Feature Article October 9, 2003
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Meet THe Candidates: Loughborough and StorringtonSeveral times this past year, South Frontenacs council meetings have packed the township hall with concerned and often indignant Sydenham area residents. In view of this recent apparent interest in councils decisions, audience turnout was low for Meet the Candidates night at Lougborough Public School last week. Five candidates contesting two positions for council, three candidates for mayor, and two for Limestone District School Board spoke of the issues they felt would be important in the next three years, and answered questions, both written and spoken, from the floor. Turn-out in Storrington was somewhat better, where candidates for mayor and school board are the same, but a different five are running for the two councillor positions.
Why might a person choose to run for municipal public office? The money? The SF mayor gets $14,300 a year, plus $50. for extra meetings beyond regular council meetings. Hardly a get-rich scenario for a job thats close to full-time, with on-call duties evenings and weekends. (Councillors make just over $8,000 a year.) The praise and the fame and the power? People are far more likely to complain and criticise, than they are to praise or encourage. The chance to take an active part in ones community, and to have some effect on the way taxes are spent, regulations are set, and decisions are made? Perhaps. Its been said that the municipal is the only level of politics where an ordinary individual can have a real voice in government. Frustration with the work of previous councils? A desire for change? Not so likely motivation for an incumbent, but possible for a newcomer. Whatever the individual reasons, all positions in South Frontenac are being contested this election. Incumbents are being called upon to defend previous actions, and newly aspiring politicians get their first taste of public pressure at the Meet the Candidates evenings. Asked to identify the most important issues in the coming term, Mayoral candidates Beacock spoke of the need for more community participation in government, Lake made budget control his first priority, and Willes listed roads, development, waste management, provincial funding and Sydenham water. Both School Board aspirants emphasized the importance of improving coop, workplace and apprenticeship programs. Other issues raised and discussed included: septic inspection, economic development and housing, waste management, environmental protection, roads, recreation, area rating, and Sydenham water. All candidates, in summing up, emphasized the need to respect the democratic process, and to seek broader community input and participation through committees, town hall meetings, etc. Charlie Stewart chaired both evenings, providing careful but unobtrusive timekeeping, and nipping occasional lapses of civility in the bud. As for further details, I can only add what they say in Newfoundland when the words run out: Oh, Mudder, you shoulda been there!(Frontenac News will be running individual candidates statements. Phone these folks up, if you would like further information.)
