Decision Time: Fort-Coulonge Mayoral Candidates Present Their Vision for the Future

Decision Time: Fort-Coulonge Mayoral Candidates Present Their Vision for the Future

As election day approaches, the two candidates running for mayor of Fort-Coulonge laid out their plans in a public debate that featured both moments of disagreement and points of consensus. Pierre Cyr and incumbent municipal councillor Philippe Ouellet made their case during a live debate hosted last Thursday by Pontiac community radio station CHIP 101.9.

From the outset, it was clear the two candidates have different priorities for the municipality following the November 2 vote.
For Philippe Ouellet, the key is attracting new residents to the municipality. He emphasized the need for the municipal council to focus its efforts on population growth strategies.

“For me, the main issue is attracting new residents, new families. It’s going to make us even healthier as a community if we have more people. Every family that settles here will contribute to the local economy. It’ll help create jobs and support new services like daycares, small and large businesses. The more people you have, the more needs there are. It’s also about continuing what we’ve already started — for example, at the last council meeting, we approved the sale of a piece of land to a company called PEJ, a construction firm that has built around 80 units in the Pontiac, in Quyon and Shawville.”
— Philippe Ouellet

On the other hand, Pierre Cyr, a longtime resident and close follower of municipal affairs, especially council meetings, argued that what’s best for Fort-Coulonge in the weeks and months following the election is a highly present and engaged mayor.

“For me, what’s urgent is having a mayor who is fully present and dedicated, because the next six months are going to be very busy for Fort-Coulonge. We need to compensate for the absence of our Director General, and we also need to really kick off this renewal phase. So, we have to assign responsibilities to the new councillors — give each of them a section of the village, because I think that’s important. Also, we need to meet with the mayor and the DG of Mansfield-et-Pontefract to establish a cooperative relationship that supports service agreements. That’s pressing. We need to renew the potable water supply agreement with the other municipality. Prepare the budget. Negotiate the first collective agreement for our employees — that’s important too. It needs to be done right. We need to get composting up and running, and ensure our firebreaks are up to standard. I think we have some real challenges in those areas.” — Pierre Cyr

While there were overlapping ideas, the debate also highlighted some sharp differences, most notably on the issue of unionization among Fort-Coulonge’s municipal employees.

“It shouldn’t become a burden either. We’re the only municipality in the Pontiac where employees have filed for unionization — I believe.”
[“We’re the second,” Ouellet adds.]
“Second.” — Pierre Cyr

Another topic that sparked the interest of attendees was the fate of the Fort-Coulonge municipal library, which was closed during the current council’s term. Both candidates expressed interest in reopening the library under certain conditions. Cyr criticized the former council for both the decision itself and the way the closure was handled.

 

“It’s actually a more complex issue than it seems. We were affiliated with Biblio-Outaouais, and I’d say it was quite costly. There’s also the problem that the council had decided that there weren’t many users. Now, should we have consulted citizens again? I think yes. I believe we should have made more of an effort to improve what we were offering at the library; to have more workshops, storytelling, to create more events to make the library more popular.”
— Pierre Cyr

Ouellet, who was part of the council that voted to shut the library down, said he’s willing to bring the service back, but believes it needs to be reimagined.

“Yes, it’s possible — as long as we reinvent the model. The model we had, which unfortunately was shut down, didn’t work. There wasn’t enough traffic. But a modern library could become a more multifunctional space — a place for reading, digital learning, cultural activities, and also a space for community gatherings. By working with schools, the MRC, and neighboring municipalities, we could share the costs. We could offer more services — perhaps more adapted ones that meet today’s needs. It’s about finding the model that best serves the municipality.”
— Philippe Ouellet

On November 2, residents of Fort-Coulonge will head to the polls to choose their next mayor. It’s worth noting that between the late 1960s and 2017, only two mayors: Hector Soucie and Raymond Durocher, held the position of Mayor. In the eight years since, the village has seen four different mayors: Gaston Allard, Debbie Laporte, Christine Francoeur, and now, a new name will be added to that list.

The full debate is available here.