CommunityCouncilPolitics

Mayor’s job should be full time: French

By Mark Squibb/September 23, 2021

As part of his outgoing advice to his colleagues and the residents of CBS on Tuesday, outgoing Mayor Terry French recommended that the new council to be elected next week consider making the mayor’s job a full-time position.

French, who served one term as mayor, said he had brought up the suggestion to the current council, but that in fairness to that council, they never had time to act on the suggestion as he didn’t bring it forward until after he had told council he would not run for re-election, which he announced publicly back in May.

“I didn’t want anybody to think it was self-serving,” explained French. “But I think now, as the second biggest municipality in the province, and we have a lot of issues, we have a lot of development coming, we have a lot of residential development coming, we’re growing in leaps and bounds, we need some focus, all the time, on certain things, and I would have loved to have been able to be more pro-active than I was in the last four years, but I work full-time. So, I really think the next council should really consider bringing in a full-time mayor’s position. And how much you pay them, that’s immaterial to details. But it’s not that big of an expense. And many of the residents that I know who come here (to the Town Hall) think that I’m here full-time, that I’m here Monday to Friday, nine to five, and that they can walk in and speak to the mayor. And that can’t happen.”

French said he hopes that the incoming council will work over the next four years make the position full-time, and that he is bringing the idea forward now so that the next mayor won’t have to.

“I don’t want them to hold back because they’re the one in the mayor’s chair,” said French. “It’s one of those things that you have to move ahead with, and the rationale is there to convince residents that it’s the right thing to do.”

Former mayor Steve Tessier, councillor Darrin Bent, and Brad Suter have all put their names forward for the mayor’s chair in this month’s election.

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