Salt Spring Island LCC
View from the Chair

I am committed to the success of the LCC. That is my highest priority, as it should be for every candidate. I am not running to push a particular viewpoint, agenda, or set of interests. My role would be to act in the best interests of the island and its residents as a whole and over the long term. I support the principles of good government – competence, transparency, accountability, collaboration, and accessibility. I also recognize the magnitude of the job ahead.  Even the limited initial mandate of the LCC will require an extensive time commitment. Yet, the commissioners will also need to engage from the outset in pushing the intergovernmental coordination needed to address our most pressing problems.

​

That said, the first task of the new LCC commissioners will be to demonstrate to the community that they can do the job given to them in the enabling bylaw and do it well. I have 25 years experience in government finance and administration – budgeting, policy development, facilities planning, project management. I have worked extensively with both operating and capital budgets in a government setting and had primary responsibility for an annual facilities budget in excess of $10,000,000. I have managed government facilities projects from conception to completion, including initial needs assessment, preparing and supporting funding requests to the legislature, budgeting, predesign, design, site selection, construction, and move-in. Projects have ranged in scale from rural field offices for 20 staff to a multi-agency office building of over 300,000 usable square feet spanning two city blocks to a height of six storeys with a budget over $100,000,000.

​

 I also spent over a decade in the private sector, in operations management and finance with closely held corporations.  As comptroller for a construction company, I knew what it was like to keep a keen eye on cash flow to ensure that the company could meet payroll and quarterly tax payments. My business background and master’s degree in management will be an asset in working on economic sustainability issues and in interfacing with our business community.

​

I have contributed my time and skills volunteering for several registered charities and non-profit groups on Salt Spring. I am Treasurer of the Bandemonium Music Society which supports the Bandemonium Concert Band and Swing Shift Big Band. I am Treasurer of the Island Wildlife Natural Care Centre and President of the Salt Spring Island Garden Club. I am POD leader of our neighbourhood POD and serve on the Salt Spring Emergency Management POD planning group. I serve on the facilities planning group for the Saltspring Island Sailing Club.

​

The LCC commissioners will need to establish productive working relationships with one another, CRD staff, and the CRD Director in order to fulfill their primary responsibility to oversee and administer delegated services. I spent much of my career leading or coordinating decision-making groups. Differences of opinion will always arise. Consistent success in reaching consensus requires respect for all participants, attentive listening to the concerns and views of others, the ability to understand and restate opposing opinions clearly, a solid understanding of the facts and data, and a commitment to logical, evidence-based decisions. This approach has been successful for me when leading planning and implementation groups for large government projects and when working with local charity and non-profit groups on Salt Spring. The LCC will need similar collaborative relationships with other governmental and elected bodies to make progress on the biggest issues facing Salt Spring, all of which are cross jurisdictional and fall largely outside of the LCC mandate.