By Allyson Rowley, Community Reporter

Like the rest of the province, the Town of Bridgewater is in the midst of municipal elections that will culminate on Saturday, October 19. Nine candidates are vying for six spots on Bridgewater’s Town Council.

Treehouse Village residents are highly engaged in deciding who will get our votes. We’re researching the candidates’ views and backgrounds, we’re attending “Meet the Candidates” events, and we’re organizing watch parties to chat with our neighbours and hear their opinions.

Community member Kathy Horton decided to go one step further: She reached out to all nine candidates and invited them to come to Treehouse Village for tea and cookies! 

We were delighted that five candidates quickly accepted the invitation to come for a visit on the afternoon of October 6. In alphabetical order, they were: Mike Conklin, Cheryl Fougere, Donette Getson, Jane Morrell, and Braden Newell.

The candidates toured our site and were interested in learning about our Passive House construction, the universal design principles within each unit, our solar panels on all rooftops, and our 5000-sq.ft. of shared amenities. 

And of course, they loved our Common House! The kitchen was already filled with the aroma of a common meal being prepared for that evening — delicious stuffed peppers with both vegetarian and meat options.

In reflecting on the afternoon’s proceedings , Kathy noted this was one of the great benefits of living in community. “We chatted with each other, we decided it was a good and timely thing to do, and we quickly made it happen!”

We had a great turn-out from the Treehouse community for this special event — more than 15 residents joined the conversations. Thanks to the five candidates for taking the time on a Sunday afternoon to learn more about Atlantic Canada’s first cohousing community.

For more on Treehouse Village Ecohousing, go to our home page or search for #ADayInTheLifeOfTreehouse on Facebook and Instagram.