‘Outgoing’ Address to 2022-2026 Salmon Arm Council

Being on council has been a deeply meaningful experience and I’ve got lots of people to thank for that.

To my wife Nancy, our daughters and my in-laws Ken & Adeleine Kolkind (who are perhaps the best campaigners in our whole family): You were the foundation that supported me in doing this.

To our friends, whether you were a part of a mighty sign crew or offered encouragement or sometimes just gave space to have normal conversations rather than political talk:  I always felt validated in our social gatherings.

To the many Salmon Arm residents who reached out to talk – no matter if we agreed on things or not: I have learned so much from your perspectives that you’ve shared with me. You shaped my understandings immeasurably.

To City staff: Your professionalism and dedication to a better Salmon Arm is unparalleled. Council’s job is to make policy decisions. Staff’s job is to implement those directives faithfully and you have done so consistently. I recognize the heavy lifting you all do for Salmon Arm’s benefit. On a more personal note, I’ve needed some workplace accommodations in order to fulfill my council role. You’ve supported me seamlessly in making this happen and I appreciate your efforts in doing that.

So: Thanks to all of you who’ve provided these circles of support.

To our current ‘Outgoing’ council – and really for all 3 previous ones over the past 12 years:

Continue reading “‘Outgoing’ Address to 2022-2026 Salmon Arm Council” →

2026 Local Election Candidates Q&As Summary

Click on Continue Reading just below for the whole thread posted fall 2026

Local Candidates Q&As

I’m just gonna stare at you until you vote!

Here’s a summary spot for all of Q&As for Salmon Arm candidates for mayor, council & SD83 Trustees via Aim High

Aim High as a hub featured 3 portals to Q&As being asked in the community: (1) Links to what other media (SA Observer, FriAM etc) and community organizations are posting (2) Qs from the public that are sent to AHSA then to the candidates. Note: My commitment was to ensure that the questions werefair, respectful and apply to all of the candidates. (3) A few short questions by me – mainly on governance-related matters – to all candidates in all of the 3 local races.

Continue reading “2026 Local Election Candidates Q&As Summary” →

Salmon Arm 2026 Local Gov’t Election Results

Here’re the CSA results from our local elections yesterday from CivicInfo BC. https://localelections.ca/election_results/116_2026_results.html Approximately a 34% turnout of eligible voters up from 29.8% last time. Note: These are preliminary pending official confirmation by the Chief Elections Officer in the next short while.

Click on Continue Reading just below for more #SalmonArm voting 2026 data

Continue reading “Salmon Arm 2026 Local Gov’t Election Results” →

A Heck_Yes Heck_No Double Decker!

On the eve of #SalmonArm’s General Voting Day …

Heck_Yes #1 goes to the wide range of experience, capacities and commitment to SA that candidates are offering residents. While the final outcome is unclear, a range of solid citizens have put their good names forward to help make responsible decisions for our city. The large numbers of candidates does mean that residents have work to do to fully understand these choices but this is a good problem for us to have!

Heck_No #1 goes to those few candidates focussing on grievances and conspiratorial thinking as reasons to vote for them. Yup it’s the We/For the People crowd emerging once again after being summarily rejected by voters in 2022. Salmon Arm voters didn’t buy this nonsense 4 years ago and won’t now, no matter what manifestos or post-rationalizations these candidates are now promoting. Time will soon tell but the prospect for chaos and drama associated with these candidates is my big Heck_No of this 2026 campaign.

Click on Continue Reading just below for the rest of the Hecks!

Continue reading “A Heck_Yes Heck_No Double Decker!” →