Vote Deb Doherty
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Candidate for Deputy Mayor. Four-term member of Collingwood Town Council. Member of the Town of Collingwood Affordable Housing Task Force.
Elected Member of the AMO and OSUM Executives. MY PRIORITIES
Celebrating Our Successes and Moving Forward
Housing
Climate Change and the Environment
Arts, Culture and Recreation
Citizen Engagement
Celebrating Our Successes and Moving Forward
These past two years have been tough on all of us - we are frustrated with lockdowns and health mandates, with inflation, wage insecurity, supply chain issues. It seems like nothing is changing and nothing is getting done. People are angry, people are negative. I choose to remember what we have here… a jewel on Georgian Bay with 4-seasons’ worth of activities to take advantage of, thriving businesses - both large and small, great schools, and great services. We as a community have taken affirmative action against racism, and we recognize and embrace our diverse people and cultures. We are a growing community with a strong tax base, and a financial status that is the envy of hundreds of municipalities in Ontario. Let’s build on the positives, build on our incredible strengths and move forward with energy and optimism. Housing Affordability
Housing that is affordable for everyone needs to be a high priority for this coming term of Council. We cannot sustain our businesses or our employment base without it. Our new Official Plan will assist with a made-in-Collingwood road map to ensure that we are creating new opportunities for all different types and sizes of housing, for rent and for ownership. I want to be a leading member of a strong council that will think outside the box and use all the tools available to ensure we increase supply as quickly as possible - facilitating secondary suites, coach and laneway housing, using our Servicing Capacity Allocation Policy to incentivize developers to build a wider array of new housing. We must develop new financing and land banking schemes to create non-profit housing and tap into the federal and provincial money that is available now for the creation of affordable housing. Climate Change and the Environment
The COP 26 Resolution to achieve Net Zero by 2050 involves every level of government, starting with municipal. It is incumbent on all of us to make concrete changes in the way we live, eat, move, build and grow. Collingwood’s declaration of a climate crisis in 2019 must now be followed with an ambitious and achievable Climate Change Action Plan and a commitment to achieving Net Zero emissions in Collingwood by 2050. These targets will be achieved through a commitment to Active Transportation, to improved public transit services that people will actually use, and to protection of our natural heritage – our urban canopy, our creeks and wetlands. This is Nature’s infrastructure that absorbs carbon, that absorbs stormwater, and provides us with the green spaces we so value. Arts Culture and Recreation
Arts and Culture are one of the 5 pillars of the Community Based Strategic Plan. They are a crucial part of the fabric of our town and very important to our residents. At long last, we have completed the Collingwood Arts Centre Feasibility Study, paving the way to refining the scope and planning for the establishment of an Arts Centre. I want to work with our community to bring this project to fruition. Covid 19 got in the way of almost all of our most important projects, now it’s time to move forward. I want to see all of our most significant capital projects get done - The Terminals redevelopment, the Harbourview Park Waterplay Park, and material advancement, even completion of an All Arts Facility and a Multi-use recreational facility. We have the studies, we have the masterplans, we have reserve funds set aside - Council needs to work as a team and hold itself and staff accountable for real progress on these projects. Citizen Participation in Day-to-Day Governance
Our community is comprised of residents from all walks of life, with talent and energy to give, helping us to collectively achieve our goals. Many of our most significant projects could benefit from input and assistance from the hundreds of volunteers who call Collingwood home. Let’s reinstate citizen committees for every major portfolio - Recreation, Arts and Culture, Housing, Economic Development,
Transportation and Climate Change - with every committee chaired by a member of Council who becomes a specialist and an advocate around the table.
10/01/2026
Wow! What a day at the Ontario Bike Summit. I was invited to join a panel with Mayors from other communities to talk about the successes and challenges of advancing active transportation. And then...surprise! I won the 2026 Wheels of Change award for municipal leadership. And finally, also picked up the Bike Friendly Community Silver Award for the Town of Collingwood. This is second time we've won this, based on the hard work of the Trails and Active Transportation Committee and Town Staff!
