By: Bartley Kives
Active-transportation activist Janice Lukes plans to run for city council in the soon-to-be-vacant St. Norbert ward.
Lukes, the former director of the Winnipeg Trails Association and a part-time executive assistant to outgoing Coun. Justin Swandel, said she will mount a campaign to succeed her employer in July, when candidates for council seats are permitted to register their campaigns.
Lukes is a well-known figure at city hall, due to years of lobbying in favour of funding to expand the city’s network of bike-and-pedestrian trails. The late Charleswood-Tuxedo councillor Bill Clement once dubbed her "Queen of the Trails" during a committee-meeting fight. She said she went to work for Swandel after years of badgering him about projects in St. Norbert.
Lukes said she has never been a member of a Manitoba political party, but was approached by three to run in the most recent provincial election.
Restaurateur Sachit Mehra has also declared his intention to run in St. Norbert.
Swandel has served St. Norbert since 2005, when he won a byelection to replace his former boss, John Angus. Swandel announced last month he would not run again.