By all accounts, nomination day at the M.D. of Bighorn started off slow, with no surprises.
All five current council members officially filed their nomination papers Monday morning (Sept. 18) – in addition to two surprise candidates.
While Dene Cooper and Paul Ryan of Ward 1 and Erik Butters of Ward 4 will continue on as councillors by acclamation, community members in Wards 2 and 3 will take to the polls on Oct. 16 to decide whether current councillors Carolyn Montgomery and Paul Clark will retain their seats.
Lisa Rosvold of Dead Man’s Flats will run against Montgomery in the Ward 2 election.
While Rosvold is relatively new to the M.D., she has lived in the Bow Valley for 12 years. Affordable housing is one of her greatest concerns, as she and her family have had firsthand experience navigating the local housing system, from renting a small basement suite to perpetually affordable housing, to owning their own home in Dead Man’s Flats.
“It’s important that we are helping families stay in the Bow Valley,” she said.
This will be Rosvold’s first venture into the world of politics, but she said running for public office is something she’s always wanted to do and “the timing was right.”
She’s volunteered as a community builder, taking on several roles such as director at large for the Alpenglow Community Education Society, and is the current director at large for the Dead Man’s Flats Community Association.
She also created the Canmore Hearts Bighorn campaign which raised over $22,000 for those affected by the 2013 floods.
Rosvold believes the current council lacks in diversity and she would like to see a younger generation get involved and bring different perspectives to the table.
Montgomery, by contrast, is an experienced candidate, serving two consecutive terms on council thus far.
“I feel like there is a lot of work to be done yet, and I need to follow through and complete it,” she said.
Each of the three hamlets represented in Ward 2, Dead Man’s Flats, Harvie Heights and Lac Des Arcs, were all hit particularly hard by the floods in 2013 and Montgomery has been part of flood mitigation negotiations with the province since then – something she would like to see through to the end.
Montgomery said her understanding of the unique and diverse needs of each hamlet makes her an ideal choice for re-election, though she admits one of her biggest challenges has been trying to satisfy all those needs.
One of her successes while on council was her work with the M.D. on the Legacy Trail. It’s an accomplishment she feels particularly proud of.
“Whenever I drive past that site on Bow Valley Trail I think, ‘Job well done’,” she wrote in an email.
The Ward 3 election will see incumbent councillor Paul Clark face off against Pat Bedry a rancher and retired real estate land consultant.
In a statement sent to the Outlook, Bedry said she specialized in “wish fulfillment” as a real estate agent and wants to bring that same attitude to the role of councillor.
“That means having councillors who will listen to you and work for you with solid values to help you achieve your goals,” she said.
“What are your wishes and hopes for the future of the MD of Bighorn? Let’s make them happen.”
Bedry said her 39 years of experience in real estate would be invaluable on council and has given her beneficial insight into “agricultural business realities, negotiations, communities, local, municipal, and provincial government, land uses and land use bylaws, and, most importantly, knowing what is possible.”
Paul Clark, incumbent for Ward 3, is coming to the end of his first term as councillor and seeking re-election. He said he thinks he’s a better councillor this time around because coming from the business world, he didn’t know a lot about municipal politics in the beginning.
“I’ve learned a lot in the past four years.”
Clark said he got involved in council by happenstance.
“I ran last time because I didn’t think anyone else was going to run and I think that would be somewhat of a travesty.”
Protecting the rural way of life and landscape is one of Clark’s top priorities. He said he hopes his constituents have come to rely on him in much the same way as they would rely on a neighbour.
As such, Clark works to maintain the cultural heritage of the M.D. as well as bring infrastructure up to date.
He’s a member of the Heritage Resources Committee, which has just completed its oral history project, chronicling the lives of long-term residents.
He said he’s been instrumental in building up fire protection, road maintenance, municipal waste and snow removal services in his ward, and is chairman of the MD’s streets and roads committee.
“I really believe in the community out here,” said Clark.
Current Reeve Dene Cooper and Councillor Paul Ryan will return by acclamation to represent Ward 1.
Cooper said “this next year is a critical year for the M.D. of Bighorn,” when asked why he was returning for a fourth term. “I believe it needs experienced leadership which I think I can provide.”
Long-term flood mitigation is top of mind for Cooper and, with an estimated cost of over $15 million for M.D., “I consider that important business and it has to be done correctly.”
Efficient land use is also imperative to Cooper.
“This valley is going to be built out; we’re going to run out of land – the first place in Alberta. You can’t move a mountain,” he said.
Cooper would also like to see development of a new public workshop for storage of maintenance vehicles, but points out that funding and availability of land make it tricky and requires a high level of expertise – which he believes he has.
Coun. Ryan was unavailable for comment but in a statement issued to the Outlook, said he’s proud of the work the current council has done to make Ward 1 affordable and appealing to young families, but they have a challenging future ahead of them – particularly when it comes to flood resilience and industrial expansion.
“I think our past success and future ones depend heavily on the wisdom and experience that all M.D. councillors bring to the table.”
Erik Butters will also return by acclamation to represent Ward 4 on council for a third term.
“I get to do a little bit of community service and it was also on my bucket list,” he said of his initial foray into politics.
Butters said that he couldn’t take credit for any one successful venture during his time on council, but they have “worked well together, and achieved some things, and fought some battles and I’m proud to be part of that.”
Butters also cites unfinished business as one of his reasons for returning this year, particularly land swaps, flood mitigation, “and of course, the perennial issue in the eastern wards is roads.”
Ward 2 and 3 residents can cast their votes for councillor on Oct. 16. Advance voting will take place on Oct. 5. Visit www.mdbighorn.ca/540/Elections for information on candidates, wards and voting stations.
