***Please take our quiz before reading this Q&A.***
Sylvia Bishop is one of the candidates running for mayor in this month's civic election. Here are her responses to a questionnaire from the Optimist:
1. Housing – Delta’s housing stock, developed largely in the 1960s and 1970s, is under pressure. What are your plans to ensure there are affordable housing options and what will you do to protect the integrity of existing neighbourhoods?
Team Delta and I announced in early September our ‘Action Plan’ for Affordable Housing and Rental Accommodation.
We pledged to hold, within 100 days of winning election to Council, a ‘Housing Summit’ that would include economists, academics, community and housing activists, developers, leading Delta residents and others, to explore and identify policies that will improve the municipality’s stock of affordable housing and rental accommodation.
With insight and information gleaned from that Summit, Delta’s newly-elected Mayor and Council may enact new municipal policies to take effect early next year.
We also released a 16-page research paper entitled “A Made in Delta Solution,” that examined the factors which have led to the current situation of unaffordability, and studied policies developed in other communities, notably Langford, Quesnel and New Westminster that might be re-purposed for Delta.
2. Marijuana – The legalization of marijuana in Canada has created a number of issues for local government. Do you have concerns over where cannabis could be grown and where it could be sold in Delta?
Yes, I am concerned about the production and retail-sale of cannabis in the City of Delta.
I do not support the retail sale of recreational cannabis in local stores, nor do I believe that cannabis should replace soil-based food crops on valuable farmland, even if some farmers embrace the ‘green-rush’ of a new cash-crop. I believe that we first need to be able to feed ourselves.
I do support cannabis production in industrial areas, but insist that they must be in enclosed buildings with bio-filters to mitigate odours.
In the event I am elected as Mayor of Delta I will fight for our city’s fair-share of the Province of B.C.’s cannabis revenues so we can offset municipal costs associated with law enforcement and public education.
3. Municipal debt – A no new borrowing policy instituted almost two decades ago has eliminated Delta’s debt. Will you continue this policy or do you see the need to borrow to undertake certain capital projects?
Yes, Team Delta and I will continue our city’s ‘no new debt’ policy. Our city’s elected Mayor and Council have worked exceptionally hard over many, many years to ensure the elimination of Delta’s debt – an accomplishment for which an un-elected, retired city bureaucrat now claims credit.
Early in this year’s election campaign, Team Delta and I announced two specific initiatives to impact our city’s financial health and well-being. First, we published a ‘Fiscal Framework’ that examined Delta’s finances from 2011 to 2017, and then forecast revenues, expenditures and debt over the period of the next elected council, from 2018 to 2022.
That Fiscal Framework – a document which has been prepared by no other campaign-team in Delta, ever – also demonstrated our pledge to maintain affordable services without either raising taxes or generating new debt.
Second, we vowed to establish a new Economic Development Office that would encourage investment in our city, create new jobs and generate additional municipal revenues.
Remarkably, the previous leadership at Delta’s City Hall left our municipality as one of the very few in B.C. that does not have either an office or department dedicated to economic growth.
Team Delta and I will correct that long-standing deficiency.
4. Recreation facilities – Delta has an ever-growing wish list of parks and recreation projects that is well in excess of $100 million. Do you have any projects you see as priorities and how do you intend to pay for them?
Team Delta’s unique ‘Fiscal Framework’ illustrates that our city annually has been – and will be – able to record sizeable fiscal surpluses. It requires on-going fiscal discipline, prudent spending and an ‘Action Plan’ for Economic Development that promotes revenue growth.
With careful fiscal management, we can pay for new or improved parks and recreation projects from current revenues.
At present the City of Delta has many parks and recreational facilities of which we all can be proud – notably Watershed Park, the North 40 and the North Delta Recreation Centre, plus the North Delta Arts Centre which currently is under construction.
I personally believe that one of the hallmarks of a thriving and healthy community is its amenity-spaces, places where residents can enjoy the natural environment. Team Delta and I believe that while our city has many beautiful, natural amenities, we can do more and we can do better.
The North Delta Track replacement-project is a top priority for Team Delta and me. I will ensure that the city acts expeditiously to finalize our applications to obtain as much as 77 per cent of the necessary funding from the federal and provincial governments.
5. End of service benefit – Early last year Delta council unanimously approved an end of service benefit for civic politicians. Do you agree with the idea of a golden handshake and do you believe it should be backdated for 12 years?
Delta Council received a report on a new end-of-service benefit more than a year ago from our then-City Manager, George Harvie. Mr. Harvie subsequently retired as a senior civil-servant, and now is seeking election as Mayor of Delta.
Mr. Harvie’s report recommended that members of Delta Council who had served continuously for up to 12 years receive a one-time payout based on their salary and length of service.
The intent was to provide a modest ‘transition allowance’ to councillors who had served our community on a near full-time basis but did not have a pension or other financial support upon departure from Council.
According to an analysis by the Delta Optimist, Mayor Lois Jackson – who also has announced her retirement, but now is seeking re-election to Council as a member of Mr. Harvie’s slate – would receive a payout in excess of $124,000.
While I believe the new policy was well-intentioned, it was not appropriate for Council to vote in favour of a financial benefit that would accrue to current councillors. Nor was it appropriate to allow Mr. Harvie to submit the proposal to Council without first seeking public input.
