SCHREIBER—With a father who used to be the former mayor of Schreiber and having also been a councilor for the Municipality of Schreiber Kim Krause seems set to face the challenges of perhaps being the next mayor.
Reasons for entering the race for mayor are varied with the greatest influence coming from Krauses’ father Bob Krause who was a former mayor for Schreiber. Having lived in South Africa for a few years, and working for several organizations and boards, circumstances eventually took Krause to Schreiber.
Krauses’ community involvement began early when he served as town councillor during which time, he was given a portfolio that required he work with Schreiber Library’s head librarian, Donna Mikeluk. His work on their media literacy program eventually led Krause to the development of Schreiber’s Media Centre, where he worked as their LJI journalist.
“As councilor I sat on the Library Board where we worked on finding the funding to develop a media centre for Schreiber. We wanted to tell our stories and put Schreiber out there on the map,” stated Krause. He described how this process required applying for grants to make the centre a reality. Eventually due to the challenges of finding someone who would want to move their family to Schreiber to run this new media centre, Krause left his position on town council and took over the reins of running the Schreiber Media Centre and taking on the role of LIJ journalist. Schreiber’s Media centre opened its doors to the public on March 13, 2020.
When asked to share why he finally decided to run for mayor, Krause immediately mentioned his key focuses for his vision for Schreiber.
“A month ago, I was looking at nominees for this year’s election and I was struck by how many wanted to run for council with only 4 seats available. Initially eight were running for council, with a large portion being female, which I thought was good. But I saw that only the current mayor was running for the position of mayor,” explained Krause.
Krause kept hearing that people were asking for change and he didn’t see how this change would be possible if the same people would end up on city council again for the next four years.
“I spoke to a lot of people who asked me to run for council again. They were asking for change. I knew I’d be facing challenges again, and I don’t see how you can deliver on promise for change without real change,” said Krause.
“I decided to run for mayor just to see what is going to happen because if people really want change them they may be supportive of me,” added Krause. He truly sees himself as real change for the city of Schreiber because he feels that he himself would represent real change-he does things differently.
“I do things differently, and I see myself as representing real change, and I haven’t seen a lot of change happening in Schreiber over the past few years,” stated Krause. He speaks openly about how in his view the present council hasn’t really caused for anything new, for Schreiber, and that most of what has been developed is a result of what was planned and set by the previous council.
Part of the reason behind his decision to run for mayor is his sense of frustration over the fact that in his view, not much change is in the plans for Schreiber and that initiatives like the Railway Museum was one that was adopted from the previous council.
“When you go to places like Terrace Bay and towns around the region towns are thriving. So many positive things are going on. Whereas in Schreiber, things have stalled and its frustrating. I don’t want to sit around and wait for things to happen. I’m willing to step out an bring change,” shared Krause.
Krause wants to see diversity and change reflected on the new town council. With a present all male city council, Krause believes that if one does not have real representation of the community on a town council that it makes it difficult to have a variety of thought when important discussions take place.
What really drives Krause to go out and canvas for support during the next month before election day is his desire for real change, his desire for new development for the city of Schreiber and his desire to develop better branding to develop tourism. His mandate also includes attracting new businesses to the community to strengthen its economy and eventually attract families who will want to come to live in Schreiber, work in Schreiber and help increase its tax base.
Krause highlights other key initiatives and focuses he sees for the town, items that include:
- Going out to see what the people of Schreiber see as priorities.
- Promoting economic growth by attracting corporate companies to the town, and bringing workers into town, who will want to stay.
- Enhancing branding and making Schreiber more than just a railroad town
- Developing housing to attract families who will want to live in Schreiber.
- Developing and find funding for a variety of recreation programs so that families with children will want to stay.
As mayor Krause believes he has a broader vision for the town, one who wants to develop a closer relationship with surrounding regions. He sees a Schreiber who has a council that reflects diversity, one that wants real change, and willing to support new industry and business. Krause hopes that residents will see him as a mayor who wants to move the community forward with this real change and a vision that sees the potential for real growth for the Municipality of Schreiber.
