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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
If elected, lifelong Yellowknifer Rebecca Alty intends to use her time on council to improve communication with the public, support Yellowknife's vibrant volunteer community and lobby the GNWT for 911 service and permanent funding for the day shelter.

Rebecca Alty is making her debut in city politics for this year's election. - Lyndsay Herman/NNSL photo

Alty said she thinks the last council has done a good job setting up for the incoming council to hit the ground running. The various reports and frameworks completed over the years may not be perfect, but will allow the incoming council to implement plans that are "in the best interest to Yellowknife," she said.

She would like to introduce measures such as quarterly townhall meetings in order to encourage public conversations about important topics.

"That's the one thing missing at city hall right now," she said. "There should be two-way communication, but right now it's only one way. They run ads in the newspaper, on the radio, there's no discussion."

Alty suggested holding the meetings in various areas around town in order to make attending as convenient for the public as possible.

Moreover, Alty said the city website is underutilized. She would like to see an area where organizations not run by the city can post volunteer opportunities. The addition, she said, would not only support groups doing great things in the city, but it would foster a greater sense of community in the city.

"When you help your city you also become a part of it," she said. "To keep people in Yellowknife we need more than great employment and low living costs, because you can get that anywhere. You also need a great lifestyle."

Alty said she also intends to utilize her past experience working for the GNWT to secure 911 service and permanent funding for the day shelter.

"It's not just a Yellowknife-specific problem," she said, adding that she is well experienced in how the GNWT operates, how the approvals work and who to talk to about each issue.

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