In the weeks leading up to the Oct. 20 municipal election, The Weekly News has been profiling the districts that matter to our readers. Every available candidate has been given a chance to share his or her vision for the district and HRM. This is the final district to be profiled in the Dartmouth-Cole Harbour area.
District 4 – Cole Harbour – Westphal
Our final district profile, Cole Harbour – Westphal, was delayed whilst playing the waiting game. One of the candidates, Angela Jones, was deemed ineligible to run by her employer (HRM) due to issues with her leave status. The Supreme Court of Nova Scotia recently ruled in Jones’ favour allowing her to officially run. The district itself keeps the community of Cole Harbour intact, something which seemed to be unlikely during the re-districting. With Caldwell Road to the west, it hugs Shearwater – CFB Halifax until flying east to Bisset Road, continuing up until Cole Harbour Road. It continues further to Main Street and beyond, encompassing the Cole Harbour Commons, Cole Harbour/Lawrencetown Coastal Heritage Provincial Park and Cole Harbour Place.
Lorelei Nicoll (incumbent):
Lorelei Nicoll has lived in the Cole Harbour – Westphal area for 26 years. Before becoming the regions councillor, Nicoll has volunteered heavily in the community and served on a number of boards including School Advisory Committees, founding the Cole Harbour Harvest Festival and helped to start the Association for Business in Cole Harbour. Her hobbies include aerobics, gardening, tennis, cycling, walking/running and oil painting.
“I’ve been dedicated 24-7 to this job, with a vision for District 4, a sense of belonging,” Nicoll said. “We’re working on planter boxes and decorative lamp posts so that it’s not just the Sidney Crosby sign that lets people know you’re in the community of Cole Harbour. Having lived here for so many years, I know that’s a desire that people have and I’m reoffering to reach that goal. It takes more than four years to get anything done.”
Although Nicoll said it’s important to focus on your own district, she also went to other districts to get to know the rest of HRM.
“We need to stop with the boundaries, we’re all part of HRM and we need to celebrate what we have and look at the bigger picture,” she said.
“At first it looked like I was going to be acclaimed, and I didn’t want that,” Nicoll said. “I love going out and meeting with the people and getting an understanding what their situation is on any given street. People want you to work for their vote.”
Angela Jones:
Angela Jones was initially disqualified from running in the election due to an issue regarding leave from her employer, HRM. However, the Nova Scotia Supreme Court has ruled that she can run and she has continued to campaign before and after that ruling. Born and raised in Dartmouth, Jones has a Bachelor of Science with a minor in religious studies from Saint Mary’s University and is also a certified schoolteacher. She later got her law degree from Dalhousie and quickly began working for HRM’s legal team. Jones loves to garden, and she maintains that she has the nicest rose bush in Dartmouth.
“I’m running for council because I have worked for the municipality for the past 15 years as a lawyer in legal services, while working there I realized that I could make a lot of positive change as a councilor myself,” Jones said. “I like to help people and I think this is a different way for me to help people in the municipality.”
Although Jones doesn’t live in District 4, she said that doesn’t mean she’s not the best one for the job.
“I chose to run in District 4 because there’s a lot of improvement that needs to take place,” Jones said. “I felt that the district did not have a strong voice and that I could give them one.”
Jones said the traffic concerns among residents is one of her main priorities. She said cars are bypassing the main thoroughfare and using residential streets as a means to circumvent those ongoing problems, this is made more problematic due to a lack of sidewalks on some of these side streets, she added.
“The area doesn’t have a real identity and is becoming a victim of urban sprawl,” Jones said. “There’s no place, other than Cole Harbour Place, where people can congregate and socialize.”
Barry Smith:
Barry Smith has lived around the Woodlawn/Cole Harbour area for his whole life, where he has since raised a family of his own. His professional professional career ranges from blue-collar work, to consulting, to small business and now corporate business. Smith said this range of life experience gives him the insight to understand the challenges of families and the wide range of issues Cole Harbour is currently facing.
“I'm running as a Candidate for Council in District 4, Cole Harbour - Westphal to listen to the people,” Smith said. “As well as, to provide a strong voice for the families and the business community of District 4.”
Smith said he’s running in District 4 because after years of living here, he wants to ‘pay it forward’ by serving the community.
“My platform for the district is, as it has been stated all along going door to door, listening and working with my community, safety for the families and business in my community of District 4, and HRM as a whole,” Smith said.
“Metro Transit needs to provide the best services and growth possible,” Smith said. “Parklands need to be maintained along with increased support for the marshland trails to improve the greenbelt system in our community.”
