The all-candidates debate for Squamish's 2022 municipal elections showcased the differences between those vying for the District's top job.
On Oct. 3, mayoral candidates fielded questions from the organizations who hosted the event, as well as numerous queries from the roughly 350 people in the audience, who packed Brennan Park gymnasium until it was standing room only.
The event was sponsored by the Squamish Chamber of Commerce, Tourism Squamish, the Downtown Squamish BIA and The Squamish Chief.
The event was moderated by Doug Munroe of Politikos Research.
Mayoral candidates took turns answering questions either directed towards all of them or singling them alone.
Armand Hurford
Armand Hurford, the only mayoral candidate who has experience as a District councillor, spoke of a controlled, planned approach to tackling the issues facing the municipality and noted there are tradeoffs for every promise that is made.
“We have possibilities if we all come together, but it takes planning,” said Hurford. “And it takes prioritization. It takes a long-term commitment to execute these things. To fully understand, for instance, the difference between what would happen if we had to decide to purchase or lease the municipal hall? What are the trade-offs? What does that do to our other goals around Brennan park around the library? These are very, very important things. And it takes long-term planning and thoughtful execution to do that.”
Perhaps one of the tougher audience questions directed at Hurford involved the current council's decision to approve a 10-year lease for $400,000 at the Westwinds. The questioner said that the seniors society was not consulted on this matter, and it came at a time when the 55+ is being underused.
Hurford said there are pressures on recreational facilities, and one way to address that is to increase the amount of programmable space.
"The opportunity there presented itself to increase the programmable space specifically for seniors inside a specifically-built seniors' affordable housing building," he said.
Hurford also took the opportunity to take a shot at the platform of Mike Young and the Squamish First party.
"I believe it was a great opportunity to do that responsibly with our tax dollars without making a $200-million promise we can't actually deliver on," he said.
At another time during the night, he also rebutted a promise by Young to make extensive overhauls to the town’s recreation building and infrastructure.
“The [community amenity contribution] policy is under review,” said Hurford. “There is nowhere near enough money to meet this $200-million budget. No way.”
Young later told The Squamish Chief he disputed that his party's promises would amount to $200 million. However, when the public posed this number to him at the debate, he did not say anything.
On the topic of short-term rentals, Hurford said his priority was housing first for people who live and work in town. He said this regulation will be re-examined as it goes under regularly scheduled reviews.
With respect to dealing with the town’s labour shortage, Hurford said the District’s newly-created housing society will be instrumental in creating affordable housing.
“It's the creation of affordable housing that is going to drive our ability to do so many things, including to house workers,” said Hurford. “How we secure those through the community amenity contribution policy, which is already under review will come early on in this new mayor and council’s term. And that's where we leverage more units for that society to manage.”
Hurford said he objected to including the proposed Garibaldi at Squamish resort in Brohm Ridge within the boundaries of the District of Squamish.
Regarding the possibility of leasing or building and owning a new municipal hall, Hurford said it was important to explore every possible option, including leasing.
“The discussion right now is exploring leasing, and exploring the construction so that we as a community can weigh those two options,” said Hurford. “So I think it's due diligence on both sides, whether we're leasing or building to look at both options, and the decision has yet to be made.”
For potential conflicts of interest, Hurford said he is the owner of Republic Bicycles. He has had to recuse himself a few times when council had to make decisions regarding either that property or the adjacent property involving the same landlord.
Deanna Lewis
Former Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) councillor Deanna Lewis, also known as Kálkalilh, preached the importance of “getting the right people in the room” to make decisions, though provided few details for most of her answers. She said her past experience as an elected official for the Squamish Nation would be an asset on the job.
“As a council member for my Squamish Nation, I want to bring those tools to the table in a good way, in an authentic way,” said Lewis. “My job is to listen as mayor. My job is to bring it to the table and be able to come up with solutions, and be able to bring it back and explain why we made those decisions. I don't take that lightly. And I don't have all the answers tonight. It felt like I fumbled all this up. But I have great intentions.”
One question that was directed specifically at Lewis was whether she supported sprawling outward for new developments rather than impacting or changing existing neighbourhoods.
She said it's necessary to do a proper assessment to define boundaries.
Lewis added that it's necessary for the community to come together on such matters.
"We need to be able to build up; we need to be able to make sure that we have definitions of what our community could look like," she said.
For short-term rentals, Lewis noted that she is a lifelong renter.
"I would really want to be able to research and update and really get the right people in the room to make some healthy decisions because this does affect all of us," she said.
For addressing the shortage of labour in town, Lewis said that it’s about having conversations.
“I think it's about getting out there talking to the people that are in need of work, actually, and be able to work with partnerships and work with developments,” she said.
Lewis also gave the example of the Nation’s trade centre as a way of recruiting more talent.
She expressed opposition to including the Garibaldi at Squamish project in District boundaries.
Regarding the question of renting or owning a new municipal hall, she said that the space could be owned.
“I do also agree that they could be owned, because we need to be able to put as many people in there and have the best use for it,” she said.
For potential conflicts of interest, Lewis said she owns a business that does cultural sensitivity training.
"And I have no conflict of interest there at all. Because I'm my own boss there, and I can put that on hold, but I would like to utilize those at the council table in a lot of discussions," she said.
She added she coaches soccer, is a kayak guide and does medicinal plant walks.
Mike Young
Mike Young, the owner of Dynamic Property Management, repeatedly emphasized expensive promises that some in the public estimated to amount to about $200 million. This included a complete rebuild of Brennan Park, a second entrance to downtown and a new parkade, among other things.
Young later told The Squamish Chief he disputed that his party's promises would amount to $200 million. However, when the public posed this number to him at the debate, he did not say anything.
