Your Candidates - North Frontenac Township

Jeff Green | Sep 30, 2010

Municipal Election - October 25, 2010

Mayoral Candidates

Ward 1, Barrie

Ward 2, Clar-Mill

Ward 3, Palmerston-Canonto

Mayoral Candidates

Jim Beam – Ambition and a new approach to the County

Ever since Jim Beam was elected to Council four years ago, he has been pushing for a larger role. He started by seeking the deputy mayor’s position, a two-year renewable appointment, even though at that time he did not have any council experience.

He won the vote for deputy mayor, and in addition to serving in that job since 2006, he has been the North Frontenac representative to the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority and to the Frontenac County Trails Task force.

So, when the nomination period began for the 2010 municipal election at the beginning of the year, it was no surprise that Jim Beam's name appeared on the list as a candidate for mayor long before the snow melted.

“I believe I can provide a strong voice,” Jim Beam said when asked about his decision to run for mayor. “I’ve learned a fair bit about how the township and the county operate and I want to continue to move the township forward.”

With his wife Vicki, Jim has a history in the township that goes back to 1989, when the Beams purchased a property on Sunday Lake, located between Ompah and Snow Road in the eastern part of the township. They have lived there full time since 2001, when Jim retired from a career in National Defence. Prior to working for National Defence, he was an elementary school teacher, vice principal and principal in the Ottawa area. On Sunday Lake, Jim and Vicki built what Jim describes as their “dream home”.

One of the changes in direction that Jim Beam would like to see Council take in the near future concerns its relationship with Frontenac County.

He said that the positive experience he had working on the County Trails master plan with councilors from other Frontenac townships as well as the changes that have been made to the county structure make him a bit optimistic about the future of the County

“The hard work that we did to make changes at the County could pay off. I did not agree with the position that we took that led us to try and pull out of the County. That being said, I still think the County is southern oriented.”

One of the stress points between North Frontenac Council and Frontenac County has been over funding for an upgrade to the Pine Meadow Nursing Home, which is located in Northbrook, in Lennox and Addington County, but serves the population of North Frontenac.

North Frontenac has supported a request to the County for $250,000 over 10 years to help fund that upgrade. The County has refused that request each year for the past three years, and Jim said that, if elected, he would consider going to his own township council for that money if he cannot persuade his colleagues at the County.

“If the County does not step up, perhaps the township will have to,” Beam said.

Beam also advocates for North Frontenac to consider some mechanism for supporting road work on private lanes within the township. In recent years, a number of requests for help in grading and gravelling private lanes have come to Council.

“I'm not at all satisfied with the way things have been done in regards to private lanes. I think it is possible for a mechanism to be set up where we could provide some funding for private roads,” Beam said.

He said that he has developed a “tremendous working relationship” with township staff, and will continue to work on the broadband service issue, where there has been progress made, but not in the eastern portion of the township.

“Over the last four years I have been very visible in the community. I worked hard on the Clarendon School issue, attended meetings and events inside and outside the township, and becoming mayor would only be a continuation of that commitment.

Bud Clayton – launching a political comeback

Bud Clayton is no stranger to North Frontenac Council, or to the issues of concern to waterfront residents.

Since he retired from a management position in the Natural Gas industry in 1993, Clayton has been a year-round resident of North Frontenac, on a Mackie Lake property with no road access. “It's never a problem for me to get out. I use a boat or I can drive over the ice except for a few days of the year, when I can drive my ATV over a trail to get out.”

While Clayton has never had a problem getting out to meetings because of where he lives, it has given him an insight into the concerns of the seasonal residents in North Frontenac.

“It's the age old problem in cottage country that those who pay the most taxes use the least amount of services. There's never been a solution to that problem, but I think more dialogue with our seasonal residents needs to take place, more than a once a year meeting,” Bud Clayton said.

In terms of Council experience, Bud Clayton is the only candidate in North Frontenac, for mayor or council, who has served with two different mayors. He sat on Council between 2001 and 2003 under Stan Johnston, and between 2004 and 2006 under Ron Maguire. The last time that North Frontenac residents went to the polls in October of 2006, Bud Clayton was running for mayor against Maguire and Betty Hunter. Clayton finished second in that election, 400 votes behind Maguire.

While he was on Council, Bud Clayton was the North Frontenac Council appointee to the Management Board of the Pine Meadow Nursing Home. After the 2006 election, he became more involved with Pine Meadow and is currently the chair of that management board. “I've been pretty busy with Pine Meadow, as we have been working hard to secure a redevelopment plan, and haven’t been too involved in township politics,” Clayton said.

