Written By Olena Riznyk
Martin Welch Jr. is running for mayor of Southwest Middlesex, saying his background in farming and business has given him experience he believes would be useful in the role.
Welch is a third-generation farmer from the former Township of Ekfrid, now part of Southwest Middlesex. He studied air traffic services at Georgian College and later trained with Transport Canada before working as an air traffic controller.
In the mid-1990s, he bought one of his family’s farms and became a chicken farmer. Farming, he said, remains “a core part of my identity to this day.”
Welch has also gained experience in business, budgeting and problem solving. He and family members bought, renovated and sold several houses. In the early 2000s, he began bidding on government contracts, and in 2010 started Emission Tree, a company specializing in large-scale restoration projects. He pointed to work on the Highway 407 extension and Toronto’s Port Lands as examples.
“Southwest Middlesex is not just where I live, it is my community,” Welch said.
He said he decided to run because he believes his education and business experience can help the municipality “build a successful community for the residents of today and in the future.”
Welch identified garbage collection and completing the Glencoe stormwater infrastructure project by 2029 as two major issues facing the municipality. He also pointed to keeping expenses under control without removing essential services. Those three areas would be his top priorities as mayor.
When making decisions about municipal projects and services, Welch said he would first work to understand each issue and the people affected by it.
“This will allow for good discussion and debate with the members of council,” he said, adding that collaboration would help council make the best decisions with the information available.
At the end of a four-year term, Welch said he would hope residents could say council had been “very organized, transparent, fair,” and had made good decisions about how taxpayers’ money was spent.
