Tom Dewey

Oct 15, 2014

Councillor

Tom Dewey – “recycled country boy”

Tom Dewey is seeking a second term on Council. He lost a close race in 2006 and then won handily in 2010, receiving the most votes of any ward politician in Central Frontenac Township.

Dewey was raised in Croydon, in Lennox and Addington County, and lived for 40 years in Toronto and Oshawa during his working life. With his wife Shirley he purchased a property on Horseshoe Lake near Arden in the 1980s. They renovated the cabin on the property and moved in permanently in 2005.

“That's why I call myself a recycled country boy,” he said.

Since moving to Arden, he has been a member of the township's economic development committee for the past eight years; a former board member of the Frontenac Community Futures Development Corporation (FCFDC), and a member of the Heritage Festival Committee for eight years.

Tom also sits on the board of EOTA (Eastern Ontario Trails Alliance) and the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority. He is on the executive of the Arden Legion and has been a Legion member for 32 years.

Dewey thinks that the priority for the new council will be to fill the chief administrative officer and public works manager positions, although he is reassured by the fact there is a temporary fix in place for them.

He continues to be committed to working on economic development in the township, but recognizes that, “It is a really slow process. We have a really small budget and need to make use of Anne-Marie Young at the County and Anne Prichard of the CFDC. Another thing we can do is look at our zoning to create more commercial zoning to be ready for investors to come in.”

He also thinks the township should look at purchasing property that is suitable for housing projects, but said all of this is coming in the context of increasing budget pressure.

“Insurance went up $40,000 last year and the OPP costs are going up. We will have to work hard not to pass that on to ratepayers,” he said.

If elected, he may be interested in the second County Council position for the township.

Priority issues for Tom Dewey include finding a permanent location for the Parham Library and seeing a fire hall built in Parham as well.