But as the days wound down before the nomination deadline in early September, and no one was stepping forward to contest Jim Beam for the mayor’s position, Bud Clayton decided to step forward. “Leadership roles are ones that I've taken my whole life. All of my jobs have been in leadership or leadership training roles so I am comfortable seeking this position. I also felt that acclamation is not the way to go for a position where someone has to lead Council and represent the township to other levels of government, and I was in a position to step up to the plate.”

In terms of policy, Bud Clayton thinks the budgeting process that North Frontenac has employed should be changed. “It's a bit of the tail wagging the dog. We get a budget document and then we tweak it here and there, but what we really need to do is work towards asset-based budgeting. We have to look at our roads, bridges, waste sites, and all of our buildings in terms of the long term. If we have a bridge or a road that will need replacing in 20 years we need to put money aside now so the money is there when we need it.

“I know we have more information about assets than we used to and we need to incorporate that information into the budget process.”

Although Clayton represented Ward 2 when he sat on Council, he is also sensitive to the fact that residents in Ward 1 tend to feel they do not get their share of attention and spending by the township. “Ward 3 always feels like they are the poor cousins. They feel the road work is not done in their district like it is elsewhere, and they do have reasons for feeling the way they do.”

Clayton also feels that the township has some fences to be mended with the County. “We always had issues with the County when I was on Council, and that hasn't changed, but saying we were planning to leave was not a reasonable proposal. You have to work within the family or you are not part of the family.”

Unlike his opponent Jim Beam, Bud Clayton is not sure that the way to deal with supporting the Pine Meadow building project is to go to the township if Frontenac County Council continues to say no, but says, “The township may have to look at that but I would not want to walk away from the County. I think if they understood Pine Meadow’s role in Frontenac County they might think differently, and as mayor I would be in a position to make them more aware.”

Ward 1, Barrie

WAYNE GOOD

Although Wayne Good has been sitting on North Frontenac Council for five years, this election will see him face the electorate for the first time. He was appointed to Council when Will Cybulski resigned late in 2005, and was acclaimed to his council seat in 2006.

He waited until the last minute before jumping into the current election race, only submitting his papers as the nomination period had almost run out.

“It is a time-consuming job, to be sure, and my wife and I have some plans to travel, but in the end she said that if I wanted to do another term she would stand behind me. And I feel there is some unfinished business with the township that I would like to be involved with,” Wayne Good said.

He thinks that the direction the township has been going in has been good, with a lot of work being done on the waste sites. Wayne Good supported the purchase of a trash compactor to extend the life of waste sites, and he opposes the extension of roads service to the roads that are currently un-maintained.

“It's a matter of cost in that case,” he said, “if we open the door by doing a road here or there we are going to start having to spend even more money on roads.”

Wayne Good has also been involved in the emergency preparedness committee of Council and is chair of the Kaladar/Barrie Fire Board, which involves working with members of the Addington Highlands Council as well as North Frontenac.

“I think we've come a long way with the fire board, and we have put an addition on to the Cloyne fire hall. The Barrie Hall is being developed as an operations centre for an emergency, and if we do get a pandemic, which was supposed to happen with the H1N1 virus last year, or if a wildfire goes through the area, or if any large-scale disaster happens, it will be a command post for the township,” he said.

SHAWN GRAY

Shawn Gray represents a new generation of political candidates in the North Frontenac election. He was raised in the area, and works for his father-in-law’s independent logging operation.

Shawn Gray is also married and is raising a young child, so he comes to his first political experience with the concerns of local business and young families at the forefront of his thinking, If elected, he plans to represent those interests on Council.

“I think it is time for younger people to get more involved. I feel it is my responsibility to have a say in what happens in our community and I am in a good position to do so,” he said.

Anything that the township can do, or that an individual councilor can do, “to help the small businesses in the area, even if it only means making a phone call, or trying to help in some manner, is better than standing on the sidelines.”

He is also concerned about the impact of provincial regulations. “I support property rights for private individuals on their land and want to protect private water supply,” he said.

In his election campaigning, there have been a number of concerns raised by the residents, including waste sites and spending, and he plans to bring them to Council.

LORRAINE GAREY -

Lorraine Garey was a member of Council in Barrie Township in the term before municipal amalgamation (1995-1997) and did not get elected when the number of councillors dropped from four to two in 1998.

Since then she has become involved in a number of other pursuits, including working part-time for Community-Living North Frontenac, volunteering at the North Addington Education Centre, and raising a total of seven children.

Lorraine and her husband have four children, all of whom are into their twenties now, and a few years ago the Gareys adopted three younger children, all from the same family. “The children are now all settled in school, and I have the time to think about getting back into municipal politics,” she said.

