IN THE MAPLE RIDGE COUNCILLOR’S RACE: Craig Speirs

Craig Speirs

RUNNING AS AN INDEPENDENT

Retired, age 72

Yennadon resident who’s lived in Maple Ridge 49 years

I have lived, worked and raised a family in this community and I want that opportunity for our children.

Building endless housing, without the balance of employment and a lifestyle to enable that, is incredibly frustrating.

I have watched council founder for the past four years without moving this community forward.

They have battled each other and the provincial government, instead of seeking solutions to our many problems.

I know that there are many industries that don’t eat up our landscape and ruin our beautiful environment. Industry that fits Maple Ridge and enriches our lifestyle.

I believe my community needs me.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CraigSpeirs

Twitter: @craigRspeirs

Email: craigrspeirs@gmail.com

Instgram: @craig_sharpthing

Website: www.craigspeirs.ca

Phone: 604-250-8067

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Have you held office in past? If so, please specify:

5 terms, 16 years

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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, you can’t cure homelessness with bylaws that fine poor people. You have to get to the root of the many problems that cause it and council has had no interest in doing anything but moving the problem along to some other community. The CSO program shows some promise but it’s just a bandaid at this point.

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

No, but they should because we live in what is basically a safe community compared to others. The feeling of fearfulness has been nurtured by council in order to make folks experiencing homelessness the bad people.

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

Yes, if needed and with permission from the public, we are underserved with recreational services of all types. I would support building an aquatic center with an adjacent curling center as there is a synergy in energy use when you co-locate those types of uses. Let’s be efficient leaders. This would also open up another sheet of ice at Planet Ice.

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

No, never! I want to start a process similar to the one that preserved Kanaka Creek as a park from its mouth to its head waters. I view water and all waterways as a sacred trust that we need to care for to preserve for the generations to come. Water is the single most important thing for life.

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

Yes, and those attractants may not look like what you think. Quality employers need a quality lifestyle to attract the employees they want for their businesses so the good news is all of us benefit from those types of assets. entertainment, outdoor adventure, Parks, the arts, local food, local beverages, trails and modern recreational facilities. Industry doesn’t have to be smokestacks. We have to go after Industry that fits our landbase and situation using incentives if necessary.

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

Yes, if needed and with permission from the public, we are a growing community with lots of young people with huge potential and our facilities don’t reflect that reality. It’s more than that of course, we have to leave town to host any large event when we should be able to party in Maple Ridge. It’s ridiculous.

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

Yes. In B.C., we are on track to lose over 2,000 young people this year to the poisoned drug supply.

We need to do whatever it takes to stop this bloodbath.

Offering substitutes or a safe supply, especially to those who are finding it impossible to quit or waiting for treatment, is the solution.

We need to be lobbying for treatment on demand, and safe injection sites to keep people alive. Make it legal for physicians to maintain prescriptions when they find a patient has become addicted and to offer a fast track to treatment.

Bottom line is more treatment, counselling, and support for those who are addicted.

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

No, there is much to do and most of us recognise that our weather is out of whack and we are responsible. Internally we can create an Action Plan to move things forward on a variety of fronts much like the Township of Langley, Vancouver, Saanich and New Westminster. Electric Heat Pumps for homes are much more efficient than gas fired heating but they can be quite expensive. There is a program being produced by the province called PACE - Property Assessed Clean Energy financing which goes through a financial institution and is repaid through property taxes in a way that is transferred if the property is sold. Squamish and Whistler are piloting a program called Retrofit Assist that will help folks through each step. Our local Climate Hub group managed to get council to include vague targets into our OCP but no hard targets like other communities. They refused to be leaders or even followers. Climate fail!

9. Are tax levels too high in the City?

No, we have a business planning process that examines and re-examines everything we do and allows us to have a small predictable increase that covers inflation and growth. Forcing a tax decrease for political reasons can create a horrible hangover.

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

Don’t know, that would depend on the scope of the development. I am uncomfortable with the move to a bare first reading on most developments when I think first and second should come forward together because there is more information available so you can make a more informed decision. Generally if it’s OCP compliant, fits the zoning bylaw and doesn’t have too many variances twelve months should be sufficient. If we want faster decisions we need to hire more people or the file needs to be of public importance.

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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.

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