CASTLEGAR NEWS LIKE US ON....
Phil (PJ) Poznekoff
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Breaking news at castlegarnews.com
Thursday, September 19, • 2013
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1761 Columbia Ave. Castlegar, B.C. Phil@castlegarrealty.ca
Vol.10 • Issue 38
Banners raised at Tremendous turnout for complex Terry’s run See Pages A22-23 See Page A3
Rauni Naud
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Voters go with ‘the Flo’ MARVIN BEATTY With files from Jim Sinclair
Jo-Ann Bursey Mountainview Realty Ltd.
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Nancy Trotman Mortgage Broker
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The City of Castlegar official by-election results have been released with no changes to the story as we reported on election night, Saturday, Sept. 14. Businessman Florio Vassilakakis won the election with 408 votes, beating out Kirk Duff (244), Antoinette Halberstadt (171) and Tyler Maddocks (148) for the lone council seat that was up for grabs. There was a total of 971 votes cast, representing just 16 per cent turnout of the electorate. It’s the lowest percentage of votes cast in any Castlegar election since at least 1986, according to documents released by Carolyn Rempel, chief election officer. By-elections in 2008 (18.5 per cent) and 2001 (25.1 per cent were higher but didn’t come close to the 1987 council election when more than 58 per cent of voters exercised their democratic right. “I’m just honoured that I’ve got this opportunity to represent the citizens of Castlegar,” said Vassilakakis on Saturday night. “I look forward to working with the current council, and of course, the mayor, and making good things happen.” As for the margin of victory, the proprietor of Cas-
BACK
POPULAR BY DEMAND
tlegar’s downtown Element Club said he had never taken anything for granted. “You never know, with these by-elections anything can happen. So I just kept pushing and pushing. We were on the horn today, all day, making sure that everybody got out to vote. I’m glad to see that everyone who said they were going to vote, went and voted.
Florio Vassilakakis photo: Marvin Beatty
On the subject of his competitors, Vassilakakis indicated he’d sent them messages in advance. “I have nothing but the utmost respect for them,” he said. Kirk Duff, the only one of the four candidates with experience on Castlegar council, who had been edged out of the governing body in the last general election, expressed a realistic reaction to the result. “I’m a little surprised,” he said by phone. Continued on P. A2
Welcome to autumn A little fall decoration brightening up some of the streets of Castlegar. The happy scarecrow makes a good reminder for the Pass Creek Fall Fair coming up this weekend. See story on page A11. Marvin Beatty
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