Lorraine came to the Harlowe area close to 30 years ago, and in addition to raising a family she has worked and volunteered in the social service environment in many capacities, including working at Pine Meadow Nursing Home and volunteering at Land O'Lakes Community Services.

“I bring that perspective to municipal politics as well, because there is a role for local government to play in supporting that work,” she said. “My background in human resources makes it easier for me to talk to people and understand what they need. I can help put the puzzle of municipal politics: the road system, waste sites and all that the township office is involved in, together for people.”

One of Lorraine's many concerns has to do with the future of the area. “I've raised four children in the area and only one has stayed here. You can see the cut in numbers in our schools. Councils need to do everything they can to bring opportunities for people to build lives here,” she said.

FRED PERRY

Fred Perry was appointed to North Frontenac Council in June of 2005 when Dick Hook resigned. He stood for election in 2006 and was acclaimed. So, he is in an unusual position, that of a veteran municipal politician facing the electorate for the first time.

Fred Perry was born in Myers Cave, but like many others he left the area for work. He worked at Nortel and Bell in management positions until he retired and eventually made his way back to North Frontenac.

Fred Perry has held a number of leadership positions on township committees, including the active waste management committee, the economic development committee, the Kaladar/Barrie Fire Board, and the Family Health Team Committee.

“We have worked pretty hard to bring Broadband service into the township, which has finally had some success in Barrie ward although we are still trying to extend the service further into the township,” he said.

He has also taken on a role with Frontenac County as a member of the Green Energy Committee, which is currently looking at solar micro-fit projects on municipal buildings, partly in order to stimulate the public into considering solar power projects as a viable investment.

Among the ideas that Fred Perry is bringing forward for the upcoming Council is improved relations with cottage/lake associations.

“I would like to see each lake association, or as many as are interested, appoint a contact person for Council, so they can receive updates or newsletters or surveys in a timely manner to share with the rest of the association. Permanent residents are able to get this information through the Frontenac News.

I would also like to encourage all residents to get involved joining township committees and task forces on new initiatives. Task Forces are time-limited commitments. We all know that waterfront ratepayers pay high taxes, and we need to work harder to bring their issues forward,” he said.

Ward 2, Clar-Mill

ELAINE GUNSINGER

Elaine Gunsinger has served as a councillor for two years after being appointed to replace Wayne Cole in August of 2008.

She has lived in the area since she moved to Flinton as a teenager, and after moving around with her husband, to Calabogie and back to Flinton, they settled on the North Road where they still live today.

Elaine ran a catering business and worked for a time at North of Seven Restaurant in Plevna.

She has enjoyed her two years on Council, and feels that she has spent a lot of that time “learning so much about how the council and the township operate that I think I would like to put that experience to use for the next four years on Council.”

She is supportive of many of the initiatives that the current Council has undertaken. “I think we've got to do a better job explaining to the residents why things are done the way they are done,” she said. “An example of that is the waste issue. People are concerned about the clear bag policy, but it is really all about keeping our waste sites open and keeping them within the guidelines from the province. If people know where the directives are coming from, they are better off.”

Another commitment she has made is to ensure feedback from ratepayers is responded to. “Many times when someone has phoned me, they are surprised when I phone them back, but it is important for people to know they have a voice.”

She is concerned about calls for increased road maintenance on un-maintained roads and private lanes, and uses an analogy from her catering days to illustrate the problem. “It's like when you are planning a wedding. When you invite one extra person you have to invite more and more people and things can get out of hand,” she said.

GERRY MARTIN:

Gerry Martin is a relatively recent retiree who lives in a year-round home on Malcolm Lake after a 35-year career with Bell Canada. Martin grew up in the Fernleigh area and attended Sharbot Lake High School in the 1960s before starting his career in Kingston. His final posting at Bell was in Smiths Falls as a section manager.

Since his retirement he has become a member of the Committee of Adjustment in North Frontenac, which has given him some of the flavour of how the township operates. He has also been a tour boat operator at Bon Echo Park in the summer time.

He has a couple of reasons for wanting to sit on Council.

He says that one of them is that, “We have government by bureaucracy instead of government by representatives. I think the Council has been unable to set out proper guidelines for the staff to work with, and that leads to all sorts of problems.”

Another reason he is running for Council is that he is “a little tired of being retired. I can only hunt and fish so much.”

What he can offer to Council, in addition to his management experience generally, has to do with his technical understanding of the telecommunications business. “I don't think the township has ever made a complete presentation to Bell or Telus about the needs and opportunities for cell phone and broadband service in this township. People are not going to move in here with young families unless we have that kind of service available,” he said.

Another issue that Gerry Martin has become acquainted with is the question of development on private roads, which in his view is necessary for the township to thrive, but is something that the Province of Ontario would like to put an end to. “Council needs to be strong on the private roads issue,” he said, “the province is completely out of touch on that issue.”

KARIN FERGUSON-REYNOLDS

Karin Ferguson-Reynolds said she is running for Council because, “I've always been drawn to professions where I can make a difference".

She grew up in North Frontenac, went away for a time, and then returned to raise a family. As a teenager she worked at a nearby summer resort, which gave her a sense of what a tourism-related business is all about.

She moved to Kingston to become a registered nurse after graduating from high school, and then worked in Brockville at Nortel, along with her husband Terry. When Nortel closed in Brockville, they moved back to North Frontenac and Terry took up teaching, eventually finding a job teaching the intermediate class at North Addington Education Centre in Cloyne.

Living on the Ardoch Road in Ward 2 of the township but near Ward 3, and with her husband working in Ward 1, Ferguson-Reynolds said she “has an interest in all of the wards. I don't have the framework of someone who only cares about their own ward; the entire township is important to me.”

With her children now well established in public school, she has the time to serve as a councilor.

In her dealings with the township, Karin Ferguson-Reynolds said that she is not as happy with the way Council has run. “People are frustrated with the format of the council meetings. It makes the whole municipality seem very formal and impersonal. Procedures have to be followed, but there should be an openness to hearing what people have to say,” she said. “I also think that decisions need to be more consistent, and the same set of rules should apply to everyone.”

PAUL THIEL

Paul Thiel is a relative newcomer to North Frontenac, having moved to the township just under two years ago from Kitchener.

“My wife and I were looking to get out of the city, and we had been looking in the Bancroft area but did not find anything,” he said. “I have hunted in the Denbigh area for 30 years, so we went to a realtor in Northbrook who showed us a property in the Fernleigh area and we took it.”

Paul had been involved with his neighbourhood association in Kitchener, so he joined the Clar/Mill volunteer group after moving to North Frontenac. He attended council meetings occasionally back in Kitchener and he started going to most of the North Frontenac meetings early this year.

“This summer I began to think about running for Council because I think that I could help the Council out if I were a member,” he said.

In his working life, Paul Thiel spent two years chairing a committee to help bring the automotive assembly plant where he was working up to the International Safety Organisation standards, and found that he had the necessary skills to steer a committee forward.

“I think there can be a little more done to organize council meetings better in North Frontenac,” he said. “There should be more consistency. The other week council discussed something for half an hour while a number of people were waiting for the bylaws to pass. It could have been done differently.”

Waste management, more ongoing communications with lake associations, and taxes are all issues that Paul thinks the new council will have to address.

LONNIE WATKINS:

Lonnie Watkins was born and raised in North Frontenac. He lives near the hamlet of Ardoch and runs a tree service business.

He is younger than most members of municipal government, and being a family man who runs a small business he represents a group of individuals that do not usually receive much representation on Council.

During his first term on Council, Lonnie was involved in a number of initiatives, and one of his responsibilities was to represent the township on the Program and Accommodation Review Committee of the Limestone District School Board, which had a positive outcome from the point of view of North Frontenac when Clarendon Central School was kept open.

One of his regrets coming out of his first term on Council had to do with the decision he feels Council was forced to take over the proposed Family Health Team Satellite clinic in Plevna.

“If we could have opened up the old MNR building in Plevna as a walk-in clinic that everyone could have used, it would have been a great thing for the people around here. But that was not going to happen,” he said.

With the knowledge and experience gained from his first term, Lonnie is running again to hopefully contribute to completion of some projects that are currently in mid-stream. 

"My viewpoint on many issues that cross the table in Council is that we are here to help the people, whether it be seniors, young families or businesses. If we can make a difference for the people, we should.

“After all, they pay the taxes" he said.

Ward 3, Palmerston-Canonto

BETTY HUNTER

Betty Hunter was a council member for Ward 2 (Clarendon and Miller) between 2004 and 2006,and she ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 2007.

As a member of Council, she took a particular interest in economic development, and since 2006 she has become a board member with the Frontenac Community Futures Development Corporation (CFDC).

She has also become a board member of the Eastern Ontario CFDC and she has just been elected to the provincial board as well.

“Working with the CFDC, I see lots of opportunities for working on county-wide development projects, and in particular for North Frontenac the One Metre Initiative is particularly exciting even though it has a number of hurdles to overcome,” she said.

In the current campaign for Council, Betty Hunter said that her “main focus is on fiscal responsibility, economic development, roads, waste management and the environment.”

