Central Frontenac Mayoralty Candidates

Nicki Gowdy

Nicki Gowdy is a lifelong resident of the Godfrey area at the southern tip of Central Frontenac. She comes from a farming family, with an interest in local politics. Her grandfather served as councillor and reeve in Hinchinbrooke, and her Uncle Bill Snyder straddled amalgamation and ended up holding one of the Hinchinbrooke council positions until he died, while still in office, in 2014.

She first ran for council in 2018, winning in Hinchinbrooke and immediately signaled that she was interested in running for mayor someday. She considered a run in 2022, but in the end, she decided to run for a second term on council instead.

“Halfway through my first term, I started thinking about it. I filled out the form to change from council to mayor, and in the last 15 minutes, I decided to wait four years. I felt that I needed more experience, and I made it my goal to get on county council to make connections with other Frontenac townships and with the province,” she said.

She credits both Gerry Lichty and Ron Vandewal, the mayors of North and South Frontenac who are both seeking re-election, for the mentorship they have provided to her, at the county level. She believes that this close relationship can benefit all of Frontenac County going forward.

She announced late in 2025 that she was planning to run for mayor and registered in early May, at the very beginning of the nomination period.

She has taken an interest in the entire township since 2018, she believes that although there are four districts in the township, we are one community working together, to better it for all.

She said that she is hoping to see some changes in the way Council and the township operate in the next term. She was not pleased with the organisational review that was completed in this term, which called for new hiring.

“One of my regrets is that the org review came back as it did. Parts of it are being implemented, and I do not see how we can afford any new positions right now. I pushed for contract positions rather than permanent positions. That way at least we can evaluate if the position is bringing value for money, before it becomes permanent.”

In terms of the budget and improvements that can be made, she said, “there is no big magic wand that is going to solve all of our financial challenges, but if we can start finding efficiencies in everything we do, we can make a difference.”

Since Chief Administrative Officer Cathy MacMunn announced that she plans to retire by the end of 2027, Council will be tasked with hiring her replacement, which Gowdy sees as both a responsibility and an opportunity.

She opposed the purchase of the former Simonett building, on Road 38 in Sharbot Lake, for a new township office which was approved by a 5-4 vote. Her objection is not based on the amount paid for the building, but about a lack of process.

“My problem was that it came about without us having looked at our needs in advance, to determine what we need, what it will cost and how we could finance it. We had a dated report about the office needs and renovation costs for the former building, but that is all. There was nothing in the budget and we ended up draining our reserves.”

Looking at how the township communicates with all taxpayers is a priority for her.

She would like to improve the level of engagement with the public regarding council decisions, but not necessarily as part of council meetings.

“It wouldn’t hurt to have round table meetings with residents every two months where we could talk about what Council is doing, and people could let us know what their concerns are, and what they would like to see happen.”

One aspect of the mayor’s role that she is interested in pursuing, is advocacy at the regional and provincial level. She said that as mayor she would take any opportunity to meet with provincial officials to advocate for the needs of Central Frontenac.

“What I have learned is that you can’t stay stagnant, and if being the squeaky wheel is going to help us get ahead, I’m more than willing to play that role.”

As far as strong mayor powers are concerned, she thinks it was a mistake to put them in place in small rural municipalities and is not interested in making use of them in Central Frontenac.

Nicki Gowdy works full time in Sharbot Lake for Rural Frontenac Community Services (RFCS), where she is the supervisor of Frontenac Transportation Services, and as the financial officer for the agency.

Susan Irwin

Susan Irwin moved to Central Frontenac almost 4 decades ago, with her husband Jim, to work at Rural Legal Services. They were both lawyers, and they settled in the community and raised a family while using their legal training to help people with modest resources deal with legal issues. Susan worked for the rest of her career at Rural Legal Services, navigating through structural and funding changes at the agency, which is now operated out of Perth.

She also spent a number of years on local boards, including a long spell on the Rural Frontenac Community Services, which she has chaired for the past few years, and is a member of the Sharbot Lake Family Health Team Board.

In 2022, she decided to offer her services to the community at large, by running for Central Frontenac Council in Ward 3 (Oso) and was elected.

She found that her legal, and non-profit board experience, helped her to understand the endless number of documents that come before Council, and when she needed help working through them, it has always been available from township staff.

“I want to credit Staff for all their help. We have been fortunate that our Manager of Financial Services takes the time to make sure we have a full understanding of the challenges we are facing, and with the details and implications of our asset management plan. I think we work well together. It has been a very respectful relationship, and that works for me.”

One thing that became apparent early on in her four-year council term, was that things do not happen quickly in the municipal world.

“There are a lot of limiting factors that we face, not only from our own finances, but also from costs we need to take on because of provincial directives, and that can make it harder to get projects off the ground,” she said.

She is one of the most active councillors in terms of committee work, currently sitting on 7 township committees, including the housing, and septic reinspection committee, which she chairs.

She made the decision to run for mayor early this summer after some careful consideration. She said that she decided to run because she feels her experience, and commitment to consensus building, would be an asset for the township if she is in that role, and partly to make sure that there are at least two candidates on the ballot.

She entered the race in July, about midway through the extended four-month registration window.

“I wanted to make sure that people have a choice for mayor,” she said, “and I have the time and energy for the job.”

She said that because of the fiscal constraints faced by the township, it is important, “to maintain what we are doing, at a reasonable cost. We all run on a platform of making change, but the ability to make change is so incremental in municipal politics, and particularly in Central Frontenac.”

She is in favour of taking a serious look at licensing short term rental properties, making sure that whatever is developed focuses on the commercial players that have come into the market through web sites like Airbnb, and does not extend its reach into the realm of cottage owners renting to friends and relatives in order to help cover their taxes.

“Our community is growing, we saw an increase of over 500 people between 2016 and 2021, and there has been a lot of new construction since then, and I think this next council will have the opportunity to manage growth,” she said.

The housing committee has been working with 2B Developments on a plan for the Sharbot Lake Public School site, and as a Ward 3 councillor she felt it was important to play a role in moving that forward on the housing committee, and plans to continue as mayor, if elected.

“That’s one of the projects where we need to look long term for change. Hopefully in the next term we will have done all the work to create a viable path forward for that project. But we will have some decisions to make. Do we want to control what is built there, focusing on seniors housing and a library? That would require financing. Or do we want to turn the property over to the private sector, which means losing control but still creating new economic activity and property assessment, without taking on any debt?”

She said that she is not a fan of strong mayor powers, and is not planning to make use of them except where the province has given municipalities no choice, such as presenting a draft budget to Council.

“I think the best decisions are made when we work together, and that is what I intend to do. I might have to put some of my dispute resolution training into play at times, but I do feel it is better to keep an open mind, and if a decision goes against me, it is often better to let that happen and fight another day.”

“I like to say that I am offering practical, responsible leadership to the voters in Central Frontenac.”