Geoff Dyer wants to see Squamish move forward.
"Every three years we seem to change direction," said the geotechnical engineer, who is running for council in the Nov. 19 municipal election.
Dyer moved from North Vancouver to Squamish 18 years ago, after dropping into town to visit a friend. The community is growing and Dyer said there are opportunities for the Sea to Sky Corridor on the horizon.
"Squamish is in such a terrific location," he noted.
Dyer said as councillor he wants to ensure that Squamish capitalizes on that location. To do so, the district needs to re-establish confidence of potential investors, including those already in the community, Dyer said. To achieve this, the district has to make it known, both inside and outside the community, that it is "open for business," he said.
"There are opportunities coming up and we cannot miss them," Dyer said.
The Squamish Oceanfront is one such proposal. Although he's not in favour of the overall plan for the land, Dyer said it would be best to keep parts of the project and get rid of other components. Dyer said he wants to see more industrial uses on the property. The Mamquam Blind Channel is the perfect location for residential development, while the southern portion of the land is usually too windy to make it enjoyable for people living in residential units, he said.
Dyer said he wants to streamline the process for development permits, building permits and rezoning applications, so that reasonable timelines are put in place. After the polls are counted, Dyer said he hopes to see a divisive and transparent council, prepared to make resolutions.
"Basically I am prepared to make the hard decisions," he said.
Squamish council watchdog Terrill Patterson is running for council. Patterson ran for mayor in the last election and sat on council in 1987.
In his 2008 campaign, Patterson said Squamish should have a more open council.
"It's the way we are governed that is the most important thing and determines the quality of the decisions being made," he wrote on his Squamish Online Mayoral candidate profile.
Council candidate Larry McLennan has not yet responded to The Chief's request for an interview.
