Ward 2 candidate Daust calls for “considerate sustainable growth”

August 6, 2026 · 0 Comments

In the face of infill development and significant changes to their community, residents often turned to neighbour Angela Daust to come to Council, approach the public, and speak their concerns to local lawmakers.

Now retired from the City of Toronto after a 30-year career in areas as varied as policy development and health and safety, Daust has thrown her hat into the ring to take her community advocacy to the next level as the Aurora’s next Ward 2 Councillor.

Daust, a member of Aurora’s Environmental Advisory Committee, registered her candidacy on July 29, and says her top three priorities include “considerate, sustainable growth for Aurora, fiscal responsibility, and democratic governance.”

“We need to evolve for the future, and I think it needs to be done in a considerate fashion so that all parties are made comfortable with what is going forward,” Daust tells The Auroran. “I think we have to be fiscally responsible. I think the shortfall in [the] infrastructure repair and replacement budget is a glaringly obvious problem that we’re facing right now. Going forward, the budget needs to reflect being fiscally responsible in order to make sure that any growth in the future can be supported by our infrastructure.”

“The third think, I think, is to make sure there’s democratic governance,” she continues, touching upon the use of Strong Mayor powers in Aurora. “For however long Aurora has been in existence, there has always been democratic governance, and I think it’s very, very important that Councillors have a voice at the table and that their voice is heard for their constituents in their ward. I don’t believe that the decisions of one person properly represents everybody in Aurora, and I think if we have a municipal election and people go out and vote for a certain candidate because they want their concerns heard by the candidate, they need to have a voice at the table, one that can’t be vetoed. It needs to be there to represent people in their ward.”

When asked what sets her apart in the race for Ward 2, which also, at press time, includes Marco Di Girolamo and Brynn Lansdown, Daust cites her work in municipal government, particularly in public engagement, and community advocacy as assets she feels will serve the community well.

She also feels its important to live in the Ward you wish to represent as being resident allows an individual to have a greater “sensitivity” to the issues at the hyper-local level.

“Each ward has its own concerns and its own needs, and I think it’s really important to live in the ward in order to know what people need in your ward,” she says. “I believe because I have advocated for people in my area numerous times over the past 30 years, it’s given me a lot of experience speaking to Council and preparing things… to make sure that the residents in my area are heard with their concerns.”

Daust has been a resident of Ward 2 for more than 30 years and was actively involved with the development of the Aurora Promenade Plan. Since that plan’s inception, she says several proposed development projects have come to Council that have “pushed the envelope” as to what was allowed within the Promenade, and this type of growth has been a particular focus for the Ward 2 community.

“I’ve always been very involved in local politics and very concerned about local politics and how it affects the residents. I think that level of government is the one closest to everyone. It affects everyone the most on a local basis. I’m looking forward to doing more research and being presented topics by staff that I can look into and make sure that I’m really well-informed on what is going on in order to make the best judgements and the best decisions for people in my ward. My motto is going to be ‘Your Strong Voice on Council.’ I honestly believe that people in the ward need to have somebody to advocate for them and to stand up to make sure the Town of Aurora goes the direction that they want it to do and what all the residents of Aurora want it to be. [We need] to make sure that Aurora going forward still has that small town feel, but does have considerate growth with the needs of the future because we’re right on Yonge Street, obviously there’s going to be growth, but it needs to be growth that fits everyone.”

By Brock Weir
Editor
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter