ROB MURRAY: Hans Helder is running for council in Canmore. Tell us a little bit about yourself, your background and your related experience for the job.

HANS HELDER: As many of you will remember, I was on council from 2010 to 2013, and I think I demonstrated effective activities during that period of time. I’m hoping to bring some of that back to this council. In broad terms, I spent 17 years within the Alberta public service, much of that at very senior levels. I also spent 15 years in the private sector doing business with government, mostly with the Alberta government. Combined with my experience sitting at the council table, I think I bring a pretty broad perspective. I’ve also spent some time over the last few years since I’ve been off council actively engaged in community activities through the Rotary Club and Banff-Canmore Community Foundation.

RM: Why are you running once again?

HH: One of the things that COVID forced us to do is spend more time with ourselves than we’re used to. I spent some time thinking about, “Have I done everything that I can for my community? Do I have more to give?” I came to the conclusion that I still have something to contribute. I have a passion for this community. I also got some active encouragement from a variety of individuals, sometimes just at random, asked me if I was going to run for council. Then there were a few issues on council that I thought perhaps weren’t as well handled as I would’ve liked them to have been, so I thought I could help with them.

RM: What would be your top or maybe one of the top issues that you’re really passionate about, and some ideas you have around it?

HH: One of the things that’s happened over the last number of years is that discussions around the TSMV development has sucked all the oxygen and energy out of the room. Other things, as a result, haven’t been dealt with. Things like, what do we have to do to build a hospice in this community? What do we have to do to support the YWCA in building a facility in Canmore to deal with domestic and sexual violence? What can we do to make this community a better place for everyone to live? I think one of the most important things over the next year or two will be post-COVID recovery. What is it that we can do to help the business community recover from this?

RM: Looking back on the last four years, what’s something you feel this past council did a really good job tackling? Conversely, what’s something you feel that they could have done a better job tackling?

HH: I don’t think council dealt particularly well with some aspects of the COVID crisis. Creating Canmore residents who are not full-time residents as those that are not wanted here or those that are feared was not a great decision. I think it creates further divisions within the community for individuals, some of who I know personally, who avoided coming here because they really didn’t want to make members of the community feel badly, but they felt badly about how they were seen. I think that could have been handled better.

I think some of the routine kinds of activities council did handle very well during the COVID crisis, particularly on the financial side of things. They looked at what they needed to do to work within the financial constraints they had. They got access to a significantly disproportionate level of provincial funding to support the community, which I think was a very positive thing, and they distributed that quite effectively and appropriately.

RM: If elected, how would you stay engaged with the people of the community?

HH: I’ve always prided myself on being accessible. Anybody can talk to me anytime they want to, but that requires somebody to actively do something. I think the really important thing to do is to ensure that we have, as a council, appropriate engagement processes to frame discussion. To talk about what it is they need input on, but also to put some parameters around that conversation so that the whole world is not subject to discussion. I think we have to do a better job of formalizing some of those things, creating the opportunities for people to engage more actively. I definitely want to be part of that, but I think one of the things that this council needs to be responsible for is helping shape that conversation.

RM: Is there another issue or part of your platform you’d like to chat about that we haven’t discussed yet?

HH: One of the issues that’s very important is affordability, but I probably have a little different take on that. I think some of the decisions that have happened have negatively affected affordability. Reducing supply during a period of demand usually results in an increase in price. I think turning down the Three Sisters development has had fairly significant effect on the cost of living. Market demand has gone up because more people who can work from anywhere want to live here and more people want to invest in real estate as a safe haven. With less supply, you end up with increasing costs, so we really have to figure out how to manage supply and demand.

RM: Where can people find out more information about you?

HH: The best place to find detailed information is on my website. You can also reach me through my personal email, or you can reach me by telephone at 403-609-1755. I’d love to talk to anyone.

RM: Why should people vote for you for Canmore council?

HH: One of the things that I bring to the table is a pragmatic sense of how to get things done. I like to start from where we are rather than wherever you would like to be, and work towards where we need to be. I’ve demonstrated in the past that I can work with council to get things done, make decisions, and move things forward. Just a few very quick examples – got the Waste Transfer Station moved out of Grotto Mountain Village and that took a lot of engagement with council. I worked hard creating a business and operating model for artsPlace, along with community and administration members. Those are the kinds of things that demonstrate my ability to work with other people to actually achieve things. You only get one out of seven votes on council, so you have to learn how to work with them.

Filed under: Canmore, Municipal Election