During an election forum Wednesday night, Candidate Mike Nickel made it apparent that he is not running for Edmonton mayor to make friends and toe party lines but instead is running to introduce real solutions to the city’s many problems.
“Clearly, things are not working downtown at city hall. We need good ideas,” said Nickel.
“People want leadership right now. We’re not looking for a roommate here. We need good ideas. We need good plans… It’s important to have disagreements on [the] council. That policy competition makes for a better product at the end of the day.”
Indeed, Nickel has a history of rocking the boat and being forthright when he thinks someone is wrong.
In September, Nickel sparred with Amarjeet Sohi over his support of converting Edmonton’s River Valley into an urban national park, effectively handing control of the area to Trudeau’s government.
Dangerous Policy:@AmarjeetSohiYEG's plan to convert Edmonton's River Valley to an urban national park allows Trudeau and Ottawa to start making decisions in the most coveted area in our city.
We need a MADE IN EDMONTON solution NOT a MADE IN OTTAWA one. (1/2)#yeg #yegcc pic.twitter.com/188hWerAtN
— Mike Nickel (@MikeNickelYEG) September 27, 2021
Sohi’s controversial position on the issue has led to a never-ending stream of amendments to stem the flood of public backlash, going so far as trying to gaslight voters into believing that there is a difference between an urban national park and a typical national park.
There isn’t, and it would put control of Edmonton’s river valley in the hands of Quebec bureaucrats.
Conversely, Nickel proposed a River Valley Protection policy to allow the “city to keep full autonomy of [its] River Valley.
Nickel has also stated that he believes the opioid crisis hitting the city poses a far greater long-term threat than COVID-19 and that the two should be treated equally as healthcare crises.
“COVID will eventually taper off, but this opioid and fentanyl crisis will not. And so, they both must be treated equally as the healthcare crises they are,” said Nickel.
Edmonton’s election will take place on October 18, and so far, it is not clear who is the frontrunner.
With eleven candidates running — many of them new to politics — each will need to distinguish themselves through firm stances and sound judgement, something for which Nickel excels.
