Tim Bousquet

2013 grade: B+ 2012 grade: C- 2011 grade: C- 2010 grade: D 2009 grade: D Cell: 499-3744 The UARB created a new electoral district by taking the population-heavy West Clayton Park and tacking on Reg Rankin’s old district of Timberlea. Rankin won the new district, in part due to his politicking skills, in part because […]

2013 grade: A- 2012 grade: C+ 2011 grade: B+ 2010 grade: A- 2009 grade: B Cell: 497-4748 With Waye Mason, Jennifer Watts cast a symbolic vote against expanding the Bayers Lake business park. She also made a poignant comment on the disposition of the former Northcliffe Rec Centre in Clayton Park: The city will lose […]

2013 grade: C- 2012 grade: N/A Cell: 240-3330 Before he was elected, all we knew about Matt Whitman was he laid claim to inventing something he calls “reverse networking,” which as far as we can determine means saying nice things about people. Not exactly our cup of tea, but neither does it strike us as […]

2013 grade: B- 2012 grade: C 2011 grade: B- 2010 grade: B- 2009 grade: C- 2008 grade: C- 2007 grade: D Cell: 476-4117 The longer Linda Mosher is on council, the more enigmatic she becomes. We can’t ascribe any coherent political ideology to her, nor can we say what else might motivate her. That’s not […]

2013 grade: B+ 2012 grade: C 2011 grade: B- 2010 grade: D 2009 grade: C 2008 grade: D 2007 grade: D Cell: 476-1234 Brad Johns is probably the most underrated councillor. He consistently offers worthy insight, which goes unvalued by his colleagues. He does good constituency work, and everyone in the district knows where to […]

Last year was a low point for Halifax city politics. “Council dealt with many highly contentious issues—and screwed up each and every one of them,” we wrote in our annual report card. We went on to award a record number of F grades—five—and for the first time, flat-out expelled one politician, then-mayor Peter Kelly. Our […]

2013 grade: A- 2012 grade: N/A Cell: 240-0441 We have never seen a non-politician enter the council realm as successfully as has Steve Craig. He has hit the ground running, and is well representing his constituents. Craig’s first act was to bring forward problems with stormwater systems in his beleaguered Sackville. It’s a problem faced […]

2013 grade: B- 2012 grade: C+ 2011 grade: C+ 2010 grade: C- 2009 grade: C Phone: 490-5679 Since getting re-elected, Tim Outhit hasn’t been particularly outspoken about any issue. But there’s been a general gestalt about him, a noticeable shift into the ornery. It’s like watching a volcano. He just sits there, maybe shifts around […]

2013 grade: C- 2012 grade: F 2011 grade: C- 2010 grade: D 2009 grade: C 2008 grade: D 2007 grade: D+ Cell: 483-0705 Last year, David Hendsbee distinguished himself as the worst of a sad lot of councillors, pointlessly attacking the harmless Occupiers at Grand Parade while defending the chief grifter in the mayor’s office. […]

2013 grade: C- 2012 grade: D 2011 grade: C+ 2010 grade: C+ 2009 grade: C+ 2008 grade: C 2007 grade: C- Cell: 476-1855 In what was undoubtedly the meanest and most contested council election last year, Bill Karsten defeated Jackie Barkhouse by just 68 votes. The contest was so close that Karsten had to sit […]

2013 grade: B 2012 grade: C- 2011 grade: C 2010 grade: C 2009 grade: C- Cell: 478-2705 Slowly, ever so slowly, Lorelei Nicoll is coming into her own. She’s whatever the opposite of brash is, inoffensively finding her way through the thicket of loud and stupid that is Halifax council. For too long, Nicoll seemed […]