In Wasaga Beach you have 3 people running for Mayor. Current Mayor, Cal Patterson is seeking another term, Deputy Mayor, David Foster, is looking to move up to the big chair, and newcomer, Brian Smith is seeking to lead the town for the next 4 years.
Cal Patterson pictured above has been a fixture on town council for nearly 25 years. He started off by serving as a member of council for a few terms, then moved up to Deputy Mayor, and is now seeking his 4th term as Mayor. Politics can be a very funny business, as it sets up "political camps" and placed residents against one another so their candidate can get elected. Being Mayor, means he has a record to defend, and Patterson's record has gotten worse over the years, and Wasaga Beach has suffered because of his lack of leadership in attracting tourists to the town. Since the fire that destroyed most of beach area 1 back in 2007, we've only heard promise after promise being broken by this Mayor. He put his faith in the Levy brothers, and everyone knows how that worked out for the town. Does Cal Patterson know how to play the political game? the answer is a big yes, but does Cal Patterson know how to be a good and effective mayor? the answer is a big no.
Current Deputy Mayor, David Foster is seeking to step up to the big chair and become Mayor of Wasaga Beach. Foster like Patterson has served on council for many years. For Foster unlike Patterson, politics is just a part-time gig for him. He's currently employed with Scotiabank in Wasaga Beach. Foster is actively involved in the community and does a great job in managing his time between attending council meetings and county council meetings, while still having a full time job. Patterson on the other hand is retired and can devote his time to being both Mayor and Warden of Simcoe County. While I do like Foster, I find he's not done much during his time on council both as Deputy Mayor and just a regular member of council. Could it be that he's just one voice with little to no power? or could it be that he just does not have any good ideas, which he could use to rally the other council members to back his vision? To me his neither here or there, and if he does become Mayor of Wasaga Beach would he be able to rally the other members of council to back his ideas?
The 3rd candidate seeking to become Mayor of Wasaga Beach is Brian Smith. Some have said that Smith should first serve his time seeking a position on council before taking a crack at the big chair. I've never understood why people would make such a comment like that. It could be that they support another candidate?, maybe they are scared that an outsider could bring about real change? or maybe they just don't understand how our political system works. All I know about Smith is that he's a very successful business person, and a great family man. Some voters seem to think that being successful in business is not the same as being Mayor. I disagree with that statement, as a mayor of any town or city is considered the "Chairman of the Board" and for a town or city to be successful it needs to be run like a business. Does Wasaga Beach not have a budget they need to follow? Yes they do, just like a business. I find Smith's plan for Wasaga Beach to be a very sensible plan, and one that could work to bring Wasaga Beach back to where it once was before.
In closing voters this time around have 3 very different choices on who they want as their next Mayor. the key is to make sure that everyone who can vote, does vote.
Until next time!
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