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General voting
Coquitlam-Burke Mountain voters can mark their byelection ballots tomorrow (Tuesday) from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at:
• Hampton Park Elem School, 1760 Paddock Dr, Coquitlam
• Pinetree Way Elem School, 1420 Pinetree Way, Coquitlam
• Panorama Heights Elem School, 1455 Johnson St, Coquitlam
• Eagle Ridge Elem School, 1215 Falcon Dr, Coquitlam
• Leigh Elem School, 1230 Soball St, Coquitlam
• Nestor Elem School, 1266 Nestor St, Coquitlam
• Evergreen Cultural Centre, 1205 Pinetree Way, Coquitlam
• Walton Elem School, 2960 Walton Ave, Coquitlam
• Glen Elem School, 3064 Glen Dr, Coquitlam
• Eagle Ridge Bible Fellowship, 1160 Lansdowne Dr, Coquitlam
• Coquitlam River Elem School, 4250 Shaughnessy St, Port Coquitlam
THE CANDIDATES
Paul Geddes
LIBERTARIAN
Email: gedswest@shaw.ca
Website: libertarian.bc.ca
Phone: 604-944-2845
LAST WORD: "This is the greatest chance to get some choice in our health care and our education. It's time to think beyond government monopolies. We want to change the incentives so that your hard-working teachers, your hard-working doctors want to do what's best for you instead of fill the quota for their bureaucratic orders."
THE STORY: Voters looking to the provincial government to build new schools and spend more money on public transit are unlikely to mark their ballots for Paul Geddes in the upcoming Coquitlam-Burke Mountain byelection.
Unlike the other parties, the Libertarian candidate has admitted that his organization does not know the first thing about running an education or transit system, entities they believe should be transitioned to the private sector.
The Columbia College economics instructor and father of two said he is running to raise awareness about his philosophy and encourage voters to better understand the costs of the services they expect from their government.
“Some people just believe in Santa Claus,” he said over a cup of tea in the dining room of his Coquitlam townhouse. “They think they have a right — that word is horrible — they have a right to some sort of a service. They don’t understand that what they are asking for is to have the right to someone else’s pocket book.”
Geddes’ philosophy has helped create a unique, albeit unorthodox, platform for anyone trying to gain support in an election — and he has proved it in the past, garnering just 1.42% of the vote in the last election in this riding.
Take his views on the future of the Riverview Hospital grounds, a historic greenspace that most Tri-City politicians safely tout as a jewel of the region that should be protected from development.
“We should find the highest value use for it,” said Geddes. “That does not mean people screaming and shouting and saying ‘I want a park here.’ The way to find the best use for it is to put it on the market and find out who is going to pay for it.”
As for new schools on Burke Mountain, Geddes said that if parents had to pay for the construction, they would likely be more open the idea of busing their kids across town to an existing school.
The same goes for transit in the riding. A Libertarian government would begin the process of allowing companies to bid on bus routes, he said, eventually transferring the entire public transit system into the hands of the private sector.Geddes said he has seen privatization work and even improve service in Taiwan, where he grew up as the son of Presbyterian missionaries.
“I don’t want to leave people stranded,” he said, noting that he is a transit user. “Let people buy bus routes that are popular and let’s see what happens.”
Geddes is the first person to acknowledge that winning the Coquitlam-Burke Mountain byelection will be an uphill slog for him. But that does not mean he intends to moderate his positions to garner a few extra votes. “I don’t think politicians are evil,” he said. “I think politicians have to promise free lunches because that is what people vote for.”
gmckenna@tricitynews.com
@gmckennaTC
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Joan Isaacs
BC LIBERAL
Twitter: @Joan_Isaacs
Email: joan.isaacs@bcliberals.com
Website: bcliberals.com/joanisaacs
Phone: 604-472-5522
LAST WORD: "I will be at the decision-making table, working hard within government. I will deliver new transit, welcome a sharing economy, including ride-sharing. And I will celebrate the opening of Smiling Creek elementary. I will fight for, and deliver for, our families right here in the community that I have lived in for over 30 years."
