Robert McArthur will be the new council representative for Creemore and area.
The Cashtown Corners resident won the Ward 2 seat over Thom Paterson with a 618-411 vote.
“I sense from the reaction of people in Ward 2 that there was a change necessary and I was willing to put forth my name to represent the people,” said McArthur, who was amongst the candidates gathered at the Stayner Arena Monday evening to see the results tabulated. “I’m just so overwhelmed for the support.”
He told reporters that he aims to be part of a council that gets “back to basics” has “a common sense state of mind.”
“We need to expand, and we have to expand our infrastructure to accommodate that, and the snowball just rolls and rolls and rolls,” said McArthur.
He said the ward boundary change gives it more of an agricultural influence, garnering support for his campaign from the farming community.
“That has probably played into the results we got tonight,” said McArthur. “I just thank everybody for the overwhelming support.”
Paterson, who has served four terms on Clearview council, said of the result, “The election results demonstrated clearly what issues mattered most to voters.”
Paul Van Staveren won the position of deputy mayor with 2,402 votes, over Deborah Bronée’s 1,157 votes and Chuck Arrand’s 474.
“It was a good election. We had a lot of good people running and it was nice to see what the people wanted. There are changes and it looks like we are going to have a cohesive council,” said Van Staveren. “It looks like a good bunch of people who can work together. It’s something to look forward to, and it’s a new chapter for me.”
Van Staveren won with almost 60 per cent of the vote.
When asked what he thinks contributed to the strong result he said he expects it’s due to the length of time he has lived in the community, his business experience and the fact that he will have time to dedicate to the job given that he is retiring in December from Stayner Rental, having sold the business.
“We’ll see what happens, that’s all we can do,” said Van Staveren. “It’s going to be fun.”
Mayor Doug Measures, who was acclaimed to a second term, said he is grateful to all the candidates who put their names forward, and for a respectful campaign.
“I believe we have a good council with some sage, experienced people, and some new people who are going to bring some energy,” he said.
“The agricultural sector is clearly being represented on our council with our deputy mayor and councillor for Ward 2 so that’ll be a real plus, I believe, for the community,” said Measures. “I look forward to engaging with each of these councillors and building a new team.”
When the new council is inaugurated in December, it will include returning members Phyllis Dineen (Ward 1), John Broderick (Ward 3), and Robert Walker (Ward 4), along with newcomer Marty Beelen, who will represent Ward 5.
Voting was extended one hour on Oct. 24 due to a technical glitch. At about 6 p.m., the voting system experienced technical difficulties causing access issues, and resulted in voting being extended in Clearview and Collingwood.
Unofficial election results:
Ward 1
Phyllis Dineen, 606
Laura Dockeray-Perry, 182
Ward 2
Robert McArthur, 618
Thom Paterson, 411
Ward 3
John Broderick, 307
Maqsood Dogar, 240
Richard Paul, 187
Ward 4
Robert Walker, 311
Brandon Ward, 252
Dave Witzke, 188
Ward 5
Marty Beelen, 532
Melanie Walters, 207
Voter Turnout: 27.66 per cent as of 4:16 p.m. on Oct. 24.