections anticipate substantial population growth over the coming decades, creating increasing pressure on agricultural land. Should Oxford plan to accommodate the projected level of growth, or should the County and its municipalities seek to influence the rate and/or location of future growth? When development competes with agricultural and food-production uses, should agricultural land and food production receive priority? What principles should guide these decisions? Please explain.
There needs to be a balanced approach to growth with a demonstrated respect for the County’s Official Plan, especially with respect to prime agricultural land. As a founding partner in SCOR (South Central Ontario) Economic Development Corporation, I remain acutely aware of the value of the diminishing acreage of agricultural land. Future priorities should be guided in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the OFA and the OCFA (Oxford County Federation of Agriculture).
Food production is also a priority in our community and region, and protecting the farmland, while investing in processing capacity, will require a responsible and balanced approach.
III. Energy & Major Development
8. Wind & Utility-Scale Solar
What is your position on industrial wind turbine and utility-scale solar developments in Oxford County? If your municipality were asked to determine whether it should be a willing or unwilling host for a large-scale wind or solar project, how would you vote, and what factors would guide your decision? Please explain.
The review of any large-scale wind turbine or solar developments in the region needs to be available in the public domain, based on accurate documentation and the opportunity for open and transparent interaction with local residents and stakeholders. Similar to the inclusive nature of community participation when a significant waste facility was proposed outside Ingersoll, I stood in solidarity with other impacted municipal leaders and local groups like OPAL (Oxford People Against Landfills), when factual information guided the process. This same open and transparent approach should be available in any of the larger scale initiative that impacts land use planning and our citizen’s quality of life.
9. Data Centres
What is your position on approving data centres in Oxford County? Under what circumstances, if any, would you support one? How should council weigh its potential economic benefits against demands on electricity, water, land and other municipal infrastructure? Please explain.
The introduction of larger scale Data Centres in the region must be accommodated only if the federal provisions are maintained. According to the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation, the following 5 priorities must be addressed;
- Data centres must create lasting local benefits.
- Data centres must not shift electricity costs to Canadians.
- Data centres must minimize water use and environmental impacts.
- Data centres must be transparent about local impacts.
- Data centres must bring strategic value to Canada.
As stated earlier, local and regional autonomy through responsible planning processes must be respected. At a time with diminishing capacity in water and wastewater and electricity, such attractions come with an ever -increasing cost.
These opportunities are relatively new, and research and communication, while developing more localized plans, will be necessary.
IV. Property Rights, Environment & Climate
10. Property Rights & Environmental Regulation
What principles should determine the balance between private property rights and municipal environmental regulation? What limits, if any, should municipalities place on environmental restrictions affecting the use of privately owned rural land? Please explain.
Property rights of an individual land owner should carry the ultimate weight. There are of course situations where the more common good be in conflict with this and honest and transparent communications and negotiations could occur. This has of course happened in Oxford County in the past when a Minister’s Zoning Order (MZO) facilitated the assembly of land in Blandford-Blenheim (soon to be Woodstock) to create the area now housing Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada.
This was a delicate process, balancing property owner’s rights, prime agricultural land, equitable negotiations and the introduction of a major automotive assembly plant to the region. This is an indication how every situation with a potential impact on private land owners must be treated uniquely and with respect.
11. Climate Change & CO₂
What role, if any, do you believe carbon dioxide emissions play in climate change? What responsibility, if any, should municipal government have for addressing climate-related issues, and should municipal taxpayers fund those efforts? Please explain.
I believe Greenhouse Gas Emissions have a direct impact on climate change. This includes carbon dioxide emissions, and is another reason to support initiatives to combat this as contained in the County’s Sustainability Plan. This will continue to take a balanced financial formula, from specific user groups to municipally funded initiatives that satisfy defined goals to mitigate the impact.
V. Municipal Policy & Public Institutions
12. DEI, Hiring & Public Services
When municipal government makes decisions about hiring employees or providing services, what role, if any, should a person’s race, ethnicity, sex, disability, newcomer status or other demographic characteristics play? Do you support mandatory diversity, equity and inclusion training for municipal employees, and should municipal taxpayers fund it? Please explain.
While respecting Diversity, Equity and Integrity initiatives, and having taken training on this matter in both formal and more relaxed social settings, I believe all individuals should be treated equally. I would traditionally support the best, most qualified individual for the position. I am a supporter for DEI at all levels of the workplace, including Council.
In a broader sense I am a proponent of a “hand up” approach as opposed to a “hand out” philosophy when reviewing delivery options in other social service sectors.
13. International Policy Frameworks
What role, if any, should international policy frameworks such as the United Nations’ Agenda 2030 and Sustainable Development Goals play in municipal decision-making? If municipal policies are influenced by such frameworks, what responsibility does council have to ensure that those decisions remain transparent and accountable to local residents? Please explain.
The introduction of macro national and global objectives is important to be aware of, however balancing local and regional efforts that are ultimately supportive of these goals should be a general objective.
Municipal governance is the level of legislation closest to the people. It is important to operate positively within an overall, broader umbrella, however the needs to be the opportunity for unique and local-based decisions that are more reflective of the goals and expectations of the community.
Like all municipal business, the dialogue must always begin with open, honest and transparent communication. This foundation of trust must guide all policies and procedures executed by the municipality.
VI. Public Safety, Privacy & Emergency Powers
14. Flock Cameras & Surveillance
What is your position on the use of Flock cameras and other automated licence-plate recognition (ALPR) or camera-based surveillance systems by municipalities for public safety? What limits, if any, should apply to their use, and how should council balance public safety with residents’ privacy? Please explain.
The use of Automated License Plate Recognition (ALPR) systems, including “Flock Cameras”, can prove a valuable introduction for community safety however they must be used as intended and not ultimately violate individual rights and privileges that all citizens deserve. I would also suggest greater education is required on this issue, including factual data and the ultimate involvement of our residents in any evaluation process.
15. Public-Health Emergency Powers
If another public-health emergency occurred, what restrictions, if any, should a municipality be able to impose on access to municipal buildings, facilities, programs or community activities? What role should elected council have in approving or overseeing such restrictions, and what limits should apply to municipal authority during an emergency? Please explain.
It remains Council’s responsibility to protect both local residents and the community as a whole. It is important to rely on facts, as introduced by entities like the Ministry of Health and our regional Public Health Board (Southwest Public Health). While some recent decisions were not always met unanimously, these entities guided us through a world-wide pandemic, and while there were inconveniences and real human and financial issues, the alternative to doing nothing, based on the information available, could have been much worse.
The local municipality, in conjunction with the County and regional Public Health leadership, should be aligned prior to introducing regulations and restrictions that impact the municipality.
Forr additional information on this or other questions contact votemolnar@execulink.com or 519-983-8683 (VOTE).
Questionnaire sent: September 9, 2026
Response received: September 22, 2026
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