City Councillor

My first term on Council was one of both observing, as well as one of leadership. As a new Councillor, and PG’s youngest ever elected, I invested and continue to invest the time to learn and to glean as much information possible from those around me, including staff, council colleagues, as well as the public- who desire greater access to their local government representatives. Despite being new, during my first term I confidently led the charge on and supported a number of initiatives that brought further fiscal responsibility, advocacy, transparency, communication, and improved City policies. These actions helped to identify several inherited project management issues, as well as concerns surrounding senior administrative staff that I helped resolve through strategic, logic-based, and strong-willed leadership.

 

SOME OF THE NOTABLE ACTIONS FROM MY FIRST TERM INCLUDE:

• I voted against two tax increases. Additionally, I recommended and fought for budget cuts that would have seen lower increases to taxation for residents and businesses, with no impact to service.

• A reduction of the City Manager’s budget amendment authority, accompanied by regular review of amendments by City Council.

• Implementation of external project management for ongoing capital projects, as well as the full-scale review of the City Capital Project Management Process.

• The procurement of an independent legal review of the entire parkade project, including quantity surveyors’ reports, and a fulsome understanding of the project’s early stages and singed contracts from 2016/2017.

• The development of new whistle blower policy.

• I sought a change in our City’s Senior Administrator position which resulted in a new City manager, as well as a series of director level changes among City Administration.

• I led the initiative to change the Exempt Employee Overtime Procedure which became an issue in 2017 during the Wildfires, prior to my time on Council.

• Attracted significant development to our community, with record breaking development permits year after year.

• Helped secure provincial funding for the Malaspina daycare project by connecting staff with the project proponents and through advocacy work.

• Advocated for an increase of resources to the local Car60 mental health program between the RCMP and Northern Health, which helped lead to the implementation of the Downtown Safety Hub; a collaborative initiative between a number of government and non-government organizations.

• I pushed for the City to undergo a thorough review of all available properties and to consider the sale of each property to generate future tax revenues from the developed lands.

I led and participated in a number of advocacy projects to the province including:

- I led the advocacy for the repatriation or proceeds of crime,

- Advocacy for the cleanup of needles and harm reduction paraphernalia,

- Advocacy for sharing in payments from the Opiod Class Action Lawsuit,

- Advocacy increased capacity at the National Forensics Lab for RCMP investigation expedience,

- Call to actions and advocacy Improved efficiencies in the prosecution of criminal offenses in the court system,

- Advocacy for a more comprehensive training model for RCMP members,

- Advocacy for more no barrier and complex care housing solutions,

- Advocacy for enhanced funding for Public Libraries, reflective of the current needs,

- And the advocacy for an equitable restart coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic for businesses, arts organizations, and sports groups in Northern BC, particularly in Prince George.

Along with several other key initiatives!

 

MOVING FORWARD

I have committed to working with and on behalf of residents, businesses, community stakeholders, and other levels of government while always looking for ways to build financial stability, resolve social and economic issues, diversify our local and regional economy and industry, enhance operational efficiencies, and develop better governance and transparency throughout the organization.

I am committed to continue to support and champion initiatives such as:

• Building financial resiliency, responsibility, and transparency – including through initiatives to reduce administrative spending and budgets, as well as build a more robust tax base and new diverse revenue streams.

• Achieving clean and safe neighbourhoods and downtown with a focus on reducing crime.

• Ensuring development is efficient with less red tape for those looking to invest in our community, and that development is informed through public engagement.

• Enhanced transparency and oversight on capital projects.

• Supports for vulnerable citizens, as well as our aging population.

• Long range planning and vision for our community.

• Advocacy for Prince George with other levels of government.
 

IN 2022 I RAN ON A PLATFORM OF:

𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗦𝗮𝗳𝗲𝘁𝘆

for all members and in all areas of our community, but especially in the downtown and bowl areas. This includes targeting prolific offenders and holding them to account, targeting those who are committing crimes and preying on vulnerable peoples and our businesses and residences, as well as fighting for the necessary supports for our vulnerable populations including mental health and addiction treatment facilities, housing, and complex care facilities, among other resources.

