Jeff Dawson - District of Squamish Councillor
This wonderful town we call home is exploding with opportunity and growth after years of neglect, misery, and one missed opportunity after another.
For me personally the best thing about the new opportunities and growth that surround Squamish these days is the planned aspects of it all. It's not been done in a willy-nilly approach. Rather, it's strategic, focused and planned.
The waterfront opportunities on the Nexen lands and the brand new Squamish Adventure Centre are the two most note-worthy opportunities that attract the bulk of the headlines but council is also nearing completion on further announcements that can only be made public once formal negotiations have been completed (translation: once our lawyers tell us it's okay to speak to them).
In short, our approach has been smart, logical and speaks volumes of the obligation Squamish council has embraced in conducting its business in the best interests of the entire community.
I'm often asked, how we turned it around so quickly, what did we do that others weren't able to do? My answer is not very sexy; in fact more than anything it is simple and straightforward and clearly not very magical, complicated or even convoluted.
Here's what we did: we sat down as a council, senior staff and a seasoned facilitator and invested over 200 hours into a comprehensive strategic planning process that lasted for more than a year. Once done, we didn't waste a moment looking for space on municipal bookshelves to house the report. Instead, we took the document to the people who we represent, secured your feedback and then we got down to the fun part of the process--we implemented the plan.
There it is all in one paragraph - 79 words for those of you reading the boxescores real closely.
In terms of the implementation process, it is no small feat. Just ask the other B.C. communities our size and even larger that wish they had as much on the go as we do here in Squamish.
Implementation is about making things happen in accordance with the plan in your hands. It involves constant and comprehensive work with the upper levels of both the provincial and federal governments.
It's about working with industry, investors and people who can and will serve as willing partners.
It's about working with community groups and provincial agencies and those of us who call Squamish home.
It's about long days and little sleep for our municipal staff and all of us on council.
It's about establishing momentum, being bright enough to manage the momentum prudently and being secure enough to bring in professionals who just may know better than we know at times. All in the vain of getting it right, doing it right and ensuring it is sustainable as opposed to temporary.
It's about doing all of this with integrity and a sense of purpose and a sense of genuine community participation that is not only imperative to the success of the process but tremendously beneficial to that very process.
Most importantly, it's about time.
