By Connie Tabbert
Editor
WHITEWATER REGION — Whitewater Region Mayor Hal Johnson is happy to see that population growth in the township has grown by 1.3 percent.
“It’s because this council is promoting, and backing, the changes required in order to have growth,” he said.
The question that is being asked of people who want to move here is how can we help you, the mayor said.
“Before, that was never said, that was never asked,” he noted.
Mayor Johnson explained, “We have a small committee that is designated strictly to move people’s projects ahead by helping them work through the legalities, so that it’s a case of, if you need a plan, what kind of plan, here’s where you go to get the plan accomplished.”
This council is working hard to encourage people to move to the municipality, he said.
“This council is extremely pro-active, that’s why we’re having some success,” Mayor Johnson said, “And we’re not satisfied with the success, we’re hoping to do much better.”
There was no growth before and within two years of this council being elected growth is now happening, he said. While Petawawa, and the townships of Horton and Admaston/Bromley have had larger growth, Mayor Johnson said those municipalities are closer to a more populated area.
“We’re farther up the street,” he said, “but we have had movement, and that’s because we’re trying to help.”
While he admits the increase of 1.3 percent “is pretty disappointing,” he said, “it’s a whole lot bigger than it was. These numbers are showing an improvement.
“I’m happy with the fact it’s starting,” the mayor said, continuing, “We have proven to ourselves, with this council, that it can happen.”
Mayor Johnson noted there have been many meetings with groups interested in doing special programs, many of them never tried before in the municipality or close to it.
“There are some really broad-thinking people,” he said. “They’re starting to understand that we’re willing to help them and think a little bit outside of the box.
“If you propose something, we’ll see if we can help you get there.”
Mayor Johnson said one of the things he’d like to see happen is the former Westmeath school developed into a hub that would draw people into that area.
“There are places right in Westmeath that are just begging for people to develop them into something productive,” he said. “We still have an arena. We still have a superb hall in the arena. We still have a school.
“These things (new projects), if we support them and grow them, once they start they’ll snowball and we don’t have to push them anymore and we can move to another project,” he explained.
He noted this council is looking to develop more land in the industrial park because what properties that were for sale have been sold.
“When we decided to drop the price of land in order to sell it, we did it, and now we’re running out of land, we’ve sold that much of it,” he said.
“We’re going to move the road back and try and develop three more lots.
“That’s refreshing, because Westmeath Township, when I was on council in Beachburg, started that (Industrial Park) because they wanted economic development,” Mayor Johnson said. “They put everything so far out of reach financially, and refused to put in potable water because they thought big companies would come in, full of money, and they’d put it in.
“But, they went three kilometres up the road and hooked onto Laurentian Valley’s water system,” he stated.
The question this council wanted to answer was what can it offer to people that nobody else can.
“We looked at that hard,” Mayor Johnson said. “The only thing we can offer is what can do to help you be here, that’s all we have.
“So, we are pushing that, and we had growth of 1.3 percent.”
