Listen Up! Some predictions about the next municipal elections

Hugh Mackenzie
Huntsville Doppler

Predictions about Municipal Elections

I read somewhere this week that Doug Ford, brother of the infamous former Mayor of Toronto, Rob Ford, will likely announce soon that he will run against John Tory to recapture the Mayor’s seat for Ford Nation. It reminded me that municipal elections are not that far away, just about 14 months from now. And so, it is not too early to start thinking about them.

In Muskoka, there will be some changes. For one thing, there will be a District-wide vote for the Chair of the District. This will change the dynamics of District Government, not to mention the bundle of money it will cost. In my view, it will simply perpetuate and escalate yet another layer of municipal government that has ballooned to more than 500 employees and a budget of $117.4 million. We should all worry about that.

At least one mayor will not seek re-election as I understand it and that is Mayor Bob Young of the Township of Lake of Bays. If that is true, it is a shame in some ways. During his time in office, Mayor Young has often been a bit of a maverick when it comes to District Affairs. As the late Stan Darling would have said, there is nothing shy and retiring about Bob Young! It has been refreshing to see Mayor Young take on some of the important issues facing Muskoka even when he knew he didn’t have a snowball’s chance in Hell of winning most of them. He has not been afraid of tilting at windmills or challenging the status quo and Muskoka is better for it.

In Huntsville, there will likely be some changes too. I suspect that at least one and perhaps two councillors, who have served our community long and well, will retire. I am also hearing that Councillor Bob Stone, who currently represents Huntsville Ward, will seek a District seat. Karin Terziano has done a yeoman’s job as Deputy Mayor, Finance Chair and is a strong District representative. She gets frustrated at times but I hope that will not dissuade her from running again. The “rookies” on Council, (there are four of them) have now got their feet wet and will likely also stand again for election.

As for Scott Aitchison, my sense is that he has a good chance of being acclaimed to a second term as Mayor, assuming of course, that he wants it. The one person who would give him a run for his money is not interested. Most people know that Scott has recently and successfully, undergone a ‘retrofit’, so that issues related to his health should be a positive, rather than a negative. Scott Aitchison has made his mistakes during his first term of office, as most mayors do, not the least of which are occasional bouts of arrogance. However, he has also shown effective leadership in a number of ways, including the need to keep an acute care hospital facility in Huntsville. As well, he has led a Council that has generally performed well. At this point, I do not see any election issues that would cause the Mayor to lose his seat and those who may have ambitions to run against him probably know that.

With likely changes on Huntsville Council in 2018, there will be opportunities for new blood. It is not too early to start thinking about that. I have heard that Grant Nickalls has been encouraged to run for either local or District Council. He is well known throughout Huntsville and would be an excellent candidate should he decide to seek election in either of these capacities. There are others out there as well and it is important to encourage qualified people to seek public office. It is a noble undertaking.

The municipal election in Huntsville next year should not be dull, whether or not there is a race for Mayor. There are a number of issues that will still be on the front burner and we need to hear from people seeking election or re-election, where they stand on them. These include; a sustainable roads’ policy, the hospital issue, expansion of Fairvern, affordable housing, the cost of policing and the burgeoning District bureaucracy. I had one pundit suggest that the most controversial matter in the next election would be Pipe Man! Heaven help us if that is what folks really believe!

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