The opinions expressed on this site are my own and do not represent my official capacity as Mayor of View Royal or Council. This medium's sole purpose is to provide information and engagement opportunities with residents of View Royal so that we can benefit from respectful discourse on issues of relevance.
My Platform
During the Election:
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I will only run for two terms if elected and encourage others to run during my tenure to improve choice at the ballot box
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I won't put signs up for election because it doesn't make sense to me to put up a plastic sign that is used for a few weeks. I intend to use a digital campaign so we can have a discussion and others can share concerns and have a discussion. I will have some mail outs on recycled paper with a QR Code so you can join us here.
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I will not accept any corporate donations.
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I will only accept small donations from residents.
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I will focus on increasing the engagement opportunities for you to have your say either online or in person.
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I will not go door to door because it does not make sense in the COVID times we are still living in. I will however warmly welcome an opportunity to visit you individually or in groups online or outside during and after the campaign.
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I will offer respect to those I am in competition with and focus on the issues at hand.
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I will advocate for an empty homes and business tax similar to that imposed by Vancouver. It does not make sense to me to have empty houses that are often boarded up in the midst of a housing crises and where such properties often cause a threat to their neighbours.
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If Elected:
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I will use everything in my power to increase engagement opportunities for you and your government.
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I will recuse myself of any conflict of interest that may occur where I am biased.
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I will donate any raise in pay from the current level of renumeration for Mayor back to increasing engagement opportunities for you to interact with your local government. Currently a 32.6% increase is being considered for the Mayor's renumeration equaling $10,996 per year to become effective 1 January. I would invest that increase back into government effectiveness.
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I will always honour the hard working staff and volunteers who make View Royal and there is always a special reverence for our Fire Department having been volunteer fireman.
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Bio
I was born in Victoria and raised in the Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia. I grew up on a horse farm in a very small town called Paradise. My earliest recollections were of the importance of community and long discussions about how to use the land and the impacts of decisions that would last generations. I remember listening allot to the mothers of small farmers who survived the depression, the wars and despite tremendous hardship raised families. They are my heroes… and always will be.
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I have called Victoria home for most of my adult life with the exception of several years at sea with the Royal Canadian Navy, a posting to Ottawa and many operations in support of National Security. I have lived in View Royal for 12 years with my wife Jocelyn in an incredible neighbourhood surrounded by honest, hardworking folks that I consider my friends. I spend my spare time gardening and lovingly restoring a 60 year old house, walking my black Labrador, Hunter and cooking gourmet food for my friends when my wife allows it.
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I currently work as the Director of Digital Services for the Environmental Assessment Office in Victoria. It is an incredible organization of folks passionate about mitigating the effects of development on our environment. I build teams that build software to try to make the best decisions on large developments in British Columbia. Much of my work is spent improving the access of information for the public to help them inform government of the issues surrounding proposed development. I work with teams scattered across Canada and the rest of the world. I learn from my teams every day and very much appreciate it when they challenge my perspective. I try my hardest to prepare them to take my place one day and improve what I could not.
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Prior to my work with the Environmental Assessment Office I was Director of Digital Standards at Advanced Education and Skills Training where I coordinated Security, Privacy, Service Desk, Architecture and Digital Transformation. Prior to that I was with Information, Innovation and Technology Division for the Natural Resource Ministries where I lead some of the first Agile Software Development Teams for BC Wildfire Predictive Services and Range BC that controls the use of crown land for grazing. I worked out of the Lab that was experimenting with new ways of developing software where I also coached Product Owners across government. I have created and delivered Digital Leadership and instructed several hundred provincial, municipal and federal employees how to lead teams at times of uncertainty.
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I transitioned from the Canadian Armed Forces to the Provincial Public Service in 2015. It was one of the hardest challenges I have ever faced and admittedly it sometimes still is difficult. I worked initially as transformation expert, business architect and business analyst. I focused on developing people and training new skill sets to allow them to think differently about challenges and to work together as a team to solve them. I encourage folks to reach out to the public for real input and build services that will add value to their lives.
I completed his Masters in Learning and Technology and Royal Roads University with Knowledge Management, I am a certified Project Manager and Product Owner.