Mayor of Winkler retiring after 16 years

The mayor of Winkler is retiring after 16 years of serving his community.

“It was a lot of fun. It was a lot of excitement because of the growth,” said Winkler Mayor Martin Harder in an interview on Monday.

“Certainly, the last couple of years, it’s had its challenges, but I’ve always said you know what you’re made of when you face challenges and you have to make decisions under tough conditions.”

Harder noted during his tenure as mayor, he’s learned that it’s the people that make all the difference.

“We have such a great community that volunteers. We have such a great community that contributes towards projects,” he said.

Over the past 16 years, Harder has helped the City of Winkler to grow, especially when it comes to enhancing activities for residents to enjoy.

Some of these developments include an accessible playground, the Meridian Exhibition Centre and the Discovery Nature Sanctuary.

“Those are some of the key things that make Winkler a great place to live,” he said.

THE PANDEMIC

Harder acknowledged that the COVID-19 pandemic created a divide between Winkler residents.

He said this will take longer to heal than the virus itself.

“We struggled with COVID for two years. I don’t want to diminish the severity of it, but actually, the community divide is one thing that is more difficult to manage,” he said.

The mayor noted that one good thing for the pandemic was that internet service provider Valley Fiber made it possible for people to work from home and for students to learn remotely.

“Those are the things that are bright spots during those years,” he said.

After his time as mayor is done, he hopes to see the community continue to work together.

“Our industrial strength, our retail and commercial strength is there, but the best thing is to make this a community that learns to live together, that learns to forgive and it learns to be a community that moves forward,” Harder said.

The municipal election takes place on Oct. 26, 2022.

- With files from CTV’s Rachel Lagace.