ESTEVAN – The candidates who are hoping to be part of Estevan city council for the next four years had another chance to share their views Wednesday night during an all-candidates' forum hosted by the Estevan Chamber of Commerce.
A large crowd packed the main hall of the Estevan branch of the Royal Canadian Legion for the event. The candidates not only had prepared statements and responses, but were put to the test during question-and-answer sessions.
The state of the economy, the future of the community, taxes, transparency, communication and facilities were among the topics covered during the event.
It started with the three candidates for mayor – Rebecca Foord, Anthony Sernick and Zacch Vandenhurk – speaking to the crowd. They offered a brief prepared opening statement and wrapped it up with a closing statement, and they also answered a prepared statement from the chamber about economic development and the economy, and the efforts they would take to enhance it.
But they also answered a question that they didn't know in advance from the chamber on how they would define their leadership style and how they would build the team at city council.
Then they faced questions from the floor. Topics included if they are in favour of an incremental tax increase to offset rising costs; what they would do to improve communication from the mayor's office; how they would improve preventative maintenance on facilities and infrastructure; would they review existing management and force them to reapply for their positions; and what are their ideas for reducing taxes, particularly for the business community.
After a brief break, the 10 candidates for councillor – Kevin Andrew, Stephen Daniel, Matthew Dubowski, Dave Elliott, Rhyan Hagel, Brian Johnson, Tom Mauss, Shelly Veroba, Kirsten Walliser and Robin Wog – had their opportunity to speak.
They also delivered their opening and closing statements and answered the prepared question from the chamber about the economy and economic development.
But due to the number of councillor candidates, the 10 hopefuls were divided into two separate groups to get their response on the unknown question from the chamber and the questions from the floor.
Andrew, Dubowski, Johnson, Veroba and Wog were asked by the chamber on how they would represent the diverse needs of the citizens. They also faced questions from the audience about the construction of new sports facilities in Estevan such as a third ice surface or a field house; how they would make it easier to get around the city for those with a disability; and whether the city should continue to provide third-party grants for organizations.
Daniel, Elliott, Hagel, Mauss and Walliser were asked by the chamber about their decision-making process and how they would handle disagreements with other council members. Their questions from the floor included the full cost of the downtown revitalization project on Fourth Street; the five-year and 10-year plans for the city and how to get them to the public; and the implementation of public transportation in Estevan.
The forum aired live on Access Now TV and was streamed live for those who couldn't attend.
It was the second forum for the civic election. The other was hosted by the Concerned Citizens of Estevan SK group in October.
The civic election date is slated for Nov. 13. Advanced polls have already happened; they took place Oct. 29 and 30, and a drive-thru poll happened on Nov. 2.
