HALDIMAND—This fall marks local entrepreneur Jake Vandendool’s second run at mayor, after losing by a narrow 166 votes to Shelley Ann Bentley in 2022.
On why he’s running again, Vandendool replied, “Long story short, when I see something that can be improved, I have a very hard time looking the other way.”
Noting his founding of Metro Loop, a fibre-optic internet company he sold to Xplore in 2020, he added, “When you have that entrepreneurial outlook ingrained in you, that’s the lens you see everything through.”
Vandendool also draws on his 16 years as an auxiliary sergeant with the OPP and his 20 years volunteering with the Caledonia Agricultural Society.
Ultimately, he believes Haldimand needs leadership.
“Council is publicly divided; when council’s divided, we’re not functioning to our true potential. Staff is unsupported; when staff are unsupported, they’re reluctant to make the hard decisions,” he said.
While canvassing, Vandendool has heard one word repeatedly: “Drama. The drama within Council. That is the word that people are using to describe it.”
He elaborated, “I would say they feel like nothing’s happening. They’re spending a lot of time arguing. The decorum is gone at Council. The professionalism is gone.”
Vandendool plans to build on the good relationships he built with County staff over years of business dealings, while meeting one-on-one with his Council peers, “getting to know them, getting to know their concerns.”
His message is simple: “This is about Haldimand. It’s Haldimand first.”
Responsible growth is another top priority.
“People feel like they’ve been drinking from a fire hose. That’s my take on it…. Of course, growth is going to happen. It’s inevitable. However, we need to build full communities,” he said. “It’s not appropriate, in my opinion, to build these very dense subdivisions with next to no parkland…. (Sometimes) the subdivision isn’t even connected for nearly a decade to the rest of the neighbouring town or existing town. That is not building a community.”
Other concerns include increasing affordable housing options, ensuring a successful implementation of the new Trails Master Plan, employment growth, and managing traffic.
“At many, many, many doors, I hear about traffic,” said Vandendool, noting he would direct staff to explore traffic calming measures like speed cushions. “We’ll start with the sensitive areas first: school zones, the parks, the playgrounds, etc.”
Vandendool expressed no interest in using strong mayor powers, calling them the “genie that can’t get put back in the bottle.”
He said he would “park them…. Just because you have a tool in your toolbox, doesn’t mean you have to take it out.”
He expressed an open mind to data centre development locally, clarifying such proposals belong only on land zoned for that use and stressing he would engage the community regarding any such proposals.
He acknowledged some of the environmental impacts such centres have had on US communities to date, but called Ontario a “completely different market,” noting modern closed loop systems use less water and that Lake Erie provides a significant water source.
On the potential for the Nanticoke industrial lands being used for a data centre, Vandendool said, “From what I understand, what’s being contemplated for Haldimand, it would be a properly operated, Tier 1 global data centre operator, which would result in hundreds of jobs, especially in the secondary and tertiary industries for maintenance, etc. And I think it could be a good thing for Haldimand.”
Asked how he heard these details, when neither the County nor Ministry would comment on such a discussion, Vandendool said, “I have a very large network, because I have that trust.”
Vandendool has received some backlash after a billboard advertising his campaign went up on Highway 3 outside Jarvis in August, weeks ahead of the County’s bylaw that prohibits election signage until 45 days before an election. MPP Bobbi Ann Brady and fellow mayoral candidates Shelley Ann Bentley and Andy Griffin all appeared on a CH News segment to speak against the billboard.
Vandendool called the criticism a “mischaracterization of what the rules actually are by some.”
He said, “The 45-day period that election signs are allowed to go up, those are temporary election signs. Those are your lawn signs. That’s how the bylaws are written.”
He said the Municipal Elections Act allows candidates to immediately start spending money on campaign advertising, from publishers to websites.
“That billboard is considered print advertising. It’s sold by a publisher…. It’s just another form of advertising, no different than a newspaper,” said Vandendool. “That billboard is owned by a third party. It is a permanent structure. There is no waiting period on that.”
Vandendool said Haldimand County approached him about the matter and “there was a little discussion back and forth” about “the definition of an election sign.”
Vandendool maintains, “It was just a four-week billboard…. Just advertising.”
Haldimand County disagrees. County spokesperson Kyra Hayes said, “The billboard in question is not permitted, as it was erected prior to September 11, 2026, and exceeds the maximum size permitted for election signage. Haldimand County staff have been in contact with the candidate who has agreed to remove the sign.”
With the billboard now removed, Vandendool is looking ahead to election day.
“I’ve seen too many decisions where we’ve had a tremendous waste of public money, which directly impacts taxpayers,” said Vandendool. “That impacts our wallets as taxpayers, and I’m going to fix that, and we’re going to get back to professional government with decorum.”
Click here to find the rest of the Haldimand Press’ 2026 election coverage.
