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speakup

SUSSEX At the last Sussex town council meeting before Monday's May 12 election, councillors took the opportunity to talk about the importance of cooperation on municipal councils and between communities.

At the April 21 meeting, some councillors referred to a plebiscite in which Sussex voters will be asked whether they're in favour of town council pursuing amalgamation with Sussex Corner.

"I truly hope councils come out of the ashes and are able to work together to achieve rational planning and development. With good planning you avoid the confrontation issues we've experienced in the last couple of years," said Councillor Gary Fulton, referring to differences of opinion between the town and village over proposed developments.

In contrast to the conflict which has plagued village council for months, Sussex council runs fairly smoothly, according to Councillor Kevin Black

"This council is very effective and works well together. When we disagree, there are no grudges and we can still go for coffee. But we seldom disagree," he said. "We do work well together to make decisions to help the community improve and grow."

Mayor Ralph Carr, who retains his position by acclamation, said he always try to impress on people complimenting him for doing a good job that it's truly a team effort by the entire council that accounts for the town's success. He had mixed feelings about returning by acclamation but has a theory about why only one new candidate is offering for this year's election.

"I'm taking it as a positive, that people are satisfied with what we're doing," he said.

All seven current councillors are re-offering and candidate Elizabeth Stuart has put her hat in the ring. Councillor Shelly Bradley said she's happy there are eight candidates for the seven council seats.

"I was afraid we'd all go in by acclamation. At the end of the day, I truly feel it's a report card," she said of the election process.

"I was fearful there'd be a low voter turnout for the plebiscite without an election. Without a good turnout, we wouldn't have good representation," she pointed out.

Sussex Corner village council has opted not to offer the amalgamation question to its voters in this election.