Brent Wiley is the second person to announce their plans to run in Strathmore's upcoming municipal election.
Raised in Regina, Wiley attended the university with a passion for visual arts and had no intention of joining a career in politics.
"I'm still a teacher in town. I work at Holy Cross Collegiate, and for 20 years I've been there. I love that job," said Wiley.
Wiley was first elected to council in the 2021 municipal election, a job which came alongside some unforeseen challenges.
"Every issue is much more nuanced than I had ever anticipated from just reading the news headlines," added Wiley. "You think you've got it figured, and you know exactly what it would take to solve, but once you get into the weeds of the situation, it's so much more complex, but also worth the attention that it needs."
Wiley is once again campaigning on a platform of preserving Strathmore's small-town charm while keeping taxes as low as possible.
"People don't want to be in the big city. People came here because they wanted to be just far enough out of Calgary that they can access the services there, but they love the friendliness of this town. It's the same reason we're here," added Wiley.
"Strathmore is going to grow and we need a council that has a vision to sit down with every developer, ones that already have area structure plans, ones that already have permission to start building, future developers, and work with them to make sure they share our vision about what this town looks like now, and then it can continue in a reasonable way."
Wiley also stressed the importance of protecting green spaces across Strathmore.
"I've met people who say they moved to Strathmore because they ended up having lunch at Kinsmen Park. That's the perfect example of how green spaces matter. Once you develop them, you cannot get them back."
Wiley says he looks forward to door knocking and learning about the issues that affect Strathmore residents. In the last election Wiley knocked at around 500 doors, and he plans to double that number for 2025.