Barry Helm, a local Lloydminster business success story, is in the running for municipal council, believing in working together for a better Lloydminster future.
For Helm, it all began just before the turn of the century with an honest door-to-door business.
“I started a business in 1999 when I was doing my post-secondary studies, it was called Squeegee Boy and started doing windows then landscaping.”
Armed with an old truck and a lawnmower he affectionally called “old smokey,” he hit the ground running. The business eventually took over his studies and he left his schooling behind to work on his flourishing business.
“Just started knocking on businesses and drumming up work, my first job was for Pioneer Lodge.”
His landscaping company became known as Pioneer Landscaping and he continued to employ students, much like himself when he first started the businesses.
Helm says his interest in council began when he started having questions about what was going on.
“When I see some of the things going on in the city, they could be doing this or should be doing this, or there might be a different way of doing this,” he said.
Helm says he wants to be a part of council to help support the team. He adds on the want to cast a vision for the city into the next 20, 40 or 50 years and beyond.
“Council has some tough decisions ahead, you know, just to be a support for that team and serve that team,” he said.
He says it’s important to see things in terms of the community as a whole.
He also says Lloydminster has the opportunity to become a hub if a big business were to come into town.
“It’s going to change the social fabric of our community probably in more ways than we can really understand when we’ve got a tangible centre where people from outside the community, North Battleford, Cold Lake, Bonnyville, Vegreville, Wainwright all coming to Lloydminster on a regular basis.”
Helm says people feel like they can’t control their lives.
“I think from a broader political perspective, we’re in almost a sense of hopelessness, powerlessness that people feel,” he said.
Helm believes the city does have some issues, including the task of beautifying Lloydminster.
“We’ve got to work hard to keep things beautiful and make them nice, and to see things from the eyes of a tourist or someone travelling through, how will they perceive the community,” he said.
Taxes are an issue on Helm’s radar and he believes the city should be looking at different revenue streams to help lessen the burden on the taxpayer.
“I think if we do create additional streams, we could reduce the burden on the population and on businesses in the community,” he explained. “I think we’ve got a lot of resources in terms of actual geology and geography, social capital in the city to do some very creative things.”
Helm says a potential stream within the community could be found at the landfill with waste to energy conversion. He cites specifically the frustration residents have with their utility bills and wants to find a way to fix it.
“I think people are frustrated with the way power is distributed and the expense fees associated with it,” said Helm. “Is there a chance we can actually form our own utility company?”
Helm says seniors housing is another issue he believes the city should advocate for, being shocked there has been no increase in long-term care on the Saskatchewan side of the city.
He says as a candidate, he has strengths and abilities, but believes it’s about who will work best as part of a team.
“I think we need to see things in terms of a community, who is going to be a team player, who is going to work well with administration with staff,” said Helm. “That is really going to be important for making this a successful and dynamic and growing community.”
He says as a candidate he can bring a lot of positive traits to council if he were elected. Traits he says he inherited from his parents and grandparents.
“I inherited that, I was brought up to be humble, to honour your parents, your history, to be peaceable, kind, compassionate and also courageous.”
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