Newcomers ready to take on Welland city council duties
Four new faces join the ranks of the Rose City politicians
With his age and unconventional style, Lucas Spinosa wasn’t sure Welland Ward 3 constituents were ready for him to be one of their representatives on city council.
“I was happily proved wrong. It says a lot about where Welland is,” the 24-year-old owner of The Black Sheep Lounge said Tuesday morning after polling highest in the ward.
He had a lot of anxiety around the election, not knowing how he’d do.
“I knew I’d win or lose by a landslide — and I’m lucky it was the former. Welland was ready for me.”
Spinosa, with his trademark beard and spiked, coloured hair, brought in 1,547 votes, while incumbent John Chiochhio had 1,191 votes, which gave him the second Ward 3 seat.
Incumbent John Mastroianni had 1,019 votes, 528 behind Spinosa, and won’t be back at the council table. Spinosa credited Mastroianni with helping him learn certain things about being on the campaign trail during an election.
“He’s a great guy.”
During the campaign, Spinosa hit the 4,200 homes in his ward twice and sent his team of supporters out as well to knock on doors and talk with residents. He utilized social media and held meet-ups to get his message out.
Communication will be key over the next four years, he said, adding he’ll attempt to bring people together in the community.
“I’ll work hard and people can be confident I have their best interests in mind.”
Ward 5’s Graham Speck is another newcomer to council after winning one of the two seats Monday.
“We were quite enthusiastic going into it (the election) … and encouraged by all of the support we had.”
Speck said he campaigned right up until Sunday, hitting a couple of pockets in the ward that were missed.
“We hit the vast majority of the ward before the advanced polls and then we looked over the maps to see what ward corners we missed. I canvassed to the end.”
He put out a video on Saturday to get his message out one more time as well. Speck said he didn’t take the election for granted and considered it would be a hardfought race.
While he nervously awaited results, he said his two children and wife were acting as scrutineers at polling stations. He was at Welland city hall waiting for results, however, they didn’t start to come in until late in the evening.
Speck said he’s very much looking forward to the next four years on council and added there’s a good mix around the table.
“We have our orientation in November and I can’t wait to get in and get my feet wet.”
He looks forward to working on the city’s budget and finding ways to make the tough decisions and bring Welland’s books into line.
“I’m very happy I campaigned on that … we have amongst the highest taxes and constituents are worried about that.”
The other newcomers on council are Adam Moote in Ward 1 and Bryan Green in Ward 4.
Welland’s Ward 2 saw both incumbent councillors — David McLeod and Leo Van Vliet — re-elected, as did Ward 6, with Bonnie Fokkens and Jim Larouche back for another term. Incumbents Mary Ann Grimaldi, Ward 1; Tony DiMarco, Ward 4; and Claudette Richard, Ward 5 were all also re-elected.
Pat Chiochhio and Leanna Villella defeated incumbents Paul Grenier and George Marshall for two of three regional council seats. The other is held by the mayor, Frank Campion.