I will fight to ensure our City takes the lead on bringing together all levels of government and other stakeholders to tackle these issues as a team, and I have started that work by submitting a motion that will be heard by the new Council immediately to get the ball rolling. The bulk of the issues we face are not within our jurisdiction, but I believe we need to take the lead despite that, the only way for our city to get the resources necessary is if we take control of our own situation and help develop the plan for how to get those resources, and not just ask with our handout.

𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆

we need to tap into revenue opportunities that are not just traditional taxation. We need to aggressively pursue attracting new industry to our community; we have the land, the resources, and connectivity – we need to approach and incentivize new sectors, particularly innovative and low-carbon emitting industries to see the potential in our community. We need to market Prince George as a place that is desirable for young families and professionals to relocate to by showcasing our amenities, both natural and infrastructural.

I have a plan to bring that I will be bringing to our new Council early in the term through a notice of motion to pull together the City, various provincial ministries along with our regional provincial, federal, and our local first nation, as well as key stakeholders to develop a strategy to capitalize on Prince George's positioning as Northern BC's capital. Our city has the infrastructure, resources, and connectivity to support a wide array of investment - it's time we tap into these opportunities and set ourselves on a sustainable path forward for growth.

This doesn't just mean big business or industry, but tourism opportunities. It doesn't take much to look down the highway and see what Valemount has done to develop themselves into a thriving mountain biking tourism destination - these same opportunities and others like them are available to us, we just need to build the right partnerships between the city, the province, and the interested local stakeholders to take our existing infrastructure to the next level, or to develop all new infrastructure to create a new tourism industry for our region.

𝗘𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁

meaning we need to cut the red tape and expedite the process for developers who are seeking to do business in our community. We need everyone from those looking to build a backyard shed, to developers who are seeking to build a new professional center, subdivision, condo building, or restaurant to have a streamlined process for obtaining the proper permits, variances, rezonings, etc. that allows for our City to continue this upward trajectory of growth and development that we’ve tapped into over the past 4 years. However, we also need to ensure that the development we are seeing is informed and intune with the community’s wants and needs. Infill is going to be an extremely important piece moving into the future, but we need to guarantee developers are incorporating sidewalks, parks and green spaces, trails, playgrounds, or other resources into their development plans to meet the needs of our residents, and to meet the expectations of those relocating to our community.

We cannot compromise our community’s natural beauty in the process, but if we focus on ensuring our development is informed and well thought out, we can maximize the use of our current infrastructure, while also investing in our surrounding infrastructure and natural spaces.

I am committed to ensuring that we continue to invest into our current sidewalk, park, trail, and green spaces infrastructure, while at the same time making sure our new developments are creating new green spaces, new sidewalks, new parks, and new trails that connect in with existing networks.

𝗔 𝗟𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗥𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗩𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆

plans can change along the way, but an initial roadmap is required for how our City intends to reinvest into our aging facilities and infrastructure, and how our City can continue to grow at a sustainable pace in which we are prepared for. We need to develop a plan for future civic facility needs, while continuing to plan for our current underground infrastructure and for facilities that are already in place, such as The Prince George Coliseum, Elksentre Arena, The Prince George Playhouse, Studio 2880, and even the less sexy facilities like City Hall, the 18th avenue yard, waste water treatment plant, or other core operation facilities. We need to look ahead and create a vision for what our City will look like in 10, 20, and 30 years, with a roadmap for how we will get there in a fiscally sustainable way.

I have a vision for our community and what it could look like in 5, 10, 20, and 30 years, and I will work with my colleagues at the Council table to ensure we collaborate our visions, with input from the public to set our city on a path forward where we can actually see these goals come to fruition. I want us to have a plan, so when it's time to push the "go" button on a project, we're ahead of the game with a roadmap to see it through, rather than constantly being caught off guard with infrastructure that is at its end of life without a plan for reinvestment, or, where we find our city needing a new piece of infrastructure that no one yet has created a plan for to be prepared for when we need it.

I believe my track record speaks volumes about my first term on Council. I have taken on a number major issues, but there is still work to be done, and I am asking for your support to allow me to continue to bring that same logic based approach to the Council table. Over the next four years, I will bring the necessary parties together to develop 'made in PG' solutions for the issues that we are facing with respect to community safety, in tandem with addressing our need to create a more efficient development process to continue to attract investment in our community, as well as seeking ways to further diversify our economy and industry base, particularly with low-carbon innovation that will help strengthen and build financial resiliency in our City.