Joe Hordyski sat on council for many years, but his current term began in November 2020. (submitted photo/Joe Hordyski)

By Derek Cornet

byelection

Mayoral candidate wants to increase business, pursue further regionalization if elected

Sep 12, 2022 | 4:10 PM

Joe Hordyski has plans to move the town forward if he is elected mayor in the byelection next month.

“If I get elected, you can certainly trust me to move things forward,” he said. “I am very open. I like talking to people and getting ideas. It’s good to know how people are feeling. I don’t have a select group I serve. I will make decisions for the majority of the people in the community.”

Hordyski is no stranger to municipal politics. He previously served as mayor in 1997 and sat on La Ronge’s city council from 1991 to 2009. He lost his second bid for mayor in 2016.

If there was one issue Hordyski could work on tomorrow, it would be assisting the business community in La Ronge so it can prosper. He said there is a lack of council involvement in this area, adding he supports moving ahead with an approximately $8 million Highway 102 Economic Corridor Master Plan. That would include the construction of a new sub-division, roads and the installation of utilities.

Hordyski would also focus his attention to the businesses downtown, which struggles with panhandlers and vandalism. He added positive action needs to be taken to address the issue.

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“The plan is posted on the website and there is a survey along with it,” Hordyski said. “We can get public feedback. I think it is an exciting opportunity to work on that. It all takes money and there’s definitely competing dollars.”

Another area Hordyski would focus on is further regionalization. In the past, he said he was involved with regionalizing fire services, and water and waste management. He suggested Air Ronge, La Ronge and the Lac La Ronge Indian Band could also work together on finding a solution for the homelessness issue, fundraising for the proposed new long-term care centre, as well as tackling the high dog population.

“I would like to set up quarterly meetings like roundtables,” he said. “There are a number of issues I think we can deal with collectively.”

With Colin Ratushniak winning the 2020 general election by a landslide, Hordyski said voters sent a clear message there was a lack of confidence in leadership. He’s hopeful he can return a level of trust to residents and get the community back on track.

Since the new council was elected, Hordyski stated morale is up amongst employees and many vacancies, including the role of chief administrative officer, have been filled.

Hordyski is employed as a contractor and throughout the years, sat on boards for regional health, New North and the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association. He currently sits on the regional water and waste management committees, along with the Northern Municipal Trust Account.

Hordyski is running to a two-person race against fellow councillor Matthew Klassen. The byelection is set for Oct. 5.

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com

Twitter: @saskjourno