On Monday afternoon, Chris Carrier will be taking his Oath of Office to officially become Coun. Chris Carrier.
On March 10, Carrier was appointed to the vacant Collingwood council seat by a vote of 6-2. He will now serve in the seat until the end of the 2022 term.
“I’m glad my camera was off. I had never envisioned coming back to council. All those emotions came like a wave. I enjoyed the moment,” he said.
Carrier served on Collingwood Council for four consecutive terms, from 1998 to 2010, first as a councillor and then as mayor from 2006 to 2010. He currently works as a national accounts manager for Fire Marque Inc.
“This was an extraordinary circumstance that happened. We had an incumbent member of council resign with a short period of time before the election. If it were closer to the election, council could have functioned without having to replace that position,” he said.
Carrier also points to current Mayor Brian Saunderson running in the provincial election in June under the Progressive Conservative banner, and should he win, it leaving another vacancy within the municipal council.
“He, too, may be leaving,” said Carrier. “I thought I could help this team. I voted for all eight of them (in 2018). I’ve watched what they’ve done. I felt I could lend my skill set to help them.”
“We’re going into silly season. I’m fully aware of what political silly seasons are like,” he said.
Carrier recalls dealing with a council appointment process in 2004/05 when former Coun. Joe Gardhouse left his position and council at that time voted to appoint Greta Gill. The process then was entirely in-camera, however during last week’s process, some discussions occurred in-camera, but the speeches and vote took place in public.
“This time, it was done openly but with some sensitivity to all the people who put their names forward,” he said.
After performing the Oath of Office on Monday, Carrier says he’s been busy reading through all the different files to get up to speed in preparation for his first meeting back.
As part of that, he says he has been consulting with the town’s integrity commissioner to familiarize himself further with the new transparency measures that have been put in place this term.
Carrier’s name pops up on the town’s lobbyist registry for having conversations with Mayor Brian Saunderson, Coun. Kathy Jeffery and Coun. Mariane McLeod in early 2021 regarding the possible hospital re-development at Poplar Sideroad and Raglan Street.
When asked about these activities, Carrier says he was not paid by anyone or asked by anyone to have these conversations with members of council.
“I was not obligated to put those conversations on the town’s lobbyist registry, however, in the spirit of openness and transparency, I did,” he said. “I was just a citizen advocating for that site.”
Overall, Carrier says he has been in talks with the integrity commissioner regarding how to address his own potential conflicts.
He said he will likely step back on votes regarding Collingwood Fire and Emergency Services as his employer has links to municipal fire services. He is also seeking integrity commissioner advice regarding the Poplar Regional Health and Wellness Village, as he has a personal relationship with one of the developers.
“I believe it’s a disqualifying interest for me that I can’t sit objectively, but I will be asking,” he said. “In my 13 years, I think I had a pretty good record of having integrity-filled decision making, and I’m pleased to be a part of that again for the next few months.”
Before he takes a seat at the familiar table, Carrier says he’d like to express gratitude.
“I’d like to thank Tina Comi for her three-plus years on council. When you take a look at the decision-making of nine people, everybody was involved in moving our community forward from 2018 to recently,” said Carrier. “It’s a hard job.”
