On February 5, 2024, the municipal council authorized the launch of calls for tenders to modernize the municipality’s website and evaluate bids for a citizen portal. Beyond design, the priority remains the regular updating of content and online services. A citizen portal—similar to the one in Magog (alerts, news updates, permit applications, billing, snow removal, […]

Congratulations on the initiative to publish a summary of the city council meeting: by presenting it as “your city newsletter,” you are clearly demonstrating your desire to better inform citizens. However, allow me to offer a counterpoint: the absence of the minutes from October 1—41 days later—undermines this effort and hinders the transparency and citizen […]

You can consult the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct for Elected Officials of North Hatley here. Sorry, I couldn’t find any documents in English. In order to maintain public trust and ensure exemplary governance, Article 5 of the Code of Ethics for Municipal Elected Officials sets out clear rules of conduct and prohibitions. These […]

The elections are over: the newly elected councillors officially take office this evening at 7 p.m., in the Lucien-Vachon Hall (Saint-Élisabeth Church in North Hatley). Two new members will be joining the council, Ms. Astrid Dangoisse and Mr. Claude Gendron. The information will likely be updated soon on the village’s website. This meeting appears to […]

Fall is setting in and snow is on its way. Soon, North Hatley’s Rivière Park will offer a hockey rink and an ice trail. Many residents are wondering about the maintenance costs. Once again, in order to confirm the exact amounts, I did some research to find out who is responsible for the costs and […]

Overview Recent results reveal a low level of citizen inclusion. This is not unique to North Hatley — across Quebec, residents often highlight a lack of communication, inclusivity, and transparency. The outcome is a decline in civic engagement, weakening local democracy — the level of government that most directly shapes our daily lives. Here, participation […]

In the most recent municipal elections in Quebec, 564 mayors and 3,996 councillors were elected by acclamation — meaning without opposition. That accounts for 57.8% of all positions, a slight improvement compared with 62.7% in the previous election, but the overall picture remains troubling: local democracy is running out of breath. A democracy under strain […]

Constat Why ask the question? Rising costs and administrative duplication (town hall, council, management, systems) undermine efficiency. In addition, all municipalities need an accountant, a lawyer, and an inspector. There are many advantages to collaborating and sharing all these resources. Hence the interest in groupings and, in some cases, mergers of municipalities. Consolidation ≠ Merger […]

By mother tongue (2021): North Hatley is predominantly French-speaking (≈ 56% French vs. ≈ 37% English). By knowledge of official languages (2021): the population is largely bilingual (≈ 67% report knowing both French and English). Key figures (census) Population : 605 (2016) → 670 (2021), or +10.7%. Native language (2021) Knowledge of official languages (2021) […]

Unfortunately, I have not been able to find any official provincial statistics on average attendance at municipal council meetings in Quebec. However, pan-American surveys (LAPOP) estimate that, on average, ~10.5% of adults have attended at least one municipal meeting in the last 12 months (this is not specific to Quebec, but it gives an order […]

Over the past few weeks, my electoral journey has allowed me to learn a great deal through discussions with lawyers, Elections Quebec, the MAMH, the election president, and the revision board. Here is what I have learned. Élections Québec, the municipal electoral list review commission exercises quasi-judicial powers: it rules on requests that affect rights […]

In conversations with citizens, it is often said that property taxes are very high in North Hatley, especially when compared to the Township of Hatley, Sherbrooke, or Magog. In my opinion, these few comparisons are not enough to draw any conclusions. I therefore extracted the property tax rates for all municipalities (1,037) available at the […]

Communities with fewer than 2,000 residents can reduce the size of their council from six to four seats. Since the last municipal elections, 1,082 elected officials have left office—a wave of resignations that often catches councils off guard and makes recruiting new candidates more difficult. In Saint-Edmond-les-Plaines, former mayor Martine Verville (2021–2023) sums up the […]

In my conversations, I find that few people closely follow municipal politics. When I point out that the minutes from the last six months aren’t available, I’m told it hardly matters—almost no one reads them. So how do people keep themselves informed about local politics if council meetings draw only about thirty attendees per month? […]

Here is my response, posted on Facebook on October 27. Here is an excerpt: “Misinformation and mistrust has found its way to our little village and we are in danger of falling victim to rumour and innuendo that has the potential to damage our tiny democracy. I am a fact checker. I base all my […]