There were no heated exchanges. No nasty jibes. No accusatory tones about slate politics.
Unlike other all-candidates' meetings around the Tri-Cities this civic election, Port Coquitlam's debate was a cordial affair, with candidates often agreeing with one another on issues, shaking hands afterward and even generating a few laughs from the crowd.
Still, there was one candidate whose comments drew a few eye rolls and head shakes.
Mayoral candidate Eric Hirvonen, who arrived at the meeting slightly late and left immediately following it, was called out by the audience a couple of times for his incoherent answers.
In his opening speech, Hirvonen talked about the Shaw TV mayoral debate that had been previously televised, telling voters there are "integrity" issues with his opponent, Mayor Greg Moore - the board chair for Metro Vancouver - "in terms of keeping secrets at city hall."
"I don't believe it to be an open place," Hirvonen said, without giving examples.
During the unusual format, in which two candidates were pitted against each other, Hirvonen and Moore were asked to respond to written questions from the Tri-Cities' Chamber of Commerce, which hosted the meeting, and from the public. Public transportation, transit funding, private sector green waste solutions and attracting business were the main topics.
On road connectivity in Dominion Triangle, Moore said the city is working with the private landowners to join the west side (Nicola Avenue, where Costco and Home Depot are located) with the east side (Fremont Street, where Walmart and Canadian Tire are situated). Hirvonen misunderstood the question and attacked Coquitlam for forcing PoCo to build the Fremont connector to Burke Mountain. "It's a Coquitlam issue, really, for our traffic," he mumbled.
Council candidates also gave their 60-second pitches, in which incumbents listed their achievements while contenders stated their visions. Female candidates also noted the lack of representation of their gender on the council while those not endorsed by unions pledged independence.
As with the mayoral candidates, council contenders were also paired to answer specific questions, then debate each other on the issue. Nancy McCurrach and Riyaz Lakhani talked about PoCo's competitive advantage in the region while Amrit Gill and Coun. Mike Forrest spoke of affordable office space for businesses.
Public transit was a topic for Coun. Glenn Pollock and Erhan Demirkaya while Laura Dupont and Coun. Darrell Penner - both of whom are on the city's transportation committee - generally stated the same core values for PoCo residents: having a healthy, livable city.
Former city councillor Sherry Carroll and Wayne Marklund squared off on industrial lands and the redevelopment of the recreation complex but it was councillors Brad West and Michael Wright who tackled the most anticipated question of the night: Tri-Cities' amalgamation.
"No, we are three distinct cities. We each have our own character," Wright said, adding that if the three municipalities are combined, PoCo "might have to accept [other cities'] debt rates."
West agreed. "We don't want the other two dragging us down," he joked.
@jwarrenTC
