High Profile Candidate Enters Council Race In Prince George

By 250 News

Prince George -     MaryAnne Arcand, well-known in the community for her work over the past three years on the Forestry TruckSafe Initiative and road safety, is declaring her intention to seek election to Prince George City Council.“The holidays are over,” she said, referring to both the end of the summer vacation period and the need to move quickly and with clear direction on several major issues facing our city.“It seems to me that we have a track record in this city of spending a lot of time studying issues, but we lack follow-through. I’m a “can do” sort of person, and I feel strongly that we need to move ahead, past the talking and planning stages, to make a difference on such concerns as rebuilding our downtown, fixing our pot-holed streets, and making sure Prince George is a healthy and vibrant community.”

“Yes, we need to diversify our local economy -- but to do that, we have to sort out and clean up a lot of quality-of-life issues,” Arcand said. “Too many professionals and working people still wrinkle their noses about moving to Prince George, and we have to fix that.”“It bothers me that with so many talented people in our community, I’m just the second person to declare my candidacy, and the first to publicly identify crucial community issues. We’re just 10 weeks from the civic election, there’s a lot of work to be done to improve our city, and voters are entitled to know everything possible about the candidates and the issues.”

“I’m available, I’m willing to work hard, and I’m a good communicator. I won’t dodge the hard discussions and tough decisions our next City Council has to make.”

MaryAnne is known for her commitment and passion for the projects she undertakes.  In the forest industry she's affectionately known as "the Bulldozer", because of her relentless efforts to get the regulatory and industry changes needed to make BC's forests and roads safer to travel for all users.

Through partnership building and collaboration, MaryAnne has been able to effect change in the transportation sector of the forest industry, and is seen as the “go to” person to get things done by all stakeholders. On the ground projects such as risk management for steep slope driving, public education about sharing the road, standardized rules of the road and radio procedures are just a few examples of what MaryAnne has helped to facilitate.

MaryAnne’s family owned and operated a successful fuel and tire sales chain throughout the Cariboo and central BC for more than 30 years.  As part of the family business, she gained experience in retailing, wholesaling, marketing, supply management, budgeting, and human resources. She also knows first-hand the value of hard work and building business opportunities. Once her children were grown, she started her post-secondary education, first at the University College of the Cariboo in Williams Lake, and then UNBC.

MaryAnne has followed several career paths in and around Prince George over the past decades. She was a stay home mom for many years, during which time she volunteered at her childrens' schools, her church and in her community. She is married, the mother of four grown children and the grandmother of eight.

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