Darcy Logan: Candidate wants positive change for a vibrant downtown
By Lethbridge Herald on October 8, 2021.
Al Beeber
Lethbridge Herald
abeeber@lethbridgeherald.com
He came to attend university but has made Lethbridge his home and now Darcy Logan is running for city council.
Logan, curator and gallery services manager at CASA, will be focusing on four key issues during his campaign.
Being an individual who both works and lives downtown and one who has served in the not-for-profit sector, Logan has a distinct perspective on the various issues affecting the city.
“I”ve been a volunteer in the community and working in the community. Service has always been important to me and I thought that this would be a great way to continue that service in a leadership capacity,” he said Friday.
“I’ve sat on a lot of boards and I have a real familiarity with proper governance and stewardship, especially in the not-for-profit sector. Also I have experience in the private sector, as well. And I feel those are some assets that I can bring to city council as I try to awareness about the priorities I’ve set out.
His platform consists of four components:
1) Love Lethbridge – “An idea engineered to bring concreate and measurable returns to our community by stimulating economic growth, financial investment, tourism and civic pride.”
“It’s an idea I have to form a committee to raise awareness of all the amazing activities, recreational, retail that we have in this community and if we can sell that idea to Lethbridge first, we’ll have an easier way to sell it to corporations that want to invest, tourism. I think sometimes people fall into a habit of complaining about Lethbridge…they really spend a lot of time disparaging it but I think now coming out of the pandemic, we need to start having a bit of civic pride and pushing to love Lethbridge,” he said.
2) He also believes in a vibrant downtown and feels the city needs to make that area “a destination for retail and culture experiences while negotiating the current crisis with compassion and forward thinking.”
“I’d like to support local retail and business and the cultural sector downtown and support bringing in festivals. And it’s also critical that we deal with the current downtown crisis in a compassionate and visionary way. So I’m advocating getting all the stakeholders together at the table – the BRZ, The Heart of the City, cultural stakeholders and public health to come up with concrete solutions” said Logan noting “the substance abuse, homelessness and the marginalized and vulnerable communities.”
“I work downtown, I live downtown and actually for the last three years I’ve made a nightly habit of doing a 5K walking circuit that takes me down 5th through Galt Gardens after dark and over to the northside and looping through home. I have a fairly realistic perspective on it that comes from first-hand observation that I think a lot of the people engaged in these conversations on both sides of the spectrum maybe don’t because maybe a lot don’t come downtown.”
3) He’s a strong advocate for civility and and a “healthy workplace ecology” at city hall and believes council must be respectful.
“There have been some polarized and divisive relationships so I’m committed to acting diplomatically, responsibly and holding myself to a high standard of punctuality, attendance and civil discourse with my colleagues” he said.
4) He also believes in transparency in municipal processes, financial caution and having extensive consultations with stakeholders before decisions are made.
He says government while being fiscally responsible needs “to be ready to make any bold and visionary steps that will grow the city. It’s important to have that balance, it’s important to always have restraint but if you see opportunity, you’ve got to be ready to move on it.”
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In a previous Herald release you stated as you walked through Galt Gardens at night you felt safe. I wonder if your eyes have been opened to the serious issues in that park at night that the average Johnny Q would be arrested and or fined for! I watched one First Nations male walk rapidly up to the side of female LPS member one night in a threatening manner deviating only 2 feet away as the member turned, taking a defensive stance and can name many instances of how others have been threatened.
I do not trust you standing up for the change needed and feel that you are also one of the pro $100 million performing arts center candidates that are running along side the ones that want to enable and encourage addicts by supplying them with expensive operations such as another SCS!
Stick to CASA!