by George Le Masurier | Oct 8, 2018
Chris Haslett doesn’t see any big issues facing the Town of Comox, but he would like to phase out wood stoves, ban plastic bags and encourage developers to build more houses to drive down housing costs.
Chris Haslett has eschewed social media in his campaign for a seat on the Comox Town Council. He prefers the old-fashioned method of knocking on doors and talking with people.
“I”m a meet-you-in-person kind of guy,” he told Decafnation.
And when he’s on the doorstep, Haslett has a straight forward message: He’s not running for council on the basis of any major initiative, he’s just promising to spend tax dollars wisely and to make decisions with common sense.
“I don’t have anything I want to drive through,” he told Decafnation. “I wouldn’t say there are any issues in Comox. It’s going in the right direction.”
Haslett, who was born and raised in Comox, said he has thought about a run a politics for the last couple of years. But he had his eye on 2022.
“The biggest reason I’m running now is the changing of the guard, the number of open seats,” he said. “The math works out. I think I have a legitimate shot.”
Only two incumbent Comox Town Council members have filed for re-election to the six council positions.
Although he’s happy with the town’s status quo, Haslett does have some key areas of focus.
He would make sure all the necessary infrastructure is in place for new construction projects. He says it happens all the time that not long after a new project is built — like the new hospital, for example — they’re tearing up the streets for some additional infrastructure.
And he thinks the solution to affordable housing is to build more houses.
“We hear about the homeless, seniors and others needing affordable housing,” he said. “But without more housing, costs will never go down.”
He’s encouraged by several new multi-family projects in the works, including 89 units in a four story building on Anderton. With a shortage of lots, density will have to come from taller buildings, he said.
But he doesn’t believe council should get involved in directing developers toward a particular type of housing, such as townhouses or including a mix of varying priced units.
“The type of housing is entirely up to the developer,” he said. “Council is only here to see they follow the bylaws.”
On other issues, he sees council taking more of the initiative. He favors banning the use of single-use plastic bags and straws. And he’s in favor of phasing out wood stoves.
“My kids have respiratory issues, so we suffer from it more in the winter,” he said.
Haslett would also like to see a walkway constructed from Marina Park to Goose Spit.
“But it has to be feasible. “I’m always looking at the bottom line,” he said.
His method for making future decisions on council would be based on “common sense.”
“I’ll look at two outcomes, black and white, without any grey,” he said. “I can sift out all the emotion, all the grey.”
After graduating from Highland High School, Haslett completed oil and gas tickets at North Island College and went to work on facility construction in Fort St. John. He then moved to Victoria to do seismic mapping for new projects in BC, Alberta and Saskatchewan, ultimately supervising the mapping department and overseeing five employees.
When the price of oil dropped four years ago, he moved back to Comox and went to work selling commercial insurance for Waypoint out of their Campbell River office.
“I’m a third generation Comox person, raising a fourth,” he said. “I’m looking out for the future so my kids have a great place to live.”
Haslett, who is the grandson of former council member Vern Benedictson, has twin daughters.
He wants voters to know that he would make sure their tax dollars are spent well.
“And I want to increase transparency on that. If people know where their money is going, they’re okay with it,” he said.
by George Le Masurier | Oct 8, 2018
A self-described former ski and mountain biking bum with a degree in chemical engineering, is challenging incumbent Leslie Baird for the Cumberland mayor’s chair
Eduardo Uranga is running for mayor of Cumberland because he believes the current mayor and council have failed the village.
“I believe that the current administration is not serving the residents of Cumberland, and me in particular, and there is complete chaos on how our tax dollars are spent, too much debt, too large expense accounts, too large payroll, too many chiefs and not enough Indians,” he told Decafnation via email.
Uranga said the lack of action by incumbent Mayor Leslie Baird is making the village “a very inhospitable place.”
He says the village’s wastewater management plan, devised with consultant Paul Nash, doesn’t provide a solution that will comply with the Ministry of Environment regulations. He says the village’s recent upgrades to its drinking water system is “a waste of money and totally unnecessary.”
And although Mayor Baird voted with council to ban all wood burning devices in new construction, Uranga accuses her of denying there is an air quality problem.
