Abbotsford is the fifth largest city in BC and one of the best cities in the world. I want to continue working with you to help make it even better.
I’ve lived in Abbotsford since 1953, was the CEO of Canada’s largest privately held transit construction company, and served on many boards and committees within the City of Abbotsford. After retiring and selling the company, I was happy to serve you for three years as an Abbotsford City Councillor. In 2104, you elected me as your mayor for a four-year term. In October 2018, you elected me as your mayor for another four years. Thank you for your trust.
I look forward to serving you through 2022.
I understand the issues that face our city and I deeply care about the long-term health of our community, while I appreciate our need to see things happen now.
Yes, Abbotsford has had many challenges, but I am pleased to say your Abbotsford City Council has worked together to bring forward and put into action a plan to either overcome or make great strides towards mitigating these challenges.
Abbotsford City Council has recently achieved fiscal discipline, which means our City’s financial house is in order. We now have strong, consistent governance and aligned operations we refer to as organizational alignment, which means departments at City Hall talk to each other rather than operate within silos, and that means you are served better. We’ve made development decisions based on our long-term strategies and are not swayed from our community vision by short-term gains.
We recognize the importance of certainty in community building and that our rules and bylaws are critical to protecting the livability of our city. We support efficient and effective delivery of our city services and programs and pursue excellence in customer service, striving to always provide a positive customer experience. We believe in an involved, safe, and engaged workforce.
A complete community and vibrant economy add up to a
higher quality of life in Abbotsford.
After my first term as mayor, Abbotsford is more business friendly, the city budget and five-year financial plan are sound, and the planning for a walkable, livable city continues to be intense. During the next four years, I plan to focus efforts on building both a
- complete community that includes heightened arts and culture, connected bike lanes, and making walking and transit easy—even delightful—and
- vibrant economy, which means building and broadening our tax base (industrial development) so we can provide the things our community needs to enhance our quality of life.
I have forged strong relationships with both provincial and federal government ministers and I’ll continue to work with them to advocate for and support Abbotsford in its efforts to address important issues like poverty, homelessness, mental health, public safety, Highway 1 congestion, glass recycling, and the opioid overdose crisis.
Escalating commercial vacancies were once an issue – but not today. In fact, today our local economy is humming on all fronts. As your mayor, I will continue to work this second term to ensure Abbotsford grows and thrives for generations to come.
As always, I’d love to hear your ideas for making Abbotsford an even better place to live, work, learn, and play.
