Name: Gladys Hewson
Age: (blank)
Occupation: secretary.
Q1. What have you personally achieved, or what initiative have you personally led in recent years that qualifies you to be elected or re-elected as a Maple Ridge councillor?
1: I have chosen to shown commitment to our community in the form of volunteering. I have been involved with the Ridge Meadows Minor Hockey Association for more than 25 years. I have worked on the policy and bylaw committees and I am the registrar. I have also been a secretary in Maple Ridge for more than 20 years. I am an excellent listener, whether volunteering or at work, and this has helped keep me in touch with what the community needs. I am a worker, not afraid to ask questions, and look for the answers, if not given. I also know that change does not happen overnight. I will listen to all points of view and only make a decision when I have all the facts. I will keep you informed and included.
Q2. Provide two examples of council’s actions over the past three years and explain why or why not you support them.
2. Bylaws, oversized recreation vehicles. I do not support this bylaw. I believe that criteria for removal should be condition of the vehicle and whether it poses a safety concern because of where it is parked on the property.
Bosonworth subdivision: I do not support the clear-cutting of trees and what effect it could have on groundwater flow. These are only a couple of concerns that I have with the growth in the Thornhill/Albion/Webster’s Corners area.
Q3. Do you support the 13-per-cent increase (over three years) in councillor’s salaries approved last summer? Why or why not? Explain what you would do if elected.
3. I do not support the 13-per-cent increase – all I have heard from the provincial government is zero, zero and zero for wage increases. We would all like to vote ourselves a raise, but in the real world, it does not work that way. We are expected to do more with less. The price of gas went up the same amount for the average person, as well as for our elected officials. If you look at the stipends that a council gets and divide it by the numbers of hours (20 to 30 weekly commitment), their wage is more than $20 an hour, and that’s before the 13 per cent. When elected, I will donate the 13 per cent back to community groups.