The eight candidates running for six available seats on Altona Town Council participated in a forum last night, offering voters a chance to hear about their priorities and goals leading up to the October 26th municipal election. The event was hosted by the Altona and District Chamber of Commerce.
Some of the questions answered by the candidates were related to the future of the ER at the Altona Memorial Health Centre, economic development, infrastructure needs and the importance of ensuring diverse voices in the community are heard at the council table.
Below you will find the opening statements of each candidate, listed in the order they spoke to those in attendance at the Rhineland Pioneer Centre Thursday evening.
Perry Batchelor is one of the candidates.
“Some of you may recognize me as I recently retired from the Altona Police Service.
Prior to that, I was a member of the Canadian Armed Forces. I began my career with the CAF in 1980.
I completed two tours of duty, one in Cyprus in the early 80s and another tour in the former Republic of Yugoslavia in the early 90s.
My wife Kim and I also completed a NATO tour in West Germany from 1984 to 1988.
I was also posted to many locations across Canada and into the U.S. on exercises. I served our country and our community for 42 years, recently retiring as a Chief of Police for the Altona Police Service.
Kim, my wife of 39 years, and I have two married adult children and two beautiful twin granddaughters, and lots of pictures to prove it.
Since coming back to Altona in 1997, I've been involved heavily in our community as a volunteer. I was president for Altona Minor Hockey for approximately six years.
I was a member of the Board of Directors for the Altona Community Foundation, of which I spent three years as the Board Chair.
I managed many minor hockey baseball teams over the years.
I ref’d for many years.
I continue to volunteer for junior and senior ball clubs.
I've also volunteered at many high-profile curling events in the community, including the Scotties.
I am running for Council because I believe in the past 12 years, I learned a lot. I worked closely with Council.
On the 26th of October. Please vote. Please vote for me, but if you don't vote for me, please come on out and vote anyway.”
Danny Kehler was next to offer up opening remarks.
“You can't give a mic to a preacher and expect him to talk for only two minutes.
I don't have a long list or resume of things that I've done to present to you, but I do have believe I have a lot of experience working with people.
Someone made the point that being a minister, as you know I've been for 23 years in this community, recently retired from that, is there's a lot of similarities.
One, you've got taxes in the community and donations in the church.
Both have to be handled with due respect and with consideration for the people who gave them secondly.
In the church, everyone thinks that they are your boss.
In a town, everyone thinks that they are your boss and no matter what you do, somebody is going to complain.
So, I'm used to that. I can bring that experience.
Additionally, I've had the opportunity to work with many organizations within Altona through my work with the Rhineland Area Ministerial.
Things like the Conscientious objector cairn that was put up in the memory garden. I was part of that committee. I was working with the CommUNITY support teams, which Perry also was a part of, which is a wraparound group that supports people in our community.
And so those are the reasons why I kind of want to be a part of the Council, to carry on some of those great traditions.
But in addition, what really kind of excited me about running is in 2019, the Council passed the local action plan on climate change. And I think that Altona is a great place to be a model for what it means to be responsible in our community as far as the climate and Creation goals.
I thought I could help with some of those things.
And so, if you want to vote for me that's fine, if not, any six of these eight I think would make an excellent Council.”
Third to speak was Craig Smiley.
“This election is important as it will shape our community in coming years. Your vote for me will allow me to work for you.
Altona has been my home for nearly 25 years. My wife, Lisa, and I have raised our family here. Our two sons, Ross and Ryan, and our daughter Alexandra. We are very much invested in our community of Altona, which is why I made the decision to run for Council and to go to work for you.
On a personal note, I work for the Municipality of Rhineland, which raises my awareness of the needs of our community. To describe myself - I roll up my sleeves and I get the work done.
Public office is not new to me.
I'm a former school trustee for 20 years, 14 of which I was the Board Chair.
I also served on Altona Minor Hockey board for six years, and I was the President for four of those years.
I know this community.
I live in this community.
If elected, my priorities are to continue to lobby Pembina Valley Water to upgrade the Letellier water plant, and to get us a good source of water.
Another thing, my priority would be to continue lobbying the RHA to keep our emergency ER open and also to make sure we have nurses and nurses' aides in our hospitals.
And another priority for me is development and growth in our industrial and commercial sectors.
I would also work with Council to keep our mill rate in line with other communities."
Incumbent, Donna Rosling-Wolters, offered up these remarks.
“I think that you will agree that there are great people on this ballot, and they all care about our community and will work hard on town council.
I, Donna Rosling-Wolters, would like to be part of that team.
And here's what I have to offer you.
My time.
I'm newly retired and can put the time in to do the work, listen to our residents and work with Council and staff to achieve your goals.
I'm a team player, but not a pushover either. That doesn't mean that I will agree with everyone or be a follower. I am not afraid to ask for more information, weigh the merits and prioritize. I expect the same for my colleagues and my constituents.
I have lived in Altona for close to four decades and I've raised my family here, worked, volunteered and become part of this community.
My work life has covered the areas of retail, abuse, counseling, support, services to individuals and families, research, and business ownership.
And more specifically, I've been on town council for the past eight years. I have some of the history as to why decisions were made, or things changed. That information is helpful in in going forward in building strategic plans. I have served on a number of boards and committees and can be a support to others as they go forward in those places.
