Two candidates are running for mayor in West Perth this year.
Incumbent Walter McKenzie is running against current Deputy Mayor, Doug Eidt. McKenzie says a lot was accomplished the last 4 years, plenty has been done including a new municipal office, fire hall and more. He says going forward, the municipality needs to find a way to accommodate industry and housing needs.
"We're trying to encourage a variety of different houses and housing options, some call it affordable housing, we call it attainable housing. But you've got to get your mindset around what we're dealing with now, young people can't afford the traditional single family dwelling," McKenzie stated.
Doug Eidt echoed that, as he and McKenzie both pointed to a large swath of municipal land that can be used to help expand local industry.
"The next 4 years we're probably gonna have to look at our sewage treatment plant, and our industrial land that we've been working at but haven't quite got there yet. We've got over 50 acres of industrial land that we gotta get serviced and get online. We build houses, but we don't build any industry for people to work at," said Eidt.
Going forward, McKenzie says he thinks he has displayed all the leadership qualities that make him an effective mayor, particularly over the last term with COVID challenges.
"I think the leadership, where we've gone through this past term on council, all our major infrastructure projects that we've done, there was only one that wasn't unanimous with council. I think that's part and parcel with being a good leader, though, you hear everyone's voice, weigh the pros and cons and you should be able to come up with a unified decision, and I think I've shown I can help do that as a leader," McKenzie shared.
Eidt says he has a simple message for voters.
"My message would be that I wanna leave West Perth a better place in 4 years than it is today, and that could be from industry, from housing, business retention and expansion. That's my whole goal, is to improve West Perth," Eidt concluded.
The 2022 Municipal Elections are slated to be held on Monday, October 24. The Municipality of West Perth will be using of internet/telephone voting methods for the 2022 Municipal Election. Voters can choose to vote by phone or online - No paper ballot option. Internet and telephone voting allows eligible voters to cast their vote from anywhere, as long as they have an internet connection and/or access to a telephone.
For more information, visit https://www.westperth.com/en/municipal-office/Municipal_Elections.aspx.
Around Perth County, Jim Aitcheson was acclaimed as Mayor for Perth South, and Al Strathdee was acclaimed as Mayor for St. Marys.