Leslie Marie Steel is running for Council in Ward 9 in Greater Sudbury.
Leslie (she/her) is excited to be running for City Council in Ward 9. She is a lifelong Sudburian: educated in Greater Sudbury, she also raised her family in the city and was employed in public service for over 30 years. She comes from a family of entrepreneurs who have always been immersed in business and keen to help Sudbury grow in the right direction. She is a tireless advocate, working in the field of Social Services, and is presently a Patient & Family Advisor at Health Sciences North and the Chair of the Northern Initiative for Social Action (a Peer Lead Organization of persons with lived experience of mental health challenges/mental illness). The Northern Initiative for Social Action is member-driven and offers meaningful and useful programs, and believes in active recovery rather than passive dependence on community services.
Why are you running for this position?
I am running for council because we need to change the direction and attitude of the government in this city, and I am ready to be that strong, creditable, and cooperative representation.
What innovative projects would enhance life in your municipality?
Besides the obvious better roads, sidewalks, bike paths etc., more diversity would greatly enhance Ward 9. We need to promote our beautiful city through tourism and better economic development opportunities, which will attract and include different population groups with different ideas. We need to create communities that reinforce those differences to enhance our lives.
If you received a $1 million grant to use for your municipality any way you wanted, what would you do with it?
Well, unfortunately, 1 million is not a lot in this day and age, but I might use it to attract developers to start looking for workable ideas to plan for the construction of affordable housing.
What do you think are the greatest challenges your municipality faces?
Ward 9 is extremely large geographically, and the constituents have competing ideas in many cases. Coniston has an amazing community that supports its residents with several initiatives run primarily by volunteers. I believe the South End needs to embrace "meaningful development" by being conscious of wildlife/environmental/safety responsibilities and transportation needs. Basically, like the rest of Sudbury, Ward 9 needs to identify their priorities and create workable ideas for success
Other than the official ways of communicating (minutes, municipal notes), how else will you reach out to your constituents to involve them in the decision making process?
I have knocked on hundreds of doors so far and basically people just want to be heard. They don't want you to send them minutes or notes or forward them links to other websites, they just want you to listen to them. I would hold more community meetings to engage constituents. I do have a website (www.LeslieSteel.ca) or you can follow me on Facebook at Leslie Steel 4 Ward 9.
What is your favourite thing to do in your municipality?
Swim in the lakes, eat at our amazing restaurants and work in my garden.
Why do you think it’s important for women to be represented in civic leadership, including on committees, boards and municipal councils?
My parents instilled in me the confidence to know that my opinions were to be valued. That is the message that I want to give other women to encourage them to pursue leadership roles because we belong at the table making decisions. Women have different ideas and different ways of handling situations. After all, it takes some amazing skills to take care of your home, raise your children, be there for your aging parents, babysit your grandchildren, walk a dog and be engaged at your full-time job. Let's hope in a few years, we will be having a different conversation about women in the workplace. So again, it comes down to diversity which has been absent at the Municipal level
Please identify the most critical policy, project, or initiative in your platform that addresses systemic barriers faced by women in your municipality, and describe why:
My first priority: Social Inclusion. That says it all!
