Atikokan to pose daylight saving time plebiscite question in 2018 election

ATIKOKAN – Atikokan town council has decided now is not the time to debate daylight saving time. 

At its Monday meeting, council passed a resolution to hold a plebiscite on joining all but three communities in Northwestern Ontario in changing clocks back an hour in autumn and forward in the spring.

“It’s too big of an issue for the council to decide,” said Atikokan Mayor Dennis Brown.

“It will have to be voted on (but) we don’t think now is the time to vote on it.”

It was the third time in 30 years daylight saving time has arisen in council chambers and the third time council has dismissed adopting it.

Brown said the division in public opinion runs between Atikokan’s citizens and the business community. He said businesses have voiced frustration over their ability to maintain out-of-town relationships when communicating with their suppliers and customers.

“I know businesses have enough challenges nowadays and if we can make it a bit easier for them, we should always try to do that but on the other hand, there’s the residents who the businesses depend on and a lot of them don’t want to change.”

The question will be posed on the municipal election ballot in October 2018.