Airdrie council hopeful Maulik Shah pledges focus on food security, infrastructure and balanced growth.
Airdrie city council candidate Maulik Shah says his decision to run stems from a long-standing commitment to community service and a belief that his engineering background can bring practical value to City Hall.
A professional engineer, Shah has worked on ice-rink projects across Alberta and said that hands-on experience has shaped how he approaches infrastructure and financial planning.
“Good design always saves money down the road,” he said. “I’m a strong advocate for reforms by overhauling the asset management policy. Right now, I feel like we are more on a breakdown maintenance rather than a preventive maintenance.”
He believes that shifting to a predictive maintenance model, one that relies on data and energy-efficiency audits, could save the city about $100,000 annually in utility and upkeep costs.
Food security is another cornerstone of Shah’s campaign. Over the years, he’s helped organize weekly food drives that have supported more than 2,000 families. He said the city can do more to strengthen the Airdrie Food Bank and related programs.
“The food banks are actually closed on weekends, and I always believe the basic needs of a human are food and water,” he said. “My plan is a subsidized land program for food banks and urban agricultural initiatives like community gardens or indoor growing facilities.”
Shah has suggested that the city lease municipal land for food storage or small-scale agriculture, with $100,000 from the Community Investment Fund redirected to cover start-up costs, all without increasing taxes.
On health care, Shah said the city needs to keep pressure on the province to move forward with two long-awaited projects.
“I am aware that healthcare is a provincial matter, but 90,000 residents and counting demand some kind of action,” he said. “My main lever is aggressive lobbying with the MLA and Alberta Health Services.”
In the meantime, he said improving public transit links to Calgary hospitals and universities would make it easier for Airdrie families and seniors to access services.
He also emphasized that stronger communication between the city council and residents is essential.
“There may be a lot of things that happen in terms of infrastructure or health care, but that’s not been properly communicated to the community,” he said.
When it comes to recreation, Shah wants the city to focus on maintaining what it already has before investing in new projects.
“First of all, what exists? Improve that and make it efficient,” he said.
He added that supporting small businesses through faster permit approvals would also be a priority.
“Local shops are actually the heartbeat, but red tape can choke them,” he said, proposing a fast-track lane to cut small-business permit times in half.
His platform also includes a 50 per cent recreation-fee subsidy for low-income families and seniors, aimed at making community programs more accessible.
Shah said his motivation to enter politics comes from years of volunteer work and a desire to use his professional skills for the community’s benefit.
“There is a need for people like me who have a background of professional engineering and management skills that can contribute to society,” he said.
He hopes to rebalance Airdrie’s tax structure by shifting the current 75-25 residential-to-commercial ratio toward 65-35 within five years, encouraging business investment rather than raising taxes.
“We can do it without service cuts or tax hikes, it’s about growing the pie,” he said.
Shah also supports more affordable housing and reallocating existing funds to strengthen local policing, rather than introducing new taxes.
“My competition is not with anyone. My competition is with myself, how I’m going to give more to the community,” Shah said. “Whether this clicks or not, I’m always there for the community.”
The Airdrie Municipal Election is taking place on October 20.
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