FALL RIVER: Councillor Cathy Deagle Gammon said 2025 was a year of both visible accomplishments and ongoing work across Waverley–Fall River–Musquodoboit Valley, highlighting recreation, safety, infrastructure, and long-term planning during her Year in Review interview with The Laker News.
One of the highlights she pointed to was the completion of the artificial turf field at Lockview High in Fall River, a project she said was years in the making and deeply meaningful to her.
“Seeing the Fall River turf field a reality and seeing the youth playing a football game and practicing… that was probably one of the most special days for me in 2025,” Deagle Gammon said, noting it was the very first motion she brought forward when she joined council.
“Especially seeing the little kids.”
She credited the project’s success to collaboration between community volunteers and all levels of government.
“It was true collaboration of all orders of government that made it work,” she said.
“Backed by that spirit of ‘we can do this’ from the volunteer committee — that was a dream team.”
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Deagle Gammon also highlighted smaller but important safety improvements, including the installation of a long-requested crosswalk at McPherson and Lockview roads.
“To finally see the crosswalk at McPherson and Lockview made me really happy,” she said.
“The community had asked for a crosswalk for years, and it just didn’t feel safe at all.”
She said it was also nice to see the new playground built in Middle Musquodoboit with the water feature.
“I see kids running around in the water and on the swings and the accessibility features that are in that playground,” said Deagle Gammon.
“I thought this is very nice. It was also one of the things I was happy to see.”
Flood mitigation along Highway 2 was another major announcement in 2025, following federal funding approval to address three flood-prone sections of the roadway.
“We made the application after the flood in 2023,” Deagle Gammon said.
“Just in the last couple of weeks, the federal government announced that they were going to contribute to that funding.”
She cautioned residents that while funding is now in place, the work will take time.
“It will still be a couple of years before we see that actually all built out the way that it needs to be,” she said, stressing the importance of managing expectations.
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Ongoing concerns raised by residents throughout the year included transit, water expansion, and gravel roads.
Deagle Gammon said transit service into Fall River and surrounding communities remains a priority, though it comes with operational challenges.
“That bus, the 320, is an express bus to the airport,” she said.
“Any change to that, you want to make sure it doesn’t in any way impede the timing of that bus staying an express bus.”
Water access was another recurring issue, particularly in areas experiencing dry wells.
“Water has been the theme of 2025,” Deagle Gammon said, noting that water expansion decisions rest with HRM and depend heavily on funding partnerships.
“Finding the funding is a huge issue.”
She also acknowledged frustration around gravel roads, saying she pushed council to rethink how roads are prioritized for paving.
“What I was able to do was bring forward a motion to investigate what is the criteria for paving gravel roads,” she said, adding that the new criteria moved some roads significantly higher on the priority list.
“However, we still need to get money in the fund.”
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Looking ahead, Deagle Gammon said the 2026 budget process will be challenging as council balances service demands with pressure to limit tax increases.
“No easy decisions ahead of us in this budget at all,” she said.
“Everybody wants no tax increase, but more services.”
Despite the challenges, Deagle Gammon said the most rewarding part of her role continues to be helping residents navigate municipal systems and access services.
“The satisfaction that you get from helping a resident either navigate the system, find an answer, get connected to a service or a support,” she said.
“That’s what makes this job worthwhile.”
