Krista Zingel — For Pembroke City Council

01Why I'm running

I'm running because Pembroke deserves a council that puts safety, honesty, and good stewardship ahead of everything else.

For too long, big decisions have been made without enough consultation, without enough accountability, and without enough regard for the people who live with the consequences. Residents have watched costs rise and answers get harder to come by. That's not the Pembroke I know, and it's not the one we have to settle for.

City government has a defined job: keep the roads repaired, the bylaws enforced, the streets safe, and the city clean and welcoming. Health care, addiction services, and housing belong to the province and to Ottawa — and I'll be relentless in holding them to it. But the things that are ours to fix, we should fix well.

I've spent my career holding institutions to the rules — making sure the numbers add up and the decisions can stand up to scrutiny. I want to bring that same discipline to City Hall: ask the hard questions, insist on real consultation, and make sure the basics — safe streets, sound finances, open decisions — come first.

This is about restoring confidence. A safe place to live, work, and play — again.

Krista ZingelCandidate for Pembroke City Council

How I'll decide

Every decision, measured by one question: is it good for our children and our seniors?

They are the most vulnerable among us — and the truest test of whether a city is safe, clean, and welcoming. A decision that protects them protects everyone.

02The platform

An account I'll keep for Pembroke.

Four commitments, stated plainly — each measured against that same test, and built so you can hold me to every one.

Safety

A safe, clean, welcoming city

Safe enough for a child to walk and a senior to linger

Stronger bylaws backed by real enforcement — rules that mean something.
Clean, well-kept public spaces: streets, parks, and a downtown that feels cared for and welcoming.
A clear accountability framework for social-service facilities: proper siting and zoning, operating standards, good-neighbour agreements, and consultation before decisions are made.
The resources our bylaw and policing services need to address property crime, open drug use, and neighbourhood disorder.
Services that people need, delivered the right way, in the right place, with accountability to the neighbours who live alongside them.

Stewardship

Responsible spending of your tax dollars

Every dollar accounted for

Line-by-line scrutiny of the city budget — value for money, not blank cheques.
A compliance professional's eye on contracts, costs, and long-term commitments.
Spending priorities set by what residents actually need, with the trade-offs spelled out honestly.

Transparency

III

Transparency in how the city is run

Decisions made in the open

Genuine public consultation before major decisions — especially the controversial ones.
Plain-language reporting to residents: what's being decided, what it costs, and why.
Staff reports and advice disclosed wherever the law allows — and straight answers when they don't.

Growth

Economic growth that lasts

A downtown worth investing in

A safe, vibrant downtown — the precondition for any business deciding to invest here.
Practical support for small business and sensible, faster approvals for good development.
Making the most of what we have: the waterfront, the heritage murals, and the people who choose to build their lives in Pembroke.

03The city's job

Do the city's job well. Demand the rest from those responsible.

A municipality has a defined role: roads and water, waste and parks, bylaws and zoning, and keeping the streets safe, clean, and welcoming. Get those right and the whole city feels different.

Health care, mental-health and addiction services, social assistance, and housing are the responsibility of the province and the federal government. When those systems fail, our neighbourhoods absorb it — and the answer isn't to look away. It's to hold the right governments to account.

We'll do our part excellently — and press Queen's Park and Ottawa relentlessly for theirs.

Where the city does hold the levers — how land is zoned, where facilities are sited, whether bylaws are enforced, whether residents are consulted before decisions are made — I'll use them. That's where past decisions went wrong, and that's exactly where I'll set a higher standard.

04First responders & health workers

They put their lives on the line for us. Supporting them comes first.

Our firefighters, paramedics, OPP officers, and the staff at Pembroke Regional Hospital answer the call when it matters most — and they're doing it with resources stretched far too thin. Honouring that service means more than words at a ceremony.

Fund our share

Pay our fair part

Properly fund our OPP contract, paramedic services, and fire department — and never balance the budget on the backs of the people we call in an emergency.

Demand provincial support

Press Queen's Park

Push relentlessly for adequate OPP detachment staffing and a properly resourced Pembroke Regional Hospital and emergency room.

Clear the bottlenecks

Let them do the job

Back practical fixes — like ending ambulance offload delays — so paramedics and officers spend their time responding, not waiting.

And give the people on the front lines a real voice at the council table — because the best decisions about safety come from listening to those who deliver it.

05About Krista

[ Add a photo of Krista here — warm, approachable, local ]

Krista Zingel has spent more than 37 years in Canadian financial services — in major banks, regulatory bodies, and the mortgage industry — building a career on a simple principle: the rules exist for a reason, and the numbers have to add up.

As a senior compliance and finance professional, she has spent her career holding organizations accountable to regulators, to the law, and to the people they serve. She has managed teams, untangled complex problems, and built the paper trails that stand up to scrutiny.

A long-time Pembroke resident and active community advocate, Krista has shown up — at council meetings, at the doors, and on the issues that affect everyday life in this city. She's running to bring that same diligence to City Hall.

Banking & financial services Compliance & Regulatory Affairs 37+ years in financial services Pembroke resident & advocate