Skip to content

Recreation important to candidate

A LOCAL life skills worker is looking to the heart while running for a city council seat.
62628terracetamaraainscow2011web
TAMARA Ainscow

A LOCAL life skills worker is looking to the heart while running for a city council seat.

To Tamara Aisncow, Terrace's heart is made up of the people living in and around the city — and a healthy heart means healthy relationships between community members no matter what culture or background they're from.

The main focus of her platform is what she calls cultural infrastructure. People, and therefore their cultures, beliefs and backgrounds, make the core of what a city is built upon, she said. Without a strong core, that which is build around it wouldn't be as strong.

"The more we build our cultural infrastructure its going to help every single aspect," said Ainscow.

Should she be elected to council, she will focus her efforts on talking to a multitude of backgrounds in order to incorporate many perspectives while making decisions for the community.

Focusing on leisure and recreation activities is also important to her.

"A community centre is crucial," she said. "The way I see it, its not only the youth who need the centre it's everyone."

Making recreation and leisure services more accessible to community members will support their well being which in turn helps to reinforce cultural infrastructure, she said.

Ainscow agrees with the city's recent decision to give My Mountain Coop $15,000 but she is surprised it took the group three tries to get something.

I definitely think more should have been given,” she said, noting she's not convinced denying the group money at first represented public opinion.

She suggested a referendum would have better determined that answer.

Ultimately, Ainscow said should she be elected she will focus her efforts on community outreach and youth engagement.

And if she's not elected, she still plans to reach out into different communities to bridge gaps in understanding between cultures in order to strengthen the community's heart, she said.