Voters in Tecumseh's Ward 2 by-election are hoping their new councillor will be able to tackle a wide range of issues.
From infrastructure to road safety, residents brought forward a number of issues at Monday night's meet the candidates event that saw the six council hopefuls compared side-by-side.
During the question and answer period of the evening, local ward resident Francine Herlehy put the issue of the recent flooding event to the candidates and asked what they would be doing for residents in an emergency.
"That's one of the reasons why I came tonight — not to lament that fact that I had a flood, but just to see how they would react in circumstances where the needs of constituents really come front and centre like that," says Herlehy, adding two candidates stood out to her on the matter.
The by-election was called after the sudden passing of the late Mike Rohrer.
Herlehy says she knows what he would have been doing during the flood.
"I know Mike Rohrer, he was a personal friend," says Herlehy. "Mike would have been out helping neighbours, leaving the business of the town to the mayor, but doing what he could to pitch in."
Despite the recent significant flooding in the town, residents didn't get hung up on the issue as the two year timeline the new councillor would have to work within is something Rob Agnew is considering before deciding which candidate to vote for.
"We need to get working," says Agnew. "They're right in the middle of budgets right now, so there's not time for on the job training. Learning curves are out the window. We need somebody that's able to work right away."
Candidates in Tecumseh's Ward 2 by-election take questions from residents at a 'meet the candidates' event held at L'Essor Secondary School on October 3, 2016. (Photo by Ricardo Veneza)
Sina Naebkhil is returning to the Windsor area from Ottawa and is looking to move to Tecumseh, specifically the Ward 2 area.
She wanted to hear what the candidates would do to bring about more civic engagement from young professionals, but wasn't quite satisfied with the responses.
"I was hoping to see a vision involving young people at the business level, the planning level," says Naebkhil. "For them to speak more towards young professionals and young entrepreneurs."
Despite not getting the answers she was hoping for, Naebkhil was able to find a candidate that peaked her interest.
Herlehy thinks the ward has six quality candidates.
"I have no doubt that we're in good hands with the field of candidates that we have available to us," says Herlehy.
The six candidates running for the Ward 2 seat are Bill Altenhof, Chris Carpenter, Marian Drouillard, Janet Harris, Scott Shields and Jeremy Soulliere.
All the candidates were in attendance for the question and answer session at L'Essor Secondary School that saw about 100 people attend.
Election Day is October 14.
