The Blue Mountains Mayor Andrea Matrosovs has been acclaimed Grey County warden for 2025.
Matrosovs was acclaimed to the position at Grey County council’s inaugural meeting/ceremony on Dec. 3. She is just the third female warden in the county’s history and the third from the Town of The Blue Mountains.
Matrosovs was nominated for the warden’s job by Southgate Deputy Mayor Barb Dobreen and West Grey Mayor Kevin Eccles. The special inaugural meeting was attended by county staff, a number of staff and representatives from The Blue Mountains, Matrosovs’ family and the public.
“I am passionate about our shared goals and priorities of the county. We will continue to work toward building communities for the future,” Matrosovs said in her inaugural address. “Since beginning on council in The Blue Mountains, my mantra has been to create a community for all ages and stages of life. We have the opportunity at the county level to make a difference in lives of all ages and stages.”
Matrosovs is in her first term on Grey County council as mayor, this is her second term on The Blue Mountains council. She served as a councillor from 2018 to 2022 before being elected to the mayor’s job.
“Andrea cannot only do this job, she will do it exceptionally well,” Dobreen said in her candidate introduction during the meeting.
Eccles called Matrosovs: “intelligent, impartial, impressive and impactful.”
“She displays great integrity in her council actions and decisions,” he said.
Matrosovs will serve as warden for the next year. Although in recent years, a tradition has emerged that sees wardens elected to a second one-year term at the conclusion of their first term.
The role of the warden is to lead county council and represent the county at official events. The warden presides over council meetings, ensuring business is conducted efficiently and effectively. The warden also serves as a member of the Western Ontario Warden's Caucus, the Bruce Grey Public Health Unit and other boards.
In her inaugural address, she mentioned a number of priorities including: the completion of the Rockwood Terrace long-term care construction project in Durham, continued expansion of paramedic services with new bases in Durham and Feversham and the Grey County Housing Action Plan.
Matrosovs thanked her deputy mayor - Peter Bordignon - for his “unwavering support” after she was nominated for the warden’s job. She also acknowledged the hard work over the past two years of outgoing warden Brian Milne.
Matrosovs also acknowledged the efforts of the county’s previous female wardens Lois Urstadt (1982) and Arlene Wright (2010 and 2011).
“I am honoured to follow in the footsteps of past Warden Urstadt and past Warden Wright. You blazed a trail to add equity to that wall of wardens at the back of this chamber,” she said.
She also thanked the previous female members of county council from The Blue Mountains.
“I want to acknowledge as well from my own municipality both former county councillors Ellen Anderson and Gail Ardiel who have sat at this table and held the banner of women in politics long before I came to the table,” she said.
Attending the meeting were former wardens from The Blue Mountains Rod Knott and Duncan McKinlay. They were joined by past wardens Selwyn Hicks and Lois Urstadt, Grey County’s first female warden in 1982.
McKinlay was tasked with speaking on behalf of previous wardens at the meeting. He called it a “solemn responsibility” to be elected to the warden’s position.
“It’s an honour, I believe, to be selected as warden by your peers,” said McKinlay. “You will do everything you can to lead this county council into embracing the challenges ahead of it this year.”
