Nominations closed Friday at 2:00 pm and there were some surprises. Councillor Emily Chorley will not be running again; Nicole Beatty and Suzanne Séguin will be competing for the Deputy Mayor position so one of them will not be on Council; and there will be competition for the Mayor’s position so he won’t be acclaimed this time. There are ten candidates competing for five spots on Council – including current councillors Adam Bureau, Aaron Burchat and Brian Darling. So far, only Mayor Henderson and Michael Sprayson have published any campaign material but then there are 56 days until the first day you can vote – October 14. The official voting date is October 24 but advance voting is possible earlier. Below is some preliminary information but stay tuned for more information in the coming weeks.
Current Information
I will be maintaining up to date information – that’s only the facts – at this page. Included are details on how the vote will be organized plus results of elections back to 2000.
Candidates for Mayor
- Incumbent John Henderson – email Web site – includes his “plan” – a comparison with the other candidate will be published in due course.
- New Candidate Lucas Cleveland – co-owner of Market and Smor – no further info available.
Candidates for Deputy Mayor
- Incumbent Suzanne Séguin – no campaign info yet available
- Councillor Nicole Beatty – no campaign info yet available
Candidates for Council (in order of filing)
- Adam Bureau * – No public campaign info yet
- Aaron Burchat * – No public campaign info yet
- Johnny Percolides – No public campaign info yet
- Brian Darling * – No public campaign info yet
- Miriam Mutton – No public campaign info yet
- Michael Sprayson – Email: [email protected] Website: www.michaelsprayson.ca – includes how Michael tackles issues.
- Sara Gardinier – No public campaign info yet
- Randy Barber – No public campaign info yet
- Ashley Bouman – No public campaign info yet
- Mark Mills – No public campaign info yet
* Incumbent
Stay tuned to Cobourg News blog as more info on candidates is provided. As usual the posts will be open for comments.
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I’m sorry that Emily is not running. Don’t know why, don’t want to know. To my mind she has always been a thoughtful, reasoned individual.
The Town of Cobourg Climate Action Plan for Future Generations (Update 2020 to 2050) identified that vehicles are one of the biggest contributors to Green House Gas emissions in Cobourg today.
So last year the Transportation Advisory Committee sent a memo to Town Council regarding an Anti-Idling By-law. In response Town Council directed staff to bring forward a draft anti-idling by-law and an anti-idling education/awareness program. So the staff did, adding that “It contributes to the goal of becoming a Cleaner, Greener Town by increasing community awareness of air quality issues associated with transportation and promoting citizen participation in efforts to improve local air quality.”
The prosed bylaw is virtually useless and cumbersome. If the Transportation Advisory Committee, Town Council and staff want to reduce emissions, they could do so in a single sentence. Forbid any further car shows in Cobourg’s parks.
Every summer individuals drive to and park in Victoria Park to exhibit themselves. These are vintage vehicles which consume fossil fuels at a rate much higher than today’s ice vehicles, yet the Town permits them to use our premier park to display themselves. Forbid it. No need for staff to waste its time monitoring.
Would a consultant recommend such a useless anti-idling bylaw? Of course not. Only staff, committee and Council, sans consultant, could propose such nonsense.
The Cobourg Bus System is the biggest carbon footprint waste per rider in this town.
absolutely
In addition to the carbon footprint each ride costs over $10. The bus costs taxpayers over $1M each year or about the same as the CCC. Is the bus or the CCC used by more residents?
People need to get places. The bus is the best option for some who do not have a car. I do not mind the bus service being funded with tax dollars but it should be done cost efficiently. Maybe this new system is better than the old one (large busses, nearly empty, running hourly) if there is a smaller carbon footprint or it is a better service. The bus is how some people get to work. If these people (psw, retail and restaurant workers ) had to pay for a cab to/from work then it would be even more difficult for them to live in Cobourg and provide services tax payers use. With our current technology it might be better for the town to subsidize some kind of private transportation service. Car owners could provide rides booked with an app and the town pay for much of the cost. Car owners would be responsible for maintenance and could work when they want to. (trigger warning – the next sentence contains sarcasm) I’m sure a consultant could be hired to find out if such an app exists, if it is used in other towns and make some recommendations (this way nobody needs to take any real responsibility, including me as I have not provided my last name).
It will be interesting to see if the new council has a better solution to the town buses. Maybe public transportation will be a campaign issue.
Ceasing the buses in summer that travel mostly completely empty both ways from beach to Northumberland Mall etc. would greatly help ,not to mention the cost to taxpayers.
