DAN CEARNS, The Standard
SCUGOG: Robert Rock hopes voters will let him remain the Township’s Ward 3 Councillor, after this October’s municipal elections.
Mr. Rock is seeking to return to the position he was appointed in August, after Angus Ross resigned.
“I wanted to be part of a full mandate. I sort of came into a mandate last year and didn’t really have a chance to develop the goals, to be achieved during the full term. I would really like to go through that full process of helping to outline the goals for the term of council to be accomplished,” Mr. Rock told The Standard.
One of the things he has learned from his short time on council is the need for cooperation, to get things done.
“I think people often come in thinking they can make larger sweeping changes in their ward, and at the end of the day, you are just one vote on council. So, you need to learn how to frame objectives and make sure you have support for initiatives. Also, learning how to work with staff [members] to make sure we create ways to create good reports [which] outline the benefits to the Township, when initiatives are being worked on [is key].”
Mr. Rock outlined what he hopes to bring to the next term of council. “Helping to continue some of the objectives we have begun working on and see[ing] some of them through to completion,” he said. “As well, just continuing to advocate for [Scugog] Island, and making sure there is more visibility for the Island within the entire Township. Residents have a lot of unique concerns on the Island, and making sure there is a strong voice representing those concerns is extremely important.”
Mr. Rock noted, the creation of a Second Access for Scugog Island is one of the priorities he hopes to continue to work on. He also said, other infrastructure projects on the Island would be a focus for him as well, if elected.