Editorial

December 4 2024

Navigating the changes ahead

If, as the saying goes, all politics is local, then so are the issues that matter most to people where they live, work and play. That’s both the joy and challenge of municipal government. In the end, if you are a councillor, it’s your neighbours you are elected to serve – along with the broader community.

For 30 years, it’s safe to say, former Municipality of the District of Guysborough (MODG) District 6 Councillor and Warden Vernon Pitts managed to balance the needs of his constituents – including many of his own neighbours – with the needs of the entire municipality at a time of enormous change. For him and the other members of local councils, past and present, it wasn’t always easy. But, it was always necessary.

As MODG’s Warden Paul Long told Alec Bruce this week, “Thirty years ago, we were in the midst of a steady decline in population, the financial outlook was bleak and we were looked upon provincially as a ‘have not’ municipality. Through the development of projects like Sable Offshore Energy, Sable Wind and the municipal landfill facility, to the many pending projected developments we have today, the MODG has grown into a municipality that is a leader in economic development.”

It’s a tribute to Pitts – who received provincial and municipal citations last week for his contributions to municipal government – that he, like many of his council colleagues, managed to see the big “whole of Guysborough” picture in this important work.

The change that Long references is accelerating as the municipality barrels towards the future. New industries, like onshore and offshore wind, beckon. New industrial infrastructure – like the Black Point Quarry near Canso and the Melford International container terminal near Mulgrave – will present new opportunities and challenges to current and future local governments.

Now, as before, councillors must train their eyes on both what’s in the best interest of their constituents and the entire municipality in a time of significant change.

Again, it won’t be easy. One of the MODG’s biggest challenges over the coming year will be finding a suitable replacement for retiring Chief Administrative Officer Barry Carroll, who’s been at the helm of municipal administration here for the past 16 years. His successor will be responsible for managing a budget that is likely to grow substantially due to the “many pending projected developments” to which Warden Long alludes.

The challenges are significant, but there continues to be considerable experience around the council table – valuable experience from both inside and outside of local government – to help councillors navigate these changes in the interests of all constituents.