The ballots have been cast and the people of Asbestos who were willing and able to vote have chosen Val-des-Sources as the community’s new name. The formal name change itself still has more administrative hoops to jump through, but the town’s municipal council approved the re-sults of the vote at a special meeting held on Monday evening.
“This is truly a historic moment.” said Mayor Hugues Grimard. “I thank the people for voting in large numbers. The council and I are proud to see that the process was able to rally citizens.”
A total of 2,796 people participated in the vote, representing 48.2 per cent of the eligible population. Val-des-Sources claimed 51.5 per cent of the vote after three rounds, beating out the other options: Trois Lacs, L’Azur des Cantons, Jeffrey-sur-le-Lac, Larochelle, and Phenix.
The resolution adopted by the council now needs to be considered by the provincial toponymy commission, which will have up to 60 days to comment on the proposed change. Upon hearing back, the town will then be able to make an official request to the Ministry of Municipal Af-fairs. At that point, any concerned citizens will have 30 days to voice their opposition to the ministry. Assuming no further bumps in the road, the name will then be changed for good.
“Best-case scenario, we would like to be able to officially announce the name change in December,
but we will follow the necessary administrative steps,” Grimard added.
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