Thunder Bay mayor announces resignation

Thunder Bay's mayor has announced he'll be leaving his position prior to the upcoming municipal election.

Bill Mauro said Wednesday he's resigning effective Oct. 4.

Speaking to CBC News, Mauro said the current city council has entered its "lame duck" period, which limits the decisions council can make, due to the upcoming election.

"There's really not a lot over the next period of six or seven weeks that we're able to really decide upon," Mauro said. "So I just thought, rather than just hang around, I'll just move on."

"That's really what's driven the decision-making for me."

The next municipal election is set for Oct. 24. In June, Mauro announced he wouldn't be seeking re-election.

Mauro's political career began in 1997, when he was first elected to city council. He was acclaimed for a second term in 2000.

In 2003, he was elected as Liberal MPP for Thunder Bay-Atikokan. He held the seat until 2018, when he was defeated in the provincial election.

He was elected as Thunder Bay mayor later that year.

City Clerk Krista Power said the next council's term officially begins on Nov. 15; the newly-elected council will be in power then, and can make decisions and hold meetings as needed. Their official, public swearing-in will take place on Nov. 28.

However, before that happens, the current council will need to decide how they're going to handle the vacancy left by Mauro's resignation.

Power said she'll be bringing a report on the matter to council on Sept. 12, and councillors will hold a special meeting on Oct. 4 to make a decision.

"Given that it is so close to the next election, there will be no decision, I'm sure, by council in terms of filling a seat or any of that," Mauro said.

As for his future, Mauro said he's not ready to say exactly what he'll be doing — a media release issued Wednesday morning stated he'll be "moving on to a new opportunity in the near future" — but it won't involve seeking another political office elsewhere.

"I'm ready to go off and do something else for a while," he said. "I'm not ready to retire."

In the release, Mauro thanked his colleagues on council, as well as city administration and staff.

"All the best to those that are running again in the upcoming municipal election as well as new candidates who have put their name forward," Mauro stated. "The work is important and not easy but most certainly rewarding."