Lee Griffi, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
No one would argue being a member of Wilmot Township Council is easy these days. Big-ticket issues like the yet to be passed budget sitting at a nearly 20 per cent increase, the township’s poor finances, councillors filing complaints against others with the integrity commissioner and the controversial Prime Minister’s Path have taken centre-stage. The issues have also led to downright angry ratepayers lobbying criticism at a council made up entirely of rookie politicians.
Despite the negative press and difficult issues, Mayor Natasha Salonen said council is making progress on some files.
“A lot of things are happening behind the scenes in terms of policy work that might not be exciting front-page news, however, really exciting for good governance. Council has requested some reports from staff that were initiated by the previous council.”
Salonen said one of those reports is a people plan, essentially a reorganizational structure.
“Again, not a super-flashy front-page item, but very helpful in terms of being able to find efficiencies within the organization to make sure we are working in the best way possible from a corporate standpoint.”
She added the township is also looking at ways to have policies in place to ensure reports to council are completed in a timely manner, something that came out of the current budget process.
“It allows us to fully understand an issue before decisions are made. It’s exciting foundational work we are putting in place to make sure our future is better set up and will put us in a better situation down the road. We are looking at an opportunity with this budget to implement the work needed to get back to good fiscal health.”
Salonen is a young, female mayor, being elected at the young age of 27, something never seen before in Ontario. A lifelong resident of the township, she has an Honours BA in Human Sciences from the University of Oxford. Two and a half years into her mandate the Gazette asked her to reflect on being in the role to date.
“Certainly not what I anticipated, but that’s not a bad thing. I think that could be true of everyone on council. I am very proud of the work we are doing and the fact we have been able to find gaps in our policies and now are setting up better governance going forward. I believe they will leave our municipality in a better place than we found it.”
She added it wasn’t the work she expected on election night but she is enjoying the opportunity to serve the community as its mayor.
Salonen and the rest of council have come under severe criticism from many members of the community and some infighting has occurred, particularly as a result of recent town halls held by councillors. She explained it is part of the job.
“Any public-facing job, you are going to face criticism, fair or not. I also recognize this is the level of government closest to the people. Some of the criticisms I get, I have no control over the decisions being made when it is, in fact, other levels of government responsible.”
She added she is able to understand where residents are coming from and often the anger and frustration aren’t with her as a person.
“I am certainly open to valid criticism because constructive criticism is the only way to grow, but I don’t go on social media anymore, and I don’t think I am worse off for it. I was anticipating it to a level, having worked in both federal and provincial politics.”
One wish Salonen does have is that her critics would stop and think and perhaps re-read something before hitting the send button or bothering to have a face-to-face conversation with her.
“That can be said for many things and any frontline staff person would appreciate that approach by people as well.”
As mentioned earlier in the story, but without naming any names, there does appear to be somewhat of a divide between members of council. While Salonen didn’t address the subject directly, she did say disagreement is healthy.
“Every government should represent diversity in thought and if council is always voting the same way, there’s probably a problem there and you’re not having accurate representation. What I continue to expect from council is to respect each other and do the work to represent our constituents. That often will result in people having different views and votes.”
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