Nelson councillor dishes on the joys and sorrows of small-city politics

Former Nelson city councillor Donna Macdonald served the public for 19 years.

Or is that, "survived" the public?

Even though Nelson is a city of only about 10,000, being in government wasn't always easy, she said, and her experience lead to the "tongue-in-cheek" title of her memoir, Surviving City Hall.

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"You learn so much about the community, and government itself, and about sewer pipes and arts and culture and everything else you can imagine," she told Radio West host Audrey McKinnon.

"It's like a slice of life. It has joys and sorrows and challenges and successes. So at the end of the day, I went, 'Phew! I made it! I survived!"

So, if you live in a small town or city, and you're thinking of making the leap into public service, Macdonald has a few words of wisdom.

"Maintaining your sense of humour is an important part of getting through the day on city council," she said. "It is serious business governing a community, of course, but ...I think it's important to turn around and say, okay, in the grander scheme of things, this is actually kind of funny and we will get through this."

Surviving City Hall launches Thursday at Nelson's Hume Hotel at 7 p.m.

With files from CBC Radio One's Radio West

To hear the full story, click the audio labelled: How to survive small-city politics: advice from a former Nelson councillor