THE STORY: Joan Isaacs has knocked on plenty of doors and spoken with many residents since announcing she would run as a BC Liberal in the upcoming Coquitlam-Burke Mountain byelection. But while she has canvassed a diverse range of opinions, she said that one constant issue continues to come up with potential voters: a lack of services in the area.
The 30-year resident told The Tri-City News she believes she can be an effective voice for improving public amenities in the riding and is the candidate best suited to represent its residents in Victoria.
“I feel like I can have a very loud voice,” she said during an interview at her Westwood Street campaign office. “I will fight for what I think is right and I will raise it and raise and raise it until I get the action I am looking for.”
It is that tenacity she said will work to bring improved bus service to Burke Mountain, even though the BC Liberals haven’t made that happen so far and the provincial government can’t force TransLink to make such changes.
With the $1.4-billion Evergreen Line set to open next year, Isaacs said improving connections to rapid transit are paramount to maximizing the investment.
“Especially for people that have children and teenagers,” she said. “They are working and they can’t just drop their activities or leave their work just to transport their kids around.”
The same goes for schools, Isaacs said, noting the lack of new facilities on the mountain. While she was happy to hear an elementary school is on the way, she said pushing for funding for a middle school and high school in the riding would be a top priority.
Isaacs has also heard from residents regarding the future of the Riverview Hospital grounds.
While she did not say whether she supports the development of market housing for the property, she noted that the land is an important greenspace for the city and should be preserved.
But perhaps the issue she is most passionate about is youth justice.
Isaacs is a member of the Tri-Cities Family Court and Youth Justice Committee, a group that has called on the federal and provincial governments to make amendments to the Youth Criminal Justice Act and the Criminal Code to include bullying and cyberbullying. She has long been a proponent of using restorative justice to deal with bullying so that those who cause harm can make amends to their victims, she said.
“It sets the stage where the person that is in a restorative justice process to understand the wrong they have made against somebody and they make it right,” she said, adding that the process has a 90% success rate when it comes to recidivism. “It is a big difference than sending somebody to a detention facility and hoping they have learned their lesson.”
But while she is quick to point out her policy positions, she said she understands that balance is necessary when working within government. She pointed to her background in the financial services industry, noting that she understands the need for creating a healthy environment for businesses
“I do have that economic skill set,” she said. “I feel I understand the challenges for families and businesses.”
gmckenna@tricitynews.com
@gmckennaTC
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Joe Keithley
BC GREEN
Twitter: @DOAJoe
Email: joe.keithley@greenparty.bc.ca
Website: votejoekeithley.com
Phone: 604-474-0301
LAST WORD: "I'll give Coquitlam the most honest representation they've ever had and I'll be the hardest-working MLA they've ever had. I'll fight for transportation improvements and schools in Coquitlam. Green Party MLAs are not whipped. We can stand up for our constituents and not follow the party line."
THE STORY: Joe Keithley may best be known as the outrageous frontman for the Vancouver hardcore punk band DOA but he isn’t all show business.
In fact, “Joey Shithead” — as punk fans know him — has a serious business side, too, as a record label owner, road manager, music consultant and teacher.
And it’s a side the father of three hopes to parlay into politics during this byelection in the provincial riding of Coquitlam-Burke Mountain.
His candidacy brings some star power to the campaign, which he joined last fall after being acclaimed by the Green Party of BC. He has run for the party twice in the past and says it is more centrist for local voters than the opposing BC NDP and BC Liberals.
Those two factions aren’t resonating right now, he said, and since Nov. 1, when he began knocking on doors, he has heard plenty of gripes.
People are tired of Premier Christy Clark and the BC Liberals, he said he's being told, and former Liberal MLA Doug Horne didn’t deliver on promises.
The riding that’s made up of many young families also hasn’t had any new schools and they find the area unaffordable, often having to live with relatives or take in renters to pay the mortgage and ever-increasing bills.
Public transit is also a joke, he said, and they wonder how they’re going to get to the Evergreen Line when it opens at the bottom of the hill next year.
But Keithley is keen on finding solutions. Already, he has met with Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart and newly elected Liberal MP Ron McKinnon to look for answers.
Keithley has come up with two immediate ideas: Build a secure park-and-ride near the Pinetree Way terminus and fund more bus routes.
“For the first 14 months [as MLA], I’m going to make noise about it and I’ll press to get some money into buses to get to SkyTrain.”
