The Sooke byelection is heating up with all seven candidates showing up at a candidates forum at the Sooke Legion on Tuesday (June 24).
Hosted by The Sooke Chamber of Commerce and the Sooke Multi-Belief Initiative, the event gave the crowd of over 100 people the chance to ask questions and discuss issues surrounding the community with the candidates who are vying for a council seat after newly elected MLA Dana Lajeunesse stepped down.
The event started with each candidate being allotted three minutes to talk about whatever they wanted, before candidates went to their individual tables where residents could ask questions of each candidate. Finally, each candidate was given 90 seconds to answer three pre-prepared questions from the Multi-Belief Initiative.
"I feel that council has long been focused on just keeping things the way they are, but not really planning to support change," Nick Dickinson-Wilde told the crowd during his initial three-minute speech. "There was a discussion about a Throup Road to Phillips [Road] connection 20 years ago. It was too expensive then. It should have been brought back up to a referendum 10 years ago, not talking about it next year. That's what I mean by we're not doing long-term planning."
Throughout the night, most of the discussions revolved around infrastructure and development planning, while also staying fiscally responsible as costs skyrocket. Former council member Herb Haldane told the crowd about the lack of commercial development to keep up with the population growth.
"When I was a kid, it was funny, we had two grocery stores, it was 1,500 people in town," he said. "We still have two grocery stores, and it's 20,000 people. So we have to focus on building the community, getting more commercial (enterprises) here, getting more stuff for young people."
Former nurse Elaine Price explained how she would like to balance growth while also protecting the character and surrounding environment of the town.
"I'm committed to sustainable growth. I believe in proper planning that supports housing, services, and transportation, without compromising the natural beauty and the environment it provides to the community," she said.
Shaun Burns explained he hopes to see more crosswalks, sidewalks and streetlights to promote safety in the community, as the district only has so much power over the highway.
"Cyclists are in danger, pedestrians are in danger, the elderly and the youth, they're in danger," said Burns. "They don't want to walk the community because, 'Hey, the road's dangerous, why cross it?' These are some things I think we should be looking into."
Candidates fielded a wide range of questions from the audience, from development and growth, to climate change and First. Nations partnerships.
In the final leg of the event, candidates took three questions from the hosts, the first asking the candidates what their priorities are to address traffic congestion, and how they will advocate for funding from higher levels of government.
Nathan McKeown spoke about how traffic, namely on Sooke Road, impacts not only residents' quality of life, but also the town's vital tourism industry.
"I will work collaboratively with the Ministry of Transportation to help secure provincial funding to provide projects that ensure a reasonable timeline for completion. These projects will require collaboration with multiple stakeholders in order to maximize positive impacts on the community and minimize the disruption while these construction projects are underway," he said.
The second question was on how the candidates plan to support local businesses and foster sustainable economic development, while maintaining the character and natural beauty of Sooke.
In her first year as a council member, Katherine Strongwind said she hopes to invest more in the downtown core and to simplify the permitting processes.
"At the same time, I'll ensure growth respects our official community plan by encouraging smart, small-scale development that aligns with our rural character and safeguards our natural beauty and biodiversity," she said. "Economic growth doesn't mean giving up our identity, it means planning thoughtfully, listening to our community, and building a vibrant future that still feels like home."
The final question for the candidates was what specific strategies they would support or implement to address the growing need for affordable and attainable housing in Sooke.
Helen Ritts said she hopes to support more density, namely secondary suites, now that they are allowed in the district, though she understands municipalities can only do so much to address affordability issues.
"Perhaps there's a way to incentivize homeowners that have large lots to build second, smaller homes," she said. "I'd also just say better transit plays into it, [to] save us money on vehicle ownership. Imagine if we got to a place in Sooke where families only needed to have one car – to me, that would be amazing."
Advanced voting days will be held on Wednesday, July 2 and July 9 at Sooke Council Chambers at 2205 Otter Point Rd. There will also be a special voting opportunity on Thursday, July 3, at Ayre Manor Lodge, located at 6744 Ayre Rd., for assisted living and complex care residents only.
General voting day is on Saturday, July 12, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Edward Milne Community School, located at 6218 Sooke Rd.
