The following is a Q&A that was distributed to all Gibsons candidates.
Candidate name
Greig Thomas Soohen
Age
75
Occupation (s)
Retired from Telesat Canada/Telus, currently a BC Wedding Commissioner, Rotary Club of Gibsons volunteer
Which position are you running for?
Councillor
If not incumbent, list related municipal committee / civic group experience.
Gibsons District Volunteer Fire Department, Rotary, BC Marriage Commissioner, Pulling Together Canoe Journeys, Driftwood Players
Live in Gibsons? For how long?
35 years
What are your priorities if elected?
Improving housing availability – especially rental and affordable; Avoiding continual increase of property taxes each year; Supply of potable water; a "source to tap" approach
Should Gibsons facilitate creation of more affordable housing? How?
Yes. One possible measure would be to have 10% of all units that involve a rezoning be a rental. Another potential solution would be to limit the number of Air B&Bs as these units take rental units off the market.
What should council be doing to protect the Town’s water supply?
The needs of the existing and future residential as noted in the OCP can be accommodated but can only happen if water use is regulated, either voluntarily or bylaw restrictions.
Should Gibsons prepare for climate change? If so how?
See "Protecting Town's water supply" above. It's important not to forget the acquifer is recharged from water coming off Mt. Elphinstone. Town has recognized that fact and should redouble efforts to protect the watershed as a whole.
How can council mitigate the many upward pressures on property taxes?
Council can recover a greater share of funding from existing and new federal and provincial government programs out of what Gibsons' taxpayers already pay to both other levels government.
How would you balance pushback on development with need for housing?
Refer to my answer above on facilitate the creation of affordable housing. Additionally, something may be done for employees of the various businesses. Town could look at requiring a developer to provide a percentage of rental housing units for employees.
What do you wish we'd asked you?
Advocacy from Gibsons’ SCRD representative to remedy proposed SCRD Zoning Bylaw 722, which limits unscheduled public visits to home-based artist studios to six per day. Negative impact on the arts.
Greig Soohen for Gibsons Council
Who else is running for Gibsons council? See profiles for David Croal, Annemarie De Andrade, Desmond Delaney, Stafford Lumley, Blake MacLeod, Bob Morris, Christi Thompson, Leslie Thomson, Silas White and Phil Yeung.
