Mayor race in Senneville

Current councillor Chris Jackson is hoping to oust incumbent mayor George McLeish in the small village of Senneville, and he is fighting for the top job on a platform of more accountability to the public and getting projects moving at a faster pace.

"Council, honestly, has a problem with transparency," Jackson, an investor by trade, told The Chronicle in an interview.

One example he brought up was a failure on council's part to hold a public consultation so far on what to do with a 24-hectare lot where the old Senneville Lodge and veterans' golf course used to stand, up to the purchase and demolition of those two buildings by the Canada Lands Company, a crown corporation, in April 2008.

"We're the town council and we're representing the citizens," said Jackson, adding that, though the corporation may have promised to hold public consultations, the council has a responsibility to do so as well.

Jackson said that he would ideally like to see the 24 hectares divided into a mixed space of industrial, residential and green space zoning, with a preference for industrial development along the length of the highway rather than residential. "It tends to be a transient buyer," he said of anyone who buys property near highways, and that would go against the community spirit of the village, where residents tend to usually remain life-long.

"It's good to see him appropriating my ideas," said incumbent George McLeish when reached for comment. McLeish maintained the only reason why council has not gone ahead with approving a plan for the lot to present to the public is because Jackson voted against a proposal and convinced two other councillors to do the same.

For Jackson, another election issue is the lack of a plan for an unused water filtration plant on Senneville Road that was built several years ago, with, he said, a $2.1 million expense to residents of the town's south side. "It was only for that part of the town," he said, that the plant was built.

According to Jackson, the plant was acquired by the Montreal megacity when Senneville joined during mergers in 2001, and was returned once the town demerged in 2006. However, he said it has been sitting uselessly in its lot since that time, and the 150-200 residents who paid for it have yet to see any form of compensation.

McLeish did not deny the plant's history of getting passed around without being used, but said Jackson has his figures wrong. "It only cost $1.2 million," he said, which would amount to $600 per resident.

He also said Senneville does have a plan for the building, eyeing it as a possible new location for city hall, since the current location is very small. "I don't even have my own office in there," McLeish said with a laugh.

He said a preliminary study by council showed converting the water filtration plant would cost "hundreds of thousands of dollars," but could not name an exact figure.

Now, he said, there remained to be seen whether demolishing the current town hall and building a brand-new one on its lot would be more, or less expensive.

McLeish was also challenged in a mayor race in 2005. He won with 64 per cent of the popular vote. Jackson was elected by acclamation in District 5.