Former Town Treasurer declares Ward 1 candidacy one day before filing deadline
Cari Pupo, once the Treasurer of the Town of Pelham, has thrown her hat into the ring for the Ward 1 council seat left vacant by the passing of Councillor Mike Ciolfi in April.
Pupo was hired as Treasurer in 2008, taking over when the previous incumbent, Gord Cherney, retired. She came to the Town from the French public school board, where she was Director of Administrative Services. Pupo told the Voice on taking the job that she was the person to make sure that budgets weren’t overspent and problems were addressed as soon as possible. This diligence, she said, earned her the nickname “The Cop” in her previous job.
Yet in an abrupt move in May 2017, Pupo was fired by the previous Mayor and council. No official explanation for the termination has ever been provided. However, sources with intimate knowledge of the decision tell the newspaper that Pupo's departure was occasioned by personal friction between her and other senior staff, and was not related to the Town's financial issues, then being scrutinized by the Voice.
Pupo has recently criticized the Town for its slow response to neighbourhood complaints about an illegal duplex on Emmett Street, where she lives in Fonthill, in Ward 2. (Candidates for municipal office are not required to live in the ward they wish to represent.)
Reached for comment on Thursday evening, Pupo told the Voice, "This campaign is not about me it’s about the residents. My tenure at the Town was only about the residents. Now with my knowledge I want to make a change in this council and act on behalf of all of the residents."
Look for a full candidate interview in next week's edition.
