Municipal Affairs
December 18, 2008

Minister Congratulates New Council

The Honourable Dianne Whalen, Minister of Municipal Affairs, extended congratulations to the newly elected municipal council that will serve the Town of Roddickton-Bide Arm when it becomes effective on January 1, 2009.

In late September, the towns of Roddickton and Bide Arm signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Department of Municipal Affairs to amalgamate.

The new town will be led under the direction of Mayor Ray Norman, who was the former Mayor of Roddickton. Mayor Norman was elected by acclamation, as was Shanna Randell for Ward One and Tennis Cassell for Ward Two. On December 9, the towns held an election for the remaining four council seats, which were won by Wade Reid, Kevin Cassell, Janice Pilgrim and Tony Randell.

"I would like to congratulate Mayor Norman and the new members of council," said Minister Whalen. "The Department of Municipal Affairs looks forward to working with the new council as together, we work towards creating a viable, sustainable and strong community."

Minister Whalen also commended the municipal leaders who led the amalgamation initiative.

"Mayor Norman of Roddickton and Mayor Wade Reid of Bide Arm should be commended for taking the initiative to investigate and pursue the concept of regional co-operation," said Minister Whalen. "It demonstrates their strong leadership, vision and commitment to their towns and the residents they serve. They saw the need for improved services and quality of life for the people of their communities and took the steps necessary to make this a reality."

The residents of both communities will see many benefits from this merger. Duplication of services will be avoided and economies of scale realized. Most importantly, residents of both towns will experience improved services especially with regard to road upgrading and improvements and expansion of older water and sewer systems.

This MOU has also meant the new town will have priority access to capital works funding and has the surety of having a mulit-year capital works plan supported by a 90 per cent contribution from the province. Also included is a substantial write down on debt to allow the new town to be able to comfortably afford its 10 per cent share.

"I look forward to the amalgamation officially coming into effect in the new year," said Mayor Norman. "Both communities are going to see many benefits and I envision a brighter future ahead for all our residents. We have a strong council assembled. One of our first priorities will be the economy of the town and getting important infrastructure improvements, such as water and sewer work, underway."

Mayor Norman and Mayor Reid also expressed their thanks to the Provincial Government for its role in getting the amalgamation to this final stage.

"The co-operation of the Department of Municipal Affairs and the Honourable Trevor Taylor, our area MHA, throughout the entire amalgamation process was nothing but superb," added Mayor Norman. "Their 'hands-on' approach was greatly appreciated and I am looking forward to working with both Minister Whalen and Minister Taylor in the future."

"I too would like to thank the minister and staff of Municipal Affairs for getting us to where we are today," said Mayor Reid. "Along with our MHA, they were extremely approachable and our positive working relationship has resulted in this beneficial merger. I look forward to continuing to work with both parties when I assume my new role as council member for the Town of Roddickton-Bide Arm in January."

The Honourable Trevor Taylor, MHA for the Straights and White Bay North, also offered his congratulations to the new council.

"I would like to congratulate Mayor Norman and the newly elected municipal council," said Minister Taylor. "The communities of Roddickton and Bide Arm have worked very hard to get to this stage in the amalgamation process. Over the course of the next five years, the newly-formed municipality will realize the benefit of their efforts. They will be in a better financial position and therefore able to offer a higher quality of service to the residents. I wish the Town of Roddickton�Bide Arm every success in the future."

The Provincial Government is very supportive of regional cooperation initiatives that lead to viable, sustainable communities. The Department of Municipal Affairs allocated $1 million in Budget 2008 to facilitate such co-operation initiatives and to date, more than 18 groupings involving over 40 municipalities have expressed interest in exploring such ventures.

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Media contact:
Jennifer Collingwood
Director of Communications
Department of Municipal Affairs
709-729-1983, 690-2498
JenniferCollingwood@gov.nl.ca

2008 12 18                                                     10:20 a.m.


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