Uranga said if he’s elected he would have a “lagoon-less, self-contained sewer treatment plant … in operation and in compliance by the end of 2019.” Plus, he said, village taxes would be lower.
Uranga, who was born in Mexico City in 1954 and came to Canada in 1982, says he has “been connected to the Comox Valley for 37 years.”
He has a degree in chemical engineering. He’s worked for Club Med, was a self-described ski bum for nine years in Colorado, Austria and Whistler, and a mountain biking bum for four years in Squamish. He says he’s had “many professional experiences.”
He describes himself as a “climate change warrior” who was once homeless and has a “Ruth Masters degree in shit disturbing.”
“I am committed to working on behalf of all residents of Cumberland. I will take the directions indicated by the majority after the priorities are established by the community in a referendum for major decisions and surveys when opinions are appropriate,” he said.
by George Le Masurier | Oct 4, 2018
The mundane decisions that comprise most of an elected official’s term in office reveal little about their values or principles. It’s the pressure-cooker moments that reveal a person’s true colors
Not everyone possesses the characteristics to become widely regarded as an effective elected official. Although, surely, every incumbent or candidate believes they do.
The problem is defining those treasured human qualities. We all have our political perspectives; what we’re in favor of, what we’re against; what we want more of, what we want less.
In a community as philosophically diverse as the Comox Valley, only a saint could distill our collective community values down to a few purely non-political human virtues.
And so, like art, the public just knows a ‘good’ councillor, mayor or school trustee when they see one.
But the occasions to ‘see’ the defining aspects of elected officials occur infrequently in local government. We usually learn nothing about elected officials when they decide issues of minor consequence: which streets to pave or whether to support a festival.
It’s when the polarizing, highly controversial issues arise that elected officials reveal themselves. Will they be like firemen or law enforcement officers who run toward the trouble to help people, or will they retreat? When panic and anxiety strike, will they refuse to succumb and, like the pilot Scully, cooly and calmly steer us to safety?
It’s in the pressure-cooker of those difficult moments that we really see a person’s true colors.
This week’s Comox Valley Regional District board meeting thrust 10 Comox Valley elected officials into a high-stress and fast-moving situation. Did it provide the public with moments of clarity about the directors at the table?
At stake was a critical point in the decade-long controversy over amending the Regional Growth Strategy for the benefit of a single developer, and the crux came in the final weeks of an hotly-contested election campaign.
RELATED STORY: With much drama, CVRD denies 3L Developments
Three candidates for the mayor of Courtenay sat at the table, and all but three of the 10 directors who would ultimately vote in this charged atmosphere were running for election.
The 3L Developments’ application was ready for first reading. Directors had reports from its Technical Advisory and Steering committees and a staff recommendation to deny the application, which was considered before first reading occurred. They could choose to either move it along and continue public consultations through first, second and third readings, or deny it based on the consultations they had already completed. By a 6-4 vote, those chose the latter.
So, how did our elected officials conduct themselves at this meeting? Here’s a director-by-director accounting from our notebook. You be the judge.
Larry Jangula
The incumbent City of Courtenay mayor began by questioning the accuracy of the committees’ assessment of available housing in order to suggest 3L’s 1,000-plus houses were needed. He said the demand for housing was greater than staff had predicted, and that he had seen on social media “somewhere” that more than 6,000 people were currently seeking rentals in the Valley. Later on, he suggested a petition signed by about 1,500 people opposed to 3L Developments wasn’t representative of public opinion. He suggested we “petition all the people in the regional district.”
Erik Eriksson
The Courtenay councillor running for mayor stuck to a single message throughout the entire proceedings. He said the CVRD was “not complying” with the court order to fully consider 3L’s application if it voted to deny the application before it went to first reading. He wanted to postpone a vote or extend 3L’s application and continue the consultation process and hold a public hearing. He said to decide 3L’s fate now was “disingenuous.”
Eriksson said it also created a personally awkward situation. He said every director has friends who are either for or against the 3L development. “We’re being asked which group of our friends to make happy.” And, he said because the vote was coming during an election campaign, directors were likely to decide on the basis of “what would get us the most votes.”
