STEPHEN RICCIO
WALTHAM May 5, 2021
EDITOR’S NOTE: Over the next several months, THE EQUITY will be reporting on the progress each municipality within the Pontiac has made since the last slate of municipal elections in 2017. This series aims to uncover and expand on what key accomplishments, challenges and notable events each community has dealt with over the past four years.
While the last four years were largely made up of recovering from flooding damages and then coping with the pandemic, Waltham Mayor David Rochon believes that the community has . . .
stayed positive through it all.
“Our biggest achievement was surviving our floods,” he said. “We had two bad floods here, and now with coronavirus … it’s one thing after another.”
Waltham, a small town of roughly 380 people, was among the municipalities in the Pontiac hit the hardest by the floods that occurred in the spring during both 2017 and 2019, with the latter year doing more damage to households.
“We had a lot of support from … the people in Waltham,” Rochon said. “Like on sandbagging, donating food, preparing food for the workers. It was pretty nice to see, everybody came together.”
Director General Fernand Roy echoed Rochon’s sentiment, noting that the last few years has taken an abundance of dedication from residents.
“It has been hard on the morale of the council to see all these incidents during this election term,” Roy wrote in an email to The Equity. “Fortunately most citizens are supportive and appreciate [of] the effort deployed during these times.”
Rochon said that while he believes people are staying optimistic, the pandemic has made for an eerie feeling throughout the community.
“It’s just hard to accept, you don’t see nobody walking around too much, moving around,” he said. “Our playground’s empty, our ball field’s empty and it’s hard to see.”
According to Roy, dealing with flooding and then being faced with the pandemic forced the municipality to forgo any idea of pursuing new projects.
Several road projects that were undertaken were done as a response to the floods, which caused numerous washouts and other issues.
Roy said that repairs on Dempsey Street and Traversier Street have amounted to a price tag of roughly $200,000, with some of the Traversier work still being delayed as a result of COVID restrictions.
He added that nearly $250,000 was spent to repair Black River Road after 2017’s flood season caused washouts and the bank giving away. Rochon said that the majority of this amount was unable to be recouped in government aid, causing the municipality a setback in having to foot a hefty bill.
Both Roy and Rochon were optimistic about recent federal and provincial government announcements in increased internet infrastructure spending. Rochon said that the pandemic was a stark reminder that the internet performance for most Waltham residents is not where it needs to be.
“This is a good time, we need the internet here, we need high speed so we can work from home,” he said.
Roy said that while the events of the last few years were hard on municipal staff and residents alike, he has seen a number of positives to reflect on.
“On the more positive side, the municipality was able to operate with a budget and a [minimal] tax increase,” Roy stated. “We now see more people buying property and building cottages, homes and even vacant lots to get out of the cities.”
With Roy having been with the municipality for roughly 30 years, Rochon having served as councillor for several terms prior to being elected mayor and several other councillors who have served multiple terms, Rochon said there was a level of comfort and familiarity among members of council that make for a great environment.
