1. “What can the city do to adopt and encourage the adoption of renewable energy technologies? Do you think the city should make net-metering and time-of-use metering available to all its electricity customers?“
During this most recent term of Council, Kelowna joined a growing number of BC municipalities in requiring new homes to be solar-ready. This will reduce costs for homeowners who decide to convert to solar in the future. As we move forward, I believe the City should be exploring opportunities for district energy systems, and looking at incentives for residents and developers who avail of renewable energy sources. Finally, I believe we should lead by example. All new civic facilities should be sustainably built, with as small a carbon footprint as possible. Given that Kelowna has committed to being 33% below 2007 levels of GHG emissions, this is absolutely essential. As for net-metering and time-of-use metering, I support making both available. There will be a cost associated, so it is important that such measures are implemented in a responsible way with a financial plan in place, but in order to reduce electricity consumption, we must empower users to make informed decisions, and this cannot be done without making all information available to customers.
2. “What should be Kelowna’s competitive advantage to attract diverse young professionals to our city? What are your ideas to make Kelowna more multicultural and welcoming for people of all backgrounds?”
Having relocated to Kelowna from Ireland, I can attest first-hand to Kelowna’s beautiful natural environment being a competitive advantage. Our community offers a four-seasons playground where people can enjoy the lake during summer and the ski hill in winter. The availability of quality entertainment and festivals will also make Kelowna a more attractive to young professionals, who are looking for more than simply a job and a house – they are searching for a home, somewhere to build a career and a life. With the establishment of UBC Okanagan and the population growth experienced during the last decade, Kelowna has become a more diverse city, and I have supported initiatives to ensure all residents feel safe and welcome in our community. I believe collaboration with groups such as the Inter-Cultural Society of the Central Okanagan, Okanagan Rainbow Coalition, and Kelowna Community Resources will be useful in identifying and addressing the barriers to inclusion faced by some members of our community. In addition, I believe there is significant opportunity to use arts and culture as a tool to increase understanding and acceptance of other cultures and backgrounds.
3. “Agriculture is one of the main industries in the Okanagan Valley and food security is a growing concern. What key actions or initiatives would you work toward ensuring the sustainability of Kelowna’s food system?”
I believe we should ensure a co-ordinated approach to supporting agriculture in Kelowna by updating the current Agriculture Plan. The last draft was completed in 1997, and I believe it is time to measure the progress which has been made, assess which of the incomplete recommendations are still relevant, and consider new approaches which can support farmers in our area. I do not support allowing development to encroach on agricultural land, and my voting record on Council proves this. The City must play a leadership role in preserving farmland, or development pressures will make land costs even more unaffordable for those looking to get a start in agriculture. Furthermore, I believe we can create a more sustainable food system by ensuring farmers have abundant opportunities to sell their produce. Progress has been made towards finding a permanent home for the Kelowna Farmers and Crafters Market, and I am also in favour of a year-round public market in the downtown core. The expansion of community gardens in our city has been a highly worthwhile investment and I am eager to see this initiative continue. Finally, we must lobby senior levels of government to ensure adequate investment is made in agriculture. BC has the lowest level of per-capita spending on agriculture in all of Canada, and I am committed to reminding our MLA’s and the Premier of the importance of this sector.
4. “Kelowna has a concerning and considerable number of homeless people. There are the visibly homeless and the hidden homeless. What kinds of initiatives would you take to identify and provide safer, more permanent housing options for individuals of both groups?”
The most effective tool at Council’s disposal during the past few years has been leveraging city-owned land to form partnerships with senior levels of government and non-profit groups to create affordable housing. I support a continuation of this approach, combined with the adoption of recommendations outlined in the recently-adopted Kelowna Housing Strategy. The strategy includes initiatives which reduce the time and cost of developing affordable housing, particularly rental housing, and which will diversify the housing supply in Kelowna through the introduction of fee-simple townhouses and courtyard housing. Affordable housing is a significant and growing issue for our community, and it is important to have a Council committed to taking action to address it.
5. “What will you do to ensure arts and culture will be enhanced to improve the quality of life in this community?”
Kelowna’s new Cultural Plan was created through an extremely collaborative, inclusive process and outlines a path to ensuring the cultural community thrives into the future. Council has already endorsed the non-monetary items in the plan, but I believe we must not abandon the arts even as we aim for fiscal restraint in a tough economy. Municipal investment in arts and cultural organizations can have a tremendous multiplier effect, allowing the groups to apply for matching funding from other levels of government, donors, and foundations. Particular features of the Cultural Plan I support are increased support of professional arts organizations phased over a three-year period, addressing the lack of production space in Kelowna, measuring the economic impact of Kelowna’s creative sector, and further integration of arts and culture with tourism. When provincial and federal arts funding was cut, the City took a leadership role in ensuring organizations could keep their doors open, and I am proud of our city’s efforts but the municipality cannot implement the Cultural Plan alone. Co-operation is needed from other levels of government, as well as businesses and non-profit in our community. If re-elected, I hope to be a leader in enabling this collaboration.
6. “Although Kelowna does have bike paths on major corridors, sidewalks and safe bike routes are sorely missing in some established neighborhoods such as South Pandosy and Rutland. Public transit is available in some areas, but doesn’t meet the needs of students and seniors throughout the city. What are your transportation infrastructure priorities for the Kelowna?”
The newly-adopted Official Community Plan charts lays out a guide for growth and development in the city all the way to 2030, and part of this is ensuring a sustainable transportation network exists. Kelowna is one of the most car-dependent cities in Canada, and part of this reliance on single-occupant vehicles is caused at least partially by inadequate infrastructure for sustainable alternatives. During my term on Council, there was substantial spending on new multi-modal corridors throughout our entire community, and I believe the next step is to expand and connect this network of multi-use pathways. The transportation network envisioned in the OCP makes a much-needed shift, focusing on pedestrians and cyclists first, then meeting the needs of cars. In addition to measures aimed at improving pedestrian and cyclist safety and connectivity, a key priority for me is continued improvement of our transit system. As someone who relies on the bus system for my commute to school, I have seen first-hand the progress we have made, but I recognize there is still a ways to go before people consider leaving their cars and using transit for their day-to-day transportation. My overall priorities for the transit system are increased frequency and reliability. One of the reasons the express bus system works so well is that people can simply show up at a bus stop without a schedule and know there will be a bus within 15 minutes. We must strive to bring that number down to 10 minutes on key routes, and raise the level of frequency throughout the system as a whole. In addition to these general principles, specific projects I support are a bus to the H2O Centre, a transit exchange in the Rutland Town Centre, and expansion of the transit network to include Quail Ridge and the airport.
