With the election weeks away in Pointe-Claire on Montreal’s West Island, some voters say they’ve had enough of the division at City Hall. They’re calling for the next mayor to bring peace and stability back to local politics. The on-island suburb has seen years of clashes between current Mayor Tim Thomas and the council. Thomas is hoping for a second term and is facing challenges from former mayor John Belvedere and city councillor Brent Cowan. Thomas defeated Belevedere in the last election by just 61 votes. He said much of his agenda has been blocked by the council that he feels is loyal to his predecessor. Thomas said he wants voters to focus on his vision for the city. “I’m trying to keep it a garden city, an attractive, beautiful place to live and not overwhelmed with traffic and pollution and tall buildings,” he said. Belvedere said he wants to restore stability and trust in local government. “I’m doing this because I’m passionate about Pointe-Claire, and I understand where we’re going, where we have to go,” he said. Cowan, meanwhile, said he is running because he’s tired of how the city is being run. “I wasn’t going to spend another four years like the last eight,” he said. “Council is supposed to be a consultative body, and under Mayor Belvedere, it didn’t work out that way, and Mayor Thomas, he just tried to bulldoze that stuff through council; he went around us,” said Cowan. The voters that CTV News spoke to said it was simple: listen to the citizens and do what they voted them in to do. “Harmony, that’s the key thing,” said one voter.
