Ward 7 Councillor Mairin Loewen won’t seek re-election this fall

Long-time Ward 7 Councillor Mairin Loewen says she won’t run for city council again in November.

Loewen, who was first elected in 2011, said she made up her mind after the 2020 election that this would be her final term in office.

“This is not a role that I intended to be forever. As our family life has evolved, it’s been more challenging to make the work of council fit with out life in an ideal way, ” Loewen said.

“The city has grown by tens of thousands of people since I was first elected. The work and challenges and issues that council has been asked to resolve (and) deliberate are also increasing in complexity.”

READ MORE:

• Cynthia Block announces mayoral run in Saskatoon
• Wyant defends initial votes on pronoun legislation as ‘procedural’

Loewen said she wanted to announce her intention now, to allow people considering a run ample time to organize their campaigns.

Reflecting on her nearly 14 years on council, Loewen said she’s proud of the role she played in improving the city.

“When I was first elected, we didn’t have very evolved asset management plans for things like looking after roads, sidewalks, back alleys and pipes. We have much better systems in place now,” she said.

“I’m also proud of a lot of the gains made. I have spent quite a bit of time working on issues related to sustainability and the environment – things like flood-control programs to protect homes in my ward.”

Loewen says its an exciting time for the Bridge City. Saskatoon is seeing rapid growth, which is bringing more opportunities to the city. But, she said, there are complex challenges that accompany that growth.

“This is a really challenging time for local governments across the country, because every community is struggling to provide safe, affordable housing and ensuring the community feels safe,” she said.

Loewen joins Mayor Charlie Clark, Ward 2 Coun. Hilary Gough, Ward 8 Coun. Sarina Gersher and Ward 3 Coun. David Kirton, who have also said they will not seek re-election this fall.

Ward 6 voters will also elect a new representative, with Councillor Cynthia Block running for mayor.

Voters go to the polls on November 13.

–with files from 650 CKOM’s Brent Bosker and Lara Fominoff