IN THE NEWS

By Marianne Cole

DEPUTY REEVE SYDNEY GRAHAM RESIGNS 

As per a November 18, 2024 Clearwater County news release Deputy Reeve Sydney Graham submitted her resignation letter on November 17, 2024. Graham was first elected as Division 2 Councillor in October of 2021 and was voted in as Deputy Reeve at this year’s organizational meeting on October 22, 2024.

In an article in the November 20, 2024 issue of The Mountaineer Graham noted that she has been dealing with health problems but the “tipping point for her in making a decision to resign came about after contact from a resident.” This resident had criticized her for being unavailable for a council event due to a medical appointment.

We certainly thank her for her efforts and dedication as councillor for Division 2 for these past three years and we wish her all the best in her future endeavors. This includes in her new position as Community & Recreation Services Coordinator with Clearwater County Agriculture & Community Services Department.

GENNIFER MEHLHAFF CHOSEN AS NEW DEPUTY REEVE 

At their November 26, 2024 meeting Clearwater County Council chose Division 1 Councillor Mehlhaff as Deputy Reeve. Councillor Ratcliffe had nominated her while Councillor Northcott nominated Councillor Bryan Cermak. Via secret ballot, Councillor Mehlhaff won the majority vote. She had previously been Deputy Reeve for the 2023-2024 year.

NO BY-ELECTION 

Also at their November 26th meeting a lengthy discussion took place on the pros and cons of holding a by-election in Division 2 following Councillor Graham’s resignation. Points noted included the impact of residents in that division not having representation for almost a year, the timing of a by-election and its impact on the potential amalgamation, and the costs involved with holding a by-election.

Deputy Reeve Mehlhaff was the first to make a motion supporting a by-election but it was defeated when only Mehlhaff and Councillor Ratcliffe voted in favor. Subsequently Councillor Cermak made a motion that the seat in Division 2 remain vacant until the municipal election of 2025. This motion passed with Reeve Swanson and Councillors Lougheed, Northcott, and Cermak voting in favor.

INTERESTING MOTION

What began as a Closed Session ended with an interesting motion.

As stated in the November 12, 2024 minutes, the Closed Session Item 10.1 was noted as “Verbal Discussion; FOIP s. 17 Disclosure Harmful to Personal Privacy,s.24. It further states that Reeve Swanson

and Councillor Ratcliffe recused themselves from voting on the motion to go into Closed Session and they left the meeting.

Upon returning to Open Session, Councillor Mehlhaff made a motion “that Council retains the services of a third party integrity commissioner to review the Code of Conduct complaint as per Code of Conduct Bylaw 1143, Section 45 (a) (b). The motion passed.

CCTA WELCOMES NEW BOARD MEMBERS 

At their November 13, 2024 Annual General Meeting the Clearwater County Taxpayers’ Association welcomed two new board members, Julie Layden and Doug Skeels to the Director positions. They replace outgoing members Debbie Gastonguay and Tim Plante who we sincerely thank for their past dedication and support.

Maintaining their positions are: President Marianne Cole, Vice President Ron Schultz, Secretary Susan Durand, and Treasurer Pat Butler along with Directors Reg Belyea, Jim Foesier, and Leah Schultz.

It was great to have 32 people attend the meeting that included a guest presentation by Helge Nome from the Medicine River Watershed Alliance on serious concerns about the current drought situation and continued use of fresh water for fracking. Other interesting points of discussion focussed on the Land Use Bylaw review, the Ag. Rec. Facility Feasibility Study Results and the Citizen Satisfaction Survey Results.

Monthly meetings of the CCTA will continue to be held the second Wednesday of the month from January to June and September to November. Please note that starting January 8, 2025 meetings will be held at the Leslieville Elks Hall. We welcome all interested residents to join us for vigorous discussions on various county matters.

We now wish you a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HOPE TO SEE YOU IN THE NEW YEAR!!

Coming Events: 

Wednesday, January 8, 2025 and Wednesday, February 12, 2025 regular meetings at 7:30PM at Leslieville Elks Hall.

“Don’t get your tinsel in a tangle.” “Gifts of time & love are surely the basic ingredients of a truly Merry Christmas.” Peg Bracken 

“The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other.” Burton Hills.