A business leaders forum will be held Tuesday night in Leamington for candidates running in the upcoming municipal election.
The Leamington District Chamber of Commerce is hosting the debate-style event.
Chamber general manager Wendy Parsons says mayoral and deputy mayoral candidates will take part in the debate and will have opportunities to answer business-led questions.
She says those running for a councillor’s seat will have four minutes after the mayoral and deputy mayoral debates to introduce themselves, explain why they’re running, what their number one priority is for Leamington and what they will do to support local businesses.
Parsons says mayoral candidates will kick off the forum.
“At 6:05 we’ll start with having the mayor candidate debate, and we have two mayor candidates this year,” says Parsons. “So they’ll have a moderated session with about five or six questions, and then following the mayors, we’ll have the deputy mayors forum, and that will be around 6:55.”
She says the forum is about business priorities, local leadership and Leamington’s future.
“I think as a business organizer, I think it’s really important that the Leamington District Chamber of Commerce is able to put on the business leaders forum,” she says.
Parsons says the chamber is expecting a large turnout.
“We have done the debates in the past, and we’ve had anywhere from 300 to 600,” says Parsons. “So we’re expecting a large crowd this evening.”
The chamber says the forum will focus on issues that matter to local businesses, including economic development, investment, municipal services, infrastructure, taxation and the overall competitiveness and growth of the community.
The event takes place at the Roma Club.
Doors open at 5:30 p.m. The formal program begins at 6 p.m.
The event is open to local business owners, employees and Leamington residents.