Town of Pincher Creek 2013 All-Candidates Forum

Toni Lucas, Pincher Creek Voice

Close to one hundred people attended the All-Candidates forum hosted by SASCI held at the Heritage Inn in Pincher Creek on the evening of October 3.  This was an opportunity for the public to find out more about the candidates and  ask questions before the election that will be held on Monday October 21.

David Green acted as the Master of Ceremonies throughout the proceedings.   "SASCI offered to facilitate both events," said Green regarding both of the All Candidates Forums.  "We've done it before.  We had great turnouts for the last three Municipal terms open forums.  We stepped forward to do this, it's part of our role and the mandate of SASCI.  We work toward leading the public to informed decision making."

Each candidate was offered a limited time to speak and then it was followed by a question and answer period.

Pincher Creek Co-op General Manager David Crowell preceded the event with a speech about the upcoming training possibilities through the 'Becoming a Community Builder' program before the Mayoral candidates spoke.

There are three people running for the position of Mayor of Pincher Creek.  They drew numbers before the event to determine the order that they would address the public. These are the only positions to vote for within the Town of Pincher Creek as the School Trustee positions and Town Councillor positions have all been acclaimed.

The speaking order for the Mayoral Candidates was Don Anderberg followed by incumbent Ernie Olsen, concluding with Stan Stoklosa.

Olsen admitted during his time at the microphone that he was feeling under the weather, and kept his speech short.

Once the Mayoral Candidates had finished their addresses, the Councillors took their turns at the podium.  All Councillors were acclaimed to their position.  They too went in a random order:  Doug Thornton, Adrian Hartman, Tammy Rubbelke, Lorne Jackson, Wayne Elliott, and Mark Barber.

 Jackson said he felt under-dressed for the occasion because he was wearing a sports shirt and everyone else was more formally attired. Olsen took off his own jacket and handed it to him.  Many members of the audience applauded this move and Jackson chose to wear it for his speech.

Wayne Elliott announced during his speech that the Holiday Train will be coming through Pincher Creek on December 10 at 11 am and will be donating to our local food bank.

After the speeches the floor was opened up to questions and answers.  People could ask questions of the mayoral candidates, Councillors or both.  About a dozen citizens took advantage of the opportunity either directly at the microphone, or by writing their question for David Green to address to those at the table.

During the question and answer period Shannon Scherger introduced herself and acknowledged the other School Board trustees that were in attendance: Clara Yagos, Judy Lane, and Lori Hodges before asking her question aimed at the mayoral candidates about youth being supported within the community.

After the question and answer period the candidates were given the opportunity to give a wrap up speech.

Most of the candidates stayed  for a while to talk with people and answer questions.

SASCI will host the Municipal District of Pincher Creek No. 9 All-Candidates Forum will be held on October 10th at the Heritage Inn in  Pincher Creek.  The doors open at 6:30 pm, the forum starts at 7:00 pm with the event running until 9:00 pm.