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Residents have choice as Gill joins race for mayor

“Ponoka’s a really wonderful community but what I think we need to do is change the way we think about our community,” - Coun. Doug Gill

And then there were two.

Coun. Doug Gill has entered the race to be mayor of Ponoka.

His goal is to give Ponoka residents a chance to have their voices heard. “It’s think it’s time for a change in leadership and I really felt Ponoka deserves a choice.”

Coun. Rick Bonnett will also seek election as mayor. The last time there was a run for mayor was nine years ago as Mayor Larry Henkelman won the position by acclamation for two terms. Now retired, Gill believes he has the time and energy to take on the top seat for council.

He feels town staff must be built up so they are able to conduct their work in an efficient manner. Employees need to be confident they are doing their jobs well.

“The staff, the administration is doing an excellent job and again it’s a different approach to leadership but they need to know they’re supported by council,” stated Gill.

As mayor his job is to work with administration to plan policy, administration’s job is to ensure those policies are implemented. Keeping those lines separate is important to Gill.

With downtown revitalization there are three groups Gill sees as helping; town council, business owners and then the residents. Council should work with organizations in the community to help draw people to downtown but he suggests residents should be willing to make their way to the downtown area as well.

“I think if we draw together and work with our chamber of commerce, it doesn’t have to be a wholesale change. It can be a block that we start with,” explained Gill.

“Ponoka’s a really wonderful community but what I think we need to do is change the way we think about our community,” he added.

Gill sees change coming from within and suggests a person must change their perception of the town before change can happen. “There’s so much positive happening here.”

Making Ponoka more welcoming to businesses is a challenge but can be done by beautifying the downtown area, working with government grants and trying to work closely with business owners. Getting more business into town can be done without offering tax concessions, which Gill feels might open the door to other parties seeking those same breaks. “One thing we have to be mindful of is we are representing all the citizens, all the citizens of Ponoka will benefit.”

“Business retention is something we really need to pay attention to. We’re talking about bringing the new ones, what are we doing with the old ones?” Gill asked.

He feels staff at the Town of Ponoka are working diligently to get their jobs done and suggests if they enjoy their work, this reflects well on the rest. Gill wants to ensure employees have proper staffing and have the proper tools to complete their jobs.

Celebrating the positive aspects of the town is one way to get community engagement. Gill believes residents and council forget to remember accomplishments. A new hotel and a recent video on Global were a few that he mentioned.

“We keep looking at barriers to why we are not growing and I think we need to embrace those as, what a wonderful community we live in.”