SURREY - Mayor Dianne Watts led her last council meeting on Dec. 1, after nearly a decade of running the City of Surrey.
It was also the last for Coun. Barinder Rasode after she was defeated by Coun. Linda Hepner in her bid for the mayor's chair.Watts had two final matters to take care of before closing the meeting Monday night."Being that this is my last meeting, I'm going to get 'er done," she said with a smile.First, she renamed Heritage Square to Veteran's Square, which council passed.Then, she addressed her "longsuffering issue about stick trees that drive me crazy when I see them in medians and all over the boulevards."She put a motion forward, which was passed, to have a combination of the "stick trees" and Evergreens going forward.Watts thanked her team, and all city staff, for working toward a collective vision.Mayor-elect Linda Hepner presented Watts with a plaque, as well as a book filled with the accomplishments of the mayor's reign."We will honour you in this city for your vision and we promise we will take care of your trees, and we promise that we will build, on your behalf, the great city that you havestarted," Hepner said.As her final act, Rasode congratulated Hepner for her win, and commended Watts for her leadership, adding it has been a privilege for her to serve the city."I'm sure that as we work with you to build a better city together, that I have no doubt our future is in very good hands," Rasode said.areid@thenownewspaper.comSEE FULL STORY, PHOTO AT THENOWNEWSPAPER.COM