HAY RIVER - More than 100 people packed into the Hay River Community Centre to listen to 13 council candidates pitch their case at the Oct. 7 All Candidates Election Forum in Hay River.

In a variety of oratory styles, the prospective councillors spoke about the issues they're passionate about, what their infrastructure priorities would be and how they would try to stimulate growth in Hay River. Answers ranged from descriptive and proactive to vague and uninformed. Some wore suits, others were casually dressed.

Jason Hunter, Reiss Kruger, Rashna Bundan, Dawna O'Brien, Robert Steel, Roman Moizis, Kevin Mulligan, Ken Latour, Bernard Dueck, Bernie Langille, Kevin Wallington, Allyn Rohatyn and Andrew Cassidy tried to win over the town during the three-and-a-half hour long forum.

The evening started with two-minute introductions, followed by a question and answer session open to people on the floor. Four or five councillors answered each question in a rotating forum moderated by Duane Morgan.

Two people whose names will also be on the Oct. 19 ballot, Warren Gibb and Michael Maher, were absent.

Most councillors said they would improve communication, aim to clean up the town and strive for a unified council.

Familiar issues addressed included how councillors would address the annual flooding in Old Town and the zoning in Cameron Crescent.

Audience members also asked how they would engage youth, encourage cultural events and approach taxes.

Questions wrapped up at 9:30 p.m. Attendee Lisa Smith said she it was worthwhile debate.

"There were a lot of people running for council who I didn't know. It definitely gave me a better idea of who to vote for and who not to vote for.

"This will help me make a decision," she said after the event ended.

"I appreciated the people who said there interested in working as team and moving issues forward."

What they said

Youth programs

Jason Hunter: suggested promoting the pool more, using the old pool space and upgrading the youth centre. “Maybe the town could take over the youth centre and incorporate it as part of the rec department and run programs out of there.".

Reiss Kruger: said existing programs like the Lights on Program are making inroads but youth should be more involved in council. “Through making the most of our available areas to occupy the youth in town, such as the old pool and the youth centre, we could see a reduction in hooliganism."

Rashna Bundan: said council should ask young people what should be done. “I would like to have these (existing) groups come together collectively and unit within one group,” she said, adding the parents need to be more involved with youth programs.

Dawna O’Brien said she supports having a youth representative on council. “So the youth can tell us what we need to know."

Robert Steel: said creating a youth position is the first thing the council should do. “There’s so much more that could be done and needs to be done,” he said of communication between existing youth groups.

Arts and Culture:

Bernie Langille: “I would love to see more theatre come to town… I would definitely support any ideas.”

Kevin Wallington: said better arts and culture programming could help attract professionals to Hay River. He said a facility is needed and suggested an outdoor stage could be used for theatre production and high school music programs. “We need to continue to gather the people who want to make this happen and as a council facility support as much as possible."

Allyn Rohatyn said the town should consider a new facility. “If we don’t give people access to places to host these events, we’re not going to attract new people."

Andrew Cassidy said long-term planning is needed and arts and culture should be included in the town planning. He said he’d “support any endeavour to move forward with a cultural centre… It really adds a sense of community.” “Hay River really needs to figure out where to grow in the future and need to celebrate their arts,” Cassidy said, suggesting the town’s recreation co-ordinator could also be responsible for arts.

Taxes vs programs

Bernard Dueck: “You have to find a common medium. You can’t go too hard one way or the other way. You have to find a balance that’s accepted by everybody."

Ken Latour said strategic planning will help clarify where money needs to go. “We’ve received a lot of gas tax money, millions of dollars… that money helps us tackle some of these bigs jobs. I don’t see raising taxes in the near future." “People work hard for their money, they should get to keep it.”

Kevin Mulligan said good capital planning and management will help prioritize tax needs, like sewer, water and infrastructure. “The last thing we want to see is substantial increase in taxes that would affect homeowners and businesses."

Roman Moizis said “To grow our town we need money to grow our town. Tax increases are inevitable but there are funding alternatives to help offset costs, like territorial and federal money. He said a referendum could help determine where people want their money spent.