Gary Brown
Gary Brown has been a councillor or reeve for Tehkummah for the past 35 years, with only three years off. He’s just interested in seeing the growth of the community, he explained. He is seeking re-election as part of his commitment to the community.
“We’re at a point here with all these projects coming at us,” he said. “There are three more bridges to do, upstream from Government Road. There’s a culvert on 10th Side Road, another bridge on Concession 6, and two more on Rogers Creek. I think I’m capable of leading council through these.”
“There’s not a day that goes by where there aren’t questions being asked,” he continued. “You have to be able to give answers. You have to research the answer. They might not always like the answer, but you have to be firm in this job.”
The bridge has been a contentious project, but he thinks it was the best decision that could have been made. “The job’s done now and the new council won’t have to deal with it,” he said. “The money was only available for a certain time.” If the work hadn’t been completed now, he explained, it could have bankrupt the township to move forward later if new funding was not available.
“I’ve found that little towns accomplish more with what they’re given,” Mr. Brown said. “You have to be a proactive leader and take chances where you can save money. For example, the harbour project (a few years ago) was supposed to cost $2.4 million and we did it for $900,000. And imagine South Baymouth if we hadn’t undertaken water and sewer a few years back?”
He believes that one of Tehkummah’s biggest challenges is the creation of sustainable jobs for young people. The tourist business keeps falling off. With only a six-month season it’s difficult to earn enough dollars to undertake the upgrading necessary to attract visitors. Many of the businesses are operated by older people with no succession plans. “It’s all part of economic development,” he said. “The government is moving away from that. All the downloading onto the municipalities, it’s unreal. But if somebody comes here and wants to create some sort of business that will create jobs, of course we welcome that.”
“Tehkummah has one of the lowest tax rates on the Island,” Mr. Brown continued. “But there are a lot of the same costs as other municipalities, in proportion. When it comes to spending tax dollars council has very little discretion. There are mandatory expenses like roads, water and sewer, policing, DSB (District Services Board), and so on. It’s nothing like it was back in the day. We’re over legislated now. The government themselves can’t even work it.”
In addition to these challenges, priorities can change quite quickly. “You just have to deal with them as they come up,” he said. “Priorities change.”
Mr. Brown has some advice for future councils. “If you go into council with a one item agenda, you soon find out there’s a lot more to it.”
An all candidates’ meeting has been scheduled for Wednesday, October 8 at the Tehkummah Community Hall. It starts at 7 pm.
