Well Squamish, promise made, promise kept!
During our election last fall, in an effort to alleviate voter apathy I pledged that, as a professional stuntman, I would perform a fire stunt if our community raised its voter turnout. So on Feb. 13, encircled by hundreds of supportive “Squamptonians” and national media, a campaign promise was fulfilled.
Nothing could extinguish our community spirit that evening, not even the apocalyptic rain. I express my gratitude to every individual and volunteer who helped make the night possible. Support has been overwhelmingly remarkable these past few months, and my family and I humbly thank you.
Now that the smoke has cleared, I am excited to keep the momentum moving forward with the business of council and the stewardship of our community. Our council is a dynamic cohort of individuals who all bring something unique to the table. We have differences in experience, beliefs and backgrounds, however, collectively we appreciate that “it takes both sides to build a bridge.” Whatever hurdles we encounter, let’s be part of the solution united as a community, for we are all stakeholders.
This has been an exceptionally busy week for district staff and council. We have kicked off our 2015 budget workshops, financial planning and deliberations. SODC negotiations are moving forward. It was outstanding to see a cross-section of our community in attendance at the WLNG community committee presentation, where both stakeholders and passionate environmentalists from the entire corridor aired their concerns. Excellent questions were brought forth to the WLNG community committee, and I’m looking forward to the follow-up presentation with further input from public and council, after which council will issue its own statement for the environmental assessment.
Squamish is standing tall in the world spotlight as an example of an ideal lifestyle community. How do we foster and safeguard our expanding community? How do we stay sustainable without compromising the future of forthcoming generations? We do it together, through dialogue, trust and a love of this place we all call home.
As chair of our district digital strategy committee, I would like to emphasize that there are many ways to stay engaged. Please remember you can utilize the District of Squamish website www.squamish.ca or district Facebook page to stay current and informed about upcoming meetings. You can conveniently watch live video stream of council meetings from your own home, or perhaps attend the monthly “Breakfast with the Mayor” functions. Ultimately, your input and participation within our community is very important to me. Please feel free to contact me anytime: [email protected].
