Peterborough artist Alex Bierk has announced he intends to run for councillor in the city’s Town Ward in the October 24, 2022 municipal election.
The Peterborough native, who lives with his family in Town Ward and has a studio in downtown Peterborough, issued a statement on Wednesday (March 23) announcing his intentions.
In March, educator and former federal NDP candidate Joy Lachica also announced her intentions to run for Town Ward councillor.
Below is Bierk’s statement in its entirety.
I am announcing my intention to run for a seat on City Council because I believe in our city and our downtown. Our municipal politics are at an impasse. The current Council came to power on a wave of optimism in 2018, but after the last few years, the momentum has stalled. It’s time we set aside petty arguments and arcane policy debates and take a stance on the hard issues facing our community, and I’m asking for your vote in Town Ward because I believe I can help us do that.
My decision to run for a seat on Council is a response to what I see as a lack of action where it’s most desperately needed. Our local businesses, the arts community, people who use drugs, those living in poverty, our homeless population, members of the working class, parents and students — too many of us are falling further and further behind while the systems in place to support us are mismanaged and offer inadequate support.
I’m under no illusions about the magnitude of the problems we face, but I’m committed to confronting them with all my heart and ability. I love Peterborough. I grew up here. My wife and I are raising our three young children in Town Ward. They go to the same school I went to, play in the same streets. My studio is downtown. You can find me here everyday. And while maintaining my career as a successful artist, I’ve also been sitting on different boards and working with local organizations and institutions, speaking in front of Council, channelling my lived experience with addiction and recovery, and putting my time and energy behind the issues that effect my friends and neighbours the most.
If my years of experience as an advocate for Town Ward and its people have taught me anything, it’s that genuine progress on the many overlapping challenges we face will only come with the involvement of those who understand those things first-hand. And at the same time, we have to show as a city that we are willing to listen, to keep an open mind. Only then will we tackle our problems with evidence-based solutions that really work.
I’m asking for you to support me in the coming months while we work to create change. I have the energy and the commitment to help lead this city, and I’ll be real and transparent with you along the way. After all, its our collective voice that is important to me.
Email alexbierkfordowntown@gmail.com to connect as WE DO THIS.
With all my love,
AL
