Shelburne Councillor Len Guchardi confirms bid for re-election this fall

May 21, 2026 · 0 Comments

Written By JOSHUA DRAKES

LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER

Councillor Len Guchardi has confirmed he will seek re election, positioning his bid as a continuation of four years of work focused on accessibility, recreation and long-term infrastructure planning in Shelburne.

Coun. Len Guchardi filed his papers on May 14 to confirm his intent to run for re-election.

He described municipal office as challenging but rewarding, with a workload that proved busier than he initially expected.

“This is the most effective way for me to serve the community,” he said. “It was a little busier than I thought it was going to be, but there’s always surprises that way. The past four years have been wonderful and engaging.”

Over his first term, Guchardi points to significant gains in public recreation as a defining achievement, as well as progress on the town’s sewage treatment plant, a roadblock which limits town capacity for growth.

“I think we made huge advances in public recreation, making our trails and our parks and Fiddle Park accessible to everyone,” he said. “I am also looking forward to the sewage treatment plant coming online in 2029, then other things can be dealt with.”

Guchardi frames his experience on council largely in positive terms, stressing engagement, hard work and forward movement on key files. He said that the term has been marked more by incremental gains than by singular setbacks.

Looking ahead, he identifies several challenges that will shape the next four years if his bid for a return to office is successful. Chief among them is what he sees as increasing provincial overreach into municipal affairs.

“I would say over the last two years of this last term, provincial overreach has been a huge concern for us,” he said. “The frustration for us right now is keeping some level of autonomy in the decisions that we make in the community.”

He is concerned about the amalgamation of conservation authorities, the appointment of provincially selected overseers in some municipalities and legislation that allows the province to override local environmental and planning decisions, including through special economic zones.

“I’m really upset about the amalgamation of the conservation authorities. I don’t think that’s a great idea,” he said. “I think that having bills in place to override municipal decisions when it comes to environmental assessments and rushing projects through without doing the due diligence… Those are big things for me.”

At the same time, his focus is on advancing the long-discussed truck bypass project.

Funding commitments for environmental assessment have been secured from the town and county, and discussions with the Ministry of Transportation and neighbouring municipalities are ongoing, positioning the bypass as a key long-term priority in his re election campaign.

Guchardi believes that he still has work to do in Shelburne and has recommitted himself to seeing it through in his next term, if elected.

Municipal elections will take place across Ontario’s 444 municipalities on October 26.