Councillor Dominic Pasqualino of Northwood ward has announced he will not be running in the next municipal election.

Pasqualino has served on Thunder Bay’s city council for one term, being elected in 2022.

The Northwood councillor says at 68-years-old, he is simply ready to retire.

“I have a wife and two kids and two grandkids, and I have a garage full of cars that I’d like to finish restoring, and maybe do some drag racing,” he explains.

Pasqualino spent more than half a decade on dialysis, and went through a kidney transplant.

“I appreciate that life doesn’t last forever,” he says.

Reflecting on his term at City Hall, the councillor points to homelessness and the indoor turf facility as two items of note.

But Pasqualino says the Botanical Conservatory, which only recently re-opened after a multi-year restoration, is among his happiest accomplishments as a city councillor.

“The Conservatory is beautiful,” remarks the councillor. “I think that was money well spent, and I think that everybody will enjoy it.”

Pasqualino believes Thunder Bay is on an upward trajectory, with plenty of new things to look forward to in the current moment, including a new Costco and a new contract for the city’s Alstom workers.

He advises the next batch of new councillors is to listen to their constituents, saying “you can’t come into a city council meeting with your mind made-up. Things are more complex than what people would realize. If anybody comes up to you with simple answers, I’d suggest you not maybe jump at that… Most of the decisions here are very complicated and they have a lot of moving parts to them.”

Pasqualino is now the third city councillor (in addition to Mayor Ken Boshcoff) to announce that he will not be seeking re-election.

Councillors Kristen Oliver and Shelby Ch’ng have also recently announced this will be their last term.

Thunder Bay’s election is scheduled for October 26, 2026.

Candidate nominations open at the beginning of May.