Fort Simpson (Sep 15/06) - The election process in Fort Simpson leapt forward on Sept. 11 when all of the positions were filled by acclamation.

Newly Elected * = returning Fort Simpson Village Council: Olinto Beaulieu- * Candy Brown- * Dieter Cazon Robert Hanna- * Carl Lafferty- * Bruce Thomas- * Lynn Wharton Tom Wilson- * Fort Simpson Education Council: Emma Amundson Wesley Hardisty Lisa Lafferty- * Ria Letcher- * Martina Norwegian- * Kim Riles- *r

Nominations closed at 3 p.m. and there were just enough names to fill the positions of mayor, village council and education council, said Rita Cazon the election officer. Elections would have been held on Oct. 16.

Duncan Canvin is returning as mayor of Fort Simpson for a three-year term. Also returning are the six members of the village council who sought re-election.

Four members of the six person education council are also returning to their positions.

Ann McKee is the only village councillor who didn't put her name forward for re-election. Her decision not to run was made for personal reasons, said McKee.

In the six months available the council did the best we could, said McKee.

The previous council was elected on March 6 after a disagreement with the volunteer fire department resulted in village council being dissolved. New on council are Dieter Cazon and Lynn Wharton, who have both served previously.

Cazon was part of the council elected in 2000. Cazon said he decided to run again to help out the community.

For the next few weeks, Cazon said he'll be catching up on the recent council activities.

This is Wharton's second acclamation.

She was acclaimed to the previous council where she served for almost a month before it was dissolved.

Wharton said she decided to run because her first experience was cut short and she didn't have a chance to gain a lot of experience.

Like Cazon, Wharton said she'll be catching up on council business for the first few meetings.

For Canvin running for re-election was a matter of wanting to keep projects on track.

Six months was a short time to finish everything that needed to be done, said Canvin.

A lot of people also came forward with support for council's performance, Canvin said.

Looking forward, the projects that will continue include a new pool, concrete in the arena and a skateboard park.

Because of the length of time it took to make a decision on the Community Capacity Building Fund the projects couldn't be put out to tender, Canvin said.

"I'm quite confident we're going to move ahead with the major projects we've identified," he said.

Council's accomplishments during its term included putting the village's finances in order and chip sealing streets, said Canvin.

The fire hall expansion is also under way with construction expected to start next spring.

The fire hall is one of the projects that returning councillor Carl Lafferty would like to see finished.

He hopes council will continue to work smoothly.

"I think we enjoyed a lot of success in the last council," said Lafferty.

Councillor Tom Wilson is also eager to see the projects move forward as long as they fit in the budget.

"It's all to enhance life in the community," Wilson said.

With a three year term there are many things the council will be able to do including moving forward with the chip sealing process, said Wilson.

With so many returning councillors, Canvin said he expects council to continue functioning well.

"I'm kind of relieved and glad we can keep moving," Canvin said.