Residents packed into Westmount City Hall, on Monday night, to meet their new mayor.
City councillor for District 5, Christina Smith, was elected interim mayor at a special council meeting.
Smith was the only candidate to put her name forward for the job.
“I’m humbled that my colleagues have supported this, and I’m honoured to continue the work that council has done in the last three years,” said Smith, moments after being sworn in.
While addressing council, the new mayor laid out her priorities for the next few months.
They include strengthening Westmount’s infrastructure, and dealing with the noise associated with the Turcot project.
On hand for the swearing-in ceremony was former Westmount mayor Peter Trent, who announced his retirement from politics at the beginning of April.
“Westmounters can be assured we have a superb mayor in place,” Trent told Global News.
Trent had served on and off as mayor and councillor for more than 25 years.
“It is an emotional event, this changing of the guard, but what you have here is a person who was able to rally the council behind her,” said Trent.
“I’d like to thank Peter Trent — he’s a great mentor and he sets the bar high for public service,” Smith told Global News.
Municipal elections will be held in November.
Smith says she’s focused on the job at hand, and wouldn’t say whether she will run for a full term as mayor in the fall.
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