Just as any good team has both a number of seasoned veterans and rookies, the newly-elected Fort Frances council is sporting three of each after the votes were tallied Monday night.
Incumbents Roy Avis, Struchan Gilson, and Neil Kabel will be joined on council by newcomers Rick Wiedenhoeft, Tannis Drysdale, and Todd Hamilton for the next three years.
“I was very pleased but surprised too,” said Wiedenhoeft, who watched the election from the home of his son, Chris, Monday evening as he baby-sat his grandchildren.
The retired Fort High teacher and athletic director garnered more votes than any other council candidate with 2,627, according to the unofficial final results released after midnight yesterday.
“I do think the job is going to consume a lot of my time, but I am definitely looking forward to it,” Wiedenhoeft said.
“I think it [council] is going to be a good mix. I’m glad to see the incumbents got back in,” he added. “With a new mayor, a new CAO, and lots of changes going on, we’ll need their experience to carry the new council through.
“With both youth and experience, hopefully, we can do a great job.”
Hamilton, another new face in local politics, earned 2,463 votes to finish third behind Avis. “I was pleasantly surprised with the number of voters who came out,” he remarked, noting that he watched the election on TV with his family Monday night.
“And I was quite surprised with to find out how many voted for me,” Hamilton added. “All the candidates would have been suitable to serve the people of Fort Frances. And I am sure those that were elected will do a good job.
“I know I’ll try to do the best I can,” he pledged.
Drysdale, who got 2,191 votes to finish fourth out of the 11 candidates seeking the six seats on council, may not have run for municipal government before but she is no stranger to politics, having sat on numerous groups and committees, including being past president of the Northwestern Ontario Associated Chambers of Commerce.
“I am very pleased to be elected. I think we have a very strong team on council,” she said. “I truly look forward to working with the other members of council as well as the community in the next three years.”
One of several council candidates who campaigned with signs and pamphlets, Drysdale noted she worked hard to earn her vote, but also admitted the work has only just begun.
“At the end of three years, if we as a council can look back and be proud of what we’ve accomplished, it’ll all have paid off,” she remarked.
Drysdale added she was excited to see a “great regional team” to work with after Monday’s election results elsewhere.
“I was watching results from across the region, and I was exceptionally pleased to see people like Glen Armstrong [Rainy River], Dennis Brown [Atikokan], Lynn Peterson [Thunder Bay], and Russ Fortier [who was acclaimed reeve in Emo] leading their communities for the next three years,” she said.
Meanwhile, all the incumbents spoke positively of the election outcome.
“Change is always good,” said Avis, who will be serving his third-consecutive term on council. He garnered 12.56 percent of the votes cast for councillors with 2,522.
While he noted he was glad to see new blood infused into council, he added he wasn’t too surprised to see himself, Kabel, and Gilson get back in.
“I do believe a majority of people out there think Fort Frances has been run very well for the past five or six years,” said Avis, adding this sentiment showed at the polls.
“And I think it’s very good to have us back. We need that experience at the table,” he concluded.
“I was very delighted things worked out the way they did,” echoed Kabel, who will be serving his fourth non-consecutive term as councillor.
He added the fact all the incumbents running for council made it back in showed “people chose the positive over the negative” when looking over council’s list of accomplishments during the past three years.
“It’s interesting to see the new changes in council. But if we all keep in mind what’s best for the taxpayers of Fort Frances, I think that teamwork will follow,” Kabel remarked.
Kabel received 1,873 votes to take the sixth and final seat.
“I think it will be a little easier this time,” said Coun. Gilson, adding he’s hopeful the new mix of councillors will institute changes that have been too long in the running for his liking.
“For instance, with the smoking bylaw. How could we have voted against that?” he remarked. “I’d like to work with some people who vote how they really think and not worry about what the people on the street think.”
Gilson, who’s served two terms with council, noted it’s taken five years to get a good handle on what being a councillor is all about, but he’s prepared to continue giving it his all as an elected official for at least another three years.
Gilson garnered 1,932 votes to finish fifth overall.
While the voter turnout this time was higher in than the 2000 election, Gilson added he would have liked to have seen more ballots come in.
Mayor Glenn Witherspoon said he was satisfied with the election results.
“I was very happy the three incumbents got back in,” he remarked. “They have experience, and they already work well with the town management and administration.
“And all three of the new ones combine with them to make a good mix,” the outgoing mayor added. “There’s youth, experience, and enthusiasm there—everything you need to make a successful council.”
The other five candidates running for council Monday were former councillor John Albanese in seventh place (1,743 votes), with Pastor Stephen Laing (1,466), former councillor Gus Lindberg (1,186), Misty Christian (1,050), and Bud Edwards (1,030) rounding out the field.
The current council (consisting of Mayor Witherspoon, Couns. Avis, Gilson, and Kabel, and outgoing councillors Deane Cunningham, Dave Bourgeault, and Tibbs) will meet for the last time this coming Monday (Nov. 17).
The new mayor and council will be sworn in at the inaugural meeting Monday, Dec. 1.
(Fort Frances Times)
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
