HaltonHillsToday is profiling every candidate in the upcoming municipal election. Up next - candidates running for mayor.
The prospect of going from a councillor seat to the mayor’s position has given Ann Lawlor some moments to think about what sort of leader she wants to be.
Among being a consensus builder, she said she will design a budget to address the current times and orient all of the new faces on council.
“You hear about other councils where there is a division or where people are very focused on their particular turf,” Lawlor said. “That has not been the style I've experienced on our council, and it certainly wouldn't be something that I would look forward to in the future if I'm mayor.”
“I hope we can maintain that approach of achieving consensus and looking at the interests of the town as a whole,” she added.
The retirements of Moya Johnson, Ted Brown and the mayoral candidacy of Bryan Lewis and Lawlor will create one of the biggest shuffles in council’s recent history. Many rookie councillors will be occupying seats that were, in the past, immovable.
Lawlor expressed excitement at the prospect of “new ideas to bubble up” as well as sorrow for losing the “institutional wisdom” of the retiring councillors.
“So orientation and training is going to be really important,” she emphasized.
The fiscally-minded Lawlor has also been forced to acknowledge some harsh facts. Inflation and hard economic times are making her cast her gaze on the budget.
“I still have a huge amount of respect for people's money. And I don't think that big budget increases are a good idea right now,” she said.
“I think that we need to hang tight to a budget. This will not be a time for big tax increases. I think there will probably be items that we are going to defer to the future.”
She said this could include capital projects like building recreational facilities, road maintenance or doing renovations on municipal buildings.
“I am still very passionate about local services. I have continued to be quite an active volunteer with various organizations,” she added. “We will be able to ensure that the basics are covered.”
This is Lawlor’s fourth election as she has served Halton Hills for 12 years. She is the manager of the Friends of Deveraux House, which looks after the Victorian-era home located near Maple Avenue on Trafalgar Road.
