Hal Johnson, Mayor of the Township of Whitewater Region, recently hosted a pre-Federal budget consultation with Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke MP Cheryl Gallant and other mayors and council representatives from throughout Renfrew County. This was an opportunity for the mayors, or their representatives, to give input on what they would like to see in the next federal budget. “Municipalities own over 60 per cent of public infrastructure,” the MPP said. “They need predictable, long-term funding to meet the needs of their ratepayers. The Mayors clearly told me that they do not want a return to the old system that operated like a lottery with little transparency.” Those at the table, in no particular order, were Renfrew County Warden Peter Emon, who is also Reeve of the Town of Renfrew; Pembroke Mayor Mike LeMay; Petawawa Mayor Bob Sweet; Laurentian Valley Mayor Steve Bennett and Reeve Debbie Robinson; Mayor Jane Dumas South Algonquin Township; Mayor Tom Peckett McNabb/Braeside Township; Don Eady, Mayor of Renfrew; Arnprior Mayor David Reid and Reeve Walter Stack; and Mayor Glenda McKay of Greater Madawaska Township. Photo submitted
