Belleville Mayor Mitch Panciuk joined the Lorne Brooker Show Wednesday to discuss the process to select a new councillor, after the passing of Pat Culhane.
On Monday, council decided to create an Ad hoc committee to advise on who should be chosen.
The issue became a hot button topic, when Tyler Allsopp, who was the first runner up in Belleville Ward, was not chosen to replace Culhane.
Panciuk says he never told anyone else to vote a certain way, and he is only one vote.
“I believe that we should not only have one female on Belleville City Council. There was also a tradition that goes back 40 plus years since 1978, that we have had more than one female on Belleville City Council.”
He adds when they voted Monday and Alsopp was not selected, council needed to move forward and choose someone.
“There were four councillors that chose not to provide any input whatsoever. We still have to move forward, that is the reality of this. None of us want to be here because we did not want to see Pat leave. We are and now we have to make these decisions.”
Councillors Chris Malette, Garnet Thompson, Ryan Williams, and Paul Carr wanted Tyler Allsopp named to the seat. He was the first runner up in the Belleville Ward voting in 2018.
Councillors McCaw, Sandison, Kelly, and Mayor Panciuk were on the other side of the ledger.
Here is Tyler Allsopp’s interview on the Lorne Brooker Show. CLICK HERE
Here is the original story from the Belleville City Council meeting. CLICK HERE
Mayor Panciuk’s full interview on the Lorne Brooker Show Wednesday can be heard below.