If I am elected as Mayor on October 20, I will ensure that Council revisits this policy and consults with the public before any new financial benefit for elected officials is considered.
6. Lobby for bridge/crossing – The City of Delta has been an outspoken advocate for a new Fraser River crossing, specifically the 10-lane bridge approved by the former Liberal government. Would your administration continue to advocate for the bridge or do you support a different approach?
Only the provincial government has the financial resources to pay for a new Fraser River crossing, whether a new bridge, an expanded tunnel or a different option.
The Province of B.C. this year has a budget with expenditures forecast at $53.6 Billion. By comparison the City of Delta’s planned spending in 2018 totals just $227 million – or about 0.4 per cent of what the provincial government is expected to spend.
So while the Province has the financial resources to build a new bridge, an expanded or new tunnel or another alternative, the City of Delta must work in partnership with Victoria to ensure that the best decision is made.
Our preferred option – because it leaves a smaller ‘footprint’ on agricultural land – is a new bridge. We will communicate that to provincial officials, and also press for additional public-transit resources to relieve congestion.
7. Casino – Delta council’s approval of Gateway’s casino proposal was not without controversy. With construction poised to begin soon, what do you plan to do with casino revenues and what measures do you plan to take to ensure a casino isn’t a negative impact on the community?
The City of Delta is forecast to receive up to $3 million annually – and possibly more – in gaming transfers once the new hotel-casino project is in full operation.
Team Delta and I unveiled this past August our innovative ‘Action Plan’ for Health-Care. Under that plan we will dedicate a portion of Delta’s gaming revenues to improving the health services available to local residents, and especially for those unable to find their own family doctor.
Shockingly, Delta – along with other communities in the Fraser Health Authority region – has the lowest proportion of family doctors anywhere in B.C.
Team Delta and I are determined to correct that situation, and will use gaming revenues to, among other things (a) offer financial incentives – including student loans and bursaries – to medical-school students who contract to practice in Delta, (b) attend medical job fairs to recruit physicians looking to re-locate, and c) assist medical students and graduates with recruitment-visit costs.
We also announced a new suite of 44 scholarships and grants to be made available from gaming revenues – up to $95,000 annually – to Delta high-school students who wish to study medicine or another health-care field at a post-secondary institution.
Our aim is to help young Delta students as they set out on a career in health-care, with the belief that many or all later will return to practice in our community and deliver superb health care for our growing and aging population.
8. Property taxes – Two recent studies have Delta near the top of Lower Mainland municipalities in terms of local government spending on a per capita basis. Do you believe Delta property owners are overtaxed or do you think they get good value for their tax dollars?
Two questions: First, no, I do not believe that Delta property owners are overtaxed, and second, yes, I believe all Delta residents get good value for our tax dollars.
While not everyone always agrees with the Fraser Institute or the Canadian Federation of Independent Business – the entities who conducted the studies of Lower Mainland municipalities – it is nonetheless a useful exercise to examine how local governments spend tax-dollars.
It also is important to note that one key factor was not taken into account by either study – which is that Delta has the 4th largest land-base in Metro Vancouver: more than 180 square kilometres.
We have three communities – North Delta, Ladner and Tsawwassen – separated by significant distances, and our municipal employees have a lot of territory to cover. With the 6th largest population in Metro Vancouver, our population-density is 12th.
We have a lot of services to provide to local residents who are spread over a very large area – which adds to our local operating costs. Team Delta and I are very proud of the services our city provides to local residents – and the fact that we get very, very good value for our tax-dollars.
9. Enviro-Smart -- The stench from the composting facility in East Ladner continues to infuriate neighbours. Do you feel the air quality permit issued by Metro Vancouver will sufficiently address the situation and do you believe such an operation should be located on farmland?
There are two issues regarding the Enviro-Smart facility. First, the stench emanating from the composting operation is unacceptable. There can be no doubt that East Ladner residents have been negatively impacted by the composting facility’s awful odours.
The City of Delta must continue to work with GFL, Enviro-Smart’s owners, as they construct a fully-enclosed building and install state-of-the-art bio-filters.
Second, the actions of George Harvie, the former City Manager currently is seeking election as Mayor, are exceptionally troubling. According to documents from Metro Vancouver, Mr. Harvie fought ‘strenuously’ against both public consultation and the need for Enviro-Smart to obtain an air-quality permit.
Team Delta and I began our 2018 election-campaign with a pledge of Ethical Conduct. Following revelations of Mr. Harvie’s questionable actions, we committed to an ‘Action Plan’ for Ethical Local Government to prevent future abuses of power.
It simply is a matter of trust.
10. Farmland speculation -- More than 1,200 citizens have signed a petition stating their opposition to the possibility that a piece of farmland in central Tsawwassen could become home to a greenhouse or even residential development. What steps can be taken to ensure land speculation doesn’t negatively impact residents?
Team Delta and I believes our city is unique in British Columbia largely because of our precious farmland and our dynamic farming families. Should we win election as Mayor and councillors on October 20, we will fight to protect our agricultural interests.
The City of Delta’s Agricultural Plan needs to be reviewed and updated in consultation with farmers and other agricultural interests, and both Team Delta and I will work for land-swaps to ensure there is no net loss of farmland through development.
We will work cooperatively with senior-levels of government to promote investments in irrigation and drainage, and believe the time is right to champion a new regional-processing plant, address the cost of water used for agricultural purposes, and improve irrigation to Westham Island.
