Addington Highlands Election - Ward 1

Reeve Tony Fritsch, who was appointed to the position in February to serve out this term of council, is not seeking re-election. Ken Hook, who was elected to council in ward two in both 2018 and 2022, and also served as Deputy Reeve from 2002-2004 and Reeve from 2004-2006, has been acclaimed as Reeve for 2026-2030.

In Ward 2 (the former municipality of Kalada, Anglesea and Effingham) long serving Councillor Helen Yanch and first-time candidate Rodger Holden were the only candidates and have been declared elected. In Ward 1 (Denbigh) incumbents Kirby Thompson and Maurice Leveillé are running, along with David Graham and Royce Rosenblath. They are profiled in this issue, starting on page 11. An all-candidates meeting took place in Denbigh on September 24th. All found candidates were in attendance, and Reeve elect Hook delivered remarks at the start of the meeting.

All of the candidate profiles for the three Frontenac County townships as well as Addington Highlands can be accessed at Frontenacnews.ca, categorised by township and ward/district.

Our election coverage will wrap up next week (October 15) with a look at the candidates for Reeve and Deputy Reeve in Tay Valley for our readers in Maberly. The candidates in South Sherbrooke ward were acclaimed to office. An all candidates meeting took place at the ABC Hall on October 7

Voting by internet and phone, begins on October 19, and continues until October 26. A voting package with a pin numbers, should be arriving by mail to households in all jurisdictions within the next week. If a package does not arrive or is missing a household member, please contact your local township to get registered.

Ward 1

David Graham

David Graham has been working for Addington Highlands in the roads department since 2018.

He lives on Hwy. 28 in Denbigh, in the same house that his parents bought in 1973. They had been living on a farm near Joyceville, but moved back to Denbigh, where his mother was raised. He was 11 at the time. He enjoyed his teenage years in the area, as he has always loved spending time outdoors hunting and fishing, in particular

He spent most of his working career in heavy construction, traveling across Ontario, but came home to Denbigh on weekends.

He is planning to retire from the roads department this coming summer, that is if he does not get elected to council. He took leave from the township in order to run for council, and will not go back to work for the township, if he is elected.

“Over the years this community has been very good to me. People around here always kept an eye on stuff for me, and helped out whenever it mattered,” he said.

If elected, he thinks his road experience will help Council understand road issues a little better than they do now.

Having operated every piece of equipment going, he sees the benefit of buying new equipment over used, but also thinks that it pays to maintain and keep equipment for as long as possible and to keep equipment costs down as much as possible, while making best use of road staff time.

He thinks the roads and bridges in the township are looked after, and he knows there are some major bridge repairs that are pending.

“There are one or two in Ward 2 that are on a weight-rating and can't be ploughed with the heavier truck, so that needs to be addressed.”

He sees the desire for a roof over the Denbigh rink and will work on that, if elected.

“I can remember when Denbigh used to be prettier. A lot of people took pride in their property and they still do. The township also took pride in their property. They should get back to that. We brush it each year but it tends to grow back, and we don't get back on it.

Through the budget, I'd like to see if there is more that can be done. Some are busy, but if someone could go through and clean the rock cuts, that would help,” he said.

Maurice (Moe) Leveille

ho moved, with his wife Elaine, to the Denbigh-Griffith area on a full-time basis, just a few years ago. Since then he has become heavily involved with the local Lions Club, serving on the executive, and as president.

He is encouraged by the growth of the club since he got involved, and this has made him more committed to being involved with the community, in other ways.

In February, a vacancy was declared in Addington Highlands, Ward 1 (Denbigh), when Tony Fritsch was appointed as reeve, Leveille put his name forward, and he was selected in a 3-1 vote.

“It's interesting how Council works,” he said of what he has learned over the past 7 months. “Things move at a snail's pace compared to what I am used to. That is the nature of the space. If elected this time, I hope to try to speed things up a little bit.”

His decision to seek the position, back in February and during this election, comes from, “looking for something to give me a new purpose. And after getting a taste of it, I see that I still have a lot to learn about how the township and the county operate, so I am running.”

One of the issues that concerns him, relates to planning and the amount of time and effort it takes for an applicant to obtain severance.

“I'm trying to dig into what is happening there, and hopefully I will have some suggestions to make.”

He also would like to see more coordination between local groups who put on events in the Denbigh area, particularly between the Lions, and the District 1 rec committee.

He said that communication is an issue in the township.