If the current Town Council approves this anti-idling by-law, it should contain an expiry date. Review it in five years to ascertain if the by-law was ever enforced. If not, then rescind the by-law.
I love term limits. Incumbents are anathema to me. So very happy to see new faces in the running and others running for new positions. Speaking of positions, candidates, let’s see what you’re about.
I have to say, it’s a little bit disappointing.
As a voter, part of this job is about preparedness and action (strictly my opinion). The fact that many incumbents registered some time ago and still have nothing up sends it’s own message.
The mayor’s website is a copy of things we have heard for the last four years.
Are the candidates waiting to see what everyone else’s ideas are so they can just elaborate on the best ones? Cherry pick instead of come up with their own plan? Is this just an extension of why nothing has been accomplished in the last four years?
If you look at the comments on this blog, it seems like people are ready for some new blood on council. What a missed opportunity.
I just reviewed Michael Sprayson’s web site. It is the most informative campaign material I have read since coming to Cobourg. I particularly liked his promise to use our tax dollars responsibly and keep our property taxes within reason. I hope this includes restricting the appointment of consultants. After reviewing the web site, I already know that Michael Sprayson has my vote.
Thank you, John.
Your support is appreciated.
Yes, using tax dollars responsibly is extremely important. In Wally’s comments (above) he mentioned the anti-idling by-law which is to help deal with our climate emergency by helping Cobourg become a cleaner greener town … If we really want to become a cleaner greener town then we should keep as much green space as possible. It will be interesting to see if sidewalks will be built on one or both sides of the streets being rebuilt this summer. Fewer sidewalks reduces costs and is better for the environment (more trees, less runoff, less salt in winter, less concrete)
I took a quick look at Mr. Henderson’s website and his “plan” appears to be nothing other than council’s meaningless and unfulfilled priorities from over 3 years ago. What am I missing? As the incumbent Head of Council how will he be more successful this term than in the last?
Don’t vote for him? Run yourself?
Face it Ken when you think of Henderson the words : bold, brash and entrepreneurial do not come to mind.
The words that do are; quiet, reserve, mousy and stale.
Maybe Mr. Cleveland can unseat him, but I doubt it. Mr. Cleveland needed to get his message out earlier to to public.
I took a look at the Sprayson website. I see a lot of who I am, what I will be and not be to the electorate and citizens, but nothing on policies. Please tell me your ideas of what the Town is doing right and what the Town needs to do to improve the quality of life and the economic environment for its citizens, businesses and limited industrial base.
This will be another election where voters will vote the name. Many voters walking into the booth holding their noses.
Those of us who know and respect Mr. Cleveland already have an idea of what his message is. Go meet him and chat with him. You will then understand his passion for Cobourg.
Thank you for taking the time to look at the website. If you take a look at the page “Core Focus” and go further through “Public input”, “Responsible Spending” and “Meaningful Goals” I think you’ll find more information and what you’re looking for.
I appreciate the feedback though, especially if the site isn’t communicating what I intend for it to communicate.
If you have any questions, please use the question box and sign up for the newsletter. Plenty more information will come through there beginning September 1.
Glad to see you on this forum, Michael. I looked at your page with interest and saw the goals. I like the approach to reporting and budgeting. I’d like to see more on deliverables related to some of the town’s specific challenges – Downtown revitalization, the mall, urban planning related to all this new development etc. I look forward to hearing more as the election approaches.
LC – Happy to be on the forum. I believe public engagement is important.
I take all your points and agree they are important and need addressing. I look forward to providing my thoughts and ideas in the campaign newsletter as we prepare for the election.
If any of the candidates haven’t published their “stuff” by now it will be too late. 56 days is not a long time and candidates have to be seen.
2/14 – not a great showing, then. Seeing as how the number is so low, I’m not sure it’s actually too late, though. Maybe if a few more had something up and available….
I think the general thought is that very few will pay any attention to any campaign bafflegab until Labour Day weekend is over.
Actually it’s not 56 days if you count the 10 day voting period. All the more reason to be prepared. Signs take a couple of week to produce, leaflets another seven days and ad space to buy. All of this is based on the fact that you have raised enough money to pay for all of these items.
Putting your name on the ballot and letting your friends know you are running is not enough.
“Actually it’s not 56 days if you count the 10 day voting period. All the more reason to be prepared.”
What do you mean? It’s 56 days until the 10 day voting period begins. 66 days until “voting day.”
ok thanks for the correction, but if a candidate wants to be taken seriously by me then they should have all the information ready from the day they file.