All the candidates have voiced their opinions and debated the real issues of North Dundas for the past three weeks. Voting for the municipal election begins on Wed., Oct. 17. Pictured front from left, deputy mayor candidates Allan Armstrong and Brad Pinch and mayoral candidates Tony Fraser and Gerry Boyce. Pictured back from left, councillor candidates Frank Fata, Theresa Bergeron, Gary Annable, John Thompson, Michael Trolly and Tyler Hoy.     Glover photo

Kory Glover
Record Staff
WINCHESTER – The North Dundas municipal election debates ended with a bang Mon., Oct. 1 with hot topics like marijuana legalization and Parmalat continuing to worry residents, even to the point where mayoral candidate, Tony Fraser’s loyalty was questioned.

Fraser has made it very public during his campaign that he has worked at Parmalat for many years and even though he has promised to do everything in his power to help clear out the stench that fills the streets, some residents are questioning where his loyalties lie. One question, directed only at Fraser, simply asked him if he’s really going to be able to split his job on council with his job at Parmalat.

Even though Fraser was not shy to admit that the question was a little inappropriate, he remained professional answering the question.

“As an employee of Parmalat, I’m a hard-working employee, I’m a stand-up type of guy, I’ve been on the health and safety committee for over 20 years, advocating for safer workplaces,” he said. “I do stand-up for what is right and I am able to argue what is right. Being an employee of Parmalat, I see as a benefit, I’m a direct conduit for their issues. I am able to be an advocate for all of us, to make sure that the smell is dealt with in a proper fashion.”

Marijuana legalization is a reality that North Dundas residents will have to deal with come Wed., Oct. 17 but concerns were brought up about how youths will be educated about the substance.

Mayoral candidate Gerry Boyce said that educators should be trying to educate high schoolers and that he doesn’t agree with the provincial law of having outlets, anywhere.

“I think we have to control where the outlets are, we don’t want one at every street corner and we don’t want them beside the schools or libraries,” he said. “I think we should opt out the first year until things get settled and be ready to go in 2019 and have an idea what other municipalities are doing.”

The chlorine in Winchester’s water has caused many medical problems within the town, according to one resident. A question was asked about what procedures will be taken to fix this problem.

Deputy mayor candidate Brad Pinch said that there are a number of ways to treat water to make sure that homeowners have clean water.

“If we changed our purification system, that would be helpful. If we started using other chemicals other than chlorine, and there are natural chemicals out there, then we would actually have an opportunity to have nice, clean water,” he said.

Voting for the municipal election starts Wed., Oct. 17, be sure to go out and vote for the candidate that will best serve you.