There will be three familiar faces on Innisfail's new town council to join four new ones.
Brian Spiller, who left his council seat last month to become mayor after being acclaimed, will be joined by incumbent councillors Mark Kemball and Heather Taylor. Gavin Bates, Danny Rieberger, Patt Churchill and Doug Bos will join the three veterans. This municipal election features the new four-year terms for council members.
“I think it is a good thing to have new faces. New faces is new ideas. They are four well-rounded members of the community, all from different segments that will bring a lot of new thoughts to the council,” said Spiller, who was at the Learning Centre on election night to see who would be joining him on council. “These are the four that I anticipated coming but you never know what the voters are going to do.”
The unofficial vote count from the Oct. 21 municipal election showed that 1,473 Innisfailians, including advanced and special ballots, came out to vote – 26 per cent of the town's total 5,676 eligible voters. That is down from the 2010 municipal election when about 33 per cent of eligible voters cast ballots.
A big reason for the lower voter turnout, said town officials, was that the mayor's position was acclaimed. Incumbent Mayor Jim Romane stepped down after one term and Spiller, who served one term as councillor, was the only candidate who signed nomination papers for mayor on nomination day last month.
The vote count, which will be official on Oct. 25, showed that Kemball had the highest numbers of votes amount the nine council candidates with 1,052. Bates came second with 918, followed closely by Taylor who had 916. Rieberger came fourth with 847 votes, while Churchill had 839. Bos grabbed the last council seat with 759 votes.
“I am just really happy that I made it. I'm glad people have faith in me and I hope I can stand up to their expectations,” said Rieberger.
Meanwhile, the vote totals of the elected council members were followed by newcomer Jodi Desjardins who came in seventh with 659 votes. Jim Humble had 598 while Jack Kline finished with 449.
“I am thrilled. I am looking forward to getting these next four years underway. Let's get at it,” said Kemball, adding he was surprised he was top vote getter. “The field was great. I think we have some great people and I am looking forward to working with the new people.”
It was the second attempt at a council seat for Doug Bos, who narrowly missed being elected in 2007 when he wound up in seventh place. He said he looking forward to the challenge.
“I am excited that people thought that I might be able to help,” said Bos.
Bates said he was surprised to finish as high as he did but added he worked hard in the campaign to win the support of voters.
“Going door to door is what did it because I ran into so many people who said ‘You are the first or the second who has come out here and I will vote for you',” said Bates.
Taylor said the election victory is a springboard for her to work hard on the issues that matter most to her.
“The new Autumn Glen is going to be one of my biggest focuses. That is going to be a tough road. We know we have to do it,” said Taylor of the widely held belief in the community that a new modern seniors housing facility is urgently needed for Innisfail. “The other thing I would like to see move forward is something for our children that are falling through the cracks. We've had a couple of proposals and we're looking at that.”
Churchill said fiscal responsibility is her number 1 priority.
“You look for efficiencies, and try and balance your budget. Our water and sewer rates are going to be a big issue and we are going to have to mitigate that as much as we can,” said Churchill, a former councillor who was defeated in the 2010 election in a bid to become mayor. “Just being responsible – spending every dollar like it is your own and taking it out of your own pocket, which in theory you are. That is how you do it.”
Meanwhile in Red Deer County there will be recounts in two of the six divisions in after ties in both Division 3 and Division 4, returning officer Nancy Lougheed told the Mountain View Publishing.
In Division 3 incumbent Penny Archibald and challenger Don Church each garnered 288 votes. Challenger Darlene Schmidt got 90 votes.
In Division 4, incumbent David Hoar and challenger Connie Huelsman each garnered 328 votes.
Under the Local Authorities Election rules, when the ties were recorded in each division, Lougheed placed both names in a hat and drew out one of the names.
The person whose name was drawn – in this case Don Church in Division 3 and Connie Huelsman in Division 4 – was given one additional vote and deemed to be elected.
Once the recount is completed, if there is still a tie, then Church and Huelsman would be confirmed to be elected, she said.
Lougheed said she will likely set a date for the recounts on Oct. 22.
In Division 5 incumbent Richard Lorenz won re-election, garnering 390 votes against challenger Rod English with 277 votes and Jim Lougheed with 285. The division includes the Spruce View area.
Although he could not be reached for comment immediately following the election, Lorenz said during the campaign that he “wants to maintain consistency on council. I want to ensure quality and efficiency when providing services and be mindful of the manner in which tax dollars are utilized.”
In Division 2 Jean Marie Bota won the seat with 194 votes, defeating challengers Edward Collins with 183, Robert Schwartz with 153 and Gary Langevin with 53. The division is on the county's north side.
In Division 6 Christine Moore defeated Joe-Anne Matejka, garnering 247 votes against 88. The division is also in the county's north end.
All vote totals were unofficial Monday night.
Mayor Jim Wood and Division 1 councillor Philip Massier were elected by acclamation on Sept. 23.
In the Chinook's Edge School Division trustee races, incumbent Connie Huelsman has been re-elected as in the Bowden/Spruce View Ward 5, according to unofficial results released Monday night.
Huelsman garnered 573 votes, well ahead of challenger Linda Possakka, who garnered 360 votes.
In the Sylvan Lake Ward 1 challenger Jackie Swainson won with 680 votes against incumbent Joe-Anne Matejka, who garnered 465 votes.
In the Innisfail Ward 4, Holly Bilton, who sought office for the first time, won with 641 votes, against challenger Derek Baird with 564 and Linnea Thompson with 145.
All vote totals were unofficial on Monday.
Sundre area Ward 6 incumbent Ron Fisher, Olds area Ward 7 incumbent Trudy James, Didsbury area Ward 8 incumbent Gord Kerr, Carstairs/Cremona Ward 9 incumbent Sheldon Ball, Penhold/Poplar Ridge/Springbrook incumbent Sherry Cooper, and Delburne/Elnora Ward 3 incumbent Colleen Butler were all elected by acclamation on Sept. 23.
The Innisfail-based Chinook's Edge Division oversees 40 schools in West Central Alberta.
