Bill McQuesten wants to represent the people of Lacombe.
McQuesten, who has been part of Lacombe council in the past, is once again running to represent the people of his community.
He said that Lacombe needs to shift its planning and start looking further down the road.
“We think too small,” said McQuesten. “We don’t plan ahead and we don’t think big. You look at the other communities that are flourishing around here, they are thinking big and they’re doing big. We need to change our mindset and plan for the future.”
McQuesten has served on Lacombe’s council for nine years previously and for three of those years as mayor. Now, he wants to once again have the opportunity to make his voice heard in the Council Chambers.
It was a desire to be able to directly impact his community that led McQuesten to first run for council in the 90s, he said.
Being a citizen of Lacombe with a family in the community, he wanted to make sure Lacombe stayed in good shape so his children could enjoy it as well.
Now, McQuesten wants to get involved again.
Not only to make his own voice heard, but to make sure City council is truly acting in the best interests of the people it is representing.
“Right now I find that council isn’t actually listening to the people. Council needs to be more responsible to the people and administration needs to be more responsible to council.”
McQuesten said when he served on past councils, he enjoyed the idea of planning for the future of Lacombe.
He added that, in the right environment, working on council can be a very positive process.
“You are doing futuristic planning that will affect generations to come. So it has to be done with a great deal of thought and with a lot of input from the citizens.”
Working on council is also a large responsibility and it is important for councillors to remember that, said McQuesten.
“It’s a huge responsibility,” said McQuesten. “It can’t be taken lightly.”
He added that, while there is responsibility involved in working with council, it’s a responsibility that he enjoys.
Should he be elected, commercial growth would be one area that McQuesten would focus on, he said.
He added that, not only is Lacombe not growing commercially, it is actually losing businesses. He said he would like to see Lacombe be more like some of its surrounding communities and be a little more aggressive. “You look at the communities around us and they’re proactive and they’re moving forward and we seem to be stagnant, that’s quite worrisome.”
Having had past experience with council is one of his biggest strengths, said McQuesten.
He said that his experience and background can help Lacombe plan for the future. “I’ve done some innovative things and I think I can do some more.”