“I will apply my unwavering work ethic and focus to achieve results and deliver my vision and goals,” said Young. “I will not be weighed down or held back by the bureaucracy, the status quo, expensive consulting studies or red tape.”
One of the more challenging questions from the audience directed specifically at Young, Squamish First's mayoral candidate, involved his lack of experience in governance.
He said that while he had never served on council or in a government, his resume was relevant for Squamish's top job.
Young said that working with strata councils as a property manager has given him a feel for governing. He has also volunteered his time on various boards.
"While I do not have any direct municipal in-council chambers experience, I do have the experience, and I can lead this community," he said.
With respect to short-term rentals, Young said he would relax restrictions on bylaws preventing people from offering up their properties as vacation rentals.
"I think that the community is responsible for providing support to our tourism industry," he said. "And until we can…build more hotels and campgrounds, we need to revisit the short-term rental bylaw to make it less taxing to the community and more lenient rather than the restrictive policy."
With respect addressing the shortage of labour, Young said that affordable housing is key.
“We need to continue to work towards building purpose-built rentals, middle housing for our workers, and make sure that those that are growing up in Squamish can stay here and afford a home in the place where they grew up,” he said.
For Garibaldi at Squamish, Young said he was neither for nor against the project at the moment.
He also added that it would be better to own a new municipal hall in conjunction with the school board, and also use part of the property as a parkade.
Finally, with respect to potential conflicts of interest, Young took issue with the implications that a property manager would be in conflict when making development decisions.
"Just because I'm a property manager does not make me in conflict of interest," said Young. "Over 60% of our community lives in strata corporations. I am the person that understands what you are going through on a day-to-day basis."
He said his company is contracted to work for strata corporations, not developers.
Council candidates
Aside from a query regarding potential conflicts of interest, council candidates were, for the most part, given unique questions from audience members and organizers.
Incumbent John French said that he supports the District's planning process for the Garibaldi Estates neighbourhood. He said council gathered more data and feedback following the opposition to potential densification in the area. French said he was looking forward to ongoing consultation.
Rajan Hans of Squamish First said he supported single-family housing in small lot subdivisions as a means to make that housing form more affordable. Hans also fielded a question about the Cheema lands, to which he said he does not have a position on that proposal at the moment.
Gord Addison said aquatic ecosystems are important, and that it's necessary to protect riparian areas. Regarding development, he said he would like to see a land-lift-based community amenity contribution policy.
Lauren Greenlaw said that while she acknowledged the municipality has very limited say on LNG projects like Woodfibre, she would do what she can to stop such projects in Squamish. She called fracking an environmental "catastrophe" and reiterated the need to get away from fossil fuels.
Andrew Hamilton said he cycles on the Cheema lands regularly as a mountain biker. He did not have a position on the matter. He said he would support funding the restoration of the seniors' lawn bowling, given seniors' efforts to fundraise and contribute labour to the cause.
Incumbent Chris Pettingill said it's important to be involved in the community to make decisions on matters that may not directly reflect one's life experience. He said he voted against the Cheema lands application earlier this year. He said sprawl would increase taxes as a result of new infrastructure needed to support it.
Incumbent Eric Andersen said he supported leasing a new municipal hall as a placeholder, though no firm decision has been made on owning or renting a new facility. He said he voted for the Cheema lands application. He said it would take a number of steps, and it wasn't a commitment to anything.
Christina Walsh said she supported the Woodfibre LNG project. Regarding a need for balance between housing, employment lands and community services, she said it would be a matter of working with community partners and the District's housing society.
Incumbent Jenna Stoner said that in her past term, council has secured over 100 affordable housing units and 300 purpose-built rentals. Developers are building and paying for these units. She also highlighted the creation of the new housing society and said there's a need to work with community partners to find land to build purpose-built rental properties.
Adrien Byrne was not present, as he was expecting the birth of his first child. Two short videos of him were played, where he emphasized the platform of his Squamish First colleagues.
Potential council conflicts
Council candidates were asked to disclose their potential conflicts of interest.
Pettingill said his employer does not have a lot of interaction with the municipality, with the exception of office space in the business park.
Walsh said she works for MP Patrick Weiler and her husband works as a utilities operator for the District of Squamish.
Stoner said she works with an environmental nonprofit that does not have interactions with the municipality. On an unrelated matter, she has had to recuse herself for a decision on the Squamish Climate Action Network, where she used to volunteer.
Hamilton works for Quest University Canada, and would recuse himself to any decisions regarding zoning on that property. He also occasionally works with Politikos Research.
Greenlaw said she is on the board of directors at her children’s school and would step down from the position if elected.
Hans said he is a realtor and his clients are primarily close friends and family, and he would recuse himself if they become involved in District business.
Addison said he worked with Woodfibre LNG for two years and has picked up some contract work with developments in the past.
French said he is a sales manager for a local courier company, is a former Woodfibre LNG employee. He added there is a potential development near his home, and he would recuse himself if that came before council.
Andersen said he works in cultural and heritage fields. He said he is involved with transportation, fisheries and forestry. He said this has provided him with insights but not bias.
Election day is Oct. 15.
Advance voting takes place:
- Wednesday, October 5 – 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at The 55 Activity Centre
- Thursday, October 6 – 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at The 55 Activity Centre
- Saturday, October 8 – 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Brennan Park Recreation Centre
- Tuesday, October 11 - 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Brennan Park Recreation Centre
- Wednesday, October 12 – 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Brennan Park Recreation Centre
**Please note, the story has been corrected since it was first posted. The all-candidates was Oct. 3, not 4.
**Oct. 5, 9:05 a.m.: Please note that this story has been updated to include the following line: Young later told The Squamish Chief he disputed that his party's promises would amount to $200 million. However, when the public posed this number to him at the debate, he did not say anything.
See the whole meeting below:
