By Jim Morrison
www.thesuburban.com
The Dorval municipal chambers welcomed close to two-dozen citizens Monday, Jan. 12, in large part to honor councillor Heather Allard, who passed away from cancer, Dec. 23.
Allard, 62, functioned as District 5 councillor, first served on council in 1991. She did not sit on Dorval’s borough council during the one-term Montreal mega-city following forced mergers, but returned to her post once Dorval was reconstituted in 2006, working for about 19 years as a councillor.
A moment of silence in Allard’s honor was followed by profound words and memories, shared by fellow councillor and friend Margo Herron, as well as the reading of a passage on behalf of all Dorval residents, followed by the opening of question period.
Mayor Edgar Rouleau announced at the beginning of the meeting that a by-election would occur by the end of April. This proclamation terminated a debate that had been circulating after Rouleau made comments to a local newspaper that looked as if he opposed filling a city council seat vacated by Allard’s passing, on the grounds that it would cost too much.
According to another source Sonia Fontaine of the Quebec Elections board stated that a municipality must have a by-election unless a general election is less than a year away. After Rouleau’s remarks to a local newspaper.
“Heather was a team player and she was always ready to participate. She got involved a lot with the library. In the beginning, it was the swimming pool where she did her volunteer work. When she first got on council she was the only female councillor for years, “said Mayor Rouleau.
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