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Wednesday, June 30, 2010 Orono Weekly Times - 11 Candidates come forward in Ward 4 Clarington The opportunity to replace Gord Robinson, the Local Councillor for Ward 4, has sparked a fair amount of interest. Currently five individuals have filed papers with the Municipal Clerk to replace Gord Robinson, who in January filed his nomination paper to run as a candidate for Regional Councillor Wards 3 and 4. Robinson has held the Local Councillor seat since 2000 and held on to the seat for two more elections, though in 2003 he was uncontested. A week ago, we asked all the candidates to tell us a little about themselves and why they are running for public office. Cecil Mackesey of Newcastle was the first candidate for Ward 4 Local Councillor to file his nomination papers with the Clerk's Department. Mackesey first ran for political office in 2000 when he unsuccessfully challenged Clarington Mayor Diane Hamre for the top seat. He later ran for a position as a School Board Trustee and served for one term. Mackesey has an extensive list of what he calls his "community activism," which includes being a former scout leader, executive member of the Newcastle Ratepayers Association, and a fundraiser for various community organizations. Clarington needs responsible leadership to make sure growth doesn't outpace public services, and council must control growth responsibly, Mackesey says. Taxpayers have a right to be heard, and should not be muzzled or silenced by council for attempting to voice their opposition to council, according to Mackesey. He also feels that the municipality needs to do more to promote its agricultural sector. "We need to help ensure the family farm continues to be a vibrant sector of our economy in Clarington," Mackesey stated. The second candidate to file his nomination papers was Robert Jackson of Orono. Jackson says he is running in the municipal election to try to lower taxes and reduce waste. He feels the proposed garbage incinerator for Clarington, and the wind turbines are the big issues of this election. Jackson has lived in the area for 40 years and has owned and operated Jackson Heating for 22 of those years. He is a past Lion's Club member and was captain for the volunteer fire department. Robert Willett of Newtonville filed his nomination papers in May because he feels he has an "honest, downto-earth grasp of what we need in our rural areas". One of his main concerns is the lack of a full-time fire department in the village of Newcastle. He is also concerned about the loss of prime agricultural land to development. Willett says the lack of public transit in the rural areas of Clarington makes it difficult for seniors to get to doctors appointments, social events and grocery stores. Christopher Brown, age 24, says he wants to be the voice of the next generation on Council. "Only a next generation candidate can truly discuss concerns for the next generation of citizens," he says. Brown is a freelance journalist, a 5th generation Newcastle citizen, and feels Clarington's deficit and finding solutions to reduce it will be a major issue facing the next council. Clarington's steep increase in taxes over the past four years will be another issue talked about during this election campaign, according to Brown. Dean Perrin was the latest addition to the list of candidates for the Local Councillor Ward 4 position. Perrin lives in Newcastle where he also runs a company which offers support to businesses. As the current Chair of the Newcastle and District Chamber of Commerce, Perrin says "We need to open up Clarington for business." Standing on the sidelines complaining does not work, Perrin says, "We need new ideas and a pro-active attitude." As a resident of Newcastle, Perrin says he sees the need for changes in the community and it is his goal to make a positive difference. Anyone wishing to run as a candidate in the upcoming municipal election has until 2 p.m. on Friday, September 10th to file their papers with the Clerk's Office at the Municipal Administration Centre in Bowmanville. An application fee of $100 for council position and $200 for the mayor's position is required at time of nomination. The application fee is refunded if the candidate is successful in their bid for elected office, or if they receive more than two percent of the vote for their seat. Election Day is Monday, October 25th. As this council has abolished the vote-by-mail method of election used in Clarington for the last three municipal elections, voters will be casting ballots in polling stations on Election Day.