Before the vote, Eriksson said “This is wrong. It’s not honorable.” He positioned himself with Larry Jangula, Ken Grant and Mano Theos on this issue.
Bob Wells
The Courtenay councillor running for mayor questioned a 3L spokesperson about their conversations with the K’omoks First Nation, which the company had mischaracterized and later apologized. After a presentation by a 3L spokesperson, Wells expressed concern that the debate had turned toward criticism of the Regional Growth Strategy, which resulted from a long community-wide process.
Wells said the staff had done a good job of presenting the facts in a clear way. And in response to certain directors, Wells said both 3L and the CVRD directors knew from a flow chart they had all seen at the beginning of the application review process that “the application could be denied at first reading. Unless someone was not paying attention.”
Prior to casting his vote, Wells said many of the arguments heard at the meeting had focused on issues beyond the single application that was before them, and pertained more to a review of the RGS that should take place in a less high-stakes environment. He said his gut was telling him that a future and fulsome discussion was needed on how the RGS was structured, but that it was a separate issue from the 3L application.
Ken Grant
The incumbent Comox Councillor seeking re-election said it was unfortunate that first reading came up during an election cycle, and he alluded to “a lot of misinformation” on social media. He said if the board didn’t postpone the vote before first reading it would have only given “lip service” to the idea of adequate consultation. He said the CVRD was setting itself up for another court action by 3L.
Mano Theos
The incumbent Courtenay councillor seeking re-election said directors had to do “what’s best” for the community. But he added, “We don’t know what’s best.” He said directors would get more benefit from postponing the vote and gathering more information because “clarity is so critical.”
Gwyn Sproule
The incumbent Cumberland councillor seeking re-election noted 3L’s flip-flop on timing. Sproule noted that 3L had asked for an expedited process. But now, she said, in hindsight, they aren’t so happy and wanted more time.
Rod Nichol
The incumbent Area B director seeking re-election said 3L couldn’t claim their application had received an unfair process. He had kept an open mind, but had made a decision “at this meeting,” and he said it’s time to “get it done.”
Curtis Scoville
Scoville is an alternate director for Area C and, like Barbara Price of Comox and Bruce Joliffe of Area A, he is not seeking election to any public office this year. He was the first director to separate first reading of 3L’s application to amend the RGS from any potential desire to review and update the RGS, which he noted was a much more complex and public process.
He acknowledged the application process can be frustrating, “especially when you have money on the line.” He said no directors want to ignore 3L’s promise of a large park at Stotan Falls, but “it would be nice not to have to decide the issue on that basis.” Scoville praised the thoroughness of the committee reports and said postponing first reading to gather more info by “piggy-backing” on a private owners’ studies was not a good idea.
Scoville said he thought postponing first reading would be a waste of time and money for all concerned “just to come to the same result.” He said it’s better to say no now, “and take it on the chin.”
by George Le Masurier | Oct 4, 2018
Kiyoshi Kosky, the Courtenay City Council candidate from Cortes Island with the Japanese first name, says we could learn a lot from First Nations culture, and about affordable housing from Whistler, BC
To describe his view of local government, Kiyoshi Kosky looks to Section 7(d) of the Community Charter, a provincial act that defines the purposes, powers and governance of municipalities.
“It says the purposes of the city are to foster the economic, social and environmental well-being of the community,” he told Decafnation. “And that’s what I’m focused on.”
Kosky uses the Kus-kus-sum restoration project as a prime example.
He says returning the old sawmill site to its natural habitat, which will widen the river at that point, will provide an economic benefit to the city through flood mitigation. Rehabilitating a key section of the productive K’omoks estuary will provide environmental benefits.
And all of the above, plus removing an eyesore with walkable trails, will create social opportunities and improve our quality of life.
That section of the Community Charter has inspired Kosky to run for Courtenay City Council, and would guide his decision-making as a councillor.
“We need to keep our community values in mind, so that we don’t make decisions in isolation,” he said.
FURTHER READING: For more interviews with candidates, go to our Elections 2018 page
Kosky moved to the Comox Valley two years ago from Pemberton, where he worked for 10 years as a education assistant, supporting students in K-12 with a wide range of abilities, including autism. He is now working on a BA degree in social work at North Island College.
