The race is on to be Reeve of Brazeau County. This week local businessman Jason Kennedy announced he would be seeking the position at October’s municipal election.
Kennedy is a long time local resident whose family were among the first permanent settlers in the Drayton Valley region. He currently lives in the Whitby area.
This is not Kennedy’s first foray into local politics. He ran for Reeve in a byelection several years ago, finishing second to incumbent Reeve Bart Guyon.
While he’s not currently an elected official, Kennedy says he does have a good knowledge of the workings of the County. He has sat on a number of County boards over the years and is currently the chair of the Municipal Planning Commission. He’s also attended a number of recent council meetings.
“I think our county needs change, and I think I represent a good portion of electors,” he says.
“From my perspective the biggest challenge our county is facing is a rapid decline in funds.”
According to Kennedy that decline is due to two factors. The County has suffered from falling revenue, meanwhile spending has remained at an unsustainable level. The loss of revenue is due in part to changes brought in by the province in the way linear assessment is calculated for oil and gas facilities. Kennedy says that if spending continues at the current rate the County’s unrestricted reserves are heading for negative territory. It’s important that’s not allowed to happen.
“Obviously we’re spending too much,” he says. “When you’re at a negative it’s too late. We need to streamline our business so we can balance our budget.”
To get the balance right Kennedy says the County needs to work on both fiscal responsibility and fiscal accountability. That means controlling spending while ensuring that County residents are fully informed and consulted on the decisions that impact their lives. If he’s elected Kennedy says he’ll put more emphasis on communication and listening to the views of County residents.
“We have to start working for the people who elected us. That’s what it comes down to,” he says. “We need to be accountable to taxpayers for the money we’re spending and I think we need to engage them in that process.”
That accountability would extend to other issues. Kennedy says that rather than coming in with a preconceived notion it’s important for elected officials to engage with their residents to ensure their decisions truly reflect the views of the community as a whole.
“Before we make a decision we need to ask ‘is this what our residents want us to do?’” he says. “We need to be more accountable and we need more transparency. We need to know
what the pulse of our community is, and I think right now we’re missing that pulse. We need to be in touch with the people because that’s who we’re supposed to be working for.”
Kennedy is the second candidate to declare his intention to seek the County’s top job in October joining Donald Mosicki, who lives in the east end of the County. Current Reeve Bart Guyon has yet to make his intentions public.
Election day is October 18.
