Election of New Deputy Mayor
The term for Amherst’s Deputy Mayor expires annually on October 31. At the regular meeting of Town Council, Charlie Chambers was elected as the new Deputy Mayor – effective from November 1, 2025 to October 31, 2026.
Council Committee Appointments
Council approved the following committee appointments effective November 1, 2025 to October 31, 2026, with the exception of the terms for the Amherst Board of Police Commissioners appointments as noted:
- Mayor Small has been re-appointed to Regional Emergency Management and re-appointed to the North Tyndal Wellfield Advisory Committee;
- Councillor Chambers has been re-appointed to the Planning Advisory Committee, and will continue to sit on the Amherst Board of Police Commissioners through October 31, 2027;
- Councillor Davidson has been re-appointed to the Accessibility, Inclusion, Diversity and Equity Committee, the L.A. Animal Shelter board, and will continue to sit on the Amherst Board of Police Commissioners through October 31, 2026;
- Councillor Furlong has been re-appointed to the Northern Region Solid Waste Committee, Regional Emergency Management, and will continue to sit on the Amherst Board of Police Commissioners through October 31, 2027;
- Councillor McManaman has been re-appointed to the Planning Advisory Committee, the North Tyndal Wellfield Advisory Committee, and the Cumberland Public Libraries Board;
- Councillor Ripley has been re-appointed to the Planning Advisory Committee, the Intermunicipal Tourism Committee, and has been appointed to the GFL Community Liaison Committee; and,
- Councillor Wells has been re-appointed to the Accessibility, Inclusion, Diversity and Equity Committee, as well as being newly appointed to the YMCA Board of Directors.
Further, all members of Council are also appointed to the Committee of the Whole of Amherst Town Council, and the Town of Amherst Audit Committee.
Additional Committee Appointments
The Town of Amherst Audit Committee received two new citizen appointments on Monday night when Jim Prince was appointed to the committee for a one-year term and Rae Burke was re-appointed for a two-year term.
Council also approved a motion appointing Ava Tooley as the Amherst Youth Town Council appointee to the Town of Amherst Accessibility, Inclusion, Diversity and Equity Committee.
Municipal Planning Strategy/Land Use By-law
The draft Municipal Planning Strategy (MPS) and accompanying Land Use By-law (LUB) together provide a comprehensive and updated framework to guide how land within the town is planned, developed, and managed.
As part of the process required to update the existing planning documents originally adopted in 2005, Council gave first reading Monday night to the new Municipal Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law, and scheduled a public hearing to be held on Thursday, November 13 at 5:00 p.m. in Council Chambers.
Amendments to Policies
Council approved amendments to the Council Conference Attendance and Professional Development Policy.
Council also approved a Corrective Action Policy on Monday night designed to manage employee performance and conduct. This was developed to clearly outline expectations, ensure consistency, provide early support, and reinforce commitment to a fair and respectful workplace.
Council also approved the new Land Sales and Development Policy, while repealing the current Sale of Usable Land Policy and Industrial Park Land Sales Policy.
Amendments were also approved for the Arts and Culture Policy, and Council gave second reading of the By-law to Amend the Fires and Burning of Materials By-law.
Funding and Grant Requests
Council approved a contribution of $30,000 to the YMCA of Cumberland in support of an affordable housing project for downtown.
An amount of $1,500 was approved for the Amherst Indian Association’s Diwali Festival.
Strategic Land Acquisition
As part of the Town’s ongoing efforts to acquire land in and around the North Tyndal Wellfield, Council approved the trade of approximately 945 acres of Town-owned lands in the Beecham Road area for an approximately 910-acre portion of JD Irving land located within zones 1 and 2 of the North Tyndal Wellfield Protection Zone. The CAO and Mayor were authorized to execute the necessary agreements.
And, in support of Council’s priority to develop a plan for expansion of the Industrial Park, Council approved the purchase of lands for Industrial Park expansion, including a 20-acre parcel on Race Track Road, and three parcels on Industrial Drive and Ancestral Drive comprising approximately 46 acres. These purchases totalling just over $1 million will be funded from the Operating Reserve over a three-year period; the project was added to the current capital budget; and, the CAO and Mayor were authorized to execute the necessary agreements.
Live Fire Training Facility
The Town of Amherst and the Amherst Firefighters’ Association have entered into an agreement to construct a live fire training facility located behind the Amherst Fire Station, which will greatly improve the training available locally and subsequently improve the safety of our firefighters.
Two motions were passed in support of this project on Monday night. In the first, Council approved an amendment to the 2025/26 capital budget for the Live Fire Training Facility and increased the budget from $2,000,000 to $3,425,000 – with funding of $3,250,000 from the Amherst Firefighters’ Association and $175,000 from the Town of Amherst Capital Reserve. And in the second motion, Council awarded “RFP-25-15 – Supply of a Class B Fire Training Facility” to Greendale Resources Inc. in the amount of $2,712,800 CAD plus applicable taxes.
Direct enquiries to:
Sean Payne
Marketing & Communications Officer
902-694-6265
Find full details of the October 27, 2025 meeting of Amherst Town Council linked here.
pdf A PDF version of this media release is available for download here(195 KB) .
