Editorial: Mr. Local Government, One of the Good Ones.

Scott Pearce addressing delegates at the 2024 FCM Convention in Calgary, Alberta

There are a few people in life who leave their mark not by seeking recognition, but by simply showing up when they are needed most.

For me, one of those people is Scott Pearce — the long-serving mayor of Gore, Quebec, a man who gave more than two decades of his life to local government, and who in doing so quietly shaped not only his own community, but the entire country. As he now steps into retirement after 20 years of service, it feels right to reflect on what his contribution has meant: to Gore, to Canada, to local government as an institution, and, if I may add a personal note, to me and the Cross Border Network.

To understand Scott’s impact, I have to take you back to the winter of 2023.

It was a strange time, a transition period when the world was still catching its breath after the global pandemic. People were reclaiming routines, businesses were dusting themselves off, and communities were beginning to reconnect after years of isolation. For me, it was also the start of a journey I could never have predicted: the transformation of my project, the Cross Border Interviews, from a general-interest program into a platform dedicated to municipal politics.

That January, I was desperate. There’s no other way to put it. I was reaching out to municipal leaders across Canada, pleading for interviews, trying to build credibility for a show that was more ambition than reality. I had managed to speak with leaders from nearly every province — except one. Quebec.

For me, Quebec was uncharted waters. My French was, to put it generously, subpar. I worried about whether municipal leaders there would even take me seriously. But desperation fuels determination, and so I did what any upstart show must do: I kept asking.

The very first Quebec mayor I approached was Scott Pearce of Gore. He didn’t know me. He didn’t owe me anything. Yet, to my astonishment, he said yes.

That interview, recorded in January and released the following February, was a turning point. It wasn’t just another episode — it was the moment I realized the true power of municipal government.

If you’ve ever listened to my show, you’ve probably heard me use the phrase “the government of proximity.” It’s a simple but profound idea - coined by Scott: local governments are the closest level of government to the people, and therefore the ones with the most immediate impact on daily life.

Before Scott, I had thought of municipalities as “the lowest level” of government — important, yes, but secondary to provincial legislatures and Parliament Hill. Scott changed that.

In our first conversation, he didn’t just answer my questions; he reframed the way I thought about civic life. He reminded me that decisions made at the municipal level — about roads, water, housing, parks, and safety — are the ones we feel most acutely. Get them right, and communities thrive. Get them wrong, and people notice immediately.

Scott helped me see municipal government not as the bottom rung of democracy, but as its beating heart.

From that first interview grew a relationship I could not have predicted. Scott became not only a guest, but a mentor and a friend.

Whenever I reached out — whether for clarification on policy, a comment on national issues, or just another interview — he said yes. Sometimes I’d worry I was bothering him, especially when he was busy with his responsibilities at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM). But he never brushed me off. His attitude was simple: if there was a chance to help people better understand municipal government, it was worth doing.

That willingness mattered more than I can put into words. At conferences, where I often felt like a lone outsider surrounded by seasoned municipal leaders, Scott’s presence reminded me I belonged. He had a way of making you feel not just welcomed, but respected.

And that was Scott’s gift: he was an advocate not just for his community, but for people. For their dignity, for their voices, for their right to be part of the conversation.

It’s tempting, when reflecting on Scott’s career, to focus on his national role. As President of FCM, he carried the voices of small communities into conversations with the most powerful leaders in the country. He could sit across the table from big city mayors and be treated as an equal — not just because of his title, but because of his integrity and his ability to connect.

But Scott’s story is, first and foremost, a local one. For two decades, he served the people of Gore, a small community in Quebec’s Laurentians. His leadership wasn’t about chasing headlines or climbing political ladders. It was about making his community stronger, year by year, decision by decision.

Those who live in Gore know that their mayor was present — not as a distant official, but as a neighbour. That’s the essence of local government, and it’s why Scott embodied the term “government of proximity” more than anyone I’ve ever met.

What made Scott unique, however, was his ability to transcend boundaries — linguistic, cultural, and political.

Here was a mayor from a Francophone province who could walk into a room in Alberta and fit right in. He could just as easily find common ground in Ontario, the Maritimes, or the North. He had a rare talent: the ability to listen deeply, to seek understanding rather than division, and to remind people that, at the municipal level, the problems we face are often the same. Roads need paving in Quebec just as they do in Saskatchewan. Affordable housing is a challenge in Montreal as much as in Calgary.

Scott was a bridge-builder. In a country too often divided by geography and ideology, that was no small achievement.

Now, as Scott steps away from public office, we have to acknowledge what Canada is losing. This is not just another retirement from local politics. This is the departure of a man who embodied the very best of public service.

Scott built a stronger Gore. He built a stronger Quebec. And through his work with FCM, he built a stronger Canada.

He was, in every sense, Mr. Local Government.

When we think about legacies in politics, we often look to laws passed, budgets balanced, or buildings constructed. Scott’s legacy is harder to quantify but no less real. It is found in the countless conversations he sparked, the respect he earned across partisan lines, and the generations of municipal leaders he inspired.

Allow me, for a moment, to step away from the editorial “we” and speak personally.

Scott Pearce changed the trajectory of my career. When I was scrambling to find a foothold in the world of municipal journalism, he extended a hand. He didn’t have to — but he did. That gesture gave me confidence, credibility, and direction.

More than that, Scott reminded me why I love this work. He showed me that municipal politics isn’t about power or prestige. It’s about people — about making communities better, safer, and more livable.

I owe him more than I can say.

So how do we sum up Scott’s contribution? How do we encapsulate 20 years of service, decades of bridge-building, and a lifetime of integrity?

I can only think of one phrase: Scott Pearce was the Mayor of Proximity.

He lived by the principle that government should be close to the people, that leaders should listen as much as they speak, and that communities thrive when their voices are heard.

As he enters retirement, I know I am not alone in saying, Canada is losing a good one. But his influence will endure — in Gore, in municipal halls across the country, and in the countless people, like me, who were changed by knowing him.

Thank you, Scott, for your service. Thank you for your friendship. And thank you for reminding us all of what local government can and should be.

Best of retirement, Mr. Mayor. You’ve earned it.