Photo: Village of Alix residents were introduced to the candidates vying for seats on municipal council Oct. 2. Candidates were, left to right, Cathy Perry, Martin Mabbs, Francois “Frank” Laneuville, Barb Gilliat (I), Rob Fehr (I), Ed Cole (I) and Janice Besuijen (I). Rural Alberta Report/S.Salkeld

Village of Alix residents were introduced to the candidates vying for seats on municipal council Oct. 2, with topics such as fiscal responsibility, public safety and the local fire department mentioned.

Alix residents attended an all-candidates forum at the community hall, with dozens of members of the public in attendance. All candidates were also present, including, as they were seated left to right, Cathy Perry, Martin Mabbs, Francois “Frank” Laneuville, Barb Gilliat (I), Rob Fehr (I), Ed Cole (I) and Janice Besuijen (I).

Candidates introduced themselves in a three minute presentation.

Besuijen stated she’s lived much of her life in Alix and has kids attending high school. Employed by the school system in a role helping families and children she said she feels it’s important to be a compassionate community and the past four years she’s served on council have taught her much about working as part of a team. Besuijen added that two of her main goals being on council is to support infrastructure and keep taxes low.

Cole, a retired RCMP officer, noted he has been a village councillor since 2017 and noted he didn’t want to talk about his individual accomplishments because council is a team that worked for the betterment of the village. Cole stated the council accomplished this goal without raising taxes and in fact the mill rate was lowered the past two years despite a major lagoon project ongoing. Cole noted he believes strongly in taking village concerns to the provincial government and doesn’t support political parties in local politics.

Fehr noted he’s proud of the accomplishments council made over the previous term including both a major lagoon project and other infrastructure work without raising taxes but acknowledged it wasn’t easy. Fehr stated that fiscal responsibility is important to him and he tries to always keep the bottom line in mind. He stated that the provincial and federal governments seem to be downloading more problems to municipalities which means councils have to be even more careful with money. Fehr pointed out the importance of a strategic plan that lays out a plan for the village’s work and also pointed out the public plays a role in such plans.

Gilliat stated she’s lived in Alix for 29 years, been a business owner for 18 and running for council several years ago was a great decision, adding she’s proud of the village’s progress. Gilliat stated eight years ago Alix had one of the highest mill rates in Alberta but she was proud to say the council hasn’t raised the mill rate. However, she pointed out property owners may have seen higher taxes because the value of their property has grown according to the provincial government. Gilliat stated she was happy to see Railway Ave. paved and also reassured the public Alix’ fire department isn’t going anywhere. Other goals she said were important included taking care of Alix Lake and communicating with the public. She said she wants Alix to be the best it can be.

Laneuville introduced himself by saying he moved to Alix about 20 years ago and spent time working as a project manager in the oil and gas industry and currently works for Lacombe County. He stated his career has given him a lot of planning skills that would be valuable to the village council. He noted he has no experience as a councillor but has literally worked around the world so he knows how to work as part of a team. He pointed out there is plenty of room in Alix for new businesses and would like to see more come in.

Mabbs stated he’s been in Alix for about six years and moved to the village to start a business that’s been successful; he said he wanted to give something back to the village by serving on council. Mabbs said he knows how to run a successful service-oriented business and the importance of low overhead, and wants to bring those skills to village council. Mabbs confirmed he has experience serving on volunteer boards which would help him as councillor. He feels issues facing the village include land use policies that encourage growth, trying to encourage development of the vacant lots around Alix and increasing public safety while balancing these with low taxes. Mabbs stated he is a supporter of a provincial police force and as a councillor may lobby for that.

Perry stated she’s been a resident of Alix for over 30 years, has served on council before and was proud of the Main Street improvements that happened at that time. She said her goal is to work to improve and enhance quality of life in Alix but to be responsible with tax dollars, adding that frugality is part of her nature. Perry said she’s approachable and listens to resident complaints and will do her best to find answers for people who speak to her. Perry stated she would serve on council to represent the community, not herself.

Candidates were asked questions about keeping taxes low, working with other levels of government, communicating with the public, challenges facing Alix, reasons for running for council, highest priorities for change and public safety, including the possibility of hiring a bylaw officer for Alix.

The evening wrapped up with a meet and greet between the candidates and public.