Stepping-up in the Port Moody Spotlight
With the looming September 30, 2017, Port Moody by-election, candidates will be seeking our support. While I realize everyone will not agree with my views, I was asked to share some, so here is a summary, including some comments I’ve made previously on social media.
Port Moody has recently completed many master plans and other vision documents, with which all candidates should be familiar enough to answer basic questions about. Now more than ever, we need a council who can implement some of the important recommendations contained in these plans, so I CHALLENGE ALL CANDIDATES TO TELL US, how can you contribute? What actions can you help drive?
With so much invested from residents in all of these plans they need to be put into action, which is why I don’t believe that Port Moody is actively seeking new ideas at this time. The search for new ideas will follow the municipal election in October 20, 2018, when the newly elected council, fresh from the campaign hustings, will be sharing for consideration what they heard, when preparing a new strategic plan.
Immediately, I believe that the city needs to:
– Put into action the recently completed TransPort Moody Plan;
– Provide resources to fast-track a comprehensive Community Economic Development Plan (CEDP), which was identified as a strategic priority in 2015; and,
– Finalize the Zoning Bylaw Review before year-end.
Here are five more to be tackled before October 2018:
– Prioritize and fund action items of a new CEDP (above) for implementation in the early New Year.
– Provide the public with the details and a timeline of the residential development applications underway.
– Refocusing on initiatives for the rest of the community (opportunities in areas other than Inlet Centre, Moody Centre and Rocky Point Park), the Arts and Culture, and Parks and Recreation plans need to be reviewed for implementation.
– Stop all financial grants, unless already budgeted, until after the 2018 municipal election (in-kind grants however, especially for under-utilized city amenities, are okay and should be encouraged).
– Approach the new provincial government, through our new MLA to:
o obtain gaming funds/licensing to supplement our recreation funding (like Coquitlam), and,
o re-open the Burrard Thermal Plant.
A firm commitment will be expected from whoever we elect, to invest 20+ hours weekly, reading the information to understand the issues, and to be fully prepared for participating in the daily meetings.
No doubt many of the potential candidates have served on city committees over the past years, and shown their commitment in other ways as well. The number of committees served or positions held however are not enough. If you want my vote, then I’m going to encourage you to TELL ME BEFORE VOTING OPENS on September 20th, what you have really done; what issues or problems you have personally solved, and the results you delivered, as an outcome of your direct actions, committee work, other community involvement, or career.
While we’re at it, let’s dispense with the frilly taglines; we already know that all candidates will be: Committed, Experienced, Honest, Visionary, Successful, etc., so please spare us.