by George Le Masurier | Oct 8, 2018
With a background in both corporate retail and the nonprofit sector, Patrick McKenna believes he would bring a unique perspective to a first term on the Comox Town Council. He’s focused on affordable housing, the arts and community safety
Patrick McKenna is an outgoing community theatre actor who has forsaken the corporate retail world for the demands of a nonprofit, and he loves to joke around in conversations.
If you ask why he’s running for a position on the Comox Town Council, he might say something like, “Because Hugh McKinnon is stepping down,” or “Because 13,991 Comox residents didn’t want to.” (There are nine council candidates this year out of a roughly 14,000 population.)
But don’t let the fun-loving facade fool you. For McKenna, a Town Council seat would not be a pastime or a hobby.
“It’s a serious job, to have the people’s confidence entrusted to me,” he told Decafnation. “And that’s how I would approach it.”
The candidate has four areas of focus for his first term, which he’s gleaned from conversations with town residents: affordable housing, arts, culture and heritage, safety and sustainability.
It’s not surprising that affordable housing tops his list.
McKenna came to the Comox Valley in 2003 as the first store manager of the Courtenay Home Depot, where he had a 28-year career before taking a similar position with Target when it opened in the Driftwood Mall. He’s now the executive director of Habitat for Humanity for Vancouver Island North.
“I want to ensure that young families can live here,” he said. “And let’s make sure people who are already here can live here, too, and that their children can return to Comox, if they want to.”
McKenna sees many people getting priced out of the market as demand increases and property values escalate, a situation he doesn’t see changing any time soon.
“Growth is a function of where we live,” he said. “People want to live here. I don’t see a correction coming yet.”
But he does think the town could hold developers “a little more accountable,” and be steer them toward including affordable housing units in their plans.
McKenna doesn’t know if the town had a housing agreement with the 90-unit Broadstreet development on Anderton Aveune to dedicate a certain number of unit to rent below market rate. He hopes one exists.
“It’s staff’s and council’s job to have the mentality to get more affordable housing in Comox,” he said.
McKenna said when Habitat approached the City of Campbell River to build 10 houses on a piece of property, the city asked if they’d like to build 11 units, which they would allow with a covenant that they would remain affordable housing forever.
“A lot of municipalities don’t want to slow down developers, and so they’re afraid to ask for social benefits,” he said. “But Comox keeps building single family houses and that doesn’t help people trying to get it or move up.”
McKenna would like to see a continuum of housing developed in the town; some supportive, some transistional, and more affordable.
“Single family houses aren’t going to solve our problem,” he said.
And it’s also no surprise that McKenna wants the town to increase its support of arts, culture and heritage.
McKenna has been a prominent figure in the Comox Valley amateur theatre scene. He’s even formed his own theatre company, Three Legged Dog Productions.
“The town spends $2.2 million on parks and the arts gets $70,000. We need to change that,” he said. “I’ve got a bleeding heart for the arts.”
McKenna would like to Comox become more like Chemanius where the theatre is the centerpiece of the town. He points to the vacant Lorne Hotel property and muses that it would be a great location for a community theatre.
He likes what the town has done recently to improve Marina Park with a splash park and allowing semi-permanent food trucks. He’d like to see a farmers market, and more use of the sail buildings.
He thinks council was trying to create a community space for people to congregate.
When a town has gathering places, McKenna says people get to know each other, and feel safer.
“Parts of Courtenay feel unsafe, the rise of crime, drug use, homelessness,” he said. “We need to guard against that.”
McKenna grew up in Nova Scotia, the youngest of seven brothers and sisters who all went to university.
During his long experience in corporate retail, McKenna became good at analyzing numbers, a skill that has helped him in the nonprofit world where every dollar must be spent with specific intent. And on the town council, he would make sure money was invested in projects that further its core mission.
And he thinks his private and nonprofit sector background gives him a unique way of looking at things that would benefit the town.
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 2, 2018
Ron Freeman, a former pastor and Habitat board member, wants to attract young families and a greater variety of new businesses to Comox, meanwhile keeping taxes as low as possible
Comox Town Council candidate Ron Freeman hopes to look back on his first term in four years and see that he accomplished his two main goals: to keep taxes low and continue revitalizing the downtown core.
“Fiscal responsibility is the key,” he told Decafnation. “People in Comox don’t complain about taxes because the service is good, especially snow removal.”
Freeman, a retired pastor who now works part-time as a commissionaire at CFB Comox, says a two-plus percent tax increase each year would be acceptable.
“But we couldn’t go lower than that and keep the services people are expecting,” he said.
