Government employee seeks re-election to M.L. city council

His job with the Ministry of Highways and infrastructure is an asset to Meadow Lake city council and Conrad Read is hoping because of that, and other reasons, he’ll be re-elected for a second term.

Responsible for 2,500 km of highway and six airports in northwest Saskatchewan as district operations manager, Read has lived in Meadow Lake for 27 years. He said if re-elected on Oct. 26, he’ll work to prioritize funding for road and infrastructure repairs while keeping residential and commercial taxes low.

“Right now, most major repairs to the water system have been done,” Read said. “But there’s still some work to be done on infrastructure.”

City crews are still working to replace water valves to isolate sections of the city, instead of having to do whole scale water shut downs.

First elected in 2012, Read said the repairs to the city water systems, the paving of the West Service Rd. and decommissioning and implementing a state-of-the-art water delivery system are projects he’s most proud of accomplishing.

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“It’s a great team. It’s a one team approach. Council and mayor, nobody has a personal agenda and everyone works well together,” he said. “Everybody questions decisions made but at the end of the day, we’re all looking out for the best interest for the residents of Meadow Lake.”

Describing himself as a fair and non-judgmental person, Read said all his decisions are based on facts, bylaws and policies, another quality he feels will be a benefit for him as he seeks re-election.

“I bring to this position my managing, budget, and strategic planning skills. I bring to this position my experience and work in maintenance and roads,” he said.

Regardless of what happens, re-elected or not, he added, between the seven candidates vying for a councillor seat, mayor (Gary) Vidal is going to have a strong council.

Outside of work, Read volunteers in the community. He was a member of the Meadow Lake Minor Hockey Board for 15 years, he spent 12 years on the Meadow Lake Parks and Recreation Board. Read is a current member of the Lakeland Regional Library Board and organized many events and projects. He was the organizer of the Kraft Hockeyville application, he built a wall of fame to honour high profile athletes from the area, and organized the Stanley Cup celebration when Jeff Friesen won in 2003 as a member of the New Jersey Devils.

Besides Read, incumbents Kim Chiverton, Curtis Paylor, Merlin Seymour and newcomers Tom Harrison, Richard Levesque and Glen Winkler are seeking election.

Voters cast their ballots on Oct. 26 at the Civic Centre.

Mail-in ballots and advanced ballots are also being accepted at city hall.

Colton Swiderski is meadowlakeNOW’s municipal affairs, crime and court, health and education reporter. He can be reached at cswiderski@jpbg.ca or tweet him @coltonswiderski.