A resident in the community of Gaultois is breathing a sigh of relief after the resettlement vote resulted in the decision to stay.

Ronnie Simms, who runs a grocery store in the town, says the stress of uncertainty was lifted on Friday as only 63 per cent voted in favour of resettlement, falling short of the 75 per cent threshold.

Though results were in his favour, Simms still takes issue with how the vote was conducted as former residents were still eligible to cast a vote on the community’s fate.

If the vote had only been open to current residents, he believes the number of people in favour of resettlement would have been much lower.

He’s aware of at least ten voting kits that were shipped outside of Gaultois to people who have already left. Simms says it’s obvious they were not going to vote to keep the community and claims most of the outside voters were simply looking to cash in on resettlement incentives.

While the community will stay put, tension remains.

He says there are some things being said online between people who don’t agree with the results. “There’s no need for that, either,” said Simms. “There are people who have lived together peacefully, but this has brought out a rough side of people.”