Pelham town councillors took turns praising Ward 1 Coun. Jim Lane for stepping up to serve the town, during their final meeting of the 2010-2014 term.
Lane, appointed earlier this year to replace Larry Clark who resigned, finished third in the two- seat ward in the Oct. 27 municipal election behind Richard Rybiak and Marvin Junkin.
Lane holds the distinction of serving twice on town council by appointment.
He finished third in Ward 1 in the 2007 municipal election. He was appointed in 2008 to replace Malcolm Allen, after Allen won the Welland seat for the NDP in a federal election.
Lane again finished third in the 2010 election and then lost a byelection in Ward 1 to Richard Rybiak, following the resignation of Debbie Urbanowicz in 2011. This year he was appointed to replace Clark.
When he was not on council, Lane attended council meetings as a spectator.
Mayor Dave Augustyn said Lane was very committed to the community and brought a common sense approach to council.
“He called a spade a spade.”
Rybiak said Lane brought a different point of view to the table.
“He has a deep commitment to the people of Pelham.”
Ward 2 Coun. Catherine King said she appreciated his love of the town and his sense of humour.
Ward 3 Coun. John Durley said he was pleased to work with Lane and built a real friendship.
Ward 2 Coun. Garry Accursi said Lane has a strong sense of fiscal responsibility. They often disagreed but he respected Lane’s efforts to show council as united on issues even after heated debate.
Ward 3 Coun. Peter Papp, who is Lane’s brother-in-law, said Lane has had a keen interest in municipal government for a long time and a great interest in the community.
Lane thanked councillors “for their kind words” and praised town staff for all their work and help.
He said he enjoyed serving, made some fine friendships and in the future he will “be keeping an eye on you.”
Councillors gave Lane a standing ovation.
