Morinville – A direct question posed to Morinville Mayor Lloyd Bertschi by Councillor Joe Gosselin at the end of last night’s council meeting led to the answer the latter had been seeking as well as a brief but heated exchange between the two municipal politicians.
During the period reserved for media questions, Gosselin asked Mayor Bertschi if it was his intention to run again, stating that it was the community’s right to know. Bertschi, who until that time had not made his intentions public, told Gosselin that it was in fact his intention to seek another term, something the mayor told Councillor Gosselin he could have found out had he accorded him some respect and come to the mayor in private as other councillors had done.
The mayor accused Gosselin of grandstanding and stated that he had not made his election plans known heretofore out of respect for Gosselin’s work in procuring a chain of office for the town, an item of regalia that was presented to the mayor during a special ceremony June 22.
Councillor Gosselin denied the charges, stating that “the next time I grandstand will be the first time.”
The two-term councillor has been critical of Mayor Bertschi for not announcing whether he is running or not. As for Gosselin himself, the councillor announced last month that he will not seek a third term on Morinville Town Council. He has not as yet made public whether or not he plans to take a run at the mayoral seat.
Morinville’s remaining five councillors have all announced their intentions to run again.
Bertschi said he is still enjoying the work and is hoping to lead Morinville through its centennial year.
