WHITE ROCK — After four terms spread over the past three decades, Coun. Louise Hutchinson is bidding farewell to city hall after deciding not to run in the upcoming civic election.
At her penultimate council meeting Monday night, Hutchinson gave an impromptu speech about why she decided against running again and her time spent at city hall.
“Many who do not know, I won my first seat 29 years ago, and served four terms in that time. That was almost half a lifetime ago,†she said. “This was a very difficult decision to make, it was not easy, but there were two deciding factors in the end.â€
Noting the four-year terms as being one of the factors, Hutchinson said the other reason was that her husband, acclaimed potter Don Hutchinson is now able to go travelling, no longer being tied down to his work.
“This is the first time in our 44 years together we have no responsibilities to anything other than ourselves,†she said. “So am I… footloose and fancy free. I enjoyed my last few years as a councillor again and still have 40 days to make a lot of noise, and I will.â€
Mayor Wayne Baldwin said he was sorry to see Hutchinson go, “and I think I speak for all of us when I say we’ve certainly enjoyed your participating. You’ve given a lot this community and we owe you a debt of gratitude.â€