To be a strong community, we need to take care of what we have, and I am willing to help take care of it, build for the future and meet the needs of our community.”
Lyle Dunsmore is also vying for a seat at the council table.
“My name is Lyle Dunsmore, and I am respectfully asking for your vote on Election Day.
I moved to Altona in the fall of 1983 to continue my career with Manitoba Hydro. I continued to serve Altona area for 25 years until my retirement.
I have now lived here almost 40 years and Altona is home to me.
I have been involved in many clubs and volunteer organizations over the years, and that continues to this day.
I am out and about in the community of Altona every day and I feel I'm a very approachable person.
I pledge to listen to all citizens of Altona and do my best to deal with your questions and concerns as a councilor.”
Next to offer opening remarks was Cheryl Dueck.
“I'm thinking some of you already know me well enough to know what a great town councilor I will be, but for those of you who don't know me well, I thought you might find this brief little story of interest.
So, two days after the names of the town councilors were released, I was in an Altona store and ran into a friend.
She greeted me with enthusiasm and cried and congratulated me on my decision to let my name stand. She was excited for me and offered her support, but then surprised me by asking me if I had a platform.
Well, because we were in her workplace, I didn't want to take up too much of her time. I smiled, thanked her for her support, and didn't really have an answer for her. Our conversation was very brief because she had to get back to work, but it really got me thinking - Do I need a platform or an agenda?
If my friend was here tonight, I would have the chance to further respond to her thoughtful question.
And after careful reflection, I am proud to say I do not have a platform.
I have worked and shopped in Altona for over 40 years, and I am fairly aware of some of the really important issues that our town is facing. But I am not approaching the position of councilor with any strong demands or agendas.
I do not have preconceived ideas of what needs to be changed, and I would be anticipating spending a fair amount of time in the first several months exploring extensively the details about the key projects the town is working on.
My brief story here tonight has three key points.
Caring, friendly citizens can make a difference with even a simple interactive interaction.
The right question at the right time can produce thoughtful reflection and analysis.
And thirdly, even though I don't have a predetermined plan of what the town needs, I do understand that working as a team to develop clear directions for the town will take a lot of research, a lot of discussion and energy, and I have that time and I have that energy and I am excited for that opportunity.”
Incumbent Jordan Siemens outlined his priorities.
“My name is Jordan and I've had the pleasure to serve as your deputy mayor for the last three years and councilor for the last four.
And I'm running again for Council because I want to see Altona be the best place to raise a family, grow a business, find a job, live well and age gracefully.
The last few years had their challenges, but since 2018 your Council has been hard at work.
In that time, we were able to create a curbside compost pickup program which reduced waste and extended the life of our landfill while reducing the garbage levy by $45 per home per year.
We moved and expanded our library into a dramatically larger, brighter, and more visible space.
We were selected by the federal government to be part of the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot program, allowing our local businesses to more easily find skilled workers to keep growing.
These are three projects that I am incredibly proud for having taken the lead on, and they've created a lot of community momentum.
We can see that momentum in our annual housing growth from four housing units in 2017 to 44 this past year.
We can see that momentum in our business sector with significant expansions by multiple businesses.
We also sold the last lots in the original industrial park, acquired land for a new one and have already sold five lots there.
On the community protection front, we have a new foam fire truck for more rapid response, and our police have acquired body worn cameras to increase both accountability for the officers and protection against false accusations.
On infrastructure, we saw completion of substantial drainage projects. We saw street repairs around the community and a signed commitment from the province to resurface Main Street, which should be happening this coming spring, as well as major improvements to our trails and sidewalk network.
And the best part is we did this all while maintaining two years of 0% tax increases and an inflation adjusted tax decrease over the past four years, improving affordability for our residents and competitiveness with the surrounding communities.
I'm very proud of what we accomplished and excited for where we can move forward in the next four years to make Altona an even better place to raise a family, grow a business, find a job, live well and age gracefully."
The final candidate to present last night was Tammy Braun.
“I would like to represent the community of Altona on town council.
As a lifelong resident of Altona, I'm proud to call it my home.
I have deep roots in the community, raising my three boys here and having experienced a family-owned business.
I'm a retired quality control lab technician.
I've always enjoyed volunteering in the community and I'm presently on two boards, the Altona Police Board and the Rhineland CARE Senior Support Services Board.
Why I'm running for council?
To help Altona plan for the future with the importance of keeping our young adults here in the community, for them to be able to work, shop and raise their children in a safe place. To solve the problems that matter, to improve the quality of our town.
If you vote for me, I feel I have the capability to work together with the Council, to get along as a team getting things done in a timely manner.
I'm willing to spend the time researching and learning about the community.
I feel I have lived in the community long enough that I have a strong idea on what the people are looking for in a councilor to gracefully represent the town, bringing back new ideas to the table for discussion.
I would like to do my part as a councilor to promote an improve development, to have the opportunity for more jobs available, daycare spaces and the resources to shop local. Larger companies to keep the people in the community growing. A much-needed columbarium at the Altona Memorial Cemetery, to research and improve the water shortage we experienced during last year's drought.
I will try to do my part to make Altona a great place to live.”