Grande Prairie has its first potential Alberta Party candidate for the next provincial election. Local gallery owner and former broadcaster Grant Berg has announced he is seeking the party’s nomination in the new Grande Prairie riding.
“I think there’s a silent majority in Grande Prairie that needs a voice and I want to be that voice,” he says. “With my career background in broadcasting, I like to think that I can use that voice and that training to help get a proper message across.”
After 23 years working at Grande Prairie’s country radio station, Berg spent two years at 104.7 2day FM before starting his own art gallery downtown. He’s also spent time volunteering for groups like the Grande Prairie Storm and Rotary.
A 27-year resident of the city, Berg says he is passionate about the community and the issues affecting it. He claims he isn’t running for the Alberta Party out of ambition, but out of frustration with the other options.
“I can’t say I’m excited, but I’m determined because I do not agree strongly with either the left or the right, and for me if I have the capacity to do something positive and I don’t, I will regret it for the rest of my life.”
Among Berg’s concerns are the delays building the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital, support for small businesses, creating jobs in the oil and gas industry, and supports for people with addiction and mental health issues. He believes identifying people with mental health issues when they’re younger would reduce addiction, crime, and suicide rates.
“For some reason, mental health seems to be something that we can cast homeless, and then it turns to drugs; then it turns into self-medicating, which is a stress on our hospital system, our police, our community, and our court system”
At this point, Berg is the only candidate to come forward for the Alberta Party nomination in the Grande Prairie riding. A date for when party members will vote has not yet been set. The only other confirmed candidate in the riding is the UCP’s Tracy Allard.