Toronto Votes 2026: Beaches-East York council candidate Jeff Wahl answers our questions
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Beaches–East York voters will cast their ballots on Monday, Oct. 26, in Toronto’s municipal election. Along with voting for mayor and school trustee, local voters will be looking to elect a new councillor for Ward 19 Beaches-East York.
There are 13 candidates running for the council seat in Beaches-East York. The seat is open as incumbent councillor Brad Bradford is now running for mayor in this municipal election. For this Question and Answer feature below, Beach Metro Community News reached out to the candidates who we could find contact information for and asked them to send their answers in by a set deadline. We are only printing the answers of the 11 candidates who responded by the deadline. Please note the candidates’ answers to the first two questions in this feature are also appearing in the Sept. 22 print edition of Beach Metro Community News.)
QUESTION 1: Tell us a bit about yourself and why your are running for city councillor in Ward 19 Beaches-East York?
I’m East York born and raised and currently raising my kids here as a single dad/co-parent.
I’ve spent most of my professional life in retail as a Team Builder, Culture Fixer and Leader Developer. I’m also a renter who doesn’t come from wealth and privilege.
Our ward’s elected officials, at all levels of government, has been dominated by those who have never known what real struggle looks and feels like.
Beaches-East York needs a new outlook. One that looks to lift the floor, not pull up the ladder.
QUESTION 2: What changes, if any, would you advocate for at city hall to balance the need for more housing while preserving neighbourhood character?
What character are you specifically talking about? As for housing, the only housing I’m interested in is affordable housing. There’s 22,000+ vacant market units in the city, meanwhile there’s 105,000 applications for affordable housing.
Having said that, I’ll protect heritage buildings and green spaces and ensure new density comes with proper infrastructure to support it.
Queen Street, east of Woodbine, doesn’t need more density due to the bottleneck in/out.
But there’s plenty of opportunity for multiplexes and low to mid-rise buildings along Gerrard Street East, Danforth Avenue, Kingston Road, Woodbine Avenue, O’Connor Drive and St. Clair Avenue East.
QUESTION 3: As city councillor, what specific actions would take during your term to make Beaches-East York affordable for all residents?
I’ve just spoken about affordable housing, that’s a major issue for this Ward.
They mayor looks to be bringing in affordable measures for TTC users, which I would support.
I also support the concept of public grocers to keep food costs down.
I would also champion food programs for city schools as well as look at more funding for basement flooding protections and incentives to use green energy in our homes.
QUESTION 4: As city councillor for Beaches-East York, how would you ensure infrastructure near Main and Danforth/Dawes can support the area’s major residential growth while minimizing pressure on transit and community services?
I would call for aggressive use of Section 37 funds and push hard in negotiations with builders for the following:
1. Dedicated Community Spaces
2. Affordable units above City Minimum
3. Public accessable park land (2681 Danforth Ave. only allocated 0.1 hectares for 1000 units. Insufficient)
4. Local childcare spaces into podium levels
Further. Fix the TTC-GO Integration Gap. Right now…walking from the GO to Main Station is not only too long, it’s incredibly difficult for anyone with mobility issues. Add thousands of additional residents….. (Also, we should look at a covered path option.)
Also insist on more frequent GO Trains during peak periods.
Having said this, any and all infrastructure requirements should have firm commitments before shovels are in the ground. We’re building communities, not just housing.
Beaches-East York council candidates’ open house slated for Monday, Oct. 5
A public meet-and-greet with candidates running for council in the Ward 19 Beaches–East York municipal election will take place on Monday, Oct. 5, at Beach United Church.
The Beaches–East York Municipal Candidate Meet and Greet is being co-hosted by Beach Metro Community News and the Balmy Beach Resident’s Association. It will run from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at the church, 140 Wineva Ave., in the fully accessible Main Hall.
There are 13 candidates seeking the Ward 19 city council seat in the Oct. 26 municipal election.
Eleven candidates have confirmed they will participate in the Oct. 5 event: Syeda Janna Ali, James Dann, Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Natalie Johnson, Kevin Morrison, Karsten Riedel, Adam Smith, Austin Vieira, Jeff Wahl, Devin Wilkins and Jennie Worden.
The event will be a meet-and-greet, with candidates at individual tables, allowing residents to circulate and speak with them directly.
