IN THE MAPLE RIDGE COUNCILLOR’S RACE: Andre Roberge

Andre Roberge

RUNNING AS AN INDEPENDENT

Port of Vancouver grain worker, age 37

Thornhill resident who’s lived in Maple Ridge 8.5 years

I am a candidate committed to serving my community, understanding diversity, and I am dedicated to building bridges.

• Married and father to three children.

• Serve as DPAC representative.

• Served as a pastor.

• Served as youth coordinator for Barbados Cultural Association for BC.

• Serve as a shop steward for my union (my wife is a small business owner).

• Blue-collar worker.

• Graduated from UBC with a degree in philosophy.

• Hold a masters from Regent College.

Finally, my mother comes from the beautiful island of Barbados. As a result, I’m very proud of my Caribbean roots.

4-point platform:

1. Develop Pools & Schools, and Parks For Our Children.

2. Keep Maple Ridge Safe for Our Families.

3. Support For Our Small Businesses.

4. Build Homes Our Community Can Afford.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/AndreRobergeMRCC

Instagram: @andre4mrcc

Website: www.andreroberge.com

Phone: 778-806-1190

.

Have you held office in past? If so, please specify: No.

.

CLICK TO CHECK OUT OUR FULL ELECTION GUIDE ONLINE

Questions:

(These answers are presented as the candidates submitted them)

1. Does the City have a handle on the problems created by homelessness?

No. I have knocked on so many doors, and people feel we still have no control over the homeless issue. There are two things to consider regarding homelessness. First, we need homes for low-wage earners, single-family incomes, and our seniors. Many in this group are one paycheck away from being unable to keep a roof over their heads; sadly, some are already there. As Canadians, we care for our vulnerable and those down and out on their luck—struggling to make ends meet. Second, we must address those suffering from mental health who have turned to the streets and a life of drugs to cope. At this point, another treatment center will not adequately fix this situation. A treatment centre will take years of planning, years to secure funding, and then years to build. We need something done much sooner. That is why I would work with other municipalities to petition the provincial government to reopen Riverview. With proper funding, they will finally have the resources to get the help they desperately need.

2. Do you believe residents of the City feel safe?

No. See the answer to number 1.

3. Do you support the City borrowing funds to build a new aquatic centre?

I would have to say, “maybe.”

I would need to see a wise and detailed plan to pay back the principal and interest of the loan. With no plan, I would not approve of borrowing money for anything. Moreover, we should not be increasing taxes on current residents to pay for these kinds of projects. We must secure funds from other sources.

For example, we are currently dealing with an emergency housing crisis. As such, the provincial and federal governments have signalled that they want to see more housing units built. If we were to build more housing, I would work with council to make it a condition to help our city to receive government funding to fund these large projects. We rely so heavily on our current residents to fund them. We need to find financial sources elsewhere so as not to lay the burden on them.

4. Are you in favour of development along the Alouette River?

We need to do what we can to protect our environment. But, if the development can be done in a responsible way, then I would be open to considering it. We are experiencing a housing crisis. People need places to live. I would not want to say no to housing that could potentially help people put a roof over their heads.

5. Can City hall do more to attract new businesses to open in Maple Ridge?

Yes. Right now, our citizens leave to work, shop, eat at restaurants and are entertained in other cities; we need to attract businesses to keep the money in our city. It’s time to have people say, “I’ll meet you in Maple Ridge tonight for dinner,” and not somewhere else.

6. Should the City borrow funds to build a new arena facility?

See the answer to number 3.

7. Should Maple Ridge take more direct action to combat the local opioid crisis?

See the answer to number 1.

8. Is the City taking adequate measures to lower carbon emissions?

Yes. We are requiring homes to be built more efficiently, rainwater harvesting, seeking to create 15-minute communities—the list goes on.

9. Are tax levels too high in the City?

Yes. We pay some of the highest taxes in the lower mainland, and we still pay for our own garbage pick-up. Density is one way to address this. Those living in 4-6 storey low-rises contribute to the tax base and put little pressure on the system. Moreover, without trying to sound like a broken record, we need to diversify our tax base by attracting more businesses to our community.

10. Should the City commit to making a decision on proposed new developments within 12 months or less?

Maybe.

.

CLICK ON OUR ELECTIONS 2022 TAB TO FIND A WIDE VARIETY OF RELEVANT STORIES

.

EDITOR’S NOTE:

How the questions were presented to each candidate

Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows news readers have told us how much they value this important, straight-forward reference guide that helps orient them with the range of choices on the ballots – both at the council and school board levels.

Towards that end, we have attempted to make this package available (along with the following instructions) to each of the candidates in a timely fashion ahead of the Oct. 15 election.

Please read carefully before you start to fill this out.

To help voters in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows make their choices on election day, The News is asking local candidates 10 issue-based questions.

You must provide a ‘yes,’ a ‘no,’ or a ‘don’t know’ (Y, N, D) response to EACH of these questions.

Each question MUST be answered with yes (Y), no (N), or Don’t Know (D). This will be published in a grid in the Oct. 6 edition. Any questions not answered will be LEFT BLANK.

Candidates may also expand on ANY OR ALL of these questions (to a maximum of 200 words each). Please note any responses longer than that will be cut off at the 201-word mark.

Due to space limitations, we can only guarantee to run one of these answers in The News print edition ahead of the election. You must CLEARLY indicate which expanded answer you want to see published in print. If you do not specify, we will choose. Any and all expanded answers provided will be published online at www.mapleridgenews.com.

.