Coffee with the Mayor
A Term in Conversation
A Table for Dialogue
For four years, once a month, residents gathered not in council chambers but around a table with coffee. Each time, the agenda was set together — by residents, for residents — reflecting what mattered most in their lives and neighbourhoods.
Concerns that Shaped the Conversation
Some mornings centred on Sandy Beach — its conservation, its cost, its future. Others turned to our trees and green spaces: the loss of mature canopies, landslide risks in Cavagnol and Windcrest, or the call to replant the village core. Residents spoke of roads and circulation: potholes, resurfacing plans, school drop-off safety, ferry traffic, and speeding through neighbourhood streets. They raised concerns about water: calcium in drinking water, failing septic systems, E.coli in streams, and drainage after storms.
And always, community life found its way to the table: gratitude for new pickleball courts, calls for better playgrounds, questions about the pool’s future, and recognition for the hundreds of volunteers who quietly sustain Hudson.
The Spirit of Exchange
These conversations were not always easy. At times sharp, even frustrating, yet more often neighbours listened, corrected, and clarified. People learned from each other, and the Town learned from them. In this, democracy revealed itself as shared responsibility — warmer, more human, and built on patience and respect.
What Endures
What lingers is not only the list of issues raised but the spirit they were raised in: a willingness to engage, to challenge, and to listen. These mornings made visible the complexity of governance, showing how local decisions are built from competing needs, finite resources, and the will to protect what matters most.
As I enter this campaign, I carry that spirit forward — of curiosity, openness, and stewardship. After four years of listening and learning, my question now is simple: how can I serve Hudson even better?
