A Morinville woman has become the first new candidate to announce plans to seek a spot on town council.
Lisa Holmes announced her candidacy last week, becoming the first new face to declare for the upcoming election.
Holmes said she and her husband and their two young children moved to Morinville a year ago and she wants to be an active part of the community.
“If you move to a community, you need to invest in it. You need to invest in it with time, you need to invest in with work and you need to invest in it as a person.”
Holmes said her family is representative of the average household in Morinville, a young couple with young children. She said that voice is not represented on the current council.
“People here have families and they want people on council that will represent their views,” she said. “I am looking forward to bringing a new generation to town council, a new voice.”
Holmes said the current council has done well, but feels there are times when they aren’t considering the perspective of someone with a young family.
“I am not unhappy with the way things are working in Morinville, but there are places where we need a little bit more support and one of them is with families.”
She said young people need more to do in the community because they now are out wandering parks late at night.
“We have a problem with youth who hang out at night because they have nothing to do.”
She said she doesn’t want to make specific promises, like bringing a pool to the community, until she hears from more residents and learns more about the issues.
She said she is concerned about the fate of businesses in the community, especially after a particularly troubling summer.
“We lost five businesses over the summer. It is becoming a situation where people are not shopping here. They are shopping in Edmonton or St. Albert.”
She said the business situation is one example of a troubling situation in the community where many services are provided in other communities.
As a town councillor, she said she would move to create a more self-reliant community.
“We need to look at Morinville as its own community and we need a base of activities and programs and services that are available to the residents here and will attract new residents and businesses.”
Holmes currently serves on the library board, the centennial committee and runs her own photography business. She was previously an executive assistant with the Alberta Library Trustees Association and has worked for other not-for-profit groups.
Nomination day for candidates is Sept. 20, with election day Oct. 18.
