New Kincardine council sworn in at inaugural meeting

The new Kincardine council was sworn in at the inaugural meeting Wednesday night (Dec. 3).

Mayor Anne Eadie, deputy mayor Jacqueline Faubert, and councillors Laura Haight, Andrew White, Gordon Campbell, Maureen Couture, Mike Leggett, Linda McKee and Randy Roppel, were piped into the council chamber by Jennifer Farrell of the Kincardine Scottish Pipe Band.

They each then took the oath of office, administered by clerk Donna MacDougall, and then took their seats at the council table.

"It certainly is an honour and a privilege to serve as the mayor of the Municipality of Kincardine for the next four years," said Eadie. "I promise to work for you, to the best of my ability."

She said the people are the greatest feature of this municipality, many of whom have a heritage in the agricultural industry and the nuclear industry. Kincardine also has many dedicated, hard-working volunteers.

Eadie said the new council will be facing a lot of challenges over the next four years, and must deal with three major issues immediately: the proposed Bruce Telecom sale, the natural gas project, and the 2015 budget.

"We have the collective intelligence to come up with solutions to these issues," she said. "We can make good progress as we focus on these areas."

She said Kincardine has a dedicated and knowledgeable staff that manages the day-to-day operations of the municipality.

Currently, council operates under a committee-of-the-whole system with council members acting as policy chairpersons. Eadie suggested that system remain in place for the next two years and then it can be revisited.

Starting in the new year, she wants to set some time aside to meet with ratepayers at the municipal hall. She also wants to allow time to meet with residents at the Underwood office, and asked council to consider meeting once each year in Underwood.

"We all want the best for our municipality and our residents," she said.

Faubert echoed those sentiments, as did the rest of council.

"We have a few things to deal with right away," said Faubert. "We need to move forward together as a council and a community."