Central Frontenac Election, Hinchinbrooke (Ward 4)

Brent Cameron

Brent Cameron represented Ward 4 (Hinchinbrooke) on Central Frontenac Council between 2014 and 2022, before losing out in the last election.

He is running again this time because “there were things that I was trying to accomplish that I wanted to get back to working on.”

One of those is to foster economic development, even in small ways, in communities throughout the township.

“When I was on council, I chaired both Economic Development and the Sharbot Lake Revitalisation Committee. At the time I said that after we completed Sharbot Lake, we should expand out to other villages and hamlets across the entire township.”

Cameron suggests the creation of ‘Community Revitalisation Committees’ in each village that “pull together both bricks-and-mortar and home-based businesses, district recreation committees, fair boards, lake associations, and others to sit down and discuss what we need to do to attract and grow businesses in each community. Then we can go back to the township with tangible goals.”

Speaking about the township’s Community Investment Plan (CIP), Cameron suggested that the CIP have more invested in it to provide adequate matching grants to approved projects.

One of changes that has taken place since he was last on council, is the new council chamber at the township office. He thinks that holding meetings in the small council chamber with limited room for the public, sends the wrong message to residents.

“I understand that there is a convenience factor in holding meetings there. They don’t have to do all the setup, but I still think the meetings should move back to the Oso Hall.

“When you sit at the council table, and someone comes to address Council, representing a group, with twenty or more supporters sitting behind them, it sends a signal to Council, and they notice. Making room for no more than 5 or 6 people sends the message that they aren’t welcome.”

It does not bother him that often the room is empty.

“Turnout can be low, but quite often, when we are dealing with an issue that people are passionate about, they show up, and that makes a difference. Don’t think for a minute that members of council don’t feel that. That strikes to democracy.”

Brent Cameron is a 5th generation resident of Hinchinbrooke, where he lives with his family. He works in the Office of the Registrar, at Queen’s, where he works on event planning and communications. He published a book about trade with the Commonwealth in 2005, and has been involved in the CANZUK (Canada, Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom) movement since that time.

Janet Gutowski

Janet Gutowski was a recent arrival in Ward 4 (Hinchinbrooke) when she was first elected to council in 2003.

She went on to serve as mayor of Central Frontenac between 2006 and 2014, when she was defeated by Frances Smith. In the intervening 12 years, she has been active in the community and is the long-time chair of North Frontenac Non-Profit Housing and Central Frontenac Housing

“I am frustrated because I don’t feel that our community is moving forward, and I would like to help turn that around,” she said, when asked why she is returning to municipal politics after 12 years. “We will have a new mayor, and with my experience I would like to think I will be an asset to Council, and the township.”

She thinks the township needs to do a much better job preparing for new projects, whether it be a township office or a public works yard.

She also wants to bring her experience to the housing committee. During her tenure as mayor, a grant came up and she helped spearhead the building of five one-bedroom seniors units on Clement Road. The project sparked some controversy, but it got built and is supporting seniors in the community.

“It is up to us to step up, certainly in terms of affordable housing. The City of Kingston is the service manager for Frontenac County. The city is not initiating projects in Frontenac County. There is money out there, and we need to access it for ourselves because no one is going to access it for us.”

She went to a public meeting in Kingston last week to talk about a new ten-year homelessness prevention plan for Kingston and Frontenac County, and, “other than Councilor Nicki Gowdy, who is on the committee, I found no one else there from the county. Homelessness is different in the country than in the city, and we need to make sure there is something in the plan to address that.”

In her first term on council, Janet Gutowski started up the Economic Development Committee of the township, with a “generous budget of $1,000 per year from Council.”

If elected she will seek to get back on that committee, and would like to bring back the quarterly business over breakfast events.

“They were an opportunity for business owners, new and old, councilors and staff from the township and county to meet and speak to each other. We arranged speakers from organisations like the Frontenac Business Services, to talk with business owners and the people running those businesses. A lot of connections were made at those breakfasts, and much of that has been lost over the years.

If elected, she will advocate for a “full review of the staff complement, and for short term rental regulations”.

“There are many excellent operators of short-term rentals in Central Frontenac, however there are some that are not properly run, which can be a nightmare for neighbours. Proper regulations can address that, without curtailing those who operate well,” she said.

Philip Smith

Philip Smith has been elected 3 times and twice been appointed to council to serve out terms in the 2010’s, and was last elected to council in 2022.

He said that he likes doing the background work that people do not see at the meetings.

“I enjoy the work behind the scenes. You start doing some of the research to be able to speak and ask questions and see there is a lot to it,” he said.

An example he pointed to was the consultation around the schoolhouse property in Sharbot Lake, which will require a lot of effort and study before a good business case can be made for a building project, but that work needs to be done and it is council’s role to follow along and remain informed in order to bring the public interest to whatever ends up being proposed for the site.

He has not always enjoyed council meetings as much, particularly over the last four years.

“This has been the most dysfunctional council that I have ever sat on,” he said, “and I think the way the purchase of the new township office happened, was an example of that.”

He is very much familiar with the building that was purchased, since it was his place of work until Robinson and Associates was disbanded.

“It is a good building, but is not suitable for our needs as a township in the long term. For one thing, it is not big enough and we are already reaching capacity. I did not support it. I think we needed to look at another solution.”

He is more positive about the Central Recreation Committee, which he has been chairing in this current term of council.

“I am proud of how they all work together on that committee, and I really want to see us do a master recreation plan for central Frontenac, where we can look at what kind of programming and facilities people are looking for. Years ago, former Public Works Manager Mike Richardson developed a plan for the Mountain Grove Park, with community involvement and we are using that plan still when looking at grants.” Since the revival of the Central Recreation, we have a township 3 pitch-league and held the first youth fishing tournament this year.

He also said that while he was quite opposed to the approach that was taken for the 2026 budget, the first under strong Mayor power, “it went ok in the end. There was an opportunity for council members to make proposals, and I was able to get a couple of pieces of road work into the budget. We will see how it works with a new mayor in place.”

He is hopeful that having a new group around the council table will result in less disfunction and more unity on council in the next term of council