Norm Arsenault won't run for second term

Coun, Norm Arsenault has withdrawn his nomination as a candidate for the October municipal election.

“After considerable reflection,” he said, “even though my wife supported me in running again, I made the very difficult decision to withdraw due to the amount of time that I was spending doing the job.”

Those who watch council meetings will understand when Arsenault says he is “the type who cannot do anything in moderation and as such, I was spending an enormous amount of time reading, and researching every issue at the expense of my personal life.” 

He made the difficult decision to step back and get a better perspective “of where I am at this stage of my life, and continuing at this pace was not it. While others may be better at managing this job and their personal life, I struggle with that balance.”

The job and the issues were always on his mind, he says, “and that is not healthy. I feel privileged at having been able to represent the people of NOTL and wish all the candidates, both those who have already stepped forward, and those yet to announce, the very best. It is a difficult task with constant demands 24/7.”

Arsenault says he really enjoyed doing the research that allowed council to move issues forward. When issues come up “we debate, sometimes ad nauseum, but once the ducks all line up, so to speak, it is truly satisfying to get the result you were looking for.”

He mentions as an example the short term rental issue.

“I spent three years on that file, was instrumental in making changes in 2020 to add operating an STR without a licence an offence, as well as advertising without a licence an offence, an offence to not show your licence number on your ads; then we brought Granicus Host Compliance to assist with identifying illegal operators and provide a 24/7 customer service line for complaints. In addition, and again in 2021, I was also instrumental in bringing in the AMPS bylaw which removed the STR offences from the Provincial Offences Act to an administrative penalty. The AMPS bylaw, which came into effect Sept. 7, 2021 was a game-changer.”

The combination of Granicus and the AMPs have resulted in more than 50 penalty notices given to STR operators, and all have been paid — about $50,000 worth, he says.

“Prior the the AMPS bylaw, only one offence was ever prosecuted, and it took two years to get it through the courts. Now staff have the necessary tools to effectively control the industry. Using Granicus, staff identified over 90 illegal operations within six months, laid over 90 penalty notices and finally took control of this industry. To me that is extremely satisfying.”

Arsenault says he and his wife Dianne hope to travel a bit more, and spend a bit more time with their six-year-old granddaughter “who is growing like a weed.”

At the moment, “we have an elderly dog that is preventing us from going too far, but eventually that is the plan.” 

“For now, personally, I just need time to decompress, do a bit of gardening and just relax. I still have four months to go, but that should go by quickly.”