MANITOUWADGE — It’s been over a month since former councillor Mike Scapinello had submitted his resignation on accepting a job in the township’s public works department.
Since then, the township has been accepting applications to fill the vacant council seat. The township received four applications in total, and during Wednesday night’s special council meeting, Tonilynn Ruff, Cheryl Herrick-McLeod, Bryce Dube, and Margaret Hartling gave their five-minute presentations to Council.
With a three-to-one vote, Tonilynn Ruff will fill the vacant seat for the next three-and-a-half years.
“I'm excited and also nervous but mostly excited,” said Ruff in an interview with SNnewswatch.
Ruff has been a resident of Manitouwadge since 2017, and she has made herself well-known as a volunteer firefighter, with Meals on Wheels, moderator of Manitouwadge information and chat Facebook page, and the treasurer of Wabikoba Cottagers Association. Her previous work experience is in forestry and mining.
When asked why she decided to apply for the municipal council, Ruff explained she wanted to provide her constituents with more accessibility to Council decisions.
“I see a lot of frustration in our community with lack of access to information. People don't understand why council is making the decisions that they're making. I really hope to change that to bring more understanding between council and constituents,” said Ruff.
One of the ways she plans to accomplish her goal is to make herself available to listen to what the people of Manitouwadge want and the sustainable need of the municipality.
For example, Ruff would like to have the municipal website have better search functionality.
“I was looking through the website the other day. I can't even find the dump hours and I am pretty decently good at using my computer. So, for people that aren't, it's going to be impossible if I can't do it, how can I expect them to do it?” said Ruff.
She also points out that the sidewalks in the downtown area need to be repaved. This issue was also brought up by candidate Chris Dube in his presentation explained that the deteriorating sidewalks make it difficult for people with small children to walk around town.
"That is the main concern for a lot of residents," Ruff said. "Our sidewalks are not great and in places non-existent. So, it would be excellent to get that fixed. Having more wheelchair access in town would be awesome as well. I know the rec centre has wheelchair access and the grocery store, but without sidewalks to get to those places, it's kind of difficult.”
Ruff acknowledges that she is looking forward to working with her fellow council members.
“I think we have a great group right now. We are going to do big things for Manitouwadge,” she said.