Rossland city councillor Lisa Kwiatkowski will run for mayor this fall, seeking to fill the position of Andy Morel, who will run for a council seat instead.
Kwiatkowski is completing her first term on council, having been elected in 2022. She moved to Rossland six years ago.
“I was one of those folks that came from the big city looking for a different lifestyle and Rossland was it,” she said. “Since arriving, I’ve been very active in contributing to the community.”
Within weeks, she became involved with the local youth soccer program. She has also been an organizer for the Winter Carnival, and was elected chair of that group at her first meeting. She has chaired the Mountain Ravens women’s mountain biking club as well.
She said serving on city council has been a great way to get to know the community and “learn the needs and the dynamics of living and functioning in a small town.”
Kwiatkowski’s background is in sports. She’s spent 20 years as executive director of a national sports organization and also been involved in international sports, working on three Olympic and Paralympic Games.
She likens serving on council to a team sport.
“It really takes the contribution of everybody, ideally operating within their skills and their strengths,” she said. “We’ve got an incredible team at the City of Rossland from our professional staff to our elected officials as well as community members who are giving back through nonprofit groups.”
Kwiatkowski said the current council’s achievementse include approving a new official community plan, implementing a recreation master plan, and beginning to implement a utilities master plan that addresses capital improvements over the next 20 years.
She said it is not easy work, and requires “challenging conversations around priorities.” She sees the role of mayor as not being invested in the outcome of any particular decision, but making sure all voices are given “ample opportunity for meaningful engagement” and ensuring processes are followed to achieve the right outcomes.
Morel, who is completing his first term as mayor after sitting as a councillor, said in an email that his decision to run for councillor rather than mayor followed “serious self and family deliberations.”
He added that he was excited to hear that Kwiatkowski is seeking the mayor’s chair. General voting day is Oct. 17.
