Port Hawkesbury council candidates push affordable housing, waterfront development

Town council candidates in Port Hawkesbury are discussing affordable housing, waterfront development, green hydrogen — even an electric ferry for the Strait of Canso — in advance of the Oct. 19 municipal election. 

A recent roundtable for CBC's Information Morning series in Cape Breton featured four of the seven people that will contend for the four available council seats in Port Hawkesbury later this month.

This year's candidates include two incumbents, a second-time candidate, and four political newcomers. 

One of the incumbents, Blaine MacQuarrie, said he re-offered in part to help the town build on the "very huge and significant" construction of 80 rental units over 10 years on Memorial Drive. The project welcomed its first 16 renters in September. 

"We really did a lot of work around that topic, and things are finally starting to come together," MacQuarrie said.

Affordable housing 

Iaian Langley, the vice-chair of the Strait of Canso Superport Corporation and a first-time candidate, said the region's past housing successes can guide the town's next steps.

"You don't have to reinvent the wheel in terms of affordable housing," Langley said. 

"We should be looking at our neighbouring community of Antigonish to find out what they did right, and their successes there, and try to replicate that. And we've had past successes in Port Hawkesbury with … co-operative housing. It worked very well and it was very successful." 

Waterfront development 

While the four participating candidates agree on the importance of developing Port Hawkesbury's waterfront, they differed on the priority areas for the town. 

In her second crack at town council, Paula Hart said port development could spark tourism and business opportunities for the waterfront.

"We could have more restaurants and more marketing systems down there just to give the people of the town another place to go," said Hart, who would only be the fifth woman elected to town council if successful. 

MacQuarrie, who spent 19 years on the Strait Area Waterfront Development Committee, and Langley, a master mariner who spent his career at sea assisting offshore energy projects, are also seeking a balance between tourism-related development and boosting energy and marine training sectors. 

Back to the ferries?

First-time candidate Michael Currie, who brings a military and defence background to his campaign, said the town should install more electric vehicle charging stations and focus on solar energy to bring down the costs of affordable housing and similar projects. 

He's also pitching an electric ferry to run between Port Hawkesbury and Mulgrave, which lost ferry service with the opening of the Canso Causeway in 1955.

"Otherwise, you're looking at a half-hour drive, depending on whether that causeway [swing bridge] is open or not," said Currie, who said he has "a lot of creative ideas" to spark local economic development.  

Also running for town council are incumbent Mark MacIver and first-time candidates Donald MacDonald and Todd Barrett, who will be featured on a followup candidate roundtable for the Information Morning series.

In addition to the council candidates, a three-way race for mayor has emerged for the first time in 24 years.

Brenda Chisholm-Beaton is seeking her third term in office. She is facing current town councillor Jason Aucoin and paper mill union president Archie MacLachlan.