MOOSE JAW — Michelle Christie is running for city council . Following her announcement, the Moose Jaw Express reached out with a few questions.
Q: “What motivated you to enter public service?”
A: “I’m running because I feel like there are a lot of issues that aren’t being addressed, and I feel like there’s a need for better communication… regarding infrastructure, economic development, (and safety),” Christie said.
“One critical reason why I’m running is safety,” she continued. Christie brought up a recent disturbing encounter while shopping at a local drugstore. There, a homeless individual — presumably under the influence — placed his hands on her car in an aggressive manner and demanded $10. When she asked him to step back and said he was scaring her one-year-old and three-year-old children who were in the back seat he refused.
“I felt like this incident was emblematic of the dramatic decline that our city has experienced, and I just want to restore pride in Moose Jaw and make it a safe place for families and everyone to live.”
Q: “How would you describe yourself as both an individual and as a candidate?”
A: “I would describe myself as being straightforward and I like to ask a lot of questions,” she replied. “I’m (also) a strong believer in doing the job right and doing your homework.”
Q: “How do you stay connected to the community?”
A: Christie has volunteered on boards including educational boards, the Recreation Vehicle Dealers Association (RVDA) of Saskatchewan’s board, and said she’s experienced as a treasurer.
She acknowledged that residents have a lot of questions and these need to be answered by city council. The best way to do this, she suggested, is through the creation of a town hall community forum supported by a strong social media presence.
Q: “How would you describe your vision for the city?”
A: “I think there’s a lot of potential for growth and opportunity in Moose Jaw, and I think it’s time to capitalize on it.”
Christie described Main Street and Moose Jaw’s tourism sector as “incredible” and said the city needs to focus on developing these assets further. “If we can aggressively look for industry to come (to the southeast industrial park in particular), it’s going to create jobs… It’s going to bring families here. They’re going to buy houses.
“Rather than waiting for the answers to come to us, we need to do the work to get it.”
Q: “How will you ensure accountability and transparency in your role?”
A: “Accountability and transparency obviously go hand in hand. I think providing clear information about council’s decision making process and being clear about budgets, policies, and bylaws is very important,” she said. One step in this direction is the creation of a town hall forum.
Q: “What are your top guiding values?”
A: Christie said her top values are honesty and, as a mother of two small children, family. “Taking care of these two (children) is very important to me and (so is) feeling that families are supported (and knowing that you can) have… nice, clean parks, playgrounds and… sports facilities for the kids so they can have nice, happy childhood memories.
“I believe that, if you can be honest, there’s always going to be a good outcome,” she continued. “When you try and hide (something), everything festers. I really feel that speaking the truth — even when it’s difficult — (will always yield) a solution at the end. So, I would like to build the community based on trust and respect.”
Q: “What would you say are the top three issues or concerns that you would like to address?”
A: Christie said her first issue is safety. “We need to make sure that people feel safe, can walk to their cars, can go use the park, and that people can go to the store without having people on their cars,” she said in reference to her own recent experience.
Her second concern is clarity regarding Saskatchewan Assessment Management Agency (SAMA). “They (council) have to get to the bottom of whether SAMA was renewed or not. These property assessments need to be clarified and that needs to be communicated to the taxpayers… to let them know what has happened, because we need to have fair, transparent assessments.”
Her third concern is the Crescent View Wastewater Lift Station (CVWLS). “Council has talked about it being $66 million and (they said or implied that) it could stop working at any time. If this is something that could put the city in a crisis mode, I don’t understand why they haven’t made that a priority.” For reference, CVWLS is the bottleneck for all 12 lift stations (plus itself) around Moose Jaw and carries 100 per cent of the city’s sewage to the wastewater treatment plant.
Q: “In your own words, why should people vote for you?”
A: “I have 11 years of experience as a successful operations manager at Moose Jaw RV and Marine,” she said. “That’s backed with a business administration degree.
“I’m strongly committed to transparency and having information out to the public. I think improving safety and cleaning up downtown Main Street, Crescent Park, and supporting our local businesses is very important. (I want to help restore) pride in Moose Jaw.
“I just really love living in Moose Jaw,” she concluded. “I think that we have so much opportunity and I just want to do the best with what we have.”
You can reach Christie by email at [email protected].
A complete list of election candidates with a link to their interviews can be found at "."
The upcoming civic election will be held on Wednesday, Nov. 13.
