Councillors say goodbye

By Leigh Blenkhorn Barrie Advance Dec 02, 2010
BARRIE – For former councillor Jerry Moore, it’s going to be odd not to have to rush to city hall on Monday night.
Moore, who chose not to seek re-election due to work commitments, said he enjoyed his seven years representing Ward 8.
“I’m definitely going to miss it,” he said, adding there were many projects accomplished in the last term of which he is proud.
“The biggest thing for me is the new budget process that we put in place, which makes the city more accountable and makes the budget process run more smoothly,” he said.
Three other councillors are also not returning to the council table this Monday night, including Ward 9 Councillor Andrew Prince, who served four years.
For Prince, the biggest accomplishments were the approval of the new south-end library and being able to say that council brought in the lowest property tax increases in the last decade. He said his term only deepened his passion for the city.
“I am proud that Barrie is now not only a location that you drive through to get to the cottage, but has become a destination to live, raise a family, invest in and a place to visit and enjoy everything this city has to offer,” he said, adding he will “continue to be active, helping Barrie be the great city that it is.”
Mike Ramsay, former Ward 1 councillor, will not return after losing a bid for the Mayor’s seat.
“I would like to say it has been an honour to serve citizens as the Councillor for Ward 1,” he said. “The Simcoe Muskoka Regional Cancer Centre/RVH project which I have been working on, along with many others, is I feel my most important long-term contribution to our community.”
For Rod Jackson, who lost his Ward 3 seat, it’s tough to pick out one single accomplishment.
“We have done great work in prioritizing infrastructure improvements and gathering financial support for these improvements from other levels of government,” he said. “That is a major accomplishment that doesn’t get much attention because its not flashy, but is critical to our future.”
Jackson is most proud of introducing the safe parks and streets strategy.
“We can’t depend on police or politicians to keep us safe. We need to behave as active citizens by taking an active role working together as a community,” he said.
Jackson said he also enjoyed representing his neighbours.
“It was an experience I’ll never forget,” he said. “It was an honour and a pleasure.”