Waterloo Regional Council will have a very different look next year, as a fifth councilor has announced that they will not be seeking re-election this fall.
Sean Strickland, who represents Waterloo on the council, joined Helen Jowett and Karl Kiefer (Cambridge), and Elizabeth Clarke (Kitchener) as well as Waterloo Mayor Dave Jaworsky in announcing they will not be on election ballots in October.
All of the mayors in the region get a seat on council, along with four councilors from Kitchener and two each from Waterloo and Cambridge plus the regional chair.
Strickland has been in public office for more than 20 years, having initially been elected to the Waterloo Regional District School Board in 1993 before being elected to city and regional councils in 1997, before they were split.
He served as a regional council from 2000 through 2015 and then again from 2018 until now.
“It has been an honour and privilege to represent the citizens of Waterloo in various elected capacities over the past 25 years and work with some fantastic colleagues and staff,” Strickland stated.
“Over these past few years, we strategically focused on the growth of the community and it’s been exciting to watch projects like the construction of ION help to position our Region for a prosperous future.”
In his announcement, Strickland said he has been appointed as the executive director of Canada’s Building Trades Unions, which is a national association of trade unions.
For those who do intend to have their name included on the ballot, candidates have until Aug. 19 to fill out their paperwork for the election being held on Oct. 24.