A community in northern Ontario that needed a bailout from the province to prevent bankruptcy is making news again – this time because no one has come forward to run in the October municipal election. And if no one comes forward who is willing to run, the province said this week that the current township council would have its term extended “until the new council can be organized.” Officials with Fauquier-Strickland declined a request from CTV News for an interview, saying only that updates on the situation will be posted to the municipality’s website. However, Ontario’s Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing said if there are not enough-- or no – candidates stepping forward in Fauquier-Strickland, the Aug. 21 deadline to register would be extended to Aug. 26 at 2 p.m. “If there continues to not be enough certified candidates to fill the five seats on council after the additional nomination period has closed, a vacancy can be filled in one of two ways following the election,” the ministry said. If some candidates do emerge and are acclaimed, but the township still doesn’t have its quorum of at least three seats, then the new council would be tasked with appointing people who consent to fill the role until a quorum is achieved. “If the number of candidates acclaimed and/or declared elected is insufficient to form a quorum, a byelection must be held to fill any vacancies,” the ministry statement said. “The new council cannot be organized and take office until it has enough members to form a quorum. In that case, the term of the outgoing council would continue until the new council can be organized.” Fauquier-Strickland made headlines last year when it said it would cease operations as of August 2025, rather than impose a 300 per cent property tax increase on its approximately 400 residents. It was saddled with a $2.5 million debt, all of its reserve funds were depleted and banks refused to lend any more money. In a letter to the ministry, Mayor Madeleine Tremblay said her community was facing “complete financial collapse within weeks,” leaving residents “without essential services and creating an emergency that will inevitably require far more costly provincial intervention.” The province later provided emergency funding and councillors approved a budget that included a 20 per cent property tax hike.