09/23/2026
Affordable housing takes more than conversation!
It takes planning, collaboration and practical solutions. 🏘️
I recently had the opportunity to share Collingwood’s experience and the work being done around affordable housing with planning professionals through OPPI.
These conversations matter because communities across Ontario are navigating many of the same challenges and there is value in sharing what we’ve learned while continuing to learn from others.
What affordable housing initiatives would you like to see explored further in Collingwood? Share your thoughts below. 💙
🖥️ Go to the link in bio to learn more about my platform and order your lawn sign!
09/21/2026
50 signs. 50 lawns. Let’s get them out into Collingwood! 💙
The website is back up and running, and we have 50 lawn signs ready to go. If you’ve been waiting to request yours, now’s your chance!
Head to the link in bio, fill out the sign request form, and we’ll take care of the rest.
Already have yours up? Tag me in a photo — I’d love to see them around town! 💙
09/19/2026
It’s not just a promotion. It’s a change in job description. 💙
Deputy Mayor means greater responsibility, stronger leadership and being ready to step up when Collingwood needs it.
I know what the role requires and I’m ready to do the work. 💪
Visit the link in my bio to learn more about my campaign and support me for Deputy Mayor.
09/17/2026
Perspective matters at the council table. 🌎💙
The experiences we gather beyond our own community can shape better questions, fresh ideas and more thoughtful decisions within it.
👉👉 I’m ready to bring that broader perspective home and put it to work for Collingwood.
Visit the link in my bio to learn more and support my campaign for Deputy Mayor.
09/15/2026
A little website hiccup - and a big thank you for your patience! 💙
We’re getting things sorted behind the scenes and making sure every sign request gets where it needs to go. Your support means so much to this campaign and to me.
09/09/2026
The signs are going up, the mailers are heading out, and this campaign is officially in full swing! 💙
Over the coming weeks, you’ll be seeing a little more of me around Collingwood. Including right at your front door. I’ll be out knocking on doors in neighbourhoods across town, introducing myself, hearing what matters to you and having the conversations that I believe should shape this campaign.
Keep an eye on your mailbox and watch for our signs around town!
👉👉 Don’t have one yet? Head to my website to sign up to receive your own campaign sign.
💻 While you’re there, learn more about my priorities, my experience and why I’m running for Deputy Mayor.
Let’s keep the conversation going, Collingwood. 💙
09/09/2026
I'm excited to be an invited panelist at the Ontario Professional Planners Institute conference next week, along with Planning Staff from the Town and the County, and a key member of the Affordable Housing Task Force. There is so much innovative work that is being done to create more affordable housing in Town of Collingwood, and we have real measurable results to talk (brag!?) about. This would be the fourth time our community has been invited to share our learning and experience in the affordable housing space.
09/07/2026
Some places in Collingwood invite us to slow down, reflect and remember the stories that have shaped our community.
The Healing Forest is one of those places.
It represents reflection, reconciliation, healing and our responsibility to continue learning from the history of the land and the people who came before us.
Spending time here recently was an important reminder that building a strong community isn't only about deciding what comes next.
It's also about understanding where we've been, protecting the spaces that bring us together, and making room for listening, learning and connection.
These are the places — and conversations — that make Collingwood more than somewhere we live.
They make it home. ❤️
— Deb
09/04/2026
I’m running for Deputy Mayor but I don’t want this campaign to be about me talking AT you.
I want to hear from you.
What do you love about living in Collingwood? What needs more attention? What are you worried we might lose as our community grows? And what could make this an even better place to call home?
The best decisions at Town Hall should begin with the people those decisions affect.
Throughout this campaign, I’ll be out in our community listening, learning and having those conversations but you don’t have to wait until I knock on your door to start one.
👇 If you could change, protect or improve ONE thing about Collingwood, what would it be?
Tell me below. I’ll be reading your responses.
Let’s build the conversation — and Collingwood’s next chapter — together.
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