Interim councillors appointed ahead of October’s election

By Matthew Filart

On June 1, Toronto City Council appointed two interim councillors to fill vacancies until the city’s October 24th election. Joe Mihevc will represent Ward 10, Spadina- Fort York, and Robin Buxton Potts will cover Ward 13, Toronto Centre. Chosen from a group of 27 candidates, these new councillors will serve until the council’s current term expires on Monday, November 14.

Joe Mihevc was a city councillor in the mid-town area for almost 30 years from 1991 to 2018. A member of several civic boards he was chair of the Board of Health from 2000-2003 and 2013-2018, as well as vicechair of the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) from 2003-2010.

Mihevc also served on the Community Services Committee, the Roundtable on Access and Equity and Human Rights, the Disability Issues Committee and the Ethics Steering Committee. He holds a Ph.D. in Theology from the University of Toronto and since 2018 has been a visiting professor in urban studies at York University and the University of Toronto Scarborough.

Mihevc replaces Joe Cressy, who resigned in the spring. Robin Buxton Potts is taking over Ward 13 from Kristyn Wong-Tam who won election to the Provincial Parliament in June. Potts was Wong-Tam’s communications officer from December 2019 to August 2020, and her chief of staff from August 2020.

With her new appointment Buxton Potts will take over as chair of both the Toronto Accessibility Advisory Committee and Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Advisory Committee. This also includes councillor membership to the city’s Planning and Housing Committee.

Potts gained a degree in hospitality administration and management at Centennial College from 2006 to 2009, and then a BA in professional communications from Royal Roads University in Victoria,BC.

Contacts:

Joe Mihevc can be reached by email at [email protected] or by phone at 416-392-4044.

Robin Buxton Potts can be reached at [email protected] or 416-392-7903.