News profile1. What are your thoughts on city ownership of Saamis Solar, and what direction would you want to see council take with ownership of renewables?
I am not sure on this one, I would need more information than I have. However I believe if there is a lot of grants to cover majority of the program I may be in favour of it.
2. What are your thoughts on the future of the energy division, specifically the concept of turning it into a municipally controlled corporation?
I am against this. I believe the city needs to maintain ownership and continue to run it with guidance from consultants from time to time to make sure we are on the right track!
3. How would you look to balance taxation with the operation costs of running a city, as well as the services provided to residents?
We definitely need to look at this closely and come up with a fair plan that benefits the taxpayers, but also the city. We need to prove to the citizens that we are using the tax dollars effectively to make Medicine Hat grow and succeed. We also need to make sure we are following budgets and not spending over them unless it’s an absolute necessity.
4. How would you approach economic development and any need to incentivize business to come to Medicine Hat?
We need to work on our timelines for licensing, inspections, permits. We can’t have businesses waiting for long periods of time. They are losing money everyday they aren’t open and so is the city. We need to have a more efficient start to finish program for these business owners when they walk into our city. They should know right from the beginning what is expected and timelines, not finding things out half way through the project. We need to look at off-site levy’s, as a possible incentive.
5. With the proposed north-side location for a permanent homeless shelter off the table following public concerns, what do you think are the essential priorities that a shelter location must provide?
It needs to provide a location that is close to transit systems for people to use to be successful. It needs to provide an area where it will not disrupt citizens privacy, safety , and near by businesses. This does make it a challenging situation to find a location. However I do believe if we actively search we should be able to find a location that is suitable.
6. A lot of focus during this election campaign has been on property taxes in Medicine Hat, though a majority of residents do not own property. What can or should the city be doing to ease cost-of-living issues for those who do not own property, such as renters?
This is a tough question to answer as for renters, the city does not implement the rent businesses are charging. However if we could maintain cost and have utilities be less expensive that would help the burden abit. I would be able to answer this better once I was elected and could do some searching into what we can and can’t do.
7. What are your thoughts on proposed recreational facilities such as the Southside Outdoor Aquatics Centre and Brier Run Sports Field? How much focus would you want the city to put toward adding recreational facilities?
I believe we need to look at these facilities and see if it is a need right now or if the citizens actually want these facilities. I believe we need to make sure if we do this it is multi use and can be used all year round. We need to see if there is any grants or funding available for these projects to ease the burden on the taxpayers if we do move forward with these.
