Lloydminster city councilor Chris McQuid will not be seeking a second term.
McQuid has been on council for the past four years, since getting elected in October of 2012. He told 106.1 The Goat that he made the decision to not run in the 2016 race out of a desire to focus on work, and to focus on his family.
“I’ve been thinking about it for a while,” said McQuid.
“I’ve got a lot of things on the go, especially with family that I want to focus on. I loved the chance to do one term, and see what it was all about. There are a lot of good candidates stepping up now that have a little more time probably to take the reins.”
McQuid also cited a move out of the city as an additional reason to not seek a second term, as he will be moving from the Border City to Paradise Valley.
As for what he sees as the high points of the past four years, McQuid said he felt there was more transparency and accountability to the municipal government then when he started, as well as additional strategic planning. He also was proud of some smaller-scale accomplishments.
“When I first ran, I had a group approach me about wanting an off-leash dog park,” said McQuid.
“It was a small thing, and we worked at that, and finally got an off-leash dog park, so I was really proud of that.”
McQuid also touched on topics where he wished things had gone differently, such as the AHHA Moments Inc. contract, the fallout of which led to changes to City procedures around contracts.
“A lot of things, AHHA Moments and some of those things, that I don’t know if I necessarily would do different but I would have liked have more information and more informed,” said McQuid.
“You think you’re going to jump in and change the world, but there is a steep, steep learning curve. Definitely there are things that we could have done better, but I think for the most part we did our best, and you see sometimes people say, they think we have conspiracies and all this stuff. We tried our best. Everybody I know on that council truly wanted the best for the city, and wants the best for the city, and we worked hard to do that.”
As for his immediate plans after leaving office, McQuid said he plans to still help with curling in Lloydminster, along with handling the ongoing move out of the community. He also does not plan on seeking an elected position in the future.
“I think one thing I’ve learned in politics is I love politics, but I love it more behind the scenes and helping with campaigns and that sort of thing,” said McQuid.
“I loved my experience doing it, and I wouldn’t change a thing, but I don’t see myself running for office again in the near future.”
According to McQuid, the political landscape in Lloydminster has changed in the last four years, sending the outcome of this municipal election up in the air. He expressed hopes for a large voter turnout, and expects a change to the city government.
McQuid also said he hoped the 2012-16 council left a direction for the future.
“At the end of the day, you always make mistakes, there are always things you can do better, but we had the cities best interest in mind,” said McQuid.
“I just hope that we set some direction for future council to keep moving forward, realizing that our city is growing. You have to spend a little money to make sure things are future-proof and ready for the next generation.”
A full list of confirmed candidates in the municipal election will be issued on September 22.