Staff
Seven residents of Rimbey have answered the call by throwing their hats into the ring to seek a vacant seat on the Rimbey town council.
In alphabetical order, the candidates include Joe Anglin, Mark Cartier, Darren Jansen, Jim Moore, Steve Schrader, Allan Tarleton and Jack Webb.
Rimbey Mayor Dale Barr said the amount of candidates is very encouraging and is also a good indicator of the interest show by the public in matters of importance to the community as a whole.
“I’m excited. Our community is really strong in where it’s going and how it got there and for this kind of interest to be involved in this community and on council is a great sign of the people that we have,” Barr said. “The challenges with being on council always are the workload, the responsibilities and those kinds of things and it looks like we’ve got a good slate of people to work from.”
And while he was impressed with the numbers, he would have preferred to see a few more women filing their nomination papers for the election, which will be held later this month.
“I’m glad we got a good cross-section of young and older people. I would have liked to see some women put their name forward; it’s always good to have that in the council chambers because they carry a perspective that we need to make sure is always there,” Barr said. “I wish them all the best of luck and we really hope for the people to come out on Election Day on August 24 and cast their vote. It’s important and it does have influence on where the community goes and I congratulate them all for putting their names forward.”
A former police officer, member of the Canadian Coast Guard, semi-professional baseball player and US Marine who served in Viet Nam, Joe Anglin is married with three children and one grandchild.
“Well my chances are one in seven I guess, and that’s the way to look at it. I’ve been politically active in this province for quite some time and to be what I call volunteering on a community level, which is how I look at council and as a community service, and I look forward to it if I’m elected,” Anglin said “I know that there are people who have strong opinions about me, and that’s fine, but I do stand up for issues and have a reputation for advocating for what I call very important issues.”
As for issues, the former leader of the Alberta Greens said the current economic situation is a determining factor, however he was quick to add that long-term planning is the key to the stability of the community.
“The most important things I see happening here in this community is how we’re going to plan for the future and what we will do to get there,” Anglin said. “There are a lot of small issues but when you add them up, it’s really important for the direction in which Rimbey goes.”
Mark Cartier manages the Rimbey Motor Inn with his wife and is the father of two sons, a stepdaughter and the grandfather of two.
Trained as a health care aide, Cartier has worked in the medical field in Rimbey, Edmonton and his former hometown of Winfield.
“I always thought about doing something like this. I like to help out the community and I’ve volunteers for a lot of community services in Winfield,” he said when asked why he was running.
As for issues, Cartier pointed to public safety and policing, especially when it comes to vehicle traffic in the downtown area.
“I would like to see the roads improved in the town of Rimbey for one thing. Plus I’d also like to see a lot less people revving their motors at 11:00 o’clock at night keeping us awake. I feel there’s just so much of it going on that it’s a danger to the public,” he said. “We need more policing and more bi-laws coming in and a lot less motor noise. It’s highly dangerous to the public, ourselves and the people who are driving that fast. I’d like to see that change.”
Cartier is also the former president of the Winfield Lions Club.
Darren Jansen is a self-employed tradesperson who is married with two sons who has resided in the community for four years.
“I was born in Rimbey and raised in the area. I really love the town and am a fairly active person so one of my motives is to hopefully improve some of the outdoor aspects of Rimbey like sidewalks and walking trails and giving the people the ability to be outside is something I see lacking with the town,” he said when asked what his priorities would be if elected.
“I have a real strong belief that Rimbey can be a great community and I think we’re lacking that a little bit right now in the feeling of the community aspect,” he added. “Most people that I’ve talked to suggest it’s like we’re just living here and don’t have that community feel, so I hope that I can help in having more things where people can get together as a community and bring that to the table and have people really enjoy living in Rimbey.”
Check next week’s edition of the Rimbey Review for a closer look at the remaining four candidates seeking a seat on the Rimbey town council.