Fayrell Wheeler is looking to return to Drayton Valley town council. If she’s elected her aim is to help ensure the long term viability and sustainability of the town.
Wheeler is a lifelong Drayton Valley resident and a graduate of Frank Maddock High School. This month’s vote is not her first experience of running for elected office. She served two terms on council between 2013 and 2021. At that point she stepped down in order to focus on her career as Chief Operating Officer of a licensed cannabis producer. Four years later, with the cannabis business now fully established, she says she has the time and energy for a return to elected office.
“I’m confident I can do both jobs well,” she says. “That’s not something I would compromise on. I have a lot to offer for leadership skills, for accountability and for finding efficiencies.”
After four years away from the council table, Wheeler says she believes the community is doing fairly well. However, she says there is always room for improvement. As a starting point, she’d like to focus on maintaining the municipality’s existing assets and infrastructure to maximise its value to residents.
“I think the Town is in a good position to move forward in managing the assets that we have.”
That would include either selling or finding a use for the old Park Valley Pool building, which has been sitting empty for several years. She points out that even while sitting vacant, the building costs money to maintain and keep safe. She’d also like to see improvements to the splash park, which provides free recreation in a central location for young families.
While campaigning, Wheeler says the main issues she’s heard from residents she’s spoken to are based on two areas.
“People are very concerned about homelessness and very concerned about crime and vandalism,” she says.
While the issue of homelessness is not new to the community, the problem does appear to have become more serious in recent years. Wheeler says she knows there aren’t any easy answers, however, she believes that there are steps that could be taken to improve the situation. Those would include lobbying the Province to provide more mental health support and investigating the idea of a Housing First program, which would quickly move homeless individuals into permanent housing, then provide support services.
“We need to piece together something that works for our community,” she says.
“We’re not alone. Every community is going through this.”
Those issues aside, Wheeler says she feels the town is in a strong position to prepare for the future. Her aim, if elected, would be to take steps to ensure that Drayton Valley continues to be one of the best places to live and work in Alberta. That means building on our exciting strengths while being open to new ideas.
“I put the community first. Accountability matters,” she says. “I want to maintain our unique and distinct character.”
