There was pomp and ceremony, Squamish-style, to be sure, but newly minted Mayor Patricia Heintzman didn’t waste any time laying out her goals at the inaugural council meeting at the Howe Sound Brew Pub Tuesday night.
After the oaths of office in front of about 100 people, each councillor said a few words and then the mayor closed the meeting with her inaugural speech.
“We have too many seniors and families that are struggling and people who are homeless in our community. Housing and homelessness are also a priority for me,” Heintzman said.
She announced Councillor Jason Blackman-Wulff will be assigned to the district’s housing task force, which has been tasked with creating a road map to ending homelessness “so families can afford a home and seniors can age in place and everyone has the dignity of healthy food and safe shelter,” she said.
She said that over the next four years councillors will be tasked with different initiatives, including assigning councillor Peter Kent to the digital task force.
Heintzman also said open government is paramount for her upcoming four years in office.
“Trust is the equity that really makes a town hum,” she said. She said she will host monthly theme-oriented Breakfasts with the Mayor events.
The first event will be Friday, Jan. 9, at Startup Squamish and will focus on entrepreneurial capital and opportunity in Squamish.
Heintzman also said she will be making her daily calendar available online so that Squamish residents can see what she is doing and with whom she is meeting.
Council will also be holding town hall meetings, the first to be in February. “I do not envision there as the traditional format, but rather a much more collaborative environment of constructive, meaningful dialogue,” the mayor said.
She became emotional when she spoke of her parents, who flew in from Toronto to be at her inauguration. “They really are the most inspiring parents one can hope for,” she said, her voice breaking. “Thanks, Mom and Dad.”
The next regular council meeting will be Dec. 16 at 6 p.m. in the council chambers at Municipal Hall.
Big day for council newbies
For the newly elected mayor and councilors, Tuesday of this week began with a day-long orientation that included team building and how-to explanations of the roles and responsibilities of each member, replete with binders several inches thick.
The day ended with the official swearing-in ceremony, part of the first regular council meeting of the new term.
The meeting saw the council-elects in their Sunday best piped into the Howe Sound Brew Pub’s Garibaldi Room by Devin Blin of the Black Tusk Caledonia Pipes and Drum Band.
There was a Squamish Nation blessing, followed by oaths of office before Judge Milne, and the official signing.
When each councillor got a chance to say a few words, most thanked family and spoke to the honour of the responsibility ahead.
Kent said it was the dawn of a new day for Squamish and thanked his wife and young sons, “who put up with me through the campaign and… gave me so much.”
Blackman-Wulff gave thanks in honour of his late grandfather.
“His legacy is a big inspiration to me and I will carry that with me, every day.
Elliott looked forward to the challenges ahead.
”I am very excited about working with this group of people. We met today for six hours and already I am learning from everyone,” she said.
“That is what is important to this team going forward. To listen respectfully, debate the issues and then come forward as a team.”
