RUSSELL TOWNSHIP — Mike Tarnowski is eagerly looking forward to another four years as mayor of Russell Township but he already knows they will be his last.
The mayor was acclaimed after no other candidate entered the 2026 race. He said he intends to spend the coming term working through some of the largest infrastructure and community decisions facing the Township before stepping away from the mayor's job.
“I'm not going to do this after four more years,” Tarnowski said. “This is my last four years. I can tell you that right now, because my wife will not have it,” he said with a laugh.
The declaration came during a wide-ranging interview in which the mayor talked about the municipal election, the new recreation complex, the future of existing recreation facilities, transportation, construction, wastewater capacity and the pressures that will accompany continued growth.
His decision means Russell Township already knows something unusual about its political future before the new council has even begun its term. The mayor’s chair will be open at the following municipal election.
Tarnowski nevertheless described the immediate future with enthusiasm. He expects considerable continuity around the council table after this year's election and said the composition of council matters because Russell's system is not built around a mayor acting alone.
“Really it's about who's at that council table,” he said.
The coming term will begin with several major files already in motion. The Township's $105-million recreation complex is approaching completion, while council will have to decide what happens to Russell Arena, Embrun Arena, the Camille Piché Community Centre and Centennial Pool as some of their existing functions move to the new complex.
Russell is also studying local transit, carrying out substantial road and underground infrastructure work and working with The Nation Municipality on a possible regional mechanical wastewater-treatment plant for Embrun, Russell and Limoges. Tarnowski told The Rustler the wastewater project could become the Township's biggest infrastructure investment over the next several years.
The mayor’s route to the job was gradual, having served on community committees, volunteered, sat on the library board and eventually became a councillor. When then Mayor Pierre Leroux stepped down Tarnowski said members of council asked whether he would be interested in taking on the mayor's role.
“Coming to council, becoming a councillor was kind of — it just happened,” Tarnowski said.
He described the move from community involvement to council and eventually the mayor's chair as “a nice natural progression.” That experience, he said, matters.
“It's not an easy job,” Tarnowski said. “I'm grateful that I've had those years of council and, you know, good mentorship with previous leaders here in the community.”
His acclamation this year produced mixed feelings. On a personal level, Tarnowski said he was happy not to face a campaign for the mayor's chair. But he also expressed disappointment that residents would not have a choice among mayoral candidates.
The lack of a contest also raised a larger question for him about where future municipal leaders will come from. With his own departure now planned for the end of the coming term, Tarnowski said he hopes people already serving on council — or residents now volunteering in the community — will consider taking on larger roles.
“I'm hoping that certainly from the crop of council members that we have coming up or community volunteers,” he said, “I want to see people get more involved.”
He pointed to the Township's advisory committees as one way residents can begin participating in municipal affairs.
“At the end of the day, this is our community and we want it to be as good as possible,” Tarnowski said.
For Tarnowski, the next four years therefore begin with two timelines running at once: completing another term as mayor and helping move forward projects that will shape Russell Township well beyond the point when he says he will leave the job.