Freeman says he wants to attract new businesses to Comox to broaden the appeal of the town’s business district. He would consider tax incentives to encourage commercial investment.
“We need to send the message that we’re open for business, and make it easy for them,” he said.
To get that ball rolling, Freeman would involve citizens and current business owners to create a strategic plan for attracting new businesses. The plan would lay out how to go about it and what types of new businesses people want in Comox.
“For example, why do I have to go to Courtenay to buy shoes?” he said.
Freeman thinks “touristy type” businesses would succeed on the waterfront, such as paddle board and small boat rentals, and electric bicycle rentals. And he would like to add a jazz festival into the town’s summer events calendar.
But Comox residents would have to support the local businesses, so the “streets don’t roll up at 6 pm.” He envisions some type of education program and council members acting as ambassadors.
The candidate also hopes to help the town attract young families. Keeping down the cost of housing would be key, he says, but he also want to provide more amenities for the younger teen age group, like a drop-in centre, such as The Link in Courtenay.
Freeman was one of the original board members of the Comox Valley Habitat for Humanity, and he’s concerned about the affordability of housing in Comox. He says allowing more secondary suites has helped, but he’d like to find other solutions.
He supports homeowner vacation rentals because it helps people afford their mortgage and brings new people to Comox and “keeps them circulating through town.” Someone he knows had vacationers from France who now hope to move here and start a business.
Freeman moved to the Valley in 1999 from Sidney. He came to pastor at the Living Hope Christian Fellowship church, that had a membership of four couples and a single person when he arrived. When he retired in 2013, the church had grown to 160 members.
He has a bachelor of theology from a seminary in Regina, Sask.
On the subject of Shakesides, the heritage home of naturalist Hamilton Mack Laing, which the town wants to take down and replace with a viewing stand, Freeman says that’s the best that can be done at this point. He has talked with current council members about the issue, but not anyone from the Mack Laing Heritage Society.
He wants voters to know he’s “approachable, and I’m open and honest.”
“We all have things we’re passionate about, but I like the idea that when all is said, something gets done,” he said. “We’re all different, we all have a place and we must respect each other.”
Freeman says he would bring “respectful dialogue” to a seat on the town council.
by George Le Masurier | Sep 26, 2018
CFB Comox Engineering Officer Alex Bissinger would focus on better planning, maintaining infrastructure and create more activity opportunities for young people in a town that has usually catered to seniors. She would add a voice for sustainability and not be fooled by consultant’s reports
Complex technical reports from staff and consultants often make municipal councillors eyes glaze over, but not Comox Council candidate Alex Bissinger. Her eyes light up.
Bissinger, 31, has a master’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Ottawa and heads up the engineering department at CFB Comox. She’s responsible for planning and maintaining the 19 Wing’s infrastructure, and directs a staff of 14 project managers, drafters, GIS technologists and procurement employees.
She took the civilian post as CFB’s Engineering Officer a year ago, a post the base had left vacant for 10 years. Since moving to the Valley seven years ago, Bissinger worked for the crown corporation Defence Construction Canada before taking her new job.
Bissinger recently purchased a house in Comox, where she hopes to raise children someday. She volunteers as an English tutor (she’s fluent in French having lived in Montreal) and recently joined the Valley’s newest Rotary club, “the young one.”
“I live off adrenaline. I enjoy being busy,” she told Decafnation.
Bissinger describes herself as approachable, but pragmatic. As an engineer, she’s trained as a problem solver.
“I’ll know what I’m reading in the studies and reports,” she said. “Nobody will pull the wool over my eyes.”
FURTHER READING: For more interviews with candidates, go to our Elections 2018 page
She’s attracted to elected office because she can make a contribution to small community decisions.
For example, Bissinger wonders why the town didn’t include bike lanes in the recent redevelopment of Robb Avenue or along Lazo Road at Point Holmes.
“There could have been a more engineered solution, something was missed or forgotten,” she said. “There’s a few extra things like that we could do to make the community better.”
While Bissinger would focus on planning and maintaining the town’s infrastructure for core services, she would also add a voice for considering sustainability.
She was impressed that Campbell River employs a Sustainability and Long Range Planning Manager, who spoke at the recent Sustainability Forum, and thinks that could be a good idea for Comox.
Bissinger is going on a wheelchair tour of the town next week to experience first-hand the challenges faced by people with mobility issues. She hopes to formulate some ideas that she can take to council.
Bissinger would also like to create more activities for teenagers in Comox.
“The town has kind of catered to seniors,” she said. “There’s not much for the teen group.”
