One of the many names on the ballot in the upcoming municipal election is Dustin Brears. A division manager at EMW Industrial, Brears is running on a platform of being business minded and community driven.
One of Brears’ priorities this election is to put greater focus on business development in the city. He wants to see Yorkton becoming an attractive community for new development.
“We need to take small, progressive steps in an effort to make the city better. I want to make the city a very conducive environment for business, I want to grow the business community in the city and make it an attractive place to set up shop, because when you do that, you create local jobs, you keep the money in the community and you help the community grow.”
He points to his history with EMW as evidence that he can help the city grow over the next four years, noting that EMW itself has experienced significant growth in his time with the company.
One of the major issues coming forward in the city is infrastructure spending, and Brears expects it’s going to be an issue that is at the forefront of council’s concerns over the next four years.
“That’s the type of thing where nobody can expect council to start day one, and say we are replacing all the infrastructure under Broadway, it’s just not feasible. But we’ve got to make the plan to do that, plan the finances around it, and take those small, progressive steps to make sure the infrastructure does get replaced, because it needs to be replaced, but at the same time not affecting the businesses down Broadway, or having the least amount of effects on them, because at the end of the day they are providing jobs for local people, they are our local economy.”
He also believes it’s important to get involved in a community level, and points to his work with Parkland Search and Rescue and the St. John Ambulance Medical First Responder Unit as examples of how he tries to give back to the community.
“I feel that volunteering is something that, whatever time you put into your community, will pay back tenfold in dividends.”
Brears does not have anything against the current council, and believes they have done the best that they could with the resources they have. To him, the best case scenario would be to have a mix of new and experienced council members after the election, but he thinks there is a desire to get some new ideas on council and younger council members, like himself.
“People are looking for some new faces, new ideas and fresh ways of thinking.”
An example of that fresh perspective would also be improving communication, something he says isn’t “done horribly” but that could use improvement as he believes lots of communication can get people on board with city projects.
Brears says his plan for the city comes down to the slogan on his posters.
“I say business minded, because I think the city needs a little bit more business in the management side of things, but community driven, because ultimately it has to be a great place to live and work. I want my girls to have a community that they are proud of.”
