After nine years representing Britannia Beach, Porteau Cove, Furry Creek, the Upper Squamish and Paradise valleys, Pinecrest/Black Tusk and Ring Creek on the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District board of directors, John Turner is stepping aside.
Turner on Monday (Oct. 3) announced that he doesn't plan to seek re-election as SLRD Area D representative in the Nov. 19 election.
A resident of Furry Creek, Turner first won election in 2002, then was re-elected in 2005. In 2008, he easily defeated Squamish resident Terrill Patterson for the seat, with 114 votes for Turner and 18 for Patterson.
In announcing his plans, Turner wrote in an email addressed to constituents and copied to The Chief that his nine years on the board have been "extremely rewarding and together our Area D communities have achieved many proud accomplishments."
Among those he included the recent $14.2 million upgrade to the Britannia Mine Museum, the effort to clean up streams in and around Britannia Beach, new fire halls for Britannia Beach and Furry Creek, leadership on the Porteau Cove development approval process, the Regional Growth Strategy, participation of Area D communities in the Sea to Sky Highway upgrade and participation of Furry Creek and Britannia Beach in the 2010 Olympic torch relay.
Ongoing work within Area D, which had a population of 839 in the 2006 census, includes an initiative to improve waste and recycling efforts in Furry Creek, negotiations with B.C. government officials on repurposing of Tunnel Dam near Britannia Beach to convert it into a debris containment barrier, work on a potential new fire hall for Pinecrest and Black Tusk and a review of future transit options within the regional district.
Turner urged those thinking about running for the job of representing Area D to contact Allison Macdonald at the SLRD at 1-800-298-7753, ext. 243 by the nomination deadline of Oct. 14.
