Mawhinney: Bright Future for Historic Town

The Town of Lunenburg's long time mayor believes the future is bright for the historic community. Laurence Mawhinney is one of the longest serving mayors in Canada and has a string of 32 consecutive years in the role. In a year end interview, Mawhinney says he's still energized by the job and the community after all these years. "I've always felt if you continue to reinvent yourself with new ideas and new creativity you can keep going as long as the strength and the spirit is there - so it's a vibrant community - but also in this vibrant community we need to be able to attract younger people. I'm thinking as the shipbuilding program evolves in Nova Scotia, the next number of years are going to be invigorating for the future of Lunenburg and the South Shore," Meanwhile, Mawhinney says 2012 could be the greatest year on record for tourism in Lunenburg County. He points to the arrival of the Tall Ships and the launch of Bluenose II in the summer as examples. Mawhinney says he also looks forward to the opening of the new Bluenose Academy in the new year as well.