Another veteran of City Council will not be seeking to re-gain their seat.
Lloydminster city councilor Larry Sauer made his intentions known in previous weeks, indicating that he would not be running in the municipal election. Sauer first gained a seat on council in 2009, subsequently winning re-election in 2012.
This past Monday, Sauer discussed why he made the decision with the press, following his second-last meeting of city council.
Sauer said he had enjoyed his time on council, and that he had accomplished as much as he thought he could possibly do in a councilor’s role.
“There would only be one more level to take a look at, and (I) certainly thought about that,” said Sauer.
“But it’s a very time-consuming position, and I just felt at this point I didn’t want to dedicate that particular amount of time to it.”
Sauer indicated he would still be engaged in what’s happening in the city, and that he would be watching the municipal election with interest. He also offered some advice to the candidates running for council seats.
“I would say that you really need to be into council for at least a year, maybe two years, before you really get a good handle of what goes on,” said Sauer.
“With all due respect to our citizens, to everybody else who actually sees all the things that we need to take a look at, and in doing so, to make an informed decision, you just don’t know all that information. I didn’t know before I got on council, and so I think you need to take a step back, and although you may have some things you want to ask about, question about, that have been up over the last number of years, and that’s fair, you need to take time to really see how the process works.”
Sauer also didn’t rule out ever running for elected office again, but he said would want to travel with his wife while they were both still healthy enough.