“One of the things that seems to be lacking is that communication is not running downwards. People are probably not as comfortable approaching Council as they could be. I see my role as creating a liaison between the people and the township. So people can at least understand what is behind the decisions that Council makes. I would like to see a town hall once a month or so, to let people know what is going on, and hear the concerns people have. If elected, or even if I'm not, I'd like to help organise that.”

In general, however, he thinks that the township staff and the road crew are all, “very professional and very efficient.”

Royce Rosenblath

ed in the Vennachar area for his entire life.

When he was a young man, he started working in the roads department of what was then Denbigh, Abinger and Ashby.

In 1986 he took over as the “road boss” in the former township of Denbigh, Abinger and Ashby, where his father James had worked for 26 years. He served in that role for a dozen years, until municipal amalgamation in 1998, when he became the roads and waste management supervisor, in the township of Addington Highlands.

He stayed in that role until he resigned after 29 years as a municipal employee, ten years ago, in November of 2016.

Since then, he has continued to do road work on private roads around the area, and is active in his local church in Vennachar.

He ran for council in 2018 and 2022, finishing third each time by a narrow margin, behind Kirby Thompson, who finished in second place each time. Tony Fritsch received the largest number of votes in Denbigh Ward, in each of those elections.

“My experience in roads and bridges, and managing the waste sites, is something that I believe can be an asset to Council, to bring a bit more understanding of the information brought to Council from Staff. As we all know, it is the most expensive part of the township's entire operation.”

In the next term of council, he thinks there could be some more money invested in the road network.'

“We do what we can, but I personally don't think the gravel roads are re-gravelled as often as they should be, and I would promote some more of a budget allocation for that purpose, if we can find the money for it.”

He is interested in doing something about housing.

“We might look at severances. I think they are too hard to get, and perhaps look at tiny houses as a way to relieve some of the pressure on young and old people to afford housing, in this economy,” he said.

He thinks that it is important for Council to continue to support the fire service.

“The fire service in Denbigh is a lot better than what it was a short time ago, thanks to the volunteers who have come forward, and the efforts of the fire chief. As a council, we also need to make sure that our ambulance service is maintained, at least as a 12-hour service. That service is important for us, and the whole area around us, as well.”

He also thinks the township will be well served by some new members on council”

“It is a small council, and it is easy to get a bit stuck in one way of thinking, so change is good, every once in a while.”

Kirby Thompson

Kirby Thompson has served the residents of Ward 1(Denbigh) for three terms.

His margin of victory has been narrow in each of those elections, however. The largest margin was in 2018, when he finished ahead of Royce Rosenblath by 35 votes.

In each of those elections, however, Tony Fritsch received the largest number of votes in the ward, with Thompson finishing in second, and this time, Fritsch is not running.

In his first term on council, Council had to decide whether to support the application by a wind turbine company to the Independent Energy System Operator (IESO). The turbines were very unpopular in the Denbigh area, where they were slated to be located, leading to contentious public meetings in Flinton.

In the end, the two Ward 1 councillors, Fritsch and Thompson, voted against supporting the application, but the Ward 1 councillors and the reeve, (the late Henry Hog) outvoted them.

“There were a lot of strong feelings about that vote, but at the very next council meeting, there were no lingering hard feelings. We all moved on to deal with the business of the township, and that attitude by Council has served the residents of Addington Highlands,” he said.

Kirby Thompson grew up in nearby Griffith Mattawatchan, moved away for work, and when it came time for Kirby and his wife Bonnie to retire, they bought her parents' family home, and have enjoyed living in Denbigh ever since.

Sitting on council is, for him, “a way to give back,” to the community.

One of the biggest issues facing Council is the budget, which is always a challenge.

“There is so much that is out of our control, like policing costs, fuel costs, and more, that it is always a challenge to keep increases to a minimum,” he said.

He has always worked for both his own ward as well as the township as a whole, he said, pointing out how he advocated for a quicker solution to the Bridge Street culvert issue, which came before Council last winter.

“When we couldn’t get it done quickly, I pushed a bit to make sure we found a way for there to be at least one lane, which worked out okay, I think”.

He said that housing is a big issue throughout rural Ontario, and in Addington Highlands as well. The township is donating a piece of land for Lennox and Addington County to put in a small housing project on Hwy 41, in Ward 2, and he would like to see a similar project in Ward 1.

“I always work to make sure that we get our fair share, while understanding that as a member of council we all need to think about the needs of the entire township,” he said.