She would like to see a skate park and a pump or jump park.
Bissinger would try to address the affordable housing issue in Comox in a variety of ways.
She would make the process of creating a coach house less technical and more straight forward. She would launch an education program for homeowners to create basement suites: a step-by-step guide and a Landlord 101 workshop.
But she would also make Comox more attractive to builders and investors by eliminating unreasonable demands in the permitting process, such as “changing the goal posts,” requiring extra studies after plans have been approved and other delays.
At the same time, Bissinger wants to protect what ALR land exists within the town’s boundaries, and encourage more local food production.
“We should have community gardens, especially somewhere downtown,” she said. “Gardening is good therapy for seniors and recreation for people living in condos; it can bring young and old people together.”
Bissinger would also like the council to start monthly public access sessions, where council members can just chat with people.
“I love to talk with people,” she said.
Bissinger said voters will get what they see with her.
“I come with no influences. No strings attached,” she said.
by George Le Masurier | Sep 26, 2018
Maureen Swift would create an off-leash dog park, more housing and more waterfront enhancements in a third term on Comox Council. And she thinks residents get good value for their taxes
Maureen Swift finds the evolution of a community like Comox both fascinating and challenging, which is why she’s seeking a third term on the Town Council.
In recent years, the town has become much more vibrant, she says, with tap houses and breweries popping up and increased numbers of people moving back or settling here for the first time. And with so many existing business owners reaching the retirement age, there is going to be even more opportunities for change.
Swift wants to help council deal with the issues that come with increased population, and to establish a reasonable growth rate. The Town Council will have at least four new members with new ideas, and Swift thinks she can provide some necessary balance and continuity.
In a third term, Swift also has a few goals of her own.
One of them is to create an off-leash dog park. She says there are a surprising number of households with dogs, and they have to travel to Cumberland to let them run. She envisions repurposing a portion of an existing park.
FURTHER READING: For more interviews with candidates, go to our Elections 2018 page
She wants to continue to enhance the Comox waterfront with a rebuilt and expanded pier, some retail outlets and maybe a seasonal fish market.
The recent improvements of a splash park and food trucks have been a success, she says, as have the two rental buildings, known as the “sail buildings.” Swift says they are used for everything from birthday parties to celebrations of life.
“As people move into smaller homes, they need a gathering space,” she told Decafnation.
Swift would also like to see some housing initiatives.
The town has already approved tax incentives for builders who include a residential component with developments in the downtown core, but Swift would like to see the town make the permitting process “a little bit easier.”
“We don’t own the land, so we have to wait for an idea or proposal to come to us,” she said.
There are about 90 new market rate rental units coming online on Anderton Avenue and four stories of new condos with underground parking next to the Comox Golf Course that will help densify downtown.
But she would like to see the completion of a stormwater management plan for the northeast corner of the town, near the Airport, so it could be developed, possibly for new industries.
The town donates $30,000 each years to the Comox Valley Coalition to End Homelessness and collects an affordable housing fee from developers that goes into a fund.
“The fund is there, we’re waiting for opportunities to present themselves,” she said. “We want organizations to come forward.”
Swift says she’s keeping an open mind about the reevaluation of the Courtenay-Comox sewage system, and where sewer pipes should be located.
“There are so many factors, the cost, the environment, we’ll see what the options are,” she said. She sits on the Public Advisory Committee that will have review options by CVRD staff sometime next year.
But she says she didn’t see the need for elected officials such as herself to sit on the public committee because she already sits on the Courtenay-Comox Sewage Commission.
Swift thinks a ban on single-use plastic bags is inevitable because “the world is changing in that direction.” But she’s less certain about banning wood stoves.
“I need more information on wood stoves,” she said. “We have to look at what is cost effective versus what makes sense for the rest of the community.”
One of Swift’s other goals, if she’s re-elected, is to improve the quality and quantity of wayfinding signage within the town.
She envisions more informative signs to help people find the town’s network of trails, parks and other amenities.
Swift has supported the town’s application to the BC Supreme Court to alter the terms of famed naturalist Mack Laing’s trusts. She’s proud that this council has finally taken on the issue after 36 years. Laing died in 1982, but the town hasn’t addressed the trust agreements until now.
“Once the court case is settled, we’ll see what we do,” she said.
She thinks the town faces some financial challenges with the province downloaded some burdens to local government. Her goal is to maintain the level of service and the condition of its infrastructure assets.
“Overall, Comox residents get good value for their taxes,” she said. “Our parks are well maintained, our roads are in good shape and we’re not overstaffed.
“We can’t afford to cut,” she said.
