By Michael Walmsley
Goodwin Drive winds E-W from Greaves Avenue and S-N to Northdown Street
Norman Goodwin presided over Huntsville as its mayor from 1970 until 1978.
Goodwin’s terms of office coincided with Ontario’s introduction of regional government which presented many major restructuring challenges for towns such as Huntsville.
His former role as the reeve of Brunel would have, no doubt, provided him with some important tools and experiences that enabled Goodwin to navigate his “small-fish” town in the “large-lake” parameters of regional affairs.
For instance, the province eliminated local police forces and had towns establish Ontario Provincial Police attachments within their boundaries. Then there were the challenges associated with local hospital funding, local day-care support, senior living accommodations, and the huge task of setting up a District arm of local government including the selection of a Regional Chair. Debates concerning these issues seemed to overwhelm some towns, but Norm Goodwin’s leadership moved Huntsville through these turbulent times.
Indeed, Mayor Goodwin successfully navigated the sometimes-rough waters of that regional government “lake” and had Huntsville emerge as a “growing fish”. Goodwin’s time in the mayor’s chair was filled with huge structural, economic, and industrial growth in Huntsville. New industries including Kimberly-Clark (1971) and Domtar (1976) set up operations in town. The Ministry of Natural Resources office was put in place (1974). New roads and bridges, a water reservoir, and expanded sewer systems paved the way for residential growth. Additions to local schools increased the capacity necessary for the enlarging populace, and the construction of the new Huntsville and District Memorial Hospital provided the future of local health care for the citizenry.
For all who would wonder where the name of Goodwin Drive came from, wonder no longer. Norman Goodwin’s excellent leadership of Huntsville puts him near the top of the list for having his name atop a Huntsville street sign.
See more Saturday Streetscapes here.
Michael Walmsley is a retired elementary school principal who resides in Huntsville. He enjoys looking at things with a bit of “outside-the-box” perspective and totally believes in living today with a hand on the past and an eye on the future. He has published articles in Kanawa and Adventure Kayak magazines and has recently published a book entitled The Joy of Kayaking – Including the Kayak Quiz.
During this past year, as president of the PROBUS Club of Muskoka North, he has written a weekly article to the club’s membership which has included a focus on Huntsville’s streets. These articles have been combined into book form which will be published in the summer of 2021.
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He became mayor of Huntsville, but in my youth he was Norm to my father or Mr. Goodwin to me. We would often stop at the farm when my Dad needed information about a road he was putting in for a new cottage or questions he might have about other work he was doing in Brunel.
Norm was also the owner of a fine trout stream that passed under Markles’ road on its way to the river. I used to meet Paul Bennetts along the creek and we would argue about who shouldn’t be there. Always a draw.
But Mr. Goodwin was our bus driver. Along with his wife Eva and his son Glen, they delivered me to school at #6 Brunel and then Riverside. And there was hardly ever a snow day; when the Goodwins couldn’t make the trip.
And if that were not enough, Norm delivered us into the hands of his sister, who was a teacher and the principal of the school. It always seemed a bit of a conspiracy.
Norm Goodwin sat as a member of Council in the mid 1980s and I had the distinct pleasure of sitting beside him during that term. We undertook the Centennial Centre project including the pool and Norm supported our proposed development. While other members of Council asked why we needed a pool when we had lakes to swim in, Norm could see the merit in a swimming pool for year round use.
His stamp of approval was critical in the project approval.
Norm had some great stories to tell about previous councils.
Many a planning application would get a comment from Norm about “drawing logs out of that property back in the day”
A great pillar of our community!!
Mr Walmsley,what great article about my uncle Norm.He and his wife Eva raised me on their farm,so I saw first hand how involved he was in the community.He gave his all.He would load the family,all the kids and dogs in his Willy’s keep and cruse the back roads on a Sunday talking to constituents.A nice article recognizing his accomplishments.
Mike Stevens