She has been a resident of North Frontenac since 1986, when she bought a business in the community with her husband. Although that initial business did not work out, the Hunters have continued to live and work in the region. Betty's husband Don is self-employed, and she has worked in various jobs over the years.

The Hunters live at the borderline between Wards 2 and 3, and this time around Betty is running in Ward 3 “mainly because it is the area where I first settled when I came to the area and because even when I represented Ward 2, I was doing some fighting for Ompah.”

Hunter is also not convinced that the ward system should be maintained in North Frontenac.

“North Frontenac has to start looking at itself as a whole. The ward system isn't the be all and end all of everything. We might think about our councilors representing the entire township.”

JOHN INGLIS

John Inglis was an engineer with Ontario Hydro when he moved to the Lothlorien co-operative near Ompah some 36 years ago. His original plan was to keep his job, but the distance could not be bridged in the days before faxes, email, and teleconferencing.

He learned how to make doors and windows by building them for his own house, and ended up opening Lothlorien Woodworking, a business that he continues to operate to this day. While Inglis is new to municipal politics, he has been involved in economic development initiatives in the region for many years.

He was involved with the Hwy. 7 Community Development Corporation in the 1990s, and was instrumental in the development of the Frontenac Community Futures Development Corporation, eventually sitting on the founding board of the corporation. “I've thought about running for Council before, but I've always been too busy,” he said. “I decided I could do it now. I have a couple of good people working for me, so I now have time to spend on township business.”

“I’ve come to this because I feel I have something positive to offer in meeting situations. I'm not afraid to express dissenting opinions,” he said.

He sees that roads are the major asset of the township, and by far the major cost factor. “I am concerned about some of the amortization in the township budget concerning roads,” he said, “and I am somewhat concerned about the size of our bureaucracy.”

Relations with lake associations should also be fostered, he said, noting that Canonto Lake, for example, is completing a lake plan that may impact the township’s Official Plan at some point.

John Inglis has also been involved with the initial planning for an upgrade to the tiny Ompah library once the building it is located in is vacated by the fire department. “I’d like to see us put a library space in and see if we can convince the Kingston Frontenac Public Library to fill it.”

BOB OLMSTEAD

Bob Olmstead wasted little time deciding to run for a second term on North Frontenac Council. He was the first person into the election race back in January.

In addition to serving on Council for the last four years, Olmstead was a member of Council for Palmerston-Canonto from 1983 to 1986. A life-long resident of Mississippi Station, Bob worked as mechanic until he retired from that profession in 1999. He continues to run a hobby farm.

As a member of Council he has sometimes been critical of the roads department. “I'm not always pleased with the way things are done, but there have been improvements,” he said. He also thinks it is sometimes necessary “to fight for more down in this end of the township because we are the last to get anything done.”

As well, Olmstead thinks the township should consider extending roads service, in a measured way, on un-maintained roads. “We are always talking about the economy and about people moving in here. A bit of gravel on an un-maintained road might be enough to bring someone in or keep someone here,” he said.

Whatever concerns he has about the roads department, Bob Olmstead is wary of any proposals to upload roads to Frontenac County.

“We pay a lot of money to the County and we don't get much, if anything, back. Now they are talking about Hwy. 506/509. I really don't think that's a good idea. It will blow up in our face. I feel that we are in a good position right now to take care of our own roads.”

He sees the Ompah fire hall project as the major project that he would like to see through to completion in the next Council term.

ROBIN RIDDELL

Robin Riddell has lived in the Robertsville area for over 30 years with her husband Steve, although she originally came from Madoc.

While she was caring for a young family, Robin ran a home business, Robertsville Upholstery, for 12 years. When her youngest child started school, she returned to school herself, graduating from Queen's as a Registered Practical Nurse in 2001, and eventually earning a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2006. She currently works in Kingston General Hospital for the Community Care Access Centre (CCAC) but in October she will be transferring to a job with the CCAC at the Perth Hospital.

“When I knew I was going to be working closer to home in Perth, I made the decision to run for Council,” she said.

One of her reasons for seeking a council position is the fact that she is still in the work force and would represent a younger generation if elected. “I think it is time for a newer perspective, some newer ideas, to come forward to Council,” she said, “my main focus is the working people and the need to keep families living in the township.”

She points out that it took a community effort to keep Clarendon Central Public School open last year, “but unless we can encourage young families to live here we will eventually lose that school.”

She recalls that when her children were small, she received some support from the township to send her children to nursery school in Sharbot Lake, “which I really appreciated at the time.”

She would like to see the township act now in the interest of young families and local business. “Our local bus companies are under threat now with the new school bus contract. I'd like to see that sort of issue addressed by Council in some way.”