Feature Article February 27, 2003
LAND O' LAKES NewsWeb HomeMunicipal candidatesby Inie Platenius *In the interests of equity and grammatical correctness, in this article a councillor is referred to as both her and him
A concern is rumbling through Portland District about the lack of potential candidates for the municipal election this fall. Have you heard if anyones going to run? is the question in gas stations and restaurants. Although its early days yet - especially in this district where people keep their election cards close to the vest until the last minute its still unsettling to have not even the rumour of a name. We have to wonder if this situation is yet another piece of the amalgamation fallout. It takes a special person to weather the trials of serving on municipal council. Youre frequently called on to make decisions that affect your neighbours lives in a very personal way. Except for family issues, nothing makes for more emotional confrontation than issues about peoples homes and land, and those make up the bulk of the situations that municipal councils face. A councillor has to have the conviction that allows her* to sleep at night after voting on a subdivision request, and have the patience to endure the phone calls of unhappy constituents who wake her with complaints. A councillor has to be able to talk to the media and let their criticism roll off his* back. A good councillor has to know when to rely on the recommendations of municipal staff and be willing to dig for the background information when she feels uncertain of those recommendations; has to plan and save for a time beyond her tenure, but not be afraid to spend money for current projects too; has to weigh the good of the whole municipality against the wishes of her own district.Before amalgamation, a councillor brought all these qualities into a small arena with a very local focus. But the arena is now a multiplex, and the councillors decisions now affect people far beyond his district. Because of the expanded nature of the councillors role, media attention is much greater. Before amalgamation, a councillors major stress might have come from a constituents phone call about an unplowed road; now the call might be the CBC asking about municipal sewage and water. And the pace of all our lives is faster than it was before amalgamation. Most of us can barely keep work and family together, let alone take on another nearly full time job in the community. No wonder were not hearing about eager candidates!Is there a solution to this? I dont know. There is a way to ease the path for potential candidates, though. We constituents need to acknowledge that the municipal councillors job is important, demanding, and noble. We need to encourage our neighbours to run, and to recognize that those who do stand for election do so from a desire to serve their community. We need to pay attention to municipal affairs and make our arguments without malice and rancor. We need to act as a support and resource in our municipality.So, are you thinking about running?
