|
(Posted
8 a.m., July 20)
Race
to replace Bob Monette attracts diverse field
By Fred Sherwin
OrleansOnline.ca
If
you’re a resident of Orléans Ward, you can expect to see
a steady stream of would-be city council candidates come
to your door over the next three months. That’s because
incumbent Bob Monette is stepping away from politics after
nearly 15 years on the job, throwing the door wide open
for a potential successor.
I At
last count, no fewer that seven people have registered
to run in the ward and it’s not even August yet.
The
current list of rather diverse nominees includes a restauranteur
and industrial kitchen consultant; a catering chef; a
professional saxophonist and networking consultant; a
member of the Convent Glen - Orléans Wood Community Association;
an assistant to the parliamentary secretary for National
Defence; a consultant with a government relations firm;
a telecommunications project manager; and the owner of
a local junior hockey team.
 Miranda
Gray was the first person to put her name forward. In
fact, she registered for the election before Monette made
it official he was stepping down.
Gray
is a project manager with a Québec-based telecommunications
com-pany called IP4B. Other than that, there isn’t a whole
lot of information about Gray on the Internet.
Mireille
Brownhill is the treasurer with the Convent Glen - Orleans
Wood Community Association. The mother of three boys is
also a member of the organization Parents for French,
and she’s a vocal advocate for social justice. She also
happens to be one of the few candidates who already has
a campaign website. You can find it at www.mireillebrownhill.ca.
 The
other candidate with his own website – although it is
not campaign specific yet – is Jarrod Goldsmith.
A
professional saxophone player, Goldsmith is also a motivational
speak- er and an entrepre-neurial coach. He is easily
recognizable by his trademark fedora and has been a member
of Orléans Chamber of Commerce board of directors for
several terms.
In
announcing his candidacy on July 11, Goldsmith said he
wants to bring honest transparency and an unselfish desire
to make life better for others to the job of city councillor.
Qamar
Masood is the president of the Multicultural Association
of Orléans and he runs his own catering company. He was
also a contestant on Chopped Canada.
 In
April of last year, Masood received the Mayor’s City Builder
Award for hav-ing volunteered for more than 20 years in
the city’s Pakistani community. According to the citation,
he is a strong advo-cate on behalf of the multicultural
community of Orléans on matters affecting rights, interests
and values that are consistent with the mainstream community.
He has also developed and promoted programs that focus
on “advancing education as social and culturally relevant
attributes of the families that make up the community
of Orléans”.
Doug
Feltmate is part owner of St. Martha’s Brasserie and its
sister restaur-ant St. Martha’s Culinaire. He also owns
his own restaurant equipment consultant company. But it
is his interest in eco- nomic development, especially
in the east end, that has motivated him to run for council.
He’s also managed to put together a strong campaign team
that includes former chief of staff to one-time Ottawa
mayor Bob Chiarelli, Brendan McGuinty. He’s also receiving
guidance from former Ottawa city councillor Graham Bird
and former Ottawa mayor Jim Durrell among others.
 Feltmate
was also a former chair of Team Ottawa-Orléans from 2005-2011
and he’s been an active member of both the Heart of Orléans
BIA and the Orléans Chamber of Commerce.
The
rest of field running in Orléans Ward is rounded out by
Rick Bédard, the owner of the Cumberland Bandits Junior
C hockey team; Kevin Tetrault, a consultant with the Capital
Hill Group; and Mathew Lultoff, an assistant to the parliamentary
secretary for National Defence.
The
Orléans Star will be running separate profiles on
all the candidates beginning in August.
(This story
was made possible thanks to the generous support of our
local business partners.)
|
New
Year`s Levee hosted by MP Andrew Leslie and MPP Marie-France
Lalonde
The
Good Time Band performing at the Orléans Legion
SANTÉ
CHIROPRACTIC & WELLNESS CENTRE: Where healthy
people go
180-FITNESS
CENTRE: Home of the Biggest Loser