He is passionate about using the Whistler Housing Authority model to create more affordable housing in Courtenay. He envisions the city using its housing reserve fund to leverage loans and build affordable units that would pay off the debt through rental income, and ultimately provide a revenue stream for the municipality.
Kosky has proposed the idea in conjunction with other plans to revitalize downtown Courtenay at the former Thrifty’s Foods site. His plan includes converting the former grocery store into a technology hub to attract new business, an arts hub and and a large farmer’s market.
Kosky is also promoting more off-leash dog parks. He has a number of environmental issues including the banning of single-use plastic bags and phasing out wood stoves, the prime cause of concern about the region’s air quality.
Kosky, whose mother was enthralled with Japanese culture when he was born (hence his first name, Kiyoshi), is himself impressed by the culture of First Nations people.
“First Nations culture gives us the experience of a different way to live,” he said. “It shows us how to take care of each other and the environment and not compromise our children’s future.”
Kosky was raised on Cortes Island in close contact with First Nation communities.
“My mom appreciated the teachings of First Nations culture. She had a high respect for it,” he said.
At the school he attended on Cortes, if there was an issue, all the children sat in a circle and talked it out.
“We were taught how to resolve problems,” he said.
Kosky describes himself as person with a strong work ethic, who would do the homework required of a councillor. In addition to his perseverance and determination, Kosky says his interpersonal skills could be an asset on council.
“I have a positive regard for other people. I listen actively and I’m collaborative,” he said.
Kosky has previously sought office in Pemberton and sought the NDP nomination for the Courtenay-Comox riding in the 2017 provincial election.
by George Le Masurier | Oct 4, 2018
Over five terms on Cumberland Council, Gwyn Sproule has shifted her agenda from saving trees to growing the village’s commercial base with light, green industries along Bevan Road. And she wants to see the wastewater treatment project to completion
What does an immigrant from England with a degree in Greek and Latin who became a hippie tree planter in British Columbia 42 years ago do for an encore after nearly two decades on the Cumberland Village Council?
For Gwyn Sproule, her agenda for a sixth term on council is quite a bit more pragmatic than it used to be.
“I was all about saving trees in the early days,” she told Decafnation. “My goal now is all about diversifying the village’s tax base, mainly attracting light industry and creating jobs.”
The village budget relies heavily on residential property taxes, so a recent building boom in the Coal Valley Estates subdivision has helped village finances. But Sproule says commercial development is needed for long-term balanced growth.
She hopes to promote light, green industries for some lands along Bevan Road that are already properly zoned. Hancock Timber Resource Group owns the properties.
And Sproule recently learned that funds are available for infrastructure and technology projects from the BC Commission of Innovation. She hopes the village can use those funds to help attract high-tech companies.
“It’s galling to me that young people have to go away to get jobs,” she said. “Vancouver Island is well placed to develop its own economy in green industries. We could create real jobs, with living wages.”
FURTHER READING: For more interviews with candidates, go to our Elections 2018 page
Cumberland also holds the first option on methane gas from the nearby landfill, which Fortis would capture and refine. The village could then use the gas as a power source for some of that light industry, or sell it as fuel for buses and trucks.
The village already has two small industrial areas closer to its downtown and next to residential areas.
One of those, along Royston Road, is home to the Muchalat Group that builds modular homes. They are currently building 30 self-contained housing units and five shelter spaces for the City of Port Alberni at an estimated cost to the province of $7.4 million.
Sproule was the driving force and co-founder of the Cumberland Community Forest Society. She lives along the forest lands and would invite the new forester to tea every time the property changed hands — Dunsmuir then Weldwood then Hancock — which is how she got the inside information about their logging plans.
“I was a troublemaker in my early days. I really believed I could take on everything,” she said.
She recalls the first fundraiser for the society was a plant sale and dance at the Elks Club.
Sproule also served on the original board of the Comox Valley Lands Trust.
But the candidate also has other objectives for her next term that include continuing to develop the village’s safe walk-bike network. She’s happy to have the water treatment project completed and hopes to see the wastewater project through to a similarly successful conclusion.
