JOSHUA ALLAN
The 1019 Report
After a particularly raucous four years in Pointe Claire politics, the council races for the Nov. 2 vote are starting to take shape.
The 1510 West has compiled a list of who’s in and who’s out so far.
District 1 – Cedar / The Village
After serving a total of two and a half terms, incumbent District 1 councillor Claude Cousineau announced earlier this summer that he will not seek re-election.
The open seat looks poised to be the focus of a two-way race, although only one candidate has officially stepped forward.
David Epstein, owner of the popular Studio 77 café in the village, announced his intentions to run Aug. 1. His platform includes supporting small businesses and promoting local artists and cultural organizations, as well as bringing “common sense decorum” to municipal politics. Cousineau has expressed support for Epstein’s candidacy on Facebook.
David Johnston confirmed to The 1510 West that he is seriously considering running in District 1. A former reporter and editor at the Montreal Gazette, he also was the regional representative of Quebec and Nunavut for the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages. Johnston is actively going door-to-door in the district to take the pulse of the voters, but has not officially register with Élections Québec.
District 2 – Lakeside
Longtime councillor Paul Bissonnette is still considering whether to run for re-election. He has represented District 2 since 2005, receiving recognition on behalf of the Union des municipalités du Québec in June for his 20 years of service in municipal politics.
No other candidate has publicly announced their intention to run in District 2.
District 3 – Valois
Two candidates are vying for the seat so far, setting the stage for a rematch of the 2021 election race.
Incumbent councillor Kelly Thorstad-Cullen, who has represented the district since 2013, will face Barry Christensen. Christensen lost to Thorstad-Cullen by 97 votes in 2021. A retired paramedic, Christensen currently serves as the president of the Pointe Claire Citizens’ Association and is the publisher of The Pointe-Claire Record. The online newsletter’s June edition announced Christensen’s intention to run for council, as well as his decision to put the publication into a blind trust.
District 4 – Cedar Park Heights
Incumbent councillor Tara Stainforth announced Saturday she will not seek re-election. In a Facebook post, she expressed appreciation for the support from her constituents and fellow councillors while lamenting the “toxic” work environment and “persistent conflict” between Mayor Tim Thomas and council. “My values and ethics are not reflected in the current leadership, and I cannot support or enable that by running again,” she wrote. Stainforth has represented District 4 since 2017.
No other candidate has publicly announced their intention to run in District 4.
District 5 – Lakeside Heights
Incumbent councillor Cynthia Homan will face off against well-known greenspace advocate Geneviève Lussier, who helped found the Save Fairview Forest group in 2020.
Homan, who has held the seat since 2013, won the 2021 election by securing 73-per-cent of the vote in the district, the largest electoral victory in Pointe Claire that year.
Lussier has greeted residents every Saturday during weekly demonstrations at Fairview Forest – more than 250 since 2020 – calling for the 43-acre woodland to be preserved from development. She was awarded the King Charles Coronation medal in March for her advocacy.
District 6 – Seigniory
So far, incumbent councillor Bruno Tremblay is the only candidate in the district. He was first elected in 2021 and has served on the city’s Public Library Advisory Committee, the Environment and Sustainable Development Advisory Committee, the Public Art Advisory Committee and the Demolition Committee.
District 7 – Northview
Incumbent councillor Eric Stork is the only declared candidate in the ward so far. He was first elected in 2017 and re-elected in 2021, winning about 53 per cent of the vote each time. He describes his political tenure as attempting to “strike a thoughtful balance between responsible development and the preservation of our community’s unique character.”
District 8 – Oneida
With district incumbent Brent Cowan running for mayor, this seat is up for grabs.
So far, Ray Coelho is the only candidate in the race. He played a pivotal role in Montreal Agglomeration council’s decision last year to end water fluoridation at the Pointe Claire and Dorval water treatment plants, launching a petition calling for an end to the practice.
Coelho also stirred controversy for his past connections to the now-defunct Canadian Nationalist Party – a far-right group that operated from 2017 to 2022. Coelho ran in the 2019 federal election as the party’s candidate in the Lac-Saint-Louis riding. He received just 28 votes.
Cowan has been encouraging real estate broker Jeff Zhao to run in the district. “He’s a very active member of the local Chinese community, which is quite extensive in Pointe Claire,” Cowan said. He added that Zhao has organized several Chinese cultural events in the city and has contributed to organizing part of Pointe Claire Days’ international cuisine event. Zhao did not return a request for comment from The 1510 West. He has not yet publicly announced his intention to run, nor has he registered as a candidate with Élections Québec.
“But between you and me and your readers, I think he’s going to (run),” Cowan said.