Paul Boyd

Ameliasburgh Ward Four

Paul Boyd is worried about the way the County is spending his money. Frankly, he’s worried about a lot of things going on with the current council and he’s running this time because he feels strongly about being actively involved in local government. Taking the initiative to make changes in the community is something that Boyd is passionate about and he hopes that passion will take him all the way to a council seat come October.

Boyd had originally filed his papers to run for the Mayor’s position but withdrew them almost immediately to join the race in Ward Four. This is also not Boyd’s first rodeo. Boyd finished third in the Mayoral race in 2014, and has served already as a councillor for Ameliasburgh from 1976-1980. But that was a long time ago, and nothing is the same as it was back then.

Boyd is someone who has spent most of his life in the business of money, so if he’s seeing something in the dealings of the current council that’s worrysome, it would be best for the County to pay attention. Boyd is the former vice-president of commercial sales for Ingersol- Rand in Canada and says that his position there prepared him for his possible tenure on council. He is currently the co-owner of Gilmour’s Meat Shop and Deli in Rossmore and lives on his farm west of Rednersville.

Boyd also thinks that the capabilities of the current council and their capacity to understand what a good deal and a bad deal look like are probably the most important issues facing the County today. The accountability factor for County employees is something that is lacking and Boyd wonders who on the management side are holding these employees responsible for the choices they make? Expensive fire trucks, tennis courts that take months to complete and a $45 million-debt-load are major areas of concern. Also, the same recurring issues with roads and housing lead Boyd to believe that our governing body may be asleep at the wheel when it comes to managing staff from the top-down and following through on decisions made in a timely manner.

“We need to implement a performance management program for all staff. Each staff would explain their role with the county and plan two or three goals for the year that they will accomplish and through this each employee and his or her manager can see if they are performing and achieving the goals stated and make it easy to give a raise in pay or even a promotion rather than get it because they have been around a long time,” says Boyd.

Boyd also has interesting ideas that could shake up the way we currently see council today.

“I would scrap the Committee Of The Whole and have individual committees with several councillors. The County employees responsible for, say, roads or finance or social services etc would then meet with that committee and take issues back to council with concrete proposals. This way the power would be with council rather than the administration,” says Boyd, who would also put a stop on all travel if elected because he feels there is no need to travel with technology and the modern connections of the day.

As far as opportunities, the farming sector is a major area of growth that could be explored, but the farming community must also be raised up and supported by the neighbours around if they are to reach their full potential. Boyd is also hoping that more young people and more women will come forward in the future for a council run.

“With the right people on council, we have the opportunity to work together as one community and turn this ship around. If we are spending taxpayer dollars then we should be building up the community with that revenue,” says Boyd.