Kingsville Town Council has filled its vacant seat.
John Dreidger was officially accepted and sworn in as a town councillor during Monday night's council meeting. He then immediately took his place on the dais and began hearing the delegations speaking on the night's agenda.
Dreidger was appointed to the council vacancy left by the resignation this summer of councillor Sandy McIntyre, who left council for family and health reasons. With five at-large seats on council, Dreidger had come in with the sixth-highest vote total in the 2014 municipal election. The town decided to appoint Dreidger to the seat on a "next-in-line" basis, rather than call an expensive by-election for the seat or ask the public to submit applications.
Dreidger says he's eager to get to work and is already getting up to speed on some of the town's current issues.
"It's basically a lot of fun, because you're kind of not bombarded, but you're exposed to issues that require problem solving," says Dreidger. "I always thought I was a problem solver, so this is kind of what I really want to do."
The new councillor says it was a surreal experience to get the phone call offering him the seat, though he has no regrets about his unsuccessful campaign three years ago.
"When the election was finished, I put my signs away and I'm thinking 'well, that was a good ride,'" says Dreidger. "I got close, which was very satisfying and that was three years ago. So now it's kind of a rude awakening."
Dreidger has expressed exploring possibilities in regional transit and urban planning as a councillor, but he is also very interested in improving the look of his own area.
"I live in Cottam, so it's a natural for me," says Dreidger. "I'll be looking at what we can do to enhance the village a little bit."
Dreidger will soon be starting prep work on the upcoming budget sessions and says he is already looking at running for council in his own right in the next municipal election, set for fall 2018.