Whistler – It seems Mayor Ken Melamed will have to campaign to retain his job after all, with at least two new candidates for the leadership of the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) having stepped forward this week.
Kristi Wells, the four-term former municipal councillor who ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 2005, declared her candidacy for the top job on Tuesday (Oct. 7), while unknown newcomer Jag Mohan Bhandari, a resident of Surrey, submitted his nomination papers at municipal hall.
New candidates putting their names forward in nomination for one of the six seats on Whistler Council — both those who submitted their papers at municipal hall and those who verbally declared their intention to run — included businessman and biking organizer Grant Lamont, realtor Dave Sharpe, businessman Jack Crompton, photographer Dave Buzzard and accounts payable/night auditor Simon Briggs.
The announcements brought to 10 the number of people seeking election to Council. Previously, incumbents Ralph Forsyth, Bob Lorriman and Eckhard Zeidler had declared, as had former councillor Ted Milner and newcomer Bill Overing. The nomination deadline is Friday (Oct. 10) at 4 p.m.
Wells, who has been working as a consultant to various groups, including First Nations, since leaving the Council table in late 2005, had declared her candidacy for Council in July. However, in the past few weeks she has been talking to a lot of people who encouraged her to seek the top job.
“I think there are some real concerns out there about some decisions that have been made, about the lack of real leadership, and just the direction that Council has been taking,” Wells said. “I really feel I have some skills and background that I can offer the community.”
Pressed for specifics, Wells paused, choosing her words carefully.
“I think it’s leadership that is lacking in itself. Ken has worked hard but he doesn’t offer business acumen, he doesn’t demonstrate fiscal responsibility or political savvy. I think there hasn’t been enough attention given to fostering relationships with different levels of government so that we can take advantage of the opportunities that we can offer each other.”
Wells said her experience over the past three years has given her new insight into opportunities that Whistler might be missing. In particular, she said her work with the Squamish and Lil’wat on their 2010 “legacy” land in Whistler — seeking consensus on their needs and desires for the land, then trying to match those with what was possible and what was needed in Whistler — taught her a lot about how Whistler is perceived by others.
“I’ve learned a lot about working toward consensus as a team and working with (First Nations) on a project up that serves their needs and comes in under budget,” she said.
Wells added that she thinks changes are needed in the relationship between municipal hall and the community.
“It’s time to rebuild the trust in municipal decisions, government transparency and to physically change how we conduct our meetings so that they’re more accessible by means of the Internet… different times, to really engage in a meaningful way.”
She added, “The municipality needs to focus on the core business of being a government. More than any other municipality, we have resort partners like Tourism Whistler and the Chamber of Commerce who are incredibly strong at what they do. We need to support them but we don’t need to be in the T-shirt business, the resort branding business or the dot-com business.”
While she realizes she would have had a better chance of being elected had she run for Council, she decided to run for mayor “because I’m passionate about the need for change.”
Bhandari, who does not own property in Whistler, is allowed to run as long as he is a B.C. resident for at least six months and a Canadian citizen age 18 or older, and has not been disqualified from running under the Local Government Act, said Shannon Story, the municipality’s chief electoral officer.
Bhandari told The Question he has stakes in 16 different businesses, is an actor and film producer, and holds Masters degrees in English literature and political science and is working toward a Masters in history.
He said he moved to Canada from the India’s Punjab region in 1993. Since moving to Canada, he said, he has worked in different jobs “from cook to banker to insurance broker.”
His disclosure statement indicates that he owns a 66 per cent stake in Century 21 Apex International Services Ltd. He said that includes realty offices in Abbotsford, Delta and Burnaby.
Bhandari, who ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Surrey in 2005, said is trying to determine whether he’s allowed to also run for Surrey Council this time around.
“I’m campaigning for one vision, one world,” he said. “There are no manmade boundaries, and right now I am cruising around all over Canada, encouraging people to exercise your voting rights regardless of who you vote for, and promoting the world piece and communal harmony, bridging the gaps between different cultures.”
He said affordability and transportation are two key issues he sees in Whistler.
“Normally we are taking care of the buildings, but the living buildings they are not taking care of, which means local residents who live and work here, and people are paying $1,000 rent for one room without a kitchen.
Meanwhile, “The wealthy class owns five or 10 units and they remain empty. And the young people who work there would like to have a chance to own that.”
In a statement, Crompton — who recently sold Resort Cabs, which he founded in 2003 — said that if elected, his focus will be on connecting Council with businesses and residents.
While he said he has generally been supportive of the current council, “I think the engagement process is far too passive. If Council is more proactive in gaining feedback, I think better decisions will be made with far more community support.”
Lamont, a long-time resident, former Whistler Off Road Cycling Association (WORCA) president, businessman and founder of the Cheakamus Challenge bike race, said, “The main thing I want to bring to the table is a realistic view and somebody who knows how to work within a budget. I also want to focus on community and not so much on the resort. I see Whistler as a community with a resort in it, not a resort with a community in it.
“I don’t think that anyone has done a particularly bad job; I just think we need a bit of a change of focus and some new energy.”
Briggs, who has lived in Whistler for 10 years, said he has worked in a variety of jobs, sometimes three or four at a time. He currently works as an accounts payable clerk for Intrawest and as a night auditor, and also sometimes works in security.
He said housing is still as important of an issue as it was the day he arrived. “A lot of my friends have to move because there’s nowhere to live. We’re seeing the same thing that cities see in terms of brain drain, but we’re seeing it in a small town,” Briggs said.
“We need people that are going to speak for the average person, people who are having trouble making it here.”
Buzzard, a 34-year Whistler resident who has been a professional photographer for the past 11 years, said fiscal responsibility is most important to him.
In a statement, he said the next Council should “regain control of municipal capital spending,” adding that the budgets of projects such as the library and composting facility are “raging out of control.”
Council should also push for the construction of high-density, short-term rental space to house Whistler employees. “I believe that Council should explore granting property tax and development fees breaks, along with a fast-tracked re-zoning process, to make these types of projects more economically viable,” Buzzard said.
Sharpe could not be reached for comment. The election takes place Nov. 15.
