Dear Mayor Lowry and Council
While we all are saddened by Deputy Mayor John Levi’s unfortunate death, I am certain council will regroup and business will carry on. As you look towards finding someone to fill John’s shoes I would like to offer a few comments for your consideration.
The current council was very recently sworn in. While there are a few ways to fill a vacancy the best of all options is to offer the position to the runner up. This, I believe is the fairest, quickest and least expensive way to see the position filled.
It has been a matter of weeks since the election. We had several candidates who ran for the DR position. Jane Torrance had almost as many votes as Levi. John Levi won with 2,985 votes and Jane was a close second with 2,228 votes; a difference of merely 757 votes. As we see Jane has tremendous support in the community. This also gives credence to offering her, as the runner up, the position. In my opinion, Jane Torrance, if she is available, would be the most obvious choice. She has experience in this role and, as an aside, I notice her political interest and contribution continues.
The other options are expensive and inappropriate given the early days of this term. Further, an election or interview would take weeks. I would encourage your support for the process which allows council to offer the Deputy Mayor position to the runner up.
Thank you for considering my comments.
Alice Puddington
Pakenham
