Saint Andrews will see Steve Neil elected mayor.
The Courier has called the election for the former councillor with 1,071 votes. Saint Andrews saw about 62 per cent voter turnout, well above the provincial turnout.
Three candidates, including Neil, campaigned for the position, Guy Groulx came in second with 213 votes and Charles Creaser, third, with 137.
Neil is a biologist and works for the Saint Andrews Biological Station. He is a volunteer with the Saint Andrews fire department.
The council has faced issues with the Market Wharf and Square project. The project has entered a new phase, with a report filed by Fundy Engineering that identified new structural issues. Neil was vocal about the previous design, which did involved infilling Market Square.
A municipal plan is also slated for approval by the council, which is due by January 2028. The community has raised concerns about density, growth, transparency and accountability.
“I’m pretty excited actually, I’m just sitting here watching the results come in and feeling pretty good,” he said, speaking with The Courier Monday night.
He said while the campaign was exhaustive, he enjoyed the process.
“It was really nice to get to meet a lot of people that I haven’t spoken to before and see the amount of support that was actually there for me,” he said.
Annette Harland and Darrell Weare were acclaimed as councillors in Chamcook and Bayside.
The remaining four seats will be elected in a by-election on June 22 following the death of acting mayor Kate Akagi. The Department of Environment and Local Government said the current council will continue under restricted powers.
Section 56(1) through 56(3) outline the five powers stripped from the council.
Neil said he is ready to hit the ground running in early July when the full council has been elected.
“It’ll be business as usual for me,” he said.