And she continues to work on her most personal project: keeping alive the memories of Cumberland’s industrial days, its coal mines.
She has recorded hours of interviews on audio tape with the village’s oldtimers and miners before they passed on.
“We need to keep our history alive. It’s the reason why Cumberland exists,” she said.
She regularly speaks to groups and teaches classes on the history of the mines and Chinatown. She does walking tours of the mine sites, and advocates for the preservation of the last remaining concrete structures marking the mine entrances.
Sproule taught primary school in England before moving to Canada in 1976 to live in an old gold mine shack and plant trees in the Cariboo where she met the camp cook, her future husband. She moved to Cumberland two years later.
Her first visit to Cumberland was to attend the Renaissance Faire in 1978.
Sproule’s history of settling on Vancouver Island in the 1970s is one of the stories in the new anthology Dancing in Gumboots, just released by Caitlin Press Inc.
by George Le Masurier | Oct 2, 2018
The last in a series of in-depth voter information pages published today.
dropcap]R[/dropcap]ural area candidates seeking to represent their electoral areas on the Comox Valley Regional District board answered a series of questions for a page that published today on this website. It’s the last in a series of pages giving candidates the opportunity to share their thoughts on election issues in their own words. Decafnation has previously published Courtenay, Comox and Cumberland candidate pages this week.
Two of the electoral area candidates, Ron Nichol in Area B and Jay Oddleifson in Area C, chose not to respond.
You can jump to the Election 2018/Rural candidates’ page by clicking this link. The page is also available from the main menu: topics – politics – Cumberland Candidates Respond, or by clicking one the pages at the top of Decafnation’s home page.
Cumberland candidates talk about the issues
Cumberland mayor and council candidates competing in the Oct. 20 municipal elections discuss a variety of topics in a page published today on this website. It’s the third in a series of pages giving candidates the opportunity to share their thoughts on election issues in their own words. Decafnation has previously published Courtenay and Comox candidate pages this week. A page devoted to rural regional district directors will publish tomorrow.
Only one council candidate, Eric Krejci, chose not to respond.
You can jump to the Election 2018/Cumberland candidates’ page by clicking this link. The page is also available from the main menu: topics – politics – Cumberland Candidates Respond, or by clicking one the pages at the top of Decafnation’s home page.
Comox candidates explain their positions on a variety of issues
Candidates for Comox Town Council and mayor explain their positions about a variety of topics in a page published today on this website. It’s the second in a series of pages giving candidates the opportunity to share their thoughts on election issues in their own words. A Courtenay candidate page published yesterday.
Both mayoralty candidates, Russ Arnott and Tom Diamond, responded to the survey. But not all council candidates responded, just the new challengers. Incumbents Maureen Swift and Ken Grant declined to respond.
You can jump to the Election 2018/Comox candidates’ page by clicking this link. The page is also available from the main menu: topics – politics – Comox Candidates Respond.
Courtenay candidates take on taxes and other issues
What do the 16 candidates for Courtenay City Council and the four candidates for mayor think about tax rates, air quality and amalgamation?
In the first in a series of four special Election 2018 pages published today on Decafnation, the candidates have shared their thoughts and positions on these and a variety of other topics in their own words.
Decafnation invited candidates to respond to nine questions and allowed them up to 500 words to answer each question. Some chose to respond in a long and detailed fashion, while others opted for brevity. Readers can easily compare the candidates as their responses are sorted by the questions and alphabetically by the candidates’ last names.
Readers will have to weigh the significance of the absence of four candidates. Two mayoralty candidates, Erik Eriksson and incumbent Larry Jangula, chose not to respond, as did council candidates Tom Grant and Jin Lin.
All other candidates graciously responded with thoughtful responses — some candidates said they spent considerable time on the project — in order to help you become a more informed voter.
You can jump to the Election 2018/Courtenay candidates’ page by clicking this link. The page is also available from the main menu: topics – politics -Courtenay Candidates Respond.
Similar pages featuring Comox, Cumberland and regional electoral area candidates will publish later this week.
And don’t forget to vote Oct. 20.
