Ahmad Amanullah
Experience Built Around Making Things Work
My connection to Ward 4 is personal, but my decision to run is also shaped by the professional experience I will bring to City Council.
My career has been built in facility management, property management, building operations, asset management, and organizational leadership. I have been responsible for managing properties, budgets, contractors, maintenance programs, capital projects, regulatory requirements, and the day-to-day issues that affect the people who use those spaces.
That experience has taught me an important lesson: good management is often most visible when things simply work.
When a building is well maintained, when problems are addressed before they become emergencies, when contractors are held accountable, when budgets are carefully managed, and when long-term investments are properly planned, people notice the results even if they never see the work happening behind the scenes.
I believe municipal government should operate with that same mindset.
Residents should expect roads, sidewalks, parks, trails, facilities, and other public assets to be properly maintained. Infrastructure decisions should consider long-term needs, not simply short-term solutions. Projects should have clear timelines and accountability, and residents should be able to understand where their tax dollars are going and what results they are receiving in return.
My professional experience has required me to do exactly that: identify problems, prioritize competing needs, manage budgets, coordinate contractors and stakeholders, monitor performance, and make sure work is completed properly.
I also bring the perspective of a small-business operator within Ward 4.
Running a business teaches you quickly that every dollar matters. You have to manage expenses, make difficult decisions, respond to clients, work with vendors, navigate regulations, and constantly balance immediate priorities with long-term growth.
It has also given me a greater appreciation for the businesses that help make Ward 4 vibrant. Behind every storefront, service, and small company are people investing their time, savings, and energy into building something. Municipal decisions involving permits, infrastructure, transportation, development, taxation, and public spaces can have a real impact on their ability to succeed.
My professional and business experience allows me to look at Ward 4 from several perspectives: as a resident who grew up here, as a facility and property management professional responsible for complex portfolios, and as a local entrepreneur who understands what it means to operate a business in this community.
Ward 4 is not simply the place I am running to represent. It is the community that helped raise me.
I went to Trillium Park Elementary School and later attended St. Theresa of Lisieux Catholic High School. Some of my earliest memories are tied to the neighbourhoods, parks, schools, trails, and transit stops that make this part of Richmond Hill feel like home.
Growing up, I spent countless hours playing soccer (football) with friends and family at William Neal Community Park. That field was more than just a place to play. It was where friendships were built, where neighbours met one another, and where I learned how important public spaces are to the life of a community.
Mill Pond was another constant throughout my childhood. My family and I would spend time there together, enjoying one of Richmond Hill’s most recognizable community spaces. I also grew up riding my bike along the Trans Richmond Hill Trail, exploring the neighbourhood from a completely different perspective and gaining an appreciation for the green spaces and trail networks that connect our city.
As I got older, my connection to Ward 4 changed, but it never disappeared. I would walk to the Gamble or Bernard YRT/VIVA stops to get to work or make my way to York University. Public transit was not an abstract policy issue to me. It was part of my everyday life and part of how I connected with school, work, and the rest of the GTA.
My family’s connection to Richmond Hill continued in other ways as well. I regularly drove my siblings to work at Mackenzie Health, giving me an even greater appreciation for the people and institutions that serve our community every day.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, when so much of everyday life had changed, I spent a lot of time walking the Saigon Trail and the Elgin West Greenway Walk. Like many residents, these trails became a place to clear my head, stay active, and reconnect with the community around me during an uncertain period.
Today, I look at Ward 4 not only through the memories of where I grew up, but through the future I hope to build here. My wife and I hope to grow our family and I want them to experience the same sense of belonging that I did — attending great local schools, playing in safe and vibrant parks, exploring our trails, using reliable transit, and feeling that Richmond Hill is a place where they can build a future.
This community gave me memories I will carry for the rest of my life.
Now I want to help protect what makes it special, improve what needs to change, and make sure the next generation has the opportunity to build memories of their own.
For me, serving Ward 4 would not simply be representing a place.
It would be serving home.
That is why I am running.