KENSINGTON, P.E.I. –
The mayor of a Prince Edward Island town has resigned following a council vote in favour of new pickleball courts that he says the town can’t afford.
Rowan Caseley says there was lots he still wanted to accomplish as mayor of Kensington, P.E.I., but on Monday he threw in the towel after 10 years in the job.
Caseley said in an interview that he resigned right after town council voted 3-2 in favour of building the courts, despite his recommendation against the project.
He says funding from the 2023 Canada Games Legacy Fund, established after the province hosted the Games, would only cover 55 per cent of the $500,000 plan to build six courts and associated facilities.
Even a scaled-down pickleball project would eat up staff time and operating costs, he says.
The ex-mayor argues the growing town of about 2,300 people could better use those resources on projects to support its population, such as expanding its waste treatment system.
He says a mayor’s job is to stand behind a council’s decisions, and in the case of the pickleball courts, he simply can’t do it.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 27, 2024.
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