What do the council candidates actually stand for?

In the second full week of the election campaign, there are few clues as to what Kamloops City council candidates might do if elected.

The hot-button issues of the Ajax mine and the Lorne Street parkade are the only ones that offer clear trends.

They’re all avoiding like the plague anything in the way of a position on the mine. We must wait for more information, they say. Chad Moats comes closest to actually taking a stand, proposing that city boundaries be extended to include the mine if it gets the green light.

That’s hardly revolutionary but at least he’s thinking ahead.

As for the parkade, as the writing on the wall became clear, first-time candidates became less cautious, and a clear “build it somewhere else” thread became evident.
Ken Christian stands out, almost alone among newcomers, in having supported construction of the parkade at the Lorne Street site.

That’s a pretty gutsy thing given the math. He put at risk close to 10,000 votes, which is the number of people who signed the counter petition. When people take the trouble to sign a petition, you can count them as committed voters.

That is a whopping constituency in an election that could generate one of the lowest turnouts in history. In 2008, a miserable 28 per cent of the electorate voted in what was characterized by media as a “lacklustre” campaign.

Yet, that campaign had three candidates running for an open mayor’s seat. With five candidates but no real competition this time, will the turnout be any better?

If not, and the turnout is only around 15,000 to 18,000, those 10,000 voters with an agenda will loom pretty large should they decide to take revenge.

But there will be other good issues to chew on in this election. City spending and the local economy, though not particularly sexy, are likely to rank high on voters’ lists of concerns.

Brendan Shaw identifies job creation as the big issue and says Kamloops needs more businesses. So, candidate Shaw, what are your ideas on what to do about it?

Incumbent John DeCicco wants “economic growth and orderly development for our city.”

Can’t argue with that — I doubt any candidates will be advocating for a stagnant economy and chaotic development.

Ayren Messmer would like a better working relationship with the Tk’emloops Indian Band, and Raymond Nyuli wants to “develop a more cohesively working council.”

So, please explain what’s not working with the status quo.

Marg Spina? The one-term councillor wants to hold the line on taxes. That’s an attractive position, but how do we deal with inflation?

Campaigns are for putting flesh on the bones of promises. Just as importantly, they’re for judging credentials. Christian, for example, has years of work on the school board. Moats led the anti-HST campaign. DeCicco and Spina have resumes that include years of both community and political experience.

What the candidates say they will do is only one yardstick in judging who’s worthy of support, and they’ll have plenty of opportunity to enlarge on their ideas.

We’re heading into forum season, and they face a heavy round of speaking engagements morning, noon and night, including the media-sponsored forum at TRU on Nov. 8.