Harbour Grace council race attracting a big ballot of candidates

By Olivia Bradbury / Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

If the number of candidates is anything to go by, Harbour Grace has one of the healthiest democracies in the province. Fourteen people are each seeking one of the six seats available next month making it one of the biggest clatters on the island.

The Shoreline managed to track down seven of them for interviews before deadline.

Linda Smith is a retired dispensing optician who spent most of her adult life away from her hometown of Harbour Grace, seeing her way to a return in 2008. She thought about running for council for years.

“I finally decided unless I’m willing to throw my name into the hat, then life as we know it will continue the same,” she said.

Smith said if elected, she will prioritize taxes and beautification.

“I’m not able to make any promises about what I can and can’t do other than be myself and be as honest as I possibly can and represent the people in Harbour Grace to the best of my ability,” she said.

Smith describes herself as honest, willing to stand up for residents’ wants, and dedicated to people, especially seniors. “I’m a senior myself,” she added. “Seniors in the community need all that they can get to make their lives a whole lot better.”

Ray Verge is a retired first responder who also volunteered with the Harbour Grace Volunteer Fire Department for almost 30 years. He was fire chief for five years, a role which involved him with the town council and staff. This is his council run.

“I love my community and certainly want to see it continue to flourish,” Verge said.

He would like to see more home construction and businesses in the town and increase accessibility to historically significant locations in the community, such as Lady Lake, where the Harbour Grace Regatta takes place, and the Harbour Grace Airstrip. If elected, he promises to bring residents concerns to the floor. He describes himself as approachable with an understanding of the community’s dynamics and concerns.

Christina Hearn is originally from Lawn on the Burin Peninsula. She has been a teacher for over 30 years, and assistant principal of Amalgamated Academy for eight. She moved to Harbour Grace in 2019 and soon began volunteering. She is involved with the Harbour Grace Board of Culture, Innovation, and Business, the special events committee, and the Harbour Authority. She too is a first-time candidate and said she can offer council a different perspective as a newer resident of town. If elected, she promises to promote community collaboration, safety, and tourism. She describes herself as positive, upbeat, and inclusive of everybody.

“There’s so many great opportunities here in this community that can be built on, and we just need to get everybody rowing the boat in the same direction,” she said.

Randy Wrice is originally from Carbonear. He worked with the school board for 30 years, and was president of NAPE for 14. He said he decided to run four years ago after being encouraged by residents and Mayor Don Coombs himself.

“I watched the town falling behind and I wanted to change the direction it was moving in,” he said.
Wrice was elected in 2021, but had to resign in his third year for health reasons. According to Wrice, every current councillor asked him to run again, and he is doing just that. If elected, he would like to focus on the town’s 10-year strategic plan.

“I’m a good listener,” he said. “I like to talk to people and listen to their concerns and I’ll always do my best to help them out.”

Incumbent councillor Lee Rogers works offshore as an instrumentation technician. He was elected to council for the first time in 2021 and is seeking his second consecutive term. Rogers said he saw municipal politics as a way to give back to the community and see some needed change. Namely, he wanted to see more recreational facilities for children, and bring more business opportunities to Harbour Grace. He also felt the council could benefit from having younger members such as himself.

If re-elected, Rogers said, he would like to see council move forward with getting water and sewer services for more areas of town, which will require collaboration with the provincial and federal governments. He also wants to continue working on major business developments in the town, and the re-development of the softball facilities. He describes himself as hardworking and with great ideas for the town’s growth.
Gordon Stone, also an incumbent, worked as an educator, teaching in many places over the course of his career. He began his political career on the community council of Harbour Grace South, where he served for over five years as a councillor and mayor.

“It’s probably a combination of having love for the town that you live in, and believing that you have some ideas that can make your town better in terms of growing and serving the people,” he said explaining his interest in council.

Stone has served on Harbour Grace council for two terms and is seeking a third.

“I’d like to be part of the team that makes some of the wishes of our town’s businesses and citizens come true,” he said.

Incumbent Deputy Mayor Keith Skinner has worked in various jobs revolving around public works. During his career, he held such roles as foreman of the Town of Harbour Grace and supervisor of public works for Conception Bay South. He ran for council for the first time in 2021.

“I saw too much that was on the go that I didn’t like, and I knew that there was potential to get more stuff done if we had the right people to do it,” he said.

Skinner said he would like to see more businesses set up in town. He noted the town has more people move to and build homes in Harbour Grace the past four years, and he wants that growth to continue. When asked why voters should consider him, he cited his knowledge of infrastructure, his people skills, and his honesty.

The other candidates running include Dr. Gary Baker, Shawn Vaters, incumbent councillor Brendan Chafe, Sharon Reynolds, Roy Abbott, Peter Yetman, and Kevin Williams.