Emergency Services, Crime, Homelessness questions by email...

​1. Would you describe your values as more liberal, conservative, or a mix of both?

I believe in freedom, fairness, and common sense. Government should focus on the basics—running efficiently, being transparent, and staying out of people’s lives as much as possible. I believe in personal responsibility, helping others when we can, and giving everyone a fair chance to succeed. I support practical solutions over politics, innovation over red tape, and protecting our community and environment through balance and accountability. I think people know what’s best for their own lives, and government should make that easier—not harder. 
​
People have called me a "small-c conservative", "slightly right of center", "populist", "libertarian", and "moderate"—but none of that has anything to do with non-partisan municipal government. I’ve said since 2020, after running for a Federal Party, that political parties in Canada—federal, provincial, and certainly municipal—should be abolished. Elected representatives should serve the people who put them there, not a party or its agenda.


2. Do you have a clear and actionable plan to address the issues of homelessness and rising crime in our city?

Yes, as I mentioned at the Firefighters Forum — take this action plan (Chamber noted below) and act on it. The City needs to stay at arm’s length when it comes to addressing homelessness and addiction. We shouldn’t be wasting taxpayer dollars trying to do what others are already better equipped to handle. There are many qualified and experienced organizations out there that should be working together under one umbrella — a single coordinated society — that comes to the City only with a clear, unified plan forward.

Keeping our city safe and well-built starts with being visible, proactive, and smart with resources. I want more foot patrols by Peace Officers downtown, better lighting, and a volunteer “downtown ambassador” program to deter petty crime and make residents feel safer. With the RCMP contract ending in 2032, we can create a Red Deer Municipal Police force, letting RCMP and Alberta Sheriffs (SCAN) focus on organized crime and drug sources instead of smaller offenses. At the same time, partnering with third-party organizations for non-core services like tourism, culture, and economic development keeps taxpayer money focused on core services like public safety and infrastructure. By combining prevention, presence, and smart partnerships, we can build a safer, stronger, and more vibrant community for everyone.

https://www.reddeerchamber.com/assets/pdf/TaskForceRecommendationsFINAL/

Summarized: Create a Red Deer Homeless Foundation non profit to coordinate homelessness strategy:

Transfer responsibilities from the City and provide transitional funding to 2025
Apply a business lens to homelessness considering economic impacts
Increase community education and awareness
Remove red tape in zoning and permitting to speed affordable housing
Coordinate funding among agencies to reduce duplication
Modernize the Alberta Housing Act for local flexibility
Integrate homelessness strategy into the City’s Community Wellbeing and Safety Plan
Develop provincial and federal affordable housing pathways
Use public private partnerships for housing delivery
Improve provincial funding and accountability
Adjust federal tax and housing policies to support housing trusts
Integrate addiction recovery employment and housing policies
Launch Team Red Deer to encourage community involvement
Promote citizen participation through volunteering and learning

 
3. What are your thoughts on the current strategy to reduce overtime costs for fire and emergency first responders?  Do you believe it is effective or in need of revision?

At the Firefighters Forum, I talked about how hiring more firemedics in Red Deer is the best way to cut overtime and keep everyone safe. Last year, we spent over $3.2 million on overtime—that’s enough to hire roughly 25 to 35 new firemedics. My goal is to bring in 50 new firemedics by the end of 2026.

Above all else, we need to listen to the association and the boots on the ground about how we can make things run more efficiently without compromising public safety. I have never heard, in my life, of a city or town closing a fire station part-time simply to reduce staffing. We are lucky to have a top-rated firemedic service that is currently able to bridge the gap—but if we had a serious fire in our city, with old building codes grandfathered in, there is a real risk of lives being lost with the current staffing and coverage strategy. Imagine if one of the seniors’ highrises or one of the Capstone highrises caught fire—would we have the staff available at 2 a.m. to save lives?

Instead of addressing the staffing issue properly, the city responded with a “dynamic staffing” model and a $600,000 cut to the budget, all while keeping a fire chief who received a 99% non-confidence vote from 87%* of the association membership. This is not effective leadership.

People often compare our spending to Edmonton, but it’s not the same. Edmonton has over a thousand staff and more than 30 stations, each division separate for fire, rescue, and medical services. Here in Red Deer, we have fewer than 200 staff and fewer stations, and our firefighters are firemedics, which is more efficient, safer, and gets help to people faster—sometimes saving lives. The budget for emergency services should never be compared percentage-wise to parks, as incumbent candidate Victor Doerksen did. A human life has far greater value than a tree.

We can pay for this and move forward without raising taxes by not wasting money, using a $1 saved for $1 new spending strategy, streamlining departments, and downloading non-core services to third-party organizations through contracting—examples include tourism, economic development promotion, culture and heritage programming, the sale of vacant public lands and buildings, and (as one candidate mentioned) the sale of the electric company while maintaining a shareholder stake in it. Even when fire and medical services are combined, AHS can still help with equipment and training. Investing in more firemedics and planning ahead means faster response times and a safer community for everyone.


Thank you for your questions,

Kevin M. Klerks
Candidate for Red Deer City Councillor
www.kevinmklerks.ca