The race to be Calgary’s next mayor is heating up with several announcements across the city on Thursday, including the launch of incumbent Jyoti Gondek’s re-election bid.

Gondek opened her campaign with a promise to crack down on public drug use as a cornerstone of her platform.

“We will end open drug use on Calgary streets,” Gondek told reporters at her campaign office. “We will provide options and supports for people who are seeking recovery from addiction and we will make downtown and Beltline communities safer.”

Gondek said her plan is to partner with the community court program to support people charged with an open use bylaw infraction, without sending them to criminal courts.

She added she will work with the province to offer “comprehensive alternatives” to the Sheldon Chumir s

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