Clayton Schneider is proud to call Davidson home.

The new mayor of Davidson, who will take over the honour from Mary Jane Morrison after the Oct. 24 municipal election, said he chose to run for the position because he wants to maintain “what Davidson has offered me” through his 35 years of walking down the town’s streets and enjoying all its comforts.

“The community is moving forward right now, so keeping that momentum that has already been in place for the last few years is my goal,” said Schneider, who was elected by acclamation. “I’ve been here my whole entire life and when I first ran for council, the reasons I had were to make sure that services were maintained. It is great to be part of those decisions.”

Schneider, who has been a councillor for Davidson the past two terms, said he feels he can offer some experience to the rest of town council over the next four years through pushing ahead with a proven agenda instead of re-fighting past battles. He said there are “pros and cons” to working with new faces around the council table, which may include three to five new councillors out of six seats depending on the vote outcome, but feels the policies and procedures are already in place to move the town forward.

“When I started we were all new except one person, (councillor) Jeff Alexander,” said Schneider, adding new councillors are good because they bring new ideas which help inform the discussion, but he is not endorsing anyone. “With a new council, they ask lots of questions. When you’re dealing with a new council there are no blinders on, so a lot of good can come out of that.”

To read more please see the Oct. 1 print edition of The Davidson Leader.