I am hoping to become City Councillor for District 4, Cole Harbour - Preston - Westphal - Cherry Brook.
Someone asked me the other day why am I running. The simple answer is to give back to my community. While that is a great reason, there is more to it than that. I want to help shape our community where everyone is inspired to making it better.
We need to be proud of our community, we are one of one! A vote for Aalders is a vote for a better community!
My Story.
A lot of this is new to me, so I’m reaching out to all members in our area to find out exactly what YOU want to make our community better.
Someone asked me the other day why am I running. The simple answer is to give back to my community. While that is a great reason, there is more to it than that.
To help you understand why I want to run, let me give you some background on me. Both my wife, Tina, and I were raised in Cole Harbour and have lived here for over 40 years. I’ve always been proud of our community, always bragging to people about how
great we have it and how great it is for families and keeping lifetime friends.
I’ve always said I want my children to have the same experience I did. I think this is the key - We need to create a community where no one wants to leave, and everyone is inspired to making it better.For the past 10 years, I have dedicated my time to youth sports in the community. I played sports growing up and have a passion for it. As my kids joined hockey and baseball, I knew I wanted to help out and make their experience one to remember.
I started out as an assistant coach, then head coach and eventually took on the role of President for both Cole Harbour Minor Hockey and Baseball. What an experience that turned out to be! Being part of so many new projects and seeing growth in both associations was worth the thousands of hours I put in.
Now that my sons are almost done playing, I feel like it’s time to put that same dedication into our community as a whole. There are so many areas where we can grow. I truly value your opinion and would love to hear what you would like to see for the future of District 4.
We need to be proud of our community, we are one of one! A vote for Aalders is a vote for a better community!
My Vision.
If I am chosen as your next councillor my goal while in office is to ensure every person in our district knows who I am and feels I’ve had a positive impact on them, their families and their businesses.
You should be confident in your councillor, If I am your voice on council then I need to know what is important to you. I want to be your friend, I want you to share your concerns, and like myself, I want you to want a better community.
I’ve had the opportunity to talk to a lot of people in our community and there has been lots of great feedback. As much as I would like to promise to change everything I know that’s unrealistic. What I can
promise you, is that as councillor of District 4 you will get my full effort.
Anyone who has worked with me in hockey and baseball knows if you email or call, I will answer. I am not a follower, I do what I say I will do, and I can assure you I will push council to make decisions that are in the best interest of our community.
I’ve identified a few key areas that I would like to focus on to make real change in our district.
• Food security - this has been a real eye opener for me. I recently joined the Cole Harbour Community Fridge Facebook page and was shocked to see people on there commenting about not having food to eat, or the fridge being empty. I knew the problem existed, but to have this happening in our backyard is unacceptable. There has to be more support for our people, we as a community need to step up to help solve this as best we can.
• Transitional housing - I want a community where my kids, parents and grandparents don’t need to move away because of lack of affordable housing. We need affordable options for our seniors when they sell their homes. This can only be solved by additional housing projects. This will ultimately lead to more buying opportunities for our youth as they start their families and look to stay in our area.
• Parks and recreational areas - I’ve already had the opportunity to work on projects in our area and I know first hand it takes someone who cares about this to really make a difference. The state of our current sports fields is unacceptable, there are lots of easy improvements we can make but it needs the right person to lead the charge. I love taking my dog for walks but there are still quite a few areas lacking lights for safety or even a proper dog park. This needs to change.
• Infrastructure - We are in challenging times, our population is growing at a rapid pace and our current infrastructure is struggling to handle the load. We need to prioritize mobility, people are frustrated by the amount of traffic and construction. We’ve seen a shift towards a greener future which is great, but only if we have the proper resources in place to make the shift.
Based on the feedback I’ve received, our current focus on transitioning to bikes and buses in hopes of people choosing not to drive is not a favourable option. The majority of the people I’ve spoken with feel we need to expand our current road systems and make it easier to go from point A to B, and not reduce lanes.
I will not stop at these areas, my focus will always be on what matters most to you.
I’m excited for this opportunity and feel strongly that I can be your voice for District 4. I have always been proud of the time I’ve committed to our community through minor sports and feel like my experience makes me the perfect candidate to lead district 4 into the future.
Please leave your feedback HERE.
See if you're eligible to vote HERE.
Want to be a part of our team? Or Donate?
I wanted to thank everyone for all of their support so far. Now that the campaign is starting to ramp up, I'm looking for some volunteers to help out. The reality is, I can't have a successful campaign without the help of others.
Right now, I'm looking for volunteers in two areas - my sign team and door knockers. Ideally, the sign team will help me put my signs together, attaching the signs to wooden stakes, and then installing them around the district. There may be times when the signs get damaged or go missing and I will need the team to put a new one up or repair them, if I'm not available.
I've also added an area in the survey for you if you are ok with me putting a 2' x 2' sign in your yard.
If you're interested in helping out please fill out the form below.
Thanks Again,
Jamie - YOUR Choice for District 4
Make a donation
Donations will be used to cover the costs of signs and advertising to help me run a more competitive campaign. Every donation helps and is greatly appreciated.
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If you would rather send a money transfer, please send to:voteforaalders@gmail.com
"I want to help shape our community where everyone is inspired to making it better."
