A preliminary investigation of the mayoral candidates in the upcoming municipal election reveals some interesting bits and bytes of information.
Paul Lalli says he wants to ensure that we have a clear four-year tax plan the community can support and afford. One commenter on The Chief’s website rejoiced.
“At last a candidate talking about tax affordability. Municipal tax rates have been rising above inflation for far too long,” he noted. And it looks like Lalli will have a high profile project in his sights. In a 2015 letter to the editor of The Chief, he was unequivocal in his support of the Garibaldi at Squamish resort proposal.
He said “We are very lucky that we have investors who would consider investing millions of dollars here… let’s create a new tax base and employment for our children.”
Susan Chapelle believes “Squamish is ready for a new style of leadership: one that requires true collaboration amongst its citizens, politicians, and district staff.” Chapelle is not afraid to enter the FAQ zone, that is, she is willing to ask frequently avoided questions. During a recent Committee of the Whole meeting she pointed to the inherent flaws in the District’s Brennan Park upgrades survey, which 84 per cent of online respondents failed to complete.
She called it an “incredibly biased survey and presentation.” One tongue-in-cheek pundit on The Chief’s web page agreed and suggested the District should hire a consultant to monitor the consultants who developed the survey.
Jeff Cooke has promised, “to get very aggressive about recruiting companies to come here.” He said that process got started when as president of the Squamish Off-Road Cycling Association he envisioned creating a rec tech business hub and a bike in/bike out community on land owned by Bob Cheema.
One inspired observer lauded Cooke’s efforts on The Chief’s website: “Jeff helped create a win-win position with the Cheema deal against all odds… It appears that managing change and divisive user groups are two of his most potent skills as a leader.” But another observer expressed doubts. “There are other ways to deal with recreational access disputes than giving way to... landowners when they threaten to close land,” he wrote.
Karen Elliott says she has the skill-set to help people work better together to get results. Following the publication of her mayoral candidacy, one poster on The Chief’s website said “My experience with Karen Elliott has been very positive. She is calm, firm, respectful, and honest. She goes out of her way to answer questions.”
Another online analyst had a different opinion. “There’s a lot of nice platitudes here about collaborative decision-making, but also a lot of wishy-washy double-speak from someone that suggests rules are situational, and that being elected to council has granted her some special power of interpreting what the public thinks,” he said.
With those random observations in mind, the campaign for the big chair at muni hall is about to get “curiouser and curiouser.”
Editor’s note: as of press deadline, little had been heard from candidate for mayor, Tess Linsley. Thus, she was not mentioned in this column.
