By Rosalind Russell – Flags were lowered to half-mast at all municipal facilities on September 4th, in honour of former Espanola Mayor Ron Piche who has passed away.
A long-time resident of Espanola, Piche served Espanola as Mayor from 2014 to 2018.
One of Piche’s biggest accomplishments was bringing in the Ontario Provincial Police in 2018, the hot button issue when he ran for mayor four years before.
Piche had promised a referendum on the issue, but it ended with his council making the final decision with the municipal Espanola Police Service dissolved in October, 2018 at the end of his one term as mayor.
He was also a local businessman who ran his welding business, North Shore Fabrication, for decades, and was known as a down-to-earth man who enjoyed a simple life.
RIP