In the meantime, TransLink needs to be fixed. His plan? Have Metro residents elect a board made up of qualified citizens — not mayors.
On the school front, the Burnaby resident also wants to rock the boat. Coquitlam school district is underfunded, Keithley said, and with the population booming on Burke, more cash is needed to keep pace.
When pressed on how he would work to get a middle school built on Burke, he said: “It’s the same thing about how we’re going to get buses: We’re just going to have to make enough noise and agitate.”
Electing in another BC Liberal MLA won’t work, he added. Keithley believes the Greens will be more effective as their representatives don’t have to toe the line like the BC Liberal and NDP members.
Keithley feels constituents will do better with the alternate party, which he believes can win a minority government come May 2017.
The party also believes it has a “decent shot” at winning Coquitlam-Burke Mountain and is sinking$20,000 in Keithley’s campaign.
“For me and the Green Party, we try to strike the middle ground and I think that appeals to a lot of residents in this riding,” he said.
jwarren@tricitynews.com
@jwarrenTC
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Jodie Wickens
BC NDP
Twitter: @jbtwickens
Email: jodie.wickens@bcndp.ca
Website: jodiewickens.bcndp.ca
Phone: 604-472-5466
LAST WORD: "You want to vote for me because Christy Clark and the BC Liberals have ignored our community for far too long. I'm a parent and a community advocate, and I will fight for what is right for our community."
THE STORY: Jodie Wickens figures she has knocked on nearly every door in Coquitlam-Burke Mountain by now.
And, if she hasn't, her campaign team has.
Since winning the nomination Dec. 6, Wickens and her army of volunteers have pounded the pavement — rain or shine, day and night — risen early to wave signs at commuters, even spread the word at a Coquitlam Express hockey game with BC NDP Leader John Horgan.
Her supporters include high-profile MLAs from Metro Vancouver and Vancouver Island as well as Tri-City politicians of the same political stripe. Coquitlam Coun. Chris Wilson, who ran in the last provincial election for the NDP, is regularly by her side, as is Coquitlam-Maillardville MLA Selina Robinson. She is also backed by Port Coquitlam MLA Mike Farnworth, Port Coquitlam city councillors Brad West and Glenn Pollock, Coquitlam Coun. Bonita Zarrillo and Port Moody-Coquitlam MP Fin Donnelly.
Wickens, who has been a NDP member for two years, regularly posts her activities via Twitter as well as a common message she and her team have been heard from voters: People are looking for a change.
On Burke Mountain, she said, they're unhappy about the lack of schools and public transit. On Westwood Plateau, affordability is the big issue. And in Coquitlam Town Centre, there's concern about the impact of the Evergreen Line when it opens early next year.
They're repeating themes that have big consequences for families and seniors especially, and she points to the BC Liberal government for failing to take action.
"I haven't heard that Doug [Horne] was a strong advocate for the community," Wickens said of the former BC Liberal MLA, adding, "There certainly is a desire and hope that [voters] can have a stronger representation. They believe in me. They trust me. They're concerned about things. I will keep working really hard every day and I think people see that passion."
"They certainly feel that they have missed out on that for a long time," she added.
Her plan is to bring more advocacy to Victoria. On the school front — she ran for a school trustee seat in 2014 — she states, "We need people who will stand up for it and keep putting pressure on it.
The people who are in power need to feel enough pressure. Education is a priority for me and it would be a priority for the BC NDP. When those things are a priority for you, you make them happen."
Wickens said her work with the non-profit Autism Support Network has taught her how to make connections. In her role as executive director, Wickens works with families with autistic children, arranges meetings and helps to prepare them to reach a goal. "When you have a group of people together talking to elected officials about challenges, you have much more power than when you are on your own, by yourself," she said.
And if elected MLA, she said she plans to continue the fight to have families heard. Funding is part of the solution but, for autism, it's complex as no two families have the same needs.
"I feel that, far too often, particularly this government listens only to people at the top and the bureaucrats instead of the families that are going through what I’m going through," said Wickens, whose nine-year-old son has autism. "I have a voice to talk about those challenges and bring those challenges to Victoria."
jwarren@tricitynews.com
@jwarrenTC
