Former Pitt Meadows fire chief Don Jolley has announced he will be running for city council.
Jolley said he talks about issues in the city with family and friends, and they encouraged him to get a seat at the city hall table in this October’s municipal elections.
“A bunch of friends really encouraged me to do it,” he said. “I’m looking forward to running.”
He said people from the city know the issues of contention, and he has opinions about policing, the CP Rail expansion, future development, and other matters that come before council.
Jolley said there should have been a referendum on the independent RCMP detachment, with the facts laid bare for the public. He wants to see whether it is too late for the city to reconsider its own police station, independent from the Ridge Meadows RCMP, due to the costs for the small city.
He said residents may be paying too much with the cost of building a new police detachment, combined with the ongoing operational costs. Staying with the Ridge Meadows RCMP detachment and sharing costs may be a better decision.
“We will have 100 per cent of those costs, for things like support staff,” he said. “There’s no question there’s going to be more operational costs.”
He would like to see an evidence-based approach, that also answers what the benefits will be for the added expense.
“I want to know the details, see it laid out transparently, and let the public see it, too,” he said.
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He said the proposed CP Logistics Park is in the wrong place, but may still be ultimately approved by senior government, despite the city’s fight against.
If the city is not successful in opposing it, he would like a strong “Plan B,” that pushes the railway to the best possible remediation – state-of-the-art sound attenuation, a visual buffer, and the best possible emergency response on site.
“They shouldn’t depend on us,” he said of the fire response.
“We should hold them (CP) to the highest standards.”
He also has ideas for getting better use out of city’s many parks, via amenities such as disc golf, or covered skateboard parks to allow rainy day use.
A better community pool facility is also needed, Jolley insisted.
“The public would support $20 million for a new pool before they support $20 million for a new police department,” he predicted.
Jolley has been a resident for 32 years, and had a career as a paramedic and volunteer firefighter in 1990. In 2001 he became a career firefighter and deputy chief, then served as fire chief from 2008 until his retirement in 2018.
He also served as a vice-president for the Fire Chiefs Association of B.C. for seven years.
His full bio is on Facebook at “Don Jolley for Pitt Meadows City Council.”
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