With current mayor Mel Norton announcing that he won’t be running for re-election, a former mayor of Saint John is giving him a rave review saying he has been an excellent mayor, has moved the city in the right direction and that the groundwork is done.
Norm McFarlane tells us that Norton was in a very tough position four years ago, saying, “I think the economy was going down and things in Saint John were just not looking too bright and think he changed everybody’s thinking of Saint John as a great city.”
We asked McFarlane what qualities the next mayor of Saint John should have, and he says you have to be a good listener to the people, you have to make tough decisions, you have to move when the environment is right for you to move and you have to work well with both levels of government which he says Norton has.
McFarlane says we need someone young like Mel Norton, someone with enthusiasm, dedication and someone that can see the great future that Saint John has.
We asked McFarlane if he would ever consider a jump back into municipal politics, “I think at my age they need somone younger there, I loved it and I love Saint John and I think that it’s a great city.” He says that he would work with anyone to make this city move into the future.
