In the run up to the 2017 election, we asked our readers and listeners what issues matter most to them. Every day, we ask candidates for their thoughts on healthcare, growth, traffic, city facilities, downtown, and the other issues important to their campaign. Today, Daria Skibington-Roffel addresses your issues.

For Council candidate Daria Skibington-Roffel, getting a women's shelter built in Airdrie is a top priority.

"We have one of the highest domestic incidence in the country, actually, especially western Canada," said Skibington-Roffel. "It's not feasible. We can't just send women to Calgary with their children into shelters that are already full."

Skibington-Roffel has been working with a local group since last January to get some sort of emergency shelter built in Airdrie. If elected on October 16, getting a shelter built would be at the top of her list.

In regards to healthcare, Skibington-Roffel said she would love to see Airdrie get a hospital. She stated that it is no longer feasible for Airdronians to go to Calgary for hospital services, and if elected, she would advocate to see one built here.

"I would definitely like to get the government to really make Airdrie a priority, because we are, probably, the fastest growing city in the province, and the time for small town solutions just isn't working anymore."

In the meantime, Skibington-Roffel said she supports the work being done by the Airdrie Health Cooperative. Skibington-Roffel said she had reservations about the cooperative at first, but after meeting with them and attending presentations, she's convinced they are taking steps in the right direction.

On growth, Skibington-Roffel said Airdrie is in a perfect position. While the city continues to grow at a rapid rate, she believes things are not so far gone that Airdrie can't address the problems associated with growth. That will require planning, and Skibington-Roffel hopes the City can look ahead long-term and plan for growth.

Part of that long-term planning has to do with infrastructure, and in particular, Airdrie's roads. Skibington-Roffel said currently, Airdrie is growing faster than roads are being built. If elected, her first order of business would be putting together a plan for traffic management and infrastructure.

"If elected, I want to really focus on, how do we get the roads and everything, the infrastructure in place so that we can grow and grow into the city rather than trying to get the city to grow into its population."

Skibington-Roffel also sees a real need for more community facilities. In her view, one pool is not enough to accommodate Airdrie's populations. She also said that when she first moved to Airdrie eleven years ago, she noticed that there are no community centres in each neighbourhood. If elected, she would like to work with developers to change that.

"I think it would be great if the City would offer them some sort of incentive to either build a community centre in the new development, or they could pay perhaps a two percent surcharge to the City so that the City has the money to build these facilities themselves."

Skibington-Roffel also said she sees downtown as a major issue at the moment, and she has spent part of the year learning more about the issue by attending focus groups held by the City. One problem she had with the proposed Airdrie Main Street Square project was a lack of input into the original plan, which she believes was addressed through sessions earlier this year. Skibington-Roffel said now that there is a plan, it is time for the City to get to work revitalizing downtown.

 

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