Oakwood shop owner runs in Ward 4, pledging accessible leadership and local improvements
Guru Bhat is the owner of Oakwood Groceries, and after hearing about the issues his customers want addressed in the community, he’s running for council.
After moving to Oakwood with his wife in 2021, they became very involved in the community. Through the store they support local events, sports teams and the food bank, and Bhat also plays on a local baseball team and is a member of the Lions Club.
He has a financial background and understands finances and budgets, and being a business owner, he knows how to negotiate with vendors and believes those skills will help him around the council table.
Bhat acknowledges that Ward 4 has a diverse population, with young families, seniors and farmers who all have different issues they want addressed.
A key priority for Bhat is to bring more childcare to the area. He’s found that there are several empty properties that used to provide daycare, and he would like to see them opened back up and offering affordable spots for residents.
“Seniors want some recreation centres – we don’t have any activities over here,” Bhat said, referencing ping-pong, pickleball, and an area to play cards to the community.
His hope is to not only to bring more activities to the area for seniors, but to also upgrade the libraries in Ward 4, which includes communities like Oakwood, Little Britain, Woodville, and Manilla. This would include installing new computer systems, increasing the hours of operations and offering more services for the community.
“We can host education programs. I would volunteer to host on how to run a business,” Bhat said, noting there could be a different speaker each month.
Bhat said he understands that the big issues include roads, and it’s something he’ll address if elected, but he finds the small things are equally important. He wants the city to invest in getting the lakes in Ward 4 cleaned up, saying that many of them have large amounts of litter in them.
He also recalls how when he first moved to the area, there were Canadian flags raised across Kawartha Lakes, and it’s something he wants to bring back to showcase the Canadian pride of the community.
Throughout his campaign Bhat has made a point to get local youth involved, saying it’s important to make sure they understand the democratic process. Win or lose, he said it’s a win for young people to be getting involved.
If elected, he would host a monthly meeting to ensure the community is aware of what is being addressed around the council table that will affect them directly. For Bhat, it’s a priority to ensure the people of Ward 4 can talk face-to-face with him and he plans to open up an office beside the store. “That means I am always accessible and approachable.”
