Interview with the mayor of Stratford. (Part 2 of 2)
Stratford faces a rough road ahead. Its world-famous theatre festival is closed. No one is coming to town to eat in the fine restaurants and spend money in the quaint shops. The streets are empty. The charm and lustre have faded.
Dan Mathieson knows his hometown’s in deep trouble. In Part One of my exclusive interview with him, the five-term mayor of the southwestern Ontario city (pop.32,000) laid out the numbers for jobless figures and business bankruptcies. They’re not pretty.
In this segment of my FaD interview with Mayor Mathieson , I ask him how Covid-19 will change “the face” of the city. Will real estate values suffer? What will happen to the town’s population size — up or down? What about annual events such as the Pride Parade, Blues and Ribs Fest and the Summer Music Festival? Will the city’s beloved junior hockey team survive?
Also: the mayor — known as a hands-on politician — talks about his leadership style. I ask him how he deals with the town’s power elite; he talks about the influence of women leaders in his midst; and he talks about his latest “flash of brilliance.”
Three other things.
Will he or won’t he? Dan Mathieson is closing in on 20 years as the mayor of Stratford. He’s not yet 50 years old. What’s in his future? His answer might surprise you.
This is cool: Mayor Mathieson, a heavyweight in hockey circles, weighs in on the future of the NHL.
And of course, I couldn’t let him go without getting a word on his buddy Bieber.
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