Following the tragic death of Councillor Bernard Cameron in a shooting at his home, Mississippi Mills had to deal with the thorny question of how he was to be replaced on Council.
The Ontario Municipal Act provides two options: hold a by-election or appoint a replacement from among eligible electors. After much debate Council decided on the appointment route.
Mayor Shaun McLaughlin said of this decision:
Research by our clerk, Shawna Stone, shows the trend among small to medium-sized Ontario municipalities is towards an application process. We chose that route. Council and staff took the best ideas from other towns and created a procedure that includes an interview of applicants and a two-stage voting process in an open public forum. The interviews will occur April 12 and the vote on April 19.
The shortlist of eligible candidates has been released by the Town and will be presented at the next Council meeting on Tuesday, April 12. The names are:
- Gerald Belisle
- Heather D’arcy
- Garry Dalgity (former councillor)
- Laura Guthrie
- John Levi (former mayor)
- Rickey Minnille (former councillor)
- Ross Munro
- Sietze Praamsma
- Jordan Priddle
- Amanda Pulker-Mok
- Donald Raycroft
- Fraser Scantlebury
