A passion for her community and desire to serve has led Laurianne Schell to join the race for a seat on Chestermere’s next city council.
“I love my neighbours and I am proud of this beautiful city where I chose to build my first home,” she said.
Schell moved to the city in 2015 with her husband and two children.
She has grown to know and love the community through her involvement at church and helping organize block parties.
“This past summer I became involved with the Connect & Belong pilot program through the City of Chestermere and helped organize the first Neighbourhood Party for my community,” she said.
Her community involvement has led Schell to believe that improving communication between the city and residents is a key issue that needs to be addressed.
“Misinformation is poisonous and can taint the views of many in a much shorter time than to learn the facts,” she said.
Schell said that most people who work during the day can’t take the time out of their day to attend council meetings.
“Decisions are being made on our behalf while we remain unaware of potential future impacts,” she said.
Schell suggests that video resources, internet links, newsletters and advertisements can be better utilized to make the information available to residents.
“Residents need to know more about the planning of our city so they can understand and not speculate where they fit into these plans,” said Schell.
She would also like to see a greater focus on crime reduction in the future.
“Shortly after settling in Chestermere my family suffered a car theft and home invasion robbery while we were asleep upstairs,” she said.
She would like to see Chestermere’s communities become more connected with neighbours watching out for each helping to deter crime.
“I went door-to-door, getting to know our neighbours and warning them to not leave their garage doors open or car doors unlocked,” she said.
She has also joined Chestermere Citizens on Patrol.
If she is voted onto council, Schell said her focus will be “on people and on facts.”
“I will be the voice of residents when in council chambers,” she said.
Schell has experience working on governance boards having spent five years on the Board of Directors for Calgary Evergreen Community Association.
She has also worked taking meeting minutes for Board of Directors and Executive Committee meetings for BILD Calgary Region.
“Through this experience I gained a vast wealth of knowledge from the industry experts, government leaders and administrative professionals responsible for building some of the best communities in the world,” she said.
To find out more about Schell’s campaign, go to her website at www.laurianneschell.com.
