Marolyn Morrison pleased with backing she received
By ALAN LICZYK

Staff Reporter

With 52 per cent of the vote in last Monday's mayoral election, Mayor Marolyn Morrison said the support for her shows most people are happy with the direction the Town is going in.

Morrison received 7,150 votes to defeat her two challengers: Councillor Garry Moore who received 5,084 votes (37 per cent) and former mayor Norm Calder who took in 1,572 votes (11 per cent).

She said she was confident going into the election.

"I had a fantastic group of people," she said. "The response out there was very positive."

During the campaign she heard from voters that property assessment was an issue they were concerned about. This is administered by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation.

Morrison explained the volatility of the assessments doesn't mean people know where they're going to be. She believes council needs to be more aggressive to see assessment is stabilized.

She added some people tried to make recreation an issue during the campaign.

"We tried to address that," she explained. "Nothing happens overnight. It takes time. We're moving down that road."

During her first term as mayor, the Town began work on a new skateboard park in Bolton, a new arena in Caledon East, a gymnasium at the Caledon Centre for Recreation and Wellness, and six new soccer fields in Bolton.

She also noted the Town is going to buy 100 acres of land on the edge of Bolton to be used for soccer and baseball.

"We're trying to get in and address these," she said.

In the next four-year term she would like to see infrastructure, particularly roads, looked at as well as recreation throughout the Town and seniors' issues. She wants to help the Caledon seniors with the expansion at Rotary Place in Bolton.

Morrison also wants council to continue to be fiscally responsible. She noted they've been trending down with the tax increases.

"I would like to keep it down," she said.

It's also a priority of hers to continue communicating with the residents.

The new council will have three new members who've never served on council before in Doug Beffort, Gord McClure and Jason Payne. Morrison's advice to them is to have patience and be a team player.

"I would say listen and learn," she said. "We all want to change things right away."

This municipal election was also the first time the Town used electronic vote tabulators.

"I thought the new voting system was terrific," Morrison said.

She noted it brought