Mayor of central P.E.I. town quits after his council backs a pricey pickleball project
'I looked at this as being a vote of non-confidence for me,' says Rowan Caseley
The longtime mayor of Kensington is stepping down after a contentious debate over new pickleball courts for the central P.E.I. town.
Rowan Caseley confirmed to CBC News that he handed in his letter of resignation to CAO Geoff Baker late Monday night after a regularly monthly council meeting.
During that meeting, councillors voted 3-2 in favour of the construction of six new pickleball courts and a washroom facility with help from the 2023 Canada Games Legacy Fund.
Caseley, who has been Kensington's mayor for 10 years, told CBC that he felt spending upwards of $500,000 on the project is not the best use of town's resources at this time, even though the legacy fund would provide more than half the cash.
"There are projects that we didn't do this year because we don't have money. These are needs. This pickleball court is something that is a want," he said.
"It's never easy to say no to free money, but sometimes it is the right decision to say no because it just doesn't fit with your budget or with your timeframe."
He also pointed out that many of the people who would use the courts would not live in Kensington and would not pay taxes toward their upkeep.
Town would be responsible for $225K
The total cost of building the courts and an accompanying washroom facility is estimated at $445,831.42, according to documents in the council meeting's agenda package. That doesn't include an extra $50,000 for the construction of a gravel parking lot at the site.
The council had secured funding of $270,000, or about 55 per cent of the cost, through the Canada Games fund, leaving the town on the hook for the remaining $225,831.42.
Council had until Dec. 1 to inform the Canada Games fund's administrators whether it was moving ahead with the project.
"The Kensington Pickleball Club has indicated their desire to fundraise to support the courts. However, any funding shortfall would be the responsibility of the town," Baker said in a memo that was included in the council package.
The CAO also outlined other concerns about going ahead with the courts, including current budgetary pressures on the town and ongoing maintenance costs for the courts. He noted that there are currently four places to play pickleball in Kensington.
"Given the funding shortfall and the scope of the project, I strongly recommend that council carefully evaluate the financial, operational, and timing implications before making a decision," Baker wrote in his memo.
"Should council wish to move forward, additional efforts will be required to secure funding for the shortfall and to develop a detailed implementation plan."
Caseley, who sat on council for several years before he was first elected to the mayor's chair in 2014, has led Kensington through tough times like the COVID-19 pandemic and the provincial housing crisis.
While the town is now on solid footing financially, he said Kensington didn't get where it is through decisions like the one his fellow councillors made Monday night.
"I looked at this as being a vote of non-confidence for me as mayor and a vote of non-confidence in our town manager," Caseley said. "Everything he had said and everything I had said had been totally ignored."
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